Fishbowl Inventory Management Solution

Fishbowl does an impressive job in filling in the QuickBooks inventory gaps in order to offer its customers a robust end-to-end solution. Any accounting data required is exported into QuickBooks as inventory changes are made. In other words, Fishbowl takes over the QuickBooks functions of "Post Invoices" and "Post Bills" in order to handle the inventory control functions. Use the following chart to better understand the benefits Fishbowl Inventory brings to a QuickBooks user:

Fishbowl offers many features to help purchasing agents know when to buy, how much to buy, and what to buy. It eliminates stock outs and automates the purchasing process. Its Auto ROP Wizard calculates the reorder point and the order-up-to level for any part based on historical data. It even projects whether revenue for a particular item is increasing or decreasing over a period of time. If you prefer, a purchasing agent can override this feature and project increasing or decreasing sales scenarios for each item.

Fishbowl also has a robust feature set for creating Purchase Orders (POs). If an item has a default vendor assigned and reorder points defined, then Fishbowl groups items from each vendor and automatically creates the POs. Items that have reached their reorder points also show up on the reorder report. The user can then review the POs or issue them as needed. Fishbowl has also recently enhanced its product to allow POs to be automatically created from and tied to a Sales Order (SO). This is great for companies who do not keep inventory on hand, or who manufacture upon ordering.

There are several purchasing reports, including reports that let purchasers know what is outstanding, which parts are (or are not) worth stocking in inventory and which parts aren't, and which parts are sold by which vendor with their associated prices. All these features help the Fishbowl purchasing agent be more effective with less effort.

Multifaceted Inventory Management

Because businesses carry and manage a variety of inventory items, they need a robust system with advanced features that, in the past, were not available to smaller businesses. In today's market, it's not just a matter of selling products from a single location. Often inventory needs to be tracked and sold from multiple locations, both within the warehouse and at various sites. Users need to see at a glance what is on hand, allocated, committed, or backordered, by location.

Fishbowl addresses these issues through use of a Client-Server architecture that allows multiple users to access a single database over a local area network or the Internet using a broadband connection. The inventory database (the "Service") typically resides on the server and any number of clients may access it from any number of locations. This is a real advantage for those QuickBooks users who are frustrated with having to maintain separate inventories at separate locations.

Each part (item) in Fishbowl can be tracked by lot number, serial number, revision level and\or expiration date. Compare this to QuickBooks where tracking this level of detail involves elaborate, and often difficult workarounds that result in complicated and inefficient data entry requirements. Additionally, you can track other part information including a picture of the part, vendor purchase history, vendor part number, reorder levels for each part at each location, memos, etc.

To make sure the inventory levels are always correct, Fishbowl provides a cycle counting feature. The program automatically assigns parts to an "A", "B" or "C" category based on the sales or consumption volume for that part. Bar coding may also be employed for receiving, selling or moving items from one location to another.

Another way fishbowl makes inventory management easier is by including a unit-of-measure conversion tool. A purchasing agent can purchase in one unit-of-measure but have the system store it in another. For example a tile distributor could purchase tile by the square yard and store it by the piece or per square foot.

Handling Sales through Fishbowl

Fishbowl includes two sales modules: 1. Point-of-Sale (POS) and 2. Sales Order (SO). The POS module is designed primarily for retail where a simple cash and carry system is needed. A Point-of-Sale bar code reader can be used in conjunction with this module.

The SO module is more detailed and allows the user a much greater degree of flexibility. Line items may be selected from a type-ahead menu, search function, product tree or quicklist. The search function allows the user to search on part number, name, description, or other field in the part. The Product Tree is a hierarchical categorization designed to help a user identify a part number when they are unsure of the number, name or description. The Quicklist is a SO template that eliminates the need to re-enter the same information onto new orders that are similar to previous ones.

A flexible pricing module allows users to define discounts/markups across customer groups, product lines using the Product Tree, individual products, or any combination of these and can be applied over a specific time frame or indefinitely. One product can be listed in multiple groups, so multiple discounts or markups could be applied to any given product. Pricing (discounts or markups) can be based on quantities and these may be defined by a percentage or a dollar amount.

The sales module also allows you to create estimates before issuing sales. It also allows sales reps to see where inventory can be found, and whether or not it is on hand, allocated or issued for another SO. This means that if one store does not have an item in stock the sale rep can easily locate it.

An interesting and powerful feature in the Fishbowl SO module is the Configurator. It is an "on-the-fly" customizable Bill of Materials (BOM) which allows the user to select optional or variable items from previously defined categories (these are defined in the parts' BOM module). Consider a computer store that sells a basic computer system. When the user sells the system, a popup appears within the SO giving a list of the monitors available with this system. The sales rep enters the customer's selection. Next they select the type of hard drive desired and then so forth. As selections are made, a temporary Bill of Materials is defined. Premium items beyond the standard setup result in additional costs. Upon completion of the SO, a work order (WO) is automatically created for the configured part.

Once the SO is completed a pick list is generated. You can pick items from multiple locations, lot numbers, serial numbers, revision levels, etc. Once the picked items are committed to the SO they move to the shipping module for shipment. Fishbowl currently integrates with UPS Worldship to process the shippers and schedule items for pickup with UPS.
Light Manufacturing\Kitting Using Fishbowl Inventory

Fishbowl includes a BOM and WO capability. The BOM is defined in the Parts module and has no limit on the number of parts, sub-assemblies, or types of parts included. Parts with a BOM can be defined to automatically create a work order (WO) within the WO module. The WO allows multiple BOM levels. However, it does not automatically explode out all those levels as some manufacturing software does. The WO includes a printable pick list of the required items, a BOM to which additional items may be added, and a date at which the WO needs to be completed. These features make Fishbowl a practical solution for companies that do light manufacturing or assembling of kits (kitting).

In summary, Fishbowl Inventory is an impressive solution for QuickBooks clients who need robust inventory and light manufacturing controls. They have a great program for advisors, and provide generous pricing and support plans. For more information, contact Fishbowl at 800-774-7085. For information on becoming a Pro Advisor, contact Kent Blackhurst at extension 113. For more information about Fishbowl, go to their web site at www.FishbowlInventory.com