Version 9.0
ExtSTAR version 9.0's optional PATENT PENDING Automatic Pricing module brings a new level
of sophistication to the process of pricing extrusion orders. It not only
computes prices for specific customers, dies or parts based on a raw material
price that may change periodically, but it can also automatically generate setup
charges and charges for certifications, fabrication or virtually any other
charge that is related to the size of an order or the processes it goes through. Price breaks or
triggers can be implemented for any type of charge by applying a conditional
expression defined by you, allowing the use of virtually any formula to
determine whether and how a particular charge applies to an order.
ExtSTAR's Automatic Pricing module also supports contract pricing, where
prices can be fixed for an agreed volume and/or time period for any die type,
die, part, alloy or combination thereof. Contract prices are automatically
applied to orders to which they apply, and the total volume delivered and
remaining under a contract can be computed in seconds at any time.
Automatic Pricing would be an incomplete solution if there were no way to effectively
communicate prices and price changes to your customers. To complete the
pricing loop, ExtSTAR can generate a custom Price List for any customer for any
effective date, including contract prices and prices for ancillary charges such
as setup, cutting, fabrication, etc.
With the ability to automatically and accurately generate prices based on virtually any relevant
criteria and the tools to keep customers informed of
their prices, ExtSTAR's Automatic Pricing allows you to implement simple or complex pricing schemes that accurately reflect your production and
administration costs, all while eliminating mistakes and reducing the time and complexity
of pricing orders.
Another new feature in Release 9.0 is the addition of a Due Date to invoices,
and the ability of ExtSTAR to compute a Due Date for an Invoice
automatically based on the customer's payment terms.
- Price List Setup
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Prices are specified by defining Rules for the
various Charge Types that can appear on an Invoice. Rules
can be created for any Charge Type, and may
be specified as Base rules that apply to all customers, or Customer rules
that apply only to a specific customer. Base rules are usually used to
specify company-wide prices upon which customer prices are based, or
standard charges that apply to all customers, such as Setup. Customer
rules are then defined that adjust or override the prices specified in Base
rules. Rules can specify charges that
apply to a Line Item, a Shop Order, or a group of Shop Orders. An
Effective Condition can be specified for any rule to determine whether the
rule applies to the line item being priced. Several variables are
available for use in Effective Condition expressions, including variables
that indicate the number of pieces on or the total weight of the line
item or Shop Order.
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| Each rule has a Context that determines which
order items it applies to. It can range from very general, such as
a Die Type, to very specific, such as a Customer Part Number. |
The Details of a
rule specify the price associated with the rule, as well as how the
charge is to be applied, and whether the price is a set price or adds to
(adjusts)
another rule's price. Rules can optionally specify a conditional
expression that is evaluated when an order is being priced to determine if
it applies to that order. Multiple prices with different effective dates can also be
specified in a rule, letting you maintain a historical record of prices
as well as specify price changes that will take effect on a future date,
without affecting the pricing of current orders. |
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| ExtSTAR builds prices by first
determining the most specific rule that applies to an order line item,
then either using its price explicitly (if it's a Set rule) or adding it to the price
specified by a more general rule (if it's an Adjust rule). ExtSTAR automatically arranges
rules into a hierarchy according to their Context and displays them in
tree form, allowing you to
easily visualize how the price for an item will be built. Rules with the same Context
appear at the same level in the tree, and can be prioritized by simply dragging and dropping them into
the desired order. In this example, the price for part
DOCKSUP100023 on a Shop Order where the total weight was 25,000 pounds
would be determined by adding $0.07 to GENERAL PRODUCTS' customer
up-charge of $0.20, then adding that sum to the "Ingot Price"
of $1.49, yielding a final price of $1.76/lb. |
- Customer Contracts
-
Customer Contracts are used to define prices for a
customer based on a set volume and/or a period of
time. Contract prices are specified with Contract rules, each of which
is associated with a single Customer Contract. The contract rules
associated with a particular contract specify the contract prices, and their
Contexts are also be used to determine which orders apply to the contract,
allowing ExtSTAR to instantly compute how much of a contract has been
fulfilled. Any Shop Order can also be specifically associated with a
particular Customer Contract, even if it was or will be shipped outside the
contract time period.
- Auto-Price Order
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Any Shop Order can be automatically priced by
simply pressing the Auto-Price button on the Price Order form.
The Effective Date for prices defaults to the Order Date, but can be
adjusted manually to any other date, for example, to update the prices for
an order because the customer requested a delay in shipment. If prices
associated with a Customer Contract apply to the Shop Order, then they will
be used instead of standard prices. The Auto-Price Order function will
automatically add all applicable charges to the Shop Order and its line
items.
Sample charges generated by ExtSTAR's Automatic Pricing module
- Customer Price Lists
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Price Lists can be generated for any customer for
any effective date. Several options are available to control the way
metal prices are shown and choose whether or not prices for ancillary charges are included. Contract Summaries showing fulfilled and
remaining volume can also be selected. A custom Price List configuration can
be saved for each customer, and price lists for all customers with a saved
configuration can be generated in a single operation. Click on the
links below to view sample Price Lists:
Price List with Metal
Prices listed by Rule
Price List with Metal
Prices listed by Customer Part
- Payment Terms and Invoice Due Dates
-
ExtSTAR can now compute a Due Date for invoices
automatically. Any number of Payment Terms can be defined, each of
which may have an associated Due Date Days value. Payment Terms can be
assigned to a customer, and when an invoice is created for that customer, a
Due Date for the invoice is automatically computed based on the Invoice Date
and Due Date Days. Both the Payment Terms and the Due Date can be
overridden manually if necessary, and the Due Date Days for any Payment
Terms may be left blank to require manual computation of the invoice due
date.
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