Defining Product Codes And Descriptions

All Product records, when created, must be assigned a Product Code and Description. This is done within the Main tab of the Product record - see Recording General Product Details.

Your product codes and descriptions should be well structured and used consistently. Users will be using the Finder to locate products - users will see the products in Product Code sequence by default - so it is important to have a consistent product code structure and good product descriptions.

Your company may already have set procedures and standards relating to product classification. You should refer to your company's procedures manual prior to entering details to product records. However, we suggest the following structure when defining product codes and descriptions.

Defining Product Codes

Before you can commence adding a product in Quantum VS you must first understand the way in which the product codes are structured.

The Product Code is a unique code consisting of up to 11 characters, using a combination of letters and numbers. For example: 0502GRA0005 (Elite St Jacut Fence Panel)

The suggested format for product codes is as follows:

1.      The first four digits (e.g. 0502) link the product to a product group:

• The first two of these four digits refer to the product's Major Group. The Major Group is usually a main product line, such as Plumbing, Heating, Electrical.

Note: Before you can create products and product group values, you must create Major Group values using the table file MAJP in Table File Maintenance.

• The second two of these four digits refer to the product's Minor Group. The Minor Group Code is used to group products logically within (or create sub-sets of) the Major Group code. Often this is done by supplier.

The four-digit combination (i.e. two sets of two digits - the Major Code and Minor Code) comprise the product group code. The product group code 0502 would therefore denote the second minor product group of the fifth major product group.

Note: Before you can add products, product group code values must be set up and maintained in the table file P using Table File Maintenance.

2.      The three letters link the product to a supplier. For example, GRA might refer to the supplier Graham Builders Merchants.

3.      The final four digits are used to group products in sequence within the product group/supplier code. Typically products are numbered using steps of 5, 10 or 50, allowing for new products to be added in to the product list in the right place. For example, the following products - a range of similar products all allocated to the same product group and supplier - might be numbered as follows:

• Elite St.Jacut Fence Panel - 0502GRA0005

• Elite St.Cast Fence Panel - 0502GRA0010

• Elite St.Cyprien Fence Panel - 0502GRA0015

• Elite St.Briac Fence Panel - 0502GRA0020

• Elite St.Lunairs Fence Panel - 0502GRA0025

Defining Product Descriptions

When adding products, the unique description you assign is also very important. This can comprise up to two lines of text and should describe the product in detail. For example: Elite St Jacut Fence Panel - 1.8m x 1.8m (Pale Green) 5/Pk

As well as being unique, each description should give as much information as possible to discern the product from other similar products. Remember that if you are trying to find a product and don't know the correct product code, you may locate the product using the Finder by entering/searching for the product's description. Therefore you should take care to be accurate and consistent in your use of terminology and abbreviations.

It is a good idea to create a Description Template which will enable you to keep your descriptions consistent. (If a product has a manufacturer’s reference on its packaging it is a good idea to add this reference in to the Additional Info column of the Description Template.) For example:

The Description text can consist of a maximum of 60 characters spread across two lines. As abbreviations may be used to conserve space, it is also advisable to create an abbreviations key to keep abbreviations consistent. For example:

The use of spaces between words, numbers and abbreviations must also be considered.  For example, will descriptions be 47 x 100 or 47x100?  If your users will search for dimensions, fewer keystrokes are involved if the spaces are excluded from the description.

NEXT: Recording Price Details