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SteveMIn
Level 2

Alternative vendor, Unique Part number

Is there a way to have a Singular Part in Inventory have multiple vendors each using a unique PN for that Vendor?    Say I'm ordering an item thats available multiple places and at place A it's PN#123 and Place B its PN#321  but I want to track them all under a single part number in our system.  Is that possible?  I see where I can flag multiple alternative vendors but I can't seem to change any info relating to that alternate vendor.

Solved
Best answer October 18, 2021

Best Answers
JessT
Moderator

Alternative vendor, Unique Part number

Welcome and thank you for visiting the Community today, SteveMIn!

 

Currently, there's only one field for part numbers per item. Your workaround is to create the same item for each vendor. Example: Item - V1, Item - V2, Item - V3, and enter the part number in each of them. Or, you can leave the Manufacturer's Part Number field blank and add an item note listing each vendor’s part number.

 

Let me know if you have other questions about your items. Take care and have a good day!

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5 Comments 5
JessT
Moderator

Alternative vendor, Unique Part number

Welcome and thank you for visiting the Community today, SteveMIn!

 

Currently, there's only one field for part numbers per item. Your workaround is to create the same item for each vendor. Example: Item - V1, Item - V2, Item - V3, and enter the part number in each of them. Or, you can leave the Manufacturer's Part Number field blank and add an item note listing each vendor’s part number.

 

Let me know if you have other questions about your items. Take care and have a good day!

modernmoders
Level 1

Alternative vendor, Unique Part number

I got you bro, since QB employees like to copy a single word from your subject/title and paste the top result from the forum... >.>

  1. In the top bar of Quickbooks, click the "Lists" dropdown menu, then select Add/Edit Multiple List Entries
  2. Select the List dropdown arrow and select "Vendor Items".
  3. Select the Vendor dropdown arrow and select whichever vendor you'd like to add unique part numbers for.
  4. Under the "Item Name" column, enter the "generic" item name (also called shop numbers, etc).
  5. Under the "Vendor Part Number" column, enter the unique, vendor-specific part number.
  6. Save changes when finished.

***Note: For instance, I buy an identical product from 3 vendors and we know this product as a "TA50". That is our generic part number. Vendor A's part number for this part is 5140108, Vendor B's part number is VTA50, and Vendor C's part number is ARFSB50.

To create the correct vendor-specific part numbers for each item in this scenario, I would select Vendor A from the Vendor dropdown, type the generic part number in the "item name" column (TA50), and type the vendor-specific part number in the "Vendor Part Number" column, on the same line. You can also type "Alternate" in the "Vendor Type" field if you'd like that vendor listed as an alternate vendor for the specified item. Do the same with Vendor B and C.***

 

Too bad we can't use this field on POs...

RaptorResins
Level 3

Alternative vendor, Unique Part number

When I type in the Item Name (internal name like your TA50) on the 2nd vendor, I get an error that says Duplicate Entry.
I still do not know how to do this.

This is the most SIMPLE thing that should be basic programming.
How can QB assume that a raw material that goes into an assembly will have the exact same PN for several different vendors???? If I make a separate ITEM for each of the vendors, exactly HOW will I make an assembly? 

Item REDSCREW (inventoried part) is sourced from 2 different vendors. Vendor 1 calls it REDSCREW000, Vendor 2 calls it REDSCREW999. Item REDSCREW goes into assembly REDTOY. I need to be able to buy the red screws from whomever has them in stock the cheapest. When they arrive into inventory, I need them to be used to make the redtoy. I don't care who sent them.
You are telling me I have to make 2 SEPARATE inventory items for this same screw???? Then how do I make the assembly? I can't call out both screws in the assembled item! 
There is no place in the assembly item where I can call out Alternate items in case one is out of stock....so that won't work.



wheatbarley36
Level 1

Alternative vendor, Unique Part number

I am in this EXACT same boat. I sell chemicals, and my assemblies' part items (raw materials) need to be able to come from different vendors. What is the freakin point of the alternate vendors function if we cannot use a unique part number/description/tradename for that vendor's product!? I just need to be able to stock 1 inventory item from several vendors, all of who sell their products under different tradenames. This seems like it should be a basic function for QuickBooks...

Ivan_G
QuickBooks Team

Alternative vendor, Unique Part number

I understand the significance of being able to assign unique part numbers for multiple vendors using the alternate vendors function, wheatbarley36. Allow me to share a workaround for you.

 

You can utilize the class tracking feature in QuickBooks to organize your transactions by tradenames. First, let's ensure it's enabled from the Edit menu:

 

  1. Navigate to the Edit menu, then Preferences.
  2. Select the Accounting tab, then Company Preferences.
  3. Turn on the Use class tracking for transactions option.
  4. You can also switch on the Prompt to assign classes function, which will remind you to select a Class when generating your transactions (optional).
  5. Once done, hit OK.
    Use class tracking QBDT.png

 

Next, create a class for each vendor's tradenames:

 

  1. Go to the Lists menu, then Class List.
  2. Click the Class dropdown at the bottom of the page, then New.
  3. Enter the vendor's tradename as Class Name.
  4. Once done, hit OK.
    Add class.png

 

After that, you can assign the tradename when generating a vendor transaction from the Class field:

Apply tradename to transaction.png

 

On the other hand, you can leave the Manufacturer Part Number (MPN) blank when enabling this feature, as suggested by my colleague above. Then, manually generate the MPN when creating a transaction and use the Description column to populate the specification for the item:

Description and MPN.png

 

Additionally, you can pull up and customize your vendor reports to get a snapshot of your upcoming expense totals in the software.

 

If you have more questions about managing the alternate vendor function or generating part numbers, hit the Reply button. Our team is always available 24/7 to help you.

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