Cycle Count - Setup
Before you start using the Cycle Count feature to count inventory there is some setup that will need to be completed.
1. Establish GL Accounting for inventory counts
See THIS ARTICLE for instructions on setting up the GL accounting for inventory counts. You will need to choose the GL expense account and the cost source to use for inventory adjustments.
2. Create Cycle Count Plans
A Cycle Count "Plan" is how the traditional ABC count cycles are defined. Typically, a Product assigned to the "A" plan is counted more frequently because it is high value or quick moving. "B" level products are counted less frequently, "C" Products even less so and so forth.
2.1. Cycle Count Plan - list view
Navigate to Warehouse Management > Cycle Count Plan and click the + to create a new record.
You can create as many plans as you wish but each Cycle Name must be unique.
2.2. Cycle Count Plan - detail
- Name: The name of the cycle count plan. Standard convention is to use upper-case letters of the alphabet for these names. However, this is an alpha-numeric so you can use any syntax here.
-
Period (days): The number of days assigned to each period. This number controls when the assigned Inventory Levels appear in the Cycle Count.
- For example, when the "A" plan is assigned that means we want to count those items every 10 days.
- If the items were last counted 9 days ago, then they WILL NOT appear when a new count is created.
- If the items were last counted 11 days ago, then the items WILL appear when a new count is created.
3. Assign Cycle Count Plans to Inventory Levels (Subaccounts)
3.1. Select Inventory Levels to assign a plan to.
Navigate to Warehouse Management > Inventory Levels. Highlight the Inventory Levels that you want to assign a Count Plan to and use the Action Menu > Assign Cycle Count Plan ...
3.2. Select a Cycle Count Plan
This list will be populated with the options that you set up in Step 1 above. There is also one additional option that you can use to "clear" an item that has already been assigned a Count Plan.
Select which plan you want to assign to the group of Inventory Levels and click OK.
3.3. Are you sure ... ?
Select Yes to proceed with assigning the Cycle Count Plan to the selected Inventory Levels.
3.4. Cycle Count Plan has been assigned
Now you can see the Cycle Name and Period (Days) have been assigned to a handful of Inventory Levels. Repeat Steps 2.1 through 2.3 for each group of Inventory Levels that you want to count.
This completes the setup for the Cycle Count function. You can now proceed to the Cycle Count - Process article.
4. Install Cycle Count reports
Custom Forms
We have supplied two custom forms to facilitate the count process. Click the links below to access the custom form installers.
- Cycle Count - Count Sheet - Before the count occurs, print this form and distribute to employees so they know what inventory to count.
- Cycle Count - Result Sheet - After the count is completed, print this form to see the details of the cycle count.
Export Script
We have also supplied an export script (attached below). This script exports the report to an Excel file. The report dynamically changes based on the status of the Cycle Count.
- If the count has not been entered, then the export will be similar to the Count Sheet.
- If the count has been completed, then the export will look similar to the Result Sheet.
- In either case, the Excel file will still need to be formatted it for printing if you want a physical copy.