Skip to content

Product Module User Guide

Complete guide for working with the product catalog. The Product module forms the foundational data pillar of the entire AutoCRM system - it defines what your company sells, purchases, or manufactures. A properly configured product catalog is a prerequisite for the efficient operation of all dependent modules.

Purpose and Scope

This documentation covers all aspects of product catalog management from an end-user perspective:

  • Product management - creation, editing, categorization
  • Pricing - pricing strategies, margins, discounts
  • Supplier relationships - supplier management and purchase prices
  • Tracking - serial numbers, batches, EAN codes
  • Integration - connection with warehouse, invoicing, and production

Who is this guide for

This guide is intended for product managers, purchasers, sales representatives, and administrators who manage the product catalog. For technical setup, see Module Administration.

Key Concepts

Product Catalog Structure

flowchart TD
    subgraph Catalog["Product Catalog"]
        P[Product] --> C[Category]
        P --> V[Variants]
        P --> E[EAN Codes]
    end

    subgraph Pricing["Pricing"]
        P --> PS[Pricing Strategy]
        PS --> TC[Tax Class]
        P --> D[Discounts]
    end

    subgraph Suppliers["Suppliers"]
        P --> SI[Supplier Items]
        SI --> S[Supplier]
        P --> PD[Primary Supplier]
    end

    subgraph Tracking["Tracking"]
        P --> SN[Serial Numbers]
        P --> B[Batches]
        P --> DOC[Documents]
    end

Product Types

The system distinguishes two basic product types with different characteristics:

Physical product that can be stored and tracked in inventory.

Property Value
Inventory tracking Yes
Movement tracking Yes
Serial numbers Optional
Minimum stock Configurable
Usage Goods, materials, components

Examples

  • M8x20 Bolt (material)
  • Dell Notebook (goods)
  • 2.0 TDI Engine (component)

Non-stock item representing work or service.

Property Value
Inventory tracking No
Movement tracking No
Serial numbers No
Time unit Optional (hour, day)
Usage Labor, consulting, shipping

Examples

  • Service work (per hour)
  • IT consulting
  • Delivery up to 50 km

Product Lifecycle

stateDiagram-v2
    [*] --> Draft: Creation
    Draft --> Active: Activation
    Active --> Discontinued: End of sale
    Discontinued --> Active: Reactivation
    Active --> Archived: Archiving
    Discontinued --> Archived: Archiving
Status Description Availability
Draft Work in progress Internal only
Active Regularly sold/purchased Full
Discontinued Selling off stock Existing stock only
Archived Historical record Reports only

Prerequisites

System Requirements

Before starting work with products, verify:

  • [x] You have been granted product management rights
  • [x] Basic product categories are configured
  • [x] At least one tax class (VAT rate) is set up
  • [x] Suppliers are created (for purchase prices)
  1. Define category structure - hierarchy for product classification
  2. Set up tax classes - VAT rates for different product types
  3. Create suppliers - key suppliers in the Sales module
  4. Prepare number series - for SKU, EAN codes
Field Convention Example
Product code PREFIX-NUMBER MAT-001234
Name Type + Specification Bolt M8x20 DIN 933
EAN 13-digit code 8590123456789
SKU Internal designation SKU-2024-0001

Integration with Other Modules

The Product module is the central data source for the entire system:

Warehouse Module

flowchart LR
    P[Product] -->|creates| SI[Stock Item]
    P -->|defines| MQ[Minimum Stock]
    SI -->|updates| AQ[Available Quantity]
    AQ -->|displays| P
  • Stock items - every stock product has inventory in warehouses
  • Minimum stock - automatic alert when stock drops
  • Availability - real-time stock information

Invoicing Module

flowchart LR
    P[Product] -->|item| Q[Quote]
    P -->|item| SO[Order]
    P -->|item| I[Invoice]
    PS[Pricing Strategy] -->|price| Q
    PS -->|price| SO
    PS -->|price| I
  • Documents - products as items in quotes, orders, invoices
  • Prices - automatic price inheritance from pricing strategies
  • VAT - automatic calculation based on tax class

Production Module

flowchart LR
    P[Product] -->|BOM| PM[Production Model]
    PM -->|material| PI[Model Items]
    PI -->|consumption| P2[Products - material]
    PM -->|product| PO[Production Order]
  • Bills of materials - products as materials or finished goods
  • Consumption - automatic material issue during production
  • Costing - production cost calculation

User Roles and Permissions

Role Permissions Typical Tasks
Product Manager All Complete catalog management
Purchaser Read + suppliers Purchase price management
Sales Rep Read + prices Sales price configuration
Warehouse Operator Read only View product information
Accountant Read + tax classes VAT rate management

Workflows

Creating a New Product

flowchart TD
    A[Start] --> B[Basic Information]
    B --> C{Product Type}
    C -->|Stock Item| D[Warehouse Settings]
    C -->|Service| E[Service Settings]
    D --> F[Pricing Strategy]
    E --> F
    F --> G[Categorization]
    G --> H[Suppliers]
    H --> I[Documents]
    I --> J[Activation]

Price Change Workflow

sequenceDiagram
    participant PM as Product Manager
    participant S as System
    participant D as Documents

    PM->>S: Change pricing strategy
    S->>S: Recalculate margin
    S->>S: Update VAT
    Note over S: New price effective from change date
    S->>D: New documents use new price
    Note over D: Existing documents retain original price

Frequently Used Features

Quick Actions

Action Description Availability
Duplicate product Creates copy with new code Product detail
Bulk price change Recalculate prices for category Product list
Export to Excel Download data for analysis Product list
Import products Bulk creation Administration

The system supports searching by:

  • Name - full-text search
  • Code - exact match or prefix
  • EAN - barcode scanner
  • Category - filter by tree
  • Supplier - products from specific supplier

Handling Common Situations

Product with Multiple Suppliers

How to manage a product from multiple suppliers?

  1. Create supplier items for each supplier
  2. Set primary supplier - default for orders
  3. Define purchase prices for each item
  4. Use automatic selection - system selects cheapest

VAT Rate Change

flowchart TD
    A[VAT Rate Change] --> B[Update Tax Class]
    B --> C{Change Scope}
    C -->|Single product| D[Change product class]
    C -->|Category| E[Bulk change]
    C -->|Entire system| F[New tax class + migration]

Discontinuing a Product

Procedure for discontinuing a product

  1. Check inventory - sell off or transfer
  2. Change status to "Discontinued"
  3. Set replacement - alternative product for customers
  4. After selling out archive the product

Section Contents

Detailed guides for individual features can be found in these chapters:

Chapter Description
Products Creating and managing products
Pricing Strategies Pricing and margin configuration
Product Details Extended product properties
Product Categories Hierarchical product classification
Serial Numbers Individual item tracking
Supplier Items Purchase price management
EAN Codes Barcodes and identification
Tax Classes VAT rate configuration
Practical Scenarios Real-world usage examples
Best Practices Recommendations for efficient work

Additional Resources

Need help?

If you encounter a problem not described here, contact technical support or your organization's product manager.