Did you know that you can automatically receive an email copy of your customer quotes? This is especially helpful if you want to keep track of quotes outside of Eclipse. You can do it with this Epicor Eclipse Tip of the Day from your friends at Zerion:
To set up automatic Blind Carbon Copies (BCC) on customer quotes, access the User File for each desired user. There, you can specify the BCC address for all outgoing emails. Enter the user’s email address in the “Sender BCC” field. Eclipse will then email the user when a quote is emailed to a customer. Please note: You may need the system administrator to make this change for you, but it will be well worth the effort.
I hope this helps enhance your sales operation. Let us know if we can be of assistance with anything.
Did you know that you can set Eclipse to automatically print backordered tickets after the items are received? You can, with this Epicor Eclipse Tip of the Day from your friends at Zerion:
The Automatic Shipping Ticket Phantom has a helpful option that often gets ignored during setup. “Print Incomplete Ship When Availables after:” refers to those tickets that were not completely available on XX day, and now they have been received. The system will print all of these backorders after the designated time, keeping them separate from today’s tickets and providing more organization.
If you do any light manufacturing, it may be helpful to use priceline maintenance to exclude some items from check availability or cycle count. In this short video overview, Tony King will show you how to do that.
Using the re-order pad in Epicor Eclipse can help you save time by accessing your customers’ recently purchased products. In this short video overview, Tony King will show you how to use it.
Activant Eclipse allows you to review the rationale of the price matrix right from the sales order. In this short video overview, Tony King will show you how.
Activant Eclipse allows you to pull up a shipping address in MapQuest, Google Maps, etc. right from the sales order. In this short video overview, Tony King will show you how.
Many users don’t realize that you can view product locations in Eclipse in multiple ways. With the Warehouse Location Maintenance feature, unlike product location maintenance, you don’t have to enter a product first. You just enter in the Warehouse Location, which allows you to see all of the items in that location. This comes in handy for locations that contain multiple products.
Waiting, waiting, waiting … I could be billing a customer, generating a sales order, or picking an order. But instead I’m thinking about what’s for lunch while I yawn (again), finish off another cup of coffee, and continue staring at E-term’s spinning wheel of death.
Has that ever happened to you? Multiply that experience by the number of users you have on your Eclipse system, factor in the trickle down effect each user’s wait time has on other aspects of the operation, and throw in a bathroom break for good measure. It all adds up to INEFFICIENCY and LOST REVENUE.
As you may know, Eclipse is very resource intensive. Upgrading hardware is a common recommendation when you’re experiencing system issues; but, this is like getting your car re-painted … it may look prettier but it doesn’t necessarily help things run better.
My Dad always tells me that the cheapest car I’ll ever own is the one I already have. I may not always heed that advice; but, when it’s applied to the Eclipse system in a distribution company, my Dad’s really onto something. So the question becomes, how do we make the most of what we’ve got? Just like that car, it’s all about maintenance, maintenance, maintenance. And, if you’re focused on performance, a paint job should always be the last thing on your list, rather than the first. Instead, it makes more sense to invest in things that help your car deal with everyday use, like oil changes, tires, and other preventative maintenance.
Here are seven ways you can increase your system’s speed and up-time:
Clean up your system files. The files in your Eclipse system accumulate junk over time. These unnecessary bits of data slow down (and fill up) your server, your system and your users, just like your oil gets crud in it and slows down your car. Eventually, if you don’t change the oil, you’ll burn up your engine and your car will come to a screeching halt. If your system has ever crashed, you know what this is like and what kind of an impact it can have on your profitability. Cleaning out those system files regularly can keep your system running like it’s supposed to.
Review system logs. Behind the scenes, your system has error logs. Users are oblivious to the little gems of information that are being recorded, which could help you find a problem before it shuts down your server or, worse, causes irreparable data corruption. Checking those system logs regularly could save your company a great deal of time and headache.
Re-start UniVerse. The UniVerse database that Eclipse runs onorganizes and stores your system’s data and then retrieves it when you’re working in the system. This database is touted as being maintenance-free. While this can be true for a time, eventually the system will become unreliable, just as if you didn’t check your tire’s air pressure. You will eventually have a flat, it’s just a question of when; and, depending on your speed, whether it will be a complete blow-out or a slow leak. Truth be told, this kind of database requires regular re-starts to run efficiently and crash less frequently. And, these re-starts can also help expose issues before they get out of control.
Get printers running properly. Printing issues are almost always a result of database issues. When the print spooler is acting strange, tickets aren’t printing as they’re supposed to, and printers are dying or running slowly, database maintenance could be all that you need.
Manually accommodate for file growth. Your system has to grow to accommodate more data. Eclipse is set up to automatically do this, requiring no human intervention or system downtime (i.e. someone working on the weekend). But, this convenience factor results in a loss of efficiency and performance. If accommodation for growth on your most critical files were done manually, your system’s performance could be optimized.
Replenish system resources. Your system’s resources get tied up, and they don’t always get released back completely on their own. This will result in your system being short on resources; and, it will run slower and slower as time goes on. Every so often, your system’s resources need to be replenished, just as your car’s radiator needs more fluids.
Refresh your training account. The data in your training account needs to be updated regularly. If a change needs to be tested in your training area, it can’t be done if the information is out of date. And, training employees using old data isn’t a good use of time.
Depending on your particular system make-up and needs, some or all of these seven elements can be part of a sound maintenance program to make your Eclipse system as reliable and efficient as possible. While you can pay more attention to some of these items on your own, Zerion is available to provide you with hands-free performance optimization through our new EZ Performance program.
By default, cycle counts are only generated from sales orders. Therefore, when you issue a transfer and your warehouse staff changes the ship quantities, that item doesn’t go to the cycle count queue. With the Generate Cycle Count When Transfer Ship Quantities Change control file, you can include them in the queue to be counted. Change the setting to YES and you’ll be on your way to a more accurate warehouse! GET MORE free Eclipse help …
Our recent survey is providing insightful and useful information that will help mold the future of this newsletter. One affirmed suspicion is that our Eclipse tips are a hot item each month. While we wait for the final survey results to be tallied, we thought we’d treat you to some reverse tips … in other words, what NOT to do. Spending over five hundred hours per month in Eclipse-run distributors gives us unique perspective into some of the most common operational mistakes.
Mass loads don’t fix everything. Without fail, when an Eclipse user runs into a problem, whether slight or serious, the first question out of their mouths is, “Can we write a mass load to fix that?” While mass loads can be helpful in certain situations, they are not a universal band-aid. In most cases, it takes just as long to write the mass load as it would to fix the issue manually. Whenever you come across a challenge, or need to repair a problem, you should first analyze your data set to determine if a mass load is truly warranted.
Status code, what? We love salespeople. Their role is invaluable. But, they can be some of the worst offenders when it comes to working in Eclipse. One of the most common scenarios we come across is hearing them declare their individuality – “I’m different, you don’t understand what I do.” – whilst generalizing their orders and trying to make every customer situation the same. Let us explain. Every order with every single customer can potentially be different. Eclipse has useful functionality that allows you to customize each sales order by choosing the appropriate status code. Yet, most distributors we visit don’t use them, or don’t use them properly. These codes are intended to provide personalization, allowing you to treat the order exactly as the customer specified and making your customer service even better. So, why not use them?
Prices schmices. Properly pricing products is a more important success factor than most realize; and, a lack of emphasis in this area can run your business ragged. We continue to be amazed by the number of distributors that don’t take advantage of Eclipse’s price matrix. In these cases, each time a salesperson enters an order, they fix the Gross Profit to be whatever works for the situation. In effect, this creates multiple pricing czars in the organization. And, unfortunately, not everybody can be an expert at product pricing. When you set up a pricing matrix, customers get consistent pricing, the sales staff gets to focus on what they do best, and you can effectively and predictably manage your margins.
I don’t need no stinkin’ queue. Earlier we mentioned the shipping status and how it’s sadly ignored. But, the customer calling queue is an even greater misfit. It’s purpose is pretty straightforward: it’s turned on when a salesperson needs to be prompted to call a customer. As simple and potentially unnecessary as that sounds, it can really come in handy and improve overall service. For instance, if a customer wants material that you don’t have, you could just send it to them as soon as it gets in …. Or, when the product arrives, you could use it as an opportunity to call the customer. This allows you to have an additional customer touch, which could potentially become an up sell.
Everyone’s a math whiz. Ahh, you thought we were just picking on salespeople, did you? Not so. We can take a moment to harp on purchasing, too. Why? Because Eclipse can add 2+2 in the Suggested PO’s just as good as a buyer can. Many times, they think they’re smarter than the system, letting us know that the Suggested PO queue can’t come up with the correct buy. So, they consistently change the buy. However, this is undoubtedly resulting in unnecessary fluctuations in inventory that could be avoided if Eclipse were allowed to do its thing. If the buys aren’t right, you should instead look at the data and the maintenance so that the queue can work as designed.
Picking Déjà vu. Have you ever experienced this? Your warehouse picker shorted a ticket, so the ticket reprinted. Then, a second warehouse picker looks for the material. He can’t find it either, so the saga continues. If you’ve been here, it’s probably because your default control file for backorders is set to “A.” That means “ship when available;”and, it does just that, even if you’re on-hand is wrong. The system keeps thinking you have it, and your pickers will continue to look for it. If you instead change your default back order status to a calling status, this lack of efficiency can be eliminated.
No love for the labels. It’s no surprise when we walk into a warehouse and see a perfectly good label printer that’s being used only for shelf labels. For truck deliveries, the workers are still using a giant permanent marker to list the route on all of the pretty boxes. Eclipse can print labels for shelves, for products, for shipping purposes, and for just about anything else that needs a label in the Eclipse environment. Put those label printers to use and you’ll instantly step up your efficiency and professionalism.
If you do any light manufacturing, it may be helpful to use priceline maintenance to exclude some items from check availability or cycle count. In this short video overview, Tony King will show you how to do that.
Using the re-order pad in Epicor Eclipse can help you save time by accessing your customers’ recently purchased products. In this short video overview, Tony King will show you how to use it.
Many users don’t realize that you can view product locations in Eclipse in multiple ways. With the Warehouse Location Maintenance feature, unlike product location maintenance, you don’t have to enter a product first. You just enter in the Warehouse Location, which allows you to see all of the items in that location. This comes in handy for locations that contain multiple products.
By default, cycle counts are only generated from sales orders. Therefore, when you issue a transfer and your warehouse staff changes the ship quantities, that item doesn’t go to the cycle count queue. With the Generate Cycle Count When Transfer Ship Quantities Change control file, you can include them in the queue to be counted. Change the setting to YES and you’ll be on your way to a more accurate warehouse! 
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