Here's your April 2021 Adventures-in-P21 eNews Update.
Your review of projects, tips, industry scoop, and more.
Now reaching over 4100 (world-class) Prophet 21 ERP system users!
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We're excited to be a sponsor this year for the P21WWUG Connect 2021 Conference and very hopeful to see everyone in person, in Atlanta..on August 15-17...for more info, please click here!
We are proud to be helping out with these four sessions this year:
- Vendor data import (price lists, parts, etc) and supplier relationship management tools: a review of custom vendor mass price list/parts/assemblies import and supplier relationship management projects.
- Vendor and customer managed inventory (resupply solutions), P21 integrated vending and consignment: an overview of custom CMI/VMI resupply projects and understanding the P21 Consignment process, setting up your system for consignment and examples of integrating P21 with Vending systems.
- Understanding the P21 database – How to use SQL to get information out of P21, Basic Query writing, various ways to make use of SQL data.
- SSRS overview – This is an intermediate Report Server session covering parametrized reports, subscriptions, and Data Driven Exception Reporting with SSRS.
...we hope you will join us!
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New & Recent Projects Round-up |
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We've been helping manufacturers and wholesale distributors with software, business process, and data challenges...for over 21 years. We've been serving P21 system users since 2007. Here are a few projects we're currently working on in the P-2-1 user community:
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Packing List and PO emailing tool
It retrieves any packing list or purchase order based on an order.
Then attaches or generates the needed documents.
It then pre-fills out an email and lets the user select what supplier contacts to send the email to.
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Packing List and PO emailing tool (cont.)
If it does NOT find a PO or Packing List it will generate a new one and then add the doc to the doclinks in p21, and then attach to the email.
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Inventory Information Portal
(a secure web based application)
User will login to web portal (Authentication email address and password set in portal)
User will then be automatically directed to the “Inventory Information” page
Admins will be directed to User Maintenance
Inventory Information Screen
User will enter in a known ‘Item ID’ at the top of the screen
The application then will show the inventory information for that P21 item with the following information:
- Stockable
- Item ID
- Item Description
- Qty Available
- UOM
- Location
- Product Group
The user can then sort, group, filter, and export data if/where/when needed...
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Email alerts tokens
The following Tokens were added to both the “Purchasing - Purchase Order Entry/Generation” and “Inventory Management - Inventory Receipt (PO/Transfer)” Alert Maintenance Areas.
Header Section
- UDF for UPS Tracking #
- UDF for Fedex Tracking #
- PO Expected Date
- Carrier
- Order # linked to this PO
- Taker from the Order # linked to this PO
- Customer from the Order # linked to this PO
- Ship To from the Order # linked to this PO
- Customer Contact from the Order # linked to this PO
- Customer PO Number from the Order # linked to this PO
- Job Name from the Order # linked to this PO
- Salesrep from the Order # linked to this PO
Line Section
- Item Extended Description - Pulled from the Order # linked to this PO (not from Item Maintenance)
Recipient Section
- Order Taker's email address
- Order Contact's email address
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- Contracts management tools.
- Pricelists (mass price imports, scheduled imports, w/ability to manipulate customer side pricing).
- Vendor Terms and Conditions.
- Product Data/Imagery management.
- Product Information Management (PIMs).
- Quality Assurance.
- Vendor Score Carding & Grading.
- Works with P21 and any other ERP system.
We can add/build any features that you may need to help streamline your vendor relationship management, and upstream supply chain challenges!
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These projects are built to YOUR specs and unique business needs. This demo is a basic example of custom customer resupply/stocking solutions featuring desktop, web, phone, & tablet ordering & restocking...by way of online forms, barcodes, QR-codes, and/or any other point of use hardware devices (like IoT Dash Buttons, a new smartphone app, and AWS smart scales coming soon!).
If you don't take credit cards online, it can even become your low cost/high value ecommerce/customer resupply program (all automated directly through P21)!
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Purchase Order Entry Adjustment Dates Business Rule
We created a Dynachange button on the ‘Purchase Order Entry’ screen called ‘Update PO Line Dates’ - this created a popup for the user to select:
Export - This creates an export excel file that has the line information (item_id, line number, Requested Date, Expected Date, Expected Ship Date)
Import – This allows the user to upload a file to P21.
The user would then modify the exported excel file and then import it back to P21 from the same ‘Update PO Line Dates’ button.
The business rule will then loop through each of the imported lines from the excel file and then update the matched row. The fields to be updated would be:
- Requested Date
- Expected Date
- Expected Ship Date
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Automatic Transaction Creation of the Purchase Order and Production Orders
This was a timed SQL project:
We created a SQL job that will run every XX minutes. (TBD frequency)
Job will query P21 for any Sales Orders, or Production order made/changed since the last time the job has run. This will then sum up the quantities for each item line that is new.
Job will then run a workflow log (based on Automatic Transaction Creation.pdf)
- Is there a shortage based on “Net Inventory” per summed item qty (Yes) it Start Main workflow
Per item: Query the “inv_loc.make” columns where:
- YES = will be put into the “Production Order” workflow.
- NO = will be put into the “Purchase Order” workflow.
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- if you have business challenges and/or are in need of anything similar, please let us know.
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Links to Other Recent Project Samples:
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Here's our P-2-1 TIP of The Month - speed quoting |
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From the virtual desk of Thomas Bodary, our Data Ninja and ERP Technical Services Manager:
For speed of quoting, one of our customers adds an item to a quote that if purchased will become an assembly but at the time of quoting they add it just as a regular item. If the quote is converted to an order they then build out the assembly but because the assembly components were not on the quote originally they have to delete the lines off the order and add them back. We created a process that allows them to push a button in the order header and it adds all the missing assembly components to the order.
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Please let us know if you'd like more info on this or a similar business process. If you have questions on others, please send them in, and we'll do our best provide answers and/or include more P-2-1 tips throughout next year... OR Send in your own tip(s) and we will highlight / share them here (with your credit) to help other users! |
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Connecting P21 data with third party software systems: we've been opening the P21 system up to best-in-class third party software solutions, and helping users get more out of P21 since 2007...If you'd like to connect to a third party software system, we can probably help.
eCommerce Integrations: our focus is on using our custom API middleware (and/or Epicor APIs) needed to bridge & connect the data streams between systems. We usually work with front-end teams or internal resources that manage the design and marketing. We can connect most ecommerce platforms (including custom solutions).
Here are a few current integration project examples:
- Custom Integrated CRM solutions.
- Buyrexroth + P21 Integration Projects.
- BlueRidge Global + P21 Integration Projects.
- SalesForce + P21 Integration Project.
- Channel Software + P21 Integration Project.
- Magento 2 & P21 Integration Project.
- OroCommerce & P21 Integration Project.
- Constant Contact + P21 synch and customer management portal
- AutoCrib FTP Integration.
- SnapVend/Vendnovation + P21 Integration Project.
- SAP Concur Accounts Payable (AP) Automation Integration.
Recent eBay & P21 Integrations > P21 Product to eBay
- Update Price and Inventory / New Listing / End Listing
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eBay to P21 Orders > Order import integrated
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Here are a few recent P-2-1 related reporting projects:
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Substitute Item Report – Report done in SSRS that can be ran for specific time periods/Suppliers/Product groups and it shows you a break down of all the items that had to be substituted for other items.
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PO Over Order Report – This report compared stock on hand, min/max values, open orders, and open transfers to the Qty on PO notifies the buyers if they have anything on order that is not needed.
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Daily consolidated Under Margin report – Report that emails at the end of the day that includes all order lines that were sold below a certain margin thresh-hold.
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FIFO reporting – We set up a process to log the Fifo layer that was used for each sales order line so that it could be reported on.
In addition to Crystal reports and forms, SSRS and Power Bi projects, we've been partnering and working with TIBCO Spotfire® ...the most complete analytics solution in the market, and makes it fast and easy for everyone to visualize new discoveries in data. Using search and recommendations powered by a built-in artificial intelligence engine, anyone can explore data to bring insights.
Whether creating simple dashboard metrics, predictive applications, or dynamic real-time analytics applications, Spotfire® delivers numerous capabilities at-scale, including visual analytics, data wrangling, predictive analytics, location analytics, and streaming analytics.
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P21 Vendor and MindHARBOR Partner Spotlight |
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Did you know your company can now choose fully transparent A/R and payment integration plus concierge-level customer support for your existing Epicor Prophet 21 environment (in both on-premise and SaaS versions)?
Stream the NEW 12-minute podcast to hear industry experts discuss how businesses with P21 and Unified’s integrated A/R solutions, including automated compliant surcharge technology for credit card acceptance, have significantly reduced fees and treasury management costs.
Payment Industry Experts Discuss Modular A/R Solutions for Epicor Prophet 21
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Cloud-based, modular accounts receivable and Cash Application Technology from Unified Payments Group integrates to Prophet 21 for full visibility of your order-to-cash process, from invoicing to payment reconciliation.
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You can stream our podcast from any device to learn more, and of course reach out to me directly with any questions about Surcharge as a Strategy or any of our A/R solutions for your P21 environment.
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Contact:
Keith Carman
Unified Payments Group
phone» 703.508.5604
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By Howard Coleman
Distribution on the Cusp of Metamorphosis’ podcast series is an opportunity to introduce companies like your own to becoming more agile.
This podcast is produced by MCA Associates. If you happen to be a regular reader “MCA Talk” monthly newsletter, then you already know that we cover a variety of distribution-management topics focused on continuous improvement of your entire value-stream. This new periodic podcast allows us to expand our coverage - mitigate the newsletter space limitations we often run into – and provide more depth and granular detail, and an easier and more relaxed way for you and your company to obtain relevant information
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#CRM got you down? We'd suggest you look into what our good friends (and also our client) are doing over at Rubber Tree Systems...a GREAT Team, doing super things for the P21 user community!!
Here's an example:
"We recently transitioned to Rubber Tree from another CRM platform. Our implementation with Rubber Tree has been one of the easiest that I have dealt with over my 25-year career at Wyatt Seal. We have only been live on the system for a couple of months and I am continually finding new ways to use the software. Whether it is to help our sales reps quickly access information about their accounts, stay on track with projects, or allowing management to view critical information to drive decision-making processes, Rubber Tree has already proven to be a valuable addition. With our previous processes, determining sales for each of our sales reps could take up to a week of writing complicated queries.
Now with Rubber Tree, I was able to get this information within minutes. But overall, the biggest factor in making this transition successful has been the people. Every single person that I have spoken to at Rubber Tree has been professional, helpful, and friendly. They are willing to go the extra mile to make sure that the software is doing what we expect it to do. They have also been willing to work on enhancements to the software. This has been the biggest change for us. We feel like Rubber Tree is a true partner."
Scott McMillan
Wyatt Seal, Inc.
about our great friends over at RTS!
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ShipLink Global has been impressing Prophet 21 system users...over, and over, and over!!
Recent quote: "Just wanted to let you all know. We got ShipLink integrated. Excellent partner.
Thank you for the recommendation!"
See ShipLink for Prophet 21 in Action
To learn more about Prophet 21 integration and configuration capabilities,
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Epicor®, Prophet 21®, KKR, and Your Industry News Round-up |
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Stevies 2021 | Epicor U.S. - Epicor - Epicor Named 2021 Stevie® Award Winner for Sales & Customer Service. Austin, Texas February 10...
B2B Trends & Charts - Scoring competency in B2B digital commerce - A report from Forrester Research lays out how companies can gauge how well they meet four "core competencies" required for successful B2B digital commerce operations.
How AI Can Turn Sales Reps Into Full-Catalog Product Experts - AI can map the products you already have, without a detailed and painstaking master data project. This makes the sales rep look good and allows the customer to get back to work. It's all part of an omnichannel experience for the customer, says proton.ai's Benj Cohen.
Resources On Linkedin:
Join the New P21 User Group, Group on Facebook:
If you aren't a member yet, you ARE missing out!
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Got Content, Feedback, Questions? |
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If you have articles, press releases, adventures, questions, and/or tips to share with other Prophet 21® system users in the next edition of Adventures in P21, please send them our way! > to: blaze@mindharbor.com
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MindHARBOR.com QuickLinks & More Information: |
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Thank you for reading, and for the opportunity to be your Partner-in-P21! |
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Please help spread the word!
Consider forwarding & sharing this free eNewsletter with a fellow P21 user today!
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MindHARBOR is not part of /or associated with any of the brands and logos listed on this email or our website including: Epicor Software Corp., Epicor Prophet 21®, Epicor 8 Vantage®, Epicor 10®, NetSuite®, Activant®, Dynachange®, ICE®, Microsoft®, AutoCrib®, Cribmaster®, SnapVend®, Power Bi®, Intel®, Microsoft®, and/or any other registered brands and service marks. MindHARBOR "is" an independent systems provider specializing in high end, high quality custom C# .NET programming, custom business application development, SQL server reporting services (SSRS), and eBusiness Consulting services on time, on spec, and on budget...since we opened our business on January 1, 2000.
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