Do you Rent Wheels/Tires?

If you are renting wheels/tires, the Wheel/Tire Ram Quick Launch icon for inventory is displayed.

Click here to start the Add Inventory Wizard Tutorial

This is the main Inventory Wizard layout.

As you make choices and click NEXT the left panel is updated with the information about this item.  This allows the user to see the progress of adding inventory as each field is added.

The item number must be a unique number.  There is no limit to the length of the inventory item number.  However, the item number will remain associated with a particular piece of inventory for the life of the item.  When entering inventory items for a store in a multiple-store rental operation, be sure that the inventory item being assigned is correct, because ALL inventory is combined in the database for The RAM System Corporate Edition.

The description is another field used to describe a piece of inventory.  Since many inventory items are alike, this field may be used to identify the item uniquely if needed. The description is not a required field.

The model number field identifies an item's model number.  Model numbers are entered in the Model File to track their pricing and vendor information. The drop-down box reveals all the models previously entered in the Model File. The model description is displayed in the box next to the drop-down box. The user must select a valid model in order to add an inventory record.
 

NO ACTIVE MODELS

The serial number field identifies an item's serial number.  The serial number can be letters or numbers and is also unlimited in length.

The photo location is used to link the photo file stored on your computer to this particular inventory record.  When a  valid graphic file is located the picture appears on the screen with the inventory record.

Click Browse to find the file to attach.

Click the displayed picture to see a larger image.

When the image is displayed you can click the "X" to close the window when you have finished reviewing, or you can click PRINT to print the image.

The category field groups inventory items into categories or groups of items, such as 19" Televisions or 3-Piece Living Room Group.  The categories are entered in the Category File to define the groups for your store.  These categories are grouped together under Department codes.  A Department is a larger group of inventory like Electronics or Appliances.  The drop-down box reveals all the categories previously entered in the Category File.

The brand field identifies a particular brand of an inventory item.  The brands are entered in the Brand File to define all the brands for your store.  The drop-down box reveals all the brands previously entered in the Brand File.

The status field describes whether an inventory item is available for rent, in the shop for service, on rent to a customer etc.  The status codes are entered in the Status File to describe the different places an inventory might be.  The drop-down box reveals the idle or idle-unavailable status codes previously entered in the Status File.

Since this file contains more fields than will fit on one screen, there are tabs containing more fields for input.  Be sure to check these tabs before saving.

1.  Highlight the item then click the DELETE button at the top of the inventory grid.

If this message is displayed, the inventory item was either not purchased today, or the item has activity such as being rented, service, loaned etc.  You cannot delete an item after activity has occurred.  Click OK.

Choose an item that can be deleted.

When the inventory item has been deleted, this message is displayed.

Click OK.

The next available inventory item number is displayed as the default when adding inventory records.  If you choose to input your own inventory and do not select the automatic next inventory number, that number is not changed and is available for

the next item added.

Operation > Utilities > Company Setup > Next Number Tab

An item is the smallest group of inventory, specifies one item or a set of items counted as one item.

Where is the 13" TV I delivered yesterday?

Which item is John Smith renting?

The item number remains attached to this piece of inventory throughout its entire life.  But the most important reason to be careful when choosing a block of numbers, is to make sure the inventory items are not duplicated if you have multiple stores.  When The RAM System Corporate Edition pulls the information from all the stores, these item numbers must be unique.  Transferring inventory between stores can be confusing if the item numbers are the same.  So each location should choose a unique block of inventory item numbers for their own store.

No.  But if you want to track every single piece of inventory it must be given a number.  Keep in mind that some items may have multiple pieces.  For example, a 3-PC Living Room group with a Sofa, Love Seat and Chair, each of these items can be given the same item number, especially if you know that they cannot be rented separately.  A 5-PC Dining Room may have a table and (4) four chairs, but the set is the item and all the pieces would have the same item number because they cannot be separated.

The absolute quickest way to see the number of AIR CONDITIONERS or any other category of inventory is to go to the Inventory Lookup grid, and sort the grid by the Category column.
 
Use the grid to sort by any of the column headings, to see a summarized view, that is expandable by clicking the PLUS on each row.

Type in the item number in the Search ItemID field, press TAB.

When the item is highlighted click PROCEED to lookup an inventory item.

The cash price of an item is disabled if the item is rented on an agreement.  A rented item's cash price is directly associated with the rental agreement and cannot be changed during the time the item is rented.  If a mistake has been made and the cash price of an active item needs to be adjusted, you must terminate the item from the agreement and then make the adjustments before re-renting the item.

The system automatically fills in the missing numbers in your data.  If 9001 is the next number listed in the Next Number section, but the system tells you the next number is 8999, it is because 8999 is not in the Inventory file and it is within the block of numbers you have assigned in Next Number as your block of available item numbers.  It will not assign an inventory number that is outside the range of the block of inventory numbers and it will not assign an inventory number that has already been assigned.  Once the empty spaces, sequentially, in the block of numbers has been filled the next number assigned in the file is used.  If you want to use a particular number instead, simply type the number instead of accepting the automatically assigned number.

When the day is closed the system prevents you from adding or changing any inventory records.

Click OK and then click on Open the Day if you want to add or change inventory.

Security is the best method to prevent unauthorized employees from changing inventory records.

If a user changes an inventory record, an exception is written. See also: Exceptions Report

When adding an inventory record, if the item number input is already associated with an inventory record, this message is displayed.

 
Input the item number correctly.

Check in the Inventory File to see if the item you are trying to add has already been added by another user.

Check in Operation > Utilities > Company Setup > Next Number to make sure the block of numbers to use has been set correctly.

When adding an inventory record, if the user inputs a number which is below the minimum block of inventory numbers this message is displayed, telling the user to enter an item number greater than the minimum number.

Input a different item number, or input the item number correctly.

Check in Operation > Utilities > Company Setup > Next Number to make sure the block of numbers to use has been set correctly.

When adding an inventory record, if the user inputs a number which is higher than the maximum block of inventory numbers this message is displayed, telling the user to enter an item number less than the maximum number.

 
Input a different item number, or input the item number correctly.

Check in Operation > Utilities > Company Setup > Next Number to make sure the block of numbers to use has been set correctly.

When adding an inventory record this requires the user to input a description on EVERY inventory item added using the Add Inventory Wizard.

Input a description for each item.

Check in Operation > Utilities > Company Setup > Misc. Info to make sure the Require Description in Inventory flag is set correctly.

When adding an inventory record this requires the user to input a serial number on EVERY inventory item added using the Add Inventory Wizard.

Input a serial number for each item.

Check in Operation > Utilities > Company Setup > Misc. Info to make sure the Require Serial Number in Inventory flag is set correctly.

The category field in the Inventory file is required.  You must select a valid category in order to save the Inventory record.  If you do not enter a valid category or you leave the category field blank this error is displayed when you click SAVE or try to exit.

 
Choose a valid category from the drop-down list.

Files > Support Files > Category and add a new category record.

The brand field in the Inventory file is required.  You must select a valid brand in order to save the Inventory record.  If you do not enter a valid brand or you leave the brand field blank this error is displayed when you click SAVE or try to exit.

 
Choose a valid brand from the drop-down list.

Files > Support Files > Brand and add a new brand record.

The model field in the Inventory file is required.  You must select a valid model in order to save the inventory record.  If you do not enter a valid model or you leave the model field blank this error is displayed when you click SAVE or try to exit.

Choose a valid model from the drop-down list.

Files > Inventory Files > Model and add a new model record.

The color field in the Inventory file is required.  You must select a valid color in order to save the inventory record.  If you do not want to track the color on this Inventory item, select "Not Used".  If you do not enter a valid color or you leave the color field blank this error is displayed when you click SAVE or try to exit.

Choose a valid color from the drop-down list.

Files > Support Files > Color and add a new color record.

The style field in the Inventory file is required.  You must select a valid style in order to save the inventory record.  If you do not want to track the style on this Inventory item, select "Not Used".If you do not enter a valid style or you leave the style field blank this error is displayed when you click SAVE or try to exit.

Choose a valid style from the drop-down list.

Files > Support Files > Style and add a new style record.

When you are Using Corporate Edition software, any time the cost or purchase date is changed this message is displayed warning the user that the information about this item has been transmitted to the corporate office and changing it needs to be approved by home office.
 

Click YES - to continue making the change.

Click NO - to cancel changes.