April 3, 2020
Database Compatibility
IMPORTANT – After installing this update, you must launch Buyout Database Manager and upgrade your Buyout database(s). This version makes certain changes to the database in order to support some of the changes described below. This includes changes to selected views to return sales tax details and also the addition of the Tax Group table.
Enhancements
- Using Buyout with No ERP System
- Previous versions required that Buyout be used in conjunction with Sage 100 Contractor or Sage 300 Construction and Real Estate. This requirement has been lifted. When configuring the Buyout database, it is now possible to select “None” for the Operations System. When this option is selected, Buyout will still support the creation of a comma-delimited text file when creating commitments. This exists to provide support for other ERP systems that may be able to use this output. The default file format is consistent with the Sage 300 CRE Import Commitments specification. Within Operations Settings, it is possible to identify an alternate/custom file format.
- Certain locations within Buyout have been updated to support the use of Buyout when there is no direct integration with an ERP system. This includes the “Assign Operations Vendor” window which will provide a simple text-input box for the Vendor ID in this context (where an ellipses box taking the user to a vendor list would ordinarily be provided).
- Database Manager
- Added a “Delete Database” option so that Buyout databases that are no longer needed can be deleted. Please note that deletion of a Buyout database cannot be undone.
- Importing Estimates
- When using the search box of the Select Estimate window and multiple estimates match the search text, the Up and Down arrow keys can now be used to navigate the matching items while the cursor remains in the search box.
- When importing an estimate from Sage Estimating (where the estimate identifies vendors or subcontractors) or when adding a vendor to a Quote Group, the primary contact for the company is now imported.
- If quotes are automatically added as a result of pre-selected vendors or stored-pricing, the vendor contact is now populated automatically based on the primary contact for the company.
- Group Items Tab
- When assigning Quote Groups to items, the user may now use Copy & Paste. Simply copy the text for an existing Quote Group (Ctrl+C), then select one or more other cells in the Quote Group column and paste (Ctrl+V). Multiple cells can be selected either by holding down the Shift key while using the Up or Down arrow keys, or by dragging over a range of cells using the mouse while holding the left mouse button. Previously, the only way to assign a Quote Group to multiple items was to select multiple cells in the Quote Group column and then enter edit mode by either right-clicking the last selected cell or by pressing F2. Once in edit mode any change to the current cell would be applied to all selected cells. This method still works in addition to the new Copy/Paste method.
- The Estimate Units and Unit Price columns now display with four decimal places.
- In the “One-Time-Item” window, the decimal places for Units and Unit Price have been increased to allow for four decimal places.
- The list of available Quote Groups is now sorted alphabetically when the drop-down button is clicked in a cell in the Quote Group column.
- Quote Groups on Group Items and Select Vendors Tabs
- When using the Select Company window, the input focus now begins in the search box allowing the user to immediately begin typing search-text to find the desired vendor. If there are multiple matches, the Up and Down arrow keys will move the current selection up and down the list while the cursor remains in the search box.
- A new toolbar button has been added entitled “Edit Quote Groups”. When clicked, a window displaying a list of the Quote Groups for the Buyout Package is displayed. Within this window, the user may add, edit, and delete Quote Groups. When adding or editing a Quote Group, the user may supply values for the following properties: Description, Item Type, Date/Time Due Back (for RFQs), and Tax Group.
- When adding a new Quote Group via the Add Quote Group window, the Date/Time Due Back and Tax Group are prefilled based on the default settings of the Buyout Package.
- Quote List on Select Vendors Tab
- When including a new vendor under a Quote Group (i.e., adding a new Quote), the vendor contact will be populated automatically with the primary contact of the company.
- Double-clicking on a quote in the list now displays a window where selected properties of the quote can be edited. This includes the Vendor Contact (displayed as a drop-down), Date Sent, and Date Received. The phone number and email address associated with the selected contact are also displayed in this window.
- A “Notes” button has been added above the upper-right corner of the list of quotes. When clicked, a window is displayed where the user may view or edit the notes for the selected quote. The same window can be accessed via the context menu by right-clicking the selected quote and clicking Notes.
- In the details pane of the Quote grid, vendor and contact information is now displayed. This includes the vendor name, phone number, email address and the contact’s name, phone number and email address.
- In the Quote Details grid, the Units and Unit Price columns now support four decimal places.
- A total row has been added at the bottom of the Quote Details grid. The total row shows the total bid amount (sum of the Amount column), the total calculated sales tax, and the total with tax.
- The details pane of the Quote Details grid now displays sales tax information for the selected item. This includes the Tax Group, Tax Percentage, and Tax Amount.
- Sending Requests for Quote via Email
- When the user selects the “Send Requests for Quote” option from either a context menu or from the toolbar, all of the companies and contacts associated with the Buyout Package are re-sync’d with the Sage Estimating Address Book in order to ensure that Buyout is using the most up-to-date contact information.
- In the “Send Requests for Quote” window, when the user selects the Email option and clicks Send, the email address associated with each selected quote is inspected. If any are found to have an invalid email address (missing or not valid), on emails are sent. Instead, a window listing the vendors that have invalid or missing email addresses is displayed.
- When an email has been successfully sent, the notes for the Quote are updated automatically to indicate that an email was sent. This includes the date & time, user name, sender, recipient, and subject line.
- Creating Documents
- When the user selects the “Create Documents” option from the toolbar, all of the companies and contacts associated with the Buyout Package are re-sync’d with the Sage Estimating Address Book in order to ensure that Buyout is using the most up-to-date contact information.
- When the user selects the “Create Documents” option from the toolbar, all of the tax groups associated with the Buyout Package are re-sync’d with the operations system in order to ensure that Buyout is using the most up-to-date tax rates.
- In the “Create Documents” window, when the user selects the Email option and clicks Send, the email address associated with each selected quote is inspected. If any are found to have an invalid email address (missing or not valid), on emails are sent. Instead, a window listing the vendors that have invalid or missing email addresses is displayed.
- When an email has been successfully sent, the notes for the Quote are updated automatically to indicate that an email was sent. This includes the date & time, user name, sender, recipient, and subject line.
- Stored Pricing
- In the Add/Edit Stored Price window, the Unit Price field now supports four decimal places.
- The list of stored prices now displays the Unit Price column with four decimal places.
Resolved Issues
- Buyout
- Resolved an issue where default values identified in Buyout Settings were not being applied when creating a new Buyout Package. Now, the following properties will be set to their appropriate default: ‘Your Company’, days and time due back, and rounding options.
- Resolved an issue where default values of the Buyout Package were not being applied when a new Quote Group was added (either during the import of an estimtae, or by creating a Quote Group on-the-fly). Now, the following properties will be set to their appropriate default: Date/Time Due Back and the Tax Group.
- Resolved an issue where tax was not calculating and printing on purchase order documents.
- Resolved an issue with the Vendor Number column of the Commitment grid where values entered into the column would not be saved, requiring the user to click the ellipses button in order to select a vendor from the list.
- Resolved an issue with the Vendor Number column of the Commitment grid on the Commit tab. The issue could result in the “Assign Operations Vendor” window being displayed multiple times if the Vendor Number column was visited and edited multiple times.
- Resolved an issue when printing Request for Quote or Purchase Order documents having long descriptions, where the description was not wrapping and were instead running into columns to the right.
- Resolved an issue where an error would be encountered when trying to send a purchase order via email as an Excel file. This was caused by two files that were not being distributed by the installer.
- Sage 100 Contractor Integration
- Resolved an issue when creating commitments for Sage 100 Contractor where the creation of the commitment would fail with a non-meaningful error message if the commitment items identified invalid or missing codes (for Job, Phase, Cost Code, Cost Type, or Tax Dist). Now, these codes are validated, and a meaningful error message is displayed if any invalid codes are encountered.
- Sage 300 Construction and Real Estate Integration
- Resolved an issue where the Auto-Commit option in Operations Settings was being ignored causing the commitment to always be created as committed.