3.0 Document Center

There are various places in Softbase where you can store documents. For example, if you were to go to AR Inquiry you can have stored images such as the handwritten copy of a work order attached to an invoice. In Equipment setup you can store Photos/Docs under the Photo/Docs tab, in this case you can drag and drop an image into that tab.

The idea with Document Center was that it would serve as a consolidated point of dealing with all of those same images. So anything that you attach in Equipment or any of the other screens for that matter, will show up in Document Center. Or you could just simply do it all in the Document Center.

Image files can be stored as .jpeg, .png (recommended), gif, pdf, tiff, etc. The file type .png is recommended because it uses the least amount of space and allows for decent quality for that amount of space. The file type jpeg is a good choice as well. A .jpeg, .png, and gif can only be one page per file. However a pdf or tiff can be multiple pages in one file. There is a 2GB limit per file/image. Remember the more graphics that are in your file the larger your file will be.

The view button at the top will simply open up a larger view of the image. You could also accomplish this by clicking on the image itself. With that said, if your document is multiple pages you will only see the first page in the window but if you click the view button or click on the image you will be able to view the entire document.

There is another check box located just below the File Name drop down field. This is labeled ‘Include With Customer Invoice’. If you select an invoice from the queue list and click the ‘Include With Customer Invoice’ box, in order for this to give you the proper view the Customer setup screen also needs to have the ‘Backup Paperwork Required’ box selected. That field can be located in the Customer setup screen under the Web Terms tab. Then if you were to go into the Invoicing screen and retrieve that same work order number and do the Preview you would not only get the normal work order preview but also the scanned image(s) as well.

Under the Invoice/WO tab you might store images such as a copy of the hand written work order or a copy of the customer’s printed purchase order.

Under the Rental tab you might store a copy of the signed Rental agreement.

Under the Customer tab you might store a copy of their tax exempt certificate or maybe a blanket purchase order, or even a copy of an insurance certificate.

Under the Equipment tab you might store photos of equipment.

Under the Vendor tab you might store a resale certificate or some sort of agreement you have with that vendor.

Under the AP Invoice tab you might want to store a copy of the actual invoice and attach it to the invoice # after it has been put in as a voucher.

Under the PO tab you might have some sort of written document that you scanned and you can attach that document to a specific PO #.

As for Parts you can have photos stored in the database as well however those will not show up in the Document Center. If you store a photo of a part onto a parts file in the Parts setup screen you will notice a star (*) will appear in the tab letting you know there is some sort of file there for you to view.

Accessibility

In Security, each user who needs to use the Document Center screen will need the proper authorization. Under the Doc Center tab the ‘Document Center’ checkbox must be selected, if it is not selected the user will not be able to get into the Document Center screen. Also whichever permissions they need should be marked. So if they are an employee who will be scanning mechanic work orders and storing them in Document Center they will need the permission for ‘Add WO / Invoice Docs’. And so on, for any other permissions they might need.

Storing Documents

Most documentation will come in from Softbase Mobile.  But if you need to manually add documents basically you will scan your documents to a designated file on your computer then you will attach them to the appropriate place in Document Center.

Your changes are automatically saved. There is no Update or Save button in Document Center, there is only Add and Delete.

For example:

Mechanic tab

Time cards are sent through Softbase Mobile.  At the end of the work day the mechanic can click the Labor button and review his time entries.  Make adjustments if necessary.  Sign his time card and click send to send it to the Document Center.  

Additionally you have the option to manually attach a hand written time card or other document if necessary.  In Document Center under the Mechanic tab if you need to manually attach a document you first need to select the appropriate Mechanic. Then you will open the folder where your scanned time cards are stored. Locate the appropriate document that pertains to the mechanic you have chosen. Click and hold onto the document and drag it into the large grey area on the right in the Document Center screen. When you release your mouse button you will see the image in the area where you dropped it. Also the file name that you saved it as will appear in the drop down field on the left just below the mechanic #. You will need to click the Add button to attach the selected document to the selected mechanic.

Another option is to open the image file and go to Edit, Select All. Then you can copy the image. Then in Document Center there is a Paste Button at the top of the screen. If you click the Paste button your image will appear in the area to the right just the same as if you had dragged and dropped it there with the exception of the file name that appears in the drop down field. In this case the database will auto assign a file name and place a C at the beginning indicating it was a copied image.

Or you can use the Browse button at the top to browse for the file just as you would in any other program that you are familiar with.

Invoice/WO tab

Under the Invoice/WO tab you would enter the Customer # and Invoice # into the appropriate field first. If you only know the Invoice # you can enter it then click the magnifying glass to the right to locate the appropriate customer. Either way you choose to do it is fine just as long as you have both fields populated prior to trying to bring in a document.  

You’ll notice sometimes the label for the Invoice # field might be a different color. If the label remains black, this symbolizes that the invoice # you have entered is a valid #. If the label becomes red, this symbolizes you have entered an incorrect invoice #. If the label changes to purple, this indicates the work order is invoiced.

Using Document Center as a work queue

You can use the Invoice/WO tab as well as the Mechanic tab as a work queue.

Invoice/WO

Once a document is scanned and attached to an invoice it will appear in the queue. Additionally a work order can be sent from a mobile device at the time a technician acquires a signature from a customer.  They would click the Send button to send the document to the Document Center.  Then throughout the day(s) as the work order is being processed someone could come into this screen and mark when the parts have been posted or when the labor has been posted, when the comments have been updated, or even when the work order has been given to CSS to possibly quote additional repairs.

You also have view options to help narrow the results that you see in the queue. So for instance if you are a parts employee and you are only concerned with looking at anything that shows unprocessed parts you can select Parts from the drop down field labeled ‘Unprocessed’. You could narrow it even further if your company has multiple branches by selecting a particular branch.

The view button at the top will simply open up a larger view of the image. You could also accomplish this by clicking on the image itself. With that said, if your document is multiple pages you will only see the first page in the window but if you click the view button or click on the image you will be able to view the entire document.

There is another check box located just below the File Name drop down field. This is labeled ‘Include With Customer Invoice’. If you select an invoice from the queue list and click the ‘Include With Customer Invoice’ box, in order for this to give you the proper view the Customer setup screen also needs to have the ‘Backup Paperwork Required’ box selected. That field can be located in the Customer setup screen under the Web Terms tab. Then if you were to go into the Invoicing screen and retrieve that same work order number and do the Preview you would not only get the normal work order preview but also the scanned image(s) as well.

There is a refresh button located just above the unprocessed button. This can be used to refresh the queue list.

Also, if a work order gets invoiced it will be removed from the queue.

Mechanic

The employee who enters labor tickets into the work orders might go to this screen and double-click on one of the time cards and use this to make entries into the Labor Ticket Entry screen. Then they can click the check box for ‘Processed Labor Ticket’. That entry will then remove itself from the queue. This does not mean it is deleted, it simply means it is hidden from the queue list. If you were to select the same mechanic again and click the drop down field for the File name you could still view that document if you needed to. And if you find you marked it as processed by mistake you can uncheck the box if needed.