Overview

The Inventory Tool is an optional Printer’s Plan module that lets you track on‑hand stock and reserve material for scheduled jobs — all from within the Scheduler and Job windows. Use it primarily for paper, envelopes, and other consumables, but you can enable it for any service whose quantity you wish to monitor.

• How It Works
• Article Update Workflow
• Key Points
• Demonstration

How It Works

The workflow has five routine stages plus two reference screens:

1. Getting Ready – decide which services to track and set their inventory properties.
2. Checking Inventory – reserve stock for incoming work and highlight shortages.
3. Ordering Inventory – create purchase orders for the shortages identified.
4. Receiving Inventory – post deliveries to increase on‑hand counts.
5. Consuming Inventory – mark jobs Done to deduct actual usage.
6. History – review every order and receipt transaction.
7. Options – set system‑wide behaviors (sorting, prompts, XML export, etc.).

1. Getting Ready

Begin by switching off tracking for every service, then re‑enable it only where needed:

• Select Scheduler Tab in Printer's Plan's top navigation. 
• Select the Departments > All view to locate the Inventory Menu

(The image below shows the Scheduler tab selected and the tab highlighted with a red square. The  Departments: All"  option is highlighted and an arrow pointing to the Inventory window. The menu option Setup/Adjust is highlighted in a red square. )

Figure 1 - The Inventory menu with the option "Setup/Adjust" highlighted. 

Open Scheduler ▸Department ▸ Inventory ▸ Setup/Adjust.  The list shows all active services; tick the Track column for each stock item you want to monitor.

(The image below shows the Inventory - Setup/Adjust window with all services listed. The 'Service...' header is clicked to reveal a menu called 'Track Options For All Services Listed and the option Track None is highlighted. )

Figure 2 - The "Track Options for All Services listed" window with "Track None" highlighted. 

1. Click the Service column. You will see a menu labeled: Track Option for All Services Listed.
2. Click OK to apply Track None. This will turn off the tracking option for all services. Icons will disappear. 
3. Click Save Changes at the bottom of the Inventory: Setup/Adjust Window.

You will see which Services are being tracked and which ones are not tracking inventory by a house symbol next to the name of the service. 

Figure 3 - The Inventory - Setup/Adjust window with the tracking icons highlighted next to the Service Name.

2. Inventory Properties

You can edit these fields in the Setup/Adjust window by clicking Service Properties or inside the service setup window’s own More Properties dialog.

• SKU – vendor code.
• Minimum Level – triggers the To‑Order flag.
• Ream / Pack Qty – rounds order quantities.
• In‑Stock / On‑Order – live quantities.
• Unit Cost – pulled from Run Table.

Figure 4 - The More Service Properties... window with the Inventory features highlighted.

• To open this window, click More Service Properties... from the Service Setup Window or Service Setup from the "Inventory - Setup/Adjust" screen. 

3. Checking Inventory

Select Scheduler ▸ Inventory ▸ Check to see every tracked service against live jobs.  Quantities needed are reserved the moment you run this check, preventing another job from “stealing” the paper.

Figure 5 - The Check Inventory window. 

Click OK  --> Update Priority field of Job Services.

4. Ordering Inventory

Open the Order window from the Inventory menu or via a job’s Check Inventory button.  Enter the quantity to buy; Printer’s Plan updates the On‑Order figure, logs the transaction, and flags the relevant job services as On‑Order.

Figure 6 - The Order Inventory window.

To see Items, double-click the cell or click the Need Breakdown button. 

Need Breakdown Window

Figure 7 - The Need Breakdown window.

Click OK  --> Update OnOrder field of Services and Priority field of Job Services.

5. Receiving Inventory

Use Receive to post deliveries.  Quantities move from On‑Order to In‑Stock; history records are created.

Figure 8 - The Receive Inventory window.

The Receive column indicates the amount that will be used to update the inventory total or the amount received after being ordered. 

Click OK  --> Update In Stock and On Order fields of Services and Priority field of Job Services.

6. Consuming Inventory

When production finishes, mark the paper service as Done (green checkmark) in Scheduler » Departments.  Confirm the actual quantity used; the figure is deducted from In‑Stock and posted to job cost.

Figure 9 - The Scheduler Departments view with the service square identified.

If the option within the Inventory Options menu called Open Quantity Used window to confirm/edit Quantity Used is selected, the Confirm Inventory Used window will appear. This window contains 3 fields:

• In-Stock Was: Defines the current inventory before applying changes.
• Less Quantity Used: How much inventory is being removed with this action. 
• In-Stock Now: The updated total after this change is confirmed.

Figure 10 - The Scheduler Departments view with the service square identified.

7. History

Inventory ▸ History ▸ List shows every order and receipt; use History ▸ XML for custom exports (requires the XML tool).

Figure 11 - The Inventory History - List window.

8. Options

Set defaults such as service sorting, automatic prompts, and XML templates in Inventory ▸ Options.

Which Services do you want to list in the Check Inventory and Order Inventory windows?

• Only the Services of Orders-In-Progress (uncheck to list Services of All Orders): Changes how the system behaves when checking for inventory as title describes.
• Only the Services of Items-In-Production (uncheck to list Services of All Items):  Changes how the system behaves when checking for inventory as title describes. 
• (reserved): Unused

After checking a Service as Done

• Open Quantity Used window to confirm/edit Quantity Used: Displays a confirmation window for amount used to remove from inventory.
• If Quantity Used is edited, update Actual Quantity and Cost of the Job: Allows Quantity Used value to update the costs of the job.

Other Options:

• Sort Services by Vendor (uncheck to sort by Service Category): Changes sorting to organize by Vendor.
• Save Unit Cost if edited. IMPORTANT: This option effects pricing. Uncheck if not sure.: Adjusts costs manually and saves the value. 
• Allow ordering/editing inventory from the Job window (uncheck to preview): Allows the Jobs tab to order and edit inventory from the Check Inventory button. 

Figure 12 - The Inventory Options window with important options highlighted.

Key Points

• Track only the services that matter; leave others off for clarity.
• Run Check Inventory at the start of each shift to reserve stock.
• Use Order and Receive windows to maintain accurate on‑hand values.
• Mark services Done promptly—this final step posts actual usage and job cost.
• History lists and XML exports give auditors a complete paper trail.

Demonstration

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