Information Systems:Updating the Buying Cycle

Updating The Buying Cycle

The buying cycle is a two-part process. The first part of the process involves manually updating and maintaining a separate spreadsheet that breaks the purchases down by buyer, by vendor and by day and the second part of the process involves updating the "Work with Period Purchases" table in ASW. The concept was that buyers should not be in charge of updating their own cycles so it was carved out and given to BI. To be honest I'm not sure why there needs to be this separation.

Background Information

Creating a purchase suggestion in ASW is a simple process that can be done manually for one to four vendors at a time or for a range of vendors. More on this process can be found in the article: Creating Purchase Suggestions (which is still to be written).

Every night the system automatically runs purchase suggestions as part of the overnight processing. ASW will create the purchase suggestions based on the date of the last created suggestion and using an interval between suggestions set in days. For example, if the last purchase suggestion date of vendor X was 033115 (March 31, 2015) and the number of days interval is set to 14, then the next suggestion will be triggered to run automatically on April 14, 2015.

The buying cycle is a uniPHARM construct and is simply a two week cycle that buyers use to split their vendor purchases so that they are evenly distributed over each business day of a two week period. This way buyers can control which days purchase suggestions for their vendors are automatically generated. Generally speaking 99% of all the vendors are on a 14 days cycle and the remaining few are on a 7 day cycle. This allows purchase suggestions to come up the same day of the week every two weeks (or every week if the vendor is on a 7 day cycle).

Administration of the Buying Cycle

When a buyer wants something in their buying cycle updated, added, or removed, they usually send an e-mail explaining what they would like. Sometimes they drop by or call and express themselves verbally. While other times they will provide you with a physical copy of their buying cycle that has mysteriously shown up on your desk, or in your mailbox, with cryptic scribbles and writing on it depicting what they would like done. Regardless of their chosen approach, the buyers typically will provide the following information with their request:

• Vendor number
• Cycle number
• Day number
• Order minimum (quantity or amount)

The buyers may not provide all of these items and they may provide additional information, such as the vendor name, but they will usually provide enough information to set up the vendor. The buying cycle is split into two 1 week cycles which are called cycle 1 & cycle 2. Each day of the week is given a number 1 through 5 with Monday being 1 and Friday being 5. For example, if a buyer wants a new vendor added to the 2nd week of their buying cycle on a Thursday they will say "Cycle 2 / Day 4". Likewise, if a buyer wants a new vendor added to the 1st week of their buying cycle on a Wednesday they will say "Cycle 1 / Day 3".

If you're adding a new vendor the first thing to do is to take a look at the Buying Cycle spreadsheet and select the worksheet for that buyer and search for the customer number of the new vendor to make sure it's not already there. Sometimes the buyers don't realize that it's already on the buying cycle. If it is already on the buying cycle communicate this with the buyer and ask them if it's okay where it is (if it happens to be a different cycle and day than what they had indicated). Most of the time they are fine with where it is and you can just leave it at that.

The Buying Cycle spreadsheet can be accessed in the Common directly of the BI folder in the appropriately labeled Buying Cycle directory. Or it can be accessed by using the link below:

Buying Cycles.xlsx 

All vendors are added to each day of the buying cycle in alphabetical order. So when you are inserting a new vendor you will likely have to insert it into the appropriate spot in that day. Don't just simply insert a row as this will throw out the delicate balance of the spreadsheet. The spreadsheet has already been created with the maximum number of lines that can be printed on one page. So adding another line will likely cause another page to be printed which is not ideal. If you find you have to add a line then you must take a line away somewhere else. The exception to this is when you actually do want to add a second page because you are out of room. An example of this is Stu's Buying Cycle which is two pages long due to the sheer number of vendors on his buying cycle. Also, if you do add a row it will add a line to both cycle 1 and cycle 2. You will notice that each day has the same number of lines on each cycle. If doesn't technically have to be this way but doing it this way just keeps the spreadsheet simpler to maintain.

The easiest way to add a vendor is to make sure the buyer is choosing a cycle / day where there is at least one free line available. Then you can copy and paste values to move all the vendors down in that day to make room for the new vendor. If there isn't any room on the day I would suggest asking the buyer if they would mind choosing a day where this is already room. If they do want to choose another day then you have to find a day where you can delete a line so you can add a line to the day where they want the new vendor. If there are no free lines to delete from any of the days then the only other option would be creating another page, which would mean a re-distribution of the days to increase the number of lines in each day.

You might notice that there is a background colour on the cells of alternating white and grey. Therefore, pasting must be done with caution as it will cause the background to be pasted as well unless you are using Paste Values. Using Paste Values allows you to copy the block of vendors you need to move down and keep the background untouched. If you find you do need to add another line to a day you will have to make sure to apply the proper white or grey background to the newly added line. Either choose the colour from the menu or use format painter from another line with the same colour. Also keep in mind that you may have to alter the borders to get them matching if you are adding a line to the bottom of a day.

There are also formulas on the Buying Cycle spreadsheet. On the bottom right of the total row for each day there is a sum of the total number of vendors for that day. If you are adding lines you might want to check this formula to make sure it's including all the lines. Sometimes it won't include a line if you are adding a line to the bottom of the day. There is an additional formula on the bottom of the buying cycle that totals up all vendors from each cycle. You might also want to check this formula as well.

Line Codes

A line code is a unique code that is used to segment a vendor into multiple purchase suggestions. For example, some vendors have more than one buyer such as Teva Canada (OTC) (#22518) which has Stu, Judy & Shannon. If we just put the vendor on the buying cycle without a line code then the system will produce purchase suggestions for each buyer on the same day and cycle. Using a line code we can set up the vendor as multiple unique vendors on the buying cycle each one acting as it's own vendor and producing a purchase suggestion according to an individual buyer's preferred day and cycle and including only the specific items they have attached the line code too.

Another use of the line code is when specific product lines from within one vendor need to be ordered separately. In this case the buyer may be the same or different but using the line code will allow the system to produce purchase suggestions for specific product segments. For example, injectables from a vendor may have to be ordered on its own PO, therefore, using a line code will allow these items to be separated and have the system produce separate purchase suggestions for the injectables and the remaining items.

Line codes are created by the Buying Cycle administrator. Buyers do not create their own line codes. Line codes are created right at the time you are entering a new vendor in the Work with Periodic Purchases table in ASW. Line codes cannot be altered through the ASW interface once they have been used in the creation of a new period purchase. So if you need to change it you will have to delete the periodic purchase entry and enter in a new one.

If the buyer wants a line code I find it useful to ask them if they really need a line code because sometimes it comes to light that they don't actually need one. Having the buyer explain the usage can further clarify if a new line code is actually needed or not. Once the line code is created in a new periodic purchase entry you need to provide that line code to the buyer so they can attach it to the items they want to use with that line code. Buyers cannot use the line code unless it has already been created.

Generally speaking I have been using a line code naming convention. Some of the older line codes may or may not follow this convention and that is fine and would explain why some of them look different in case you were wondering. When creating a line code for a vendor, I use the initials of the buyer followed by a number (starting with 1) and finished with the Alias of the vendor. For example, Teva Canada (OTC) (#22518) has many line codes attached to it. To create a new line code for Shannon it would look like this: SM1RATIOPH and to create a new line code for Stu it would look like this: SR8RATIOPH because there are already SR1 to SR7 in use. Again this is just a convention and it doesn't have to be this way but it does help keep things organized.

Process for Updating the Buying Cycle

Here is the basic process that I follow to update or change the buying cycle:

1. Open the Buying Cycle spreadsheet located in \\SuperServer\BI\Common\Buying Cycle.
2. If you are adding to the buying cycle make sure that the vendor is not already in the spreadsheet.
3. Verify the vendor information using ASW Name File Enquiry.
4. Insert the new vendor into the appropriate place on the Buying Cycle spreadsheet. Make sure to use capitals and the exact name as shown in the Name File Enquiry.
5. If minimum order is not listed I usually just put in a hyphen to show that it's been looked at but wasn't provided.
6. In ASW under Purchases click on Periodic Buying Tasks (at the bottom of the list) and choose Work with Periodic Purchases.
7. Type in the vendor number to make sure it's not already entered into the table. If it is already in the table open it up to see if the Last Suggestion date is recent which would suggest it's in use right now.
8. If the vendor is already in use find out which buyers are ordering from the vendor and double check on the other buyers buying cycle to see if it is listed. If it is then you will need to create a line code to add another instance of the same vendor. You may want to discuss this with the buyer first before proceeding.
9. If the vendor is not in use create a new entry to the table by clicking on the Add option located on the left of the window under the IBS logo.
10. Fill in all pertinent fields (you can use another one as an example) which are: Supplier, Line Code (if required), Description, No of Days Interval, Last Suggestion, Intermediate purch, and either Target value or Target quantity if there is an order minimum.
11. When filling in the Last Suggestion field I usually check other vendors that are set up for the same cycle and day for that buyer and use the date that matches. This ensures that this new purchase suggestion will run on the same day as the others. Sometimes dates aren't all the same and while that isn't correct I usually just make sure the dates I'm using for the new vendor I'm setting up is the correct one. Using a calendar you can determine which date matches with the day you are adding on the buying cycle.
12. Back out of ASW Periodic Purchase Table Maintenance by pressing F12.
13. Save the Buying Cycle spreadsheet and print 2 copies (in black and white) one for the buyer and one for the assistance. Put a copy of the buying cycle into each of their mail slots or hand deliver them if you are feeling social.
14. I usually respond to their e-mail that the update has been completed if they have e-mailed me as a courtesy. Otherwise the copy of the updated buying cycle in their mail slot usually gives it away.

You don't have to follow this process exactly, you may find a slightly different way of working that works better for you and that's fine. This is merely a guideline to help make sure that you are completing the process. Not every update is going to be exactly the same and you may find that this process doesn't quite work for every situation that you may encounter. Overall this is the basic process and it can be used as a foundation for anything that is required.