Quite often when creating quotes or estimates for clients, there is a need to contact a supplier or vendor to get their costs before the quote can be completed. By using Streamtime to request these costs, it means all the information on who you asked and what prices they quoted etc will all be stored in one place. This article shows you how to create a Request for Tender (or Request for Quote), associate it with a client Quote and then turn it into a Purchase Order.

NOTE: The "Artwork + Printing Quote" was renamed to the more generic "Quote with Third Party Options". The "Supplier Estimate" was renamed to "Third Party Options Only"

Go to the Quotes tab and create your quote or estimate in Streamtime. When you're ready to ask your suppliers or vendors for a quote (known as a Request for Tender in Streamtime) click on the New Related Order button,

and this will jump you to the Orders tab so you can create your Request.

If you're new to Streamtime then the status of the request will default to Request for Tender.

However you can setup your own Statuses by going to Setup > System Setup > Master List and using the drop down arrow select Edit to create your master list of Statuses.

You can also set which of these Statuses from your Master List you want new Requests to default to.

Select which supplier you will be sending the Request to from the drop down menu

Note: Only Contacts that have the Type selected as Supplier or Client & Supplier will be available in the drop down menu.

Now you can start building your Request by selecting a Category and Task/Material from your Cost Matrix. In this example we've selected Third Party and Printing.

Put some information in the Details column to give the Supplier some information on what you'd like them to quote for.

Then put in the Quantity you want your supplier to quote.

If you wish your supplier to quote multiple items you can use the duplicate button,

and the line will be duplicated allowing you to amend the quantity field or the details field, so you can have multiple items on your Request.

By clicking the Details tab, you can type in any special instructions or specifications for your Supplier.

or you can use the Custom/History tab.

If you wish to use the Custom tab and haven't already set the custom fields up, you can do so by going to Setup > System Setup > Orders.

When you're happy with your Request select the Print/Send button.

and select the Print Form Request for Tender.

You can then Preview, Print, Save a PDF or Email a PDF to your Supplier.

or if you have used the Custom tab then select the Print Form Request for Tender with Specifications.

If you need to send a Request to more than one supplier simply click the Duplicate button.

Select Duplicate.

and your Tender will be duplicated and you just need to select a new Supplier.

and then click Print/Send.

When the costs come in from your Suppliers puts these in the Cost column - remember this is the cost to your business not what you're charging the client.

Note: The Orders tab does not work the same way as the Quotes tab. By putting an amount in the Qty column and then a cost in the Cost column these fields are not multiplied to make a Sell value to charge your client. The Qty column is the number of items you are ordering from your supplier and the Cost is the total amount (less tax) that it is costing you for this item/s.

You can also include the Supplier's reference or quote number

If you plan to on charge the cost of these items you ordered to your client, you can put in a markup in the Markup column

If you wish to have a default markup set to particular items then you can set this against the item in Setup > Cost Matrix.

By having a markup set the Sell value will automatically be calculated. Alternatively instead of using the markup column you can type in a value directly into the Sell column.

If you click on the Related Quotes tab you will see your Quote/Estimate for the Client and you can click the arrow next to the Quote number to return to the Quote.

Back in the Quotes tab if you click on the Related Orders tab you will see all your Requests for this Job.

If you need to show your client the different options you received from your Suppliers, then click the Print/Send button.

And select either the Artwork and Printing Quote (or "Quote with Third Party Options" if you're in a more recent version of Streamtime),

Which will show the client all the items you've entered on your Quote plus all the options you've obtained from your Supplier/s.

Or select the Supplier Estimate,

and this will only show the Clients the options you obtained from your Supplier/s.

If you don't wish to reveal to your client which Suppliers you've used, you can edit their names by clicking the Edit button next to each Supplier.

Once you know which supplier you're using you can change the status of the Requests that are not going ahead with. To do this click the arrow next to the relevant Order number.

And once you're in the Order change the Status to Cancelled. By doing this you still have a reference to which Supplier's you asked for prices and how much they Quoted you.

You can also hide items you do not wish to be on the Order by unchecking the Include column.

With the remaining Request, you can hide the quantity you aren't going ahead with by once again unchecking the item in the Include column and using the arrow to the right of the item you are ordering push the item into your client Quote.

The item now appears in the Quote and is ready to send to the client.

Once the client approves the Quote, you will then need to turn your Request into a Purchase Order. To do this simply change the Order status to On Order or any other "active/reportable" status you may have previously created. By changing the status to one that is "active/reportable" the Request now officially becomes a Purchase Order in Streamtime.

Note: By creating a Purchase Order in Streamtime, not only allows you to send the official Purchase Order to your Supplier, more importantly, by changing the status of the Order to an "active/reportable" status the cost/s on the Order now become expenses on your Job.

Populate the Required Date and Time fields if you're expecting delivery of your items on particular date,

And using the Details tab you can also populate delivery details.

Once you're happy with your Order you can select the Print/Send button and select Purchase Order or select Purchase Order with Specification if you've used the Custom fields.

You can then Preview, Print, Save a PDF or Email a PDF to your Supplier.