Due to a combination of global influences, there have been noticeable supply chain disruptions and shortages in materials affecting the construction industry, resulting in both prolonged delays and increased costs for many projects. As Plumbers, Electricians, HVAC and other trade services look to get their materials from a range of suppliers who have stock for their jobs and projects, they need to ensure that their suppliers and pricing is updated accordingly in their job management system.

simPRO is a great job management platform and many Aretex clients are finding that their catalogues now need to be updated on a more regular basis. Whether you are doing this yourself or have someone on staff completing this for you, there’s a couple of areas you should consider before going ahead with your catalogue updates.

What Data Are You Updating?

With catalogue updates in simPRO and other job management software, the data being uploaded and updated can affect more than just the material pricing. Before going through with importing the update, review the catalogue and remove any additional data that’s not required for your particular job management system. Taking this simple step can make quoting a lot easier and reduce the opportunity for error when pricing jobs and projects.

Review Your Catalogue Structure

In operational accounting and data management services we have a saying: “if you make a mess of your accounts, your accounts will be a mess.” Sounds pretty obvious and this goes for job management systems too. Make sure the full catalogue you are importing is structured for ease of use and access once imported and also fits your particular workflow and operational structure.

Links to Other Areas

Depending on the size and complexity of your job management software, there’s a possibility that the materials and pricing you are uploading will be linked to other areas of your system. In simPRO for example, many companies have established pre-builds and take-off templates that will be linked to specific suppliers and catalogues. It is important that the items potentially affected by an update be checked to ensure mapping is correct on updated items. Duplicate items within the system, discontinued and item no longer required need to be identified to ensure correct pricing. Fixing this at the time of upload saves time when quoting and organising jobs using these helpful tools.

Duplicate Items

With new catalogues there can be similar items to your current listing with slightly different descriptions, product codes, and pricing. This can lead to duplicate items in the system available to pick from for jobs and projects. To avoid picking the wrong items, in simPRO you can run a Duplicate Items Review Report to ensure the old items have been archived where necessary and the new materials and pricing updated. 

Accurate pricing is key part of any trades services business. Taking some time to ensure new catalogues are entered into your job management system successfully and old catalogues pricing is removed or archived can be a big step to maintaining a successful business.

 If you have any questions on effective catalogue imports or any other job management issues, email us at info@aretex.com.au or check out our Tradies page here.

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