OPERATING ENVIRONMENT
The COGITO run-time environment comprises a number of utilities and tools designed to operate with the COGITO trading systems, including:Menus - Security - Setup - System Logging - Installer - Scheduler - Report Formats - Print Manager - On-line help - Tool kits - WordProcessor Interface - Backup - COBOL Run-time - File Manager - Communications Software - Network Software
Apart from the utilities under constant development by COGITO, the above products have been chosen with care from the market place - new tools are continually assessed as they are released and, if found to be superior, will replace those presently in use and will be recommended to our clients.
- Menus may be completely customised to the individual user, to display only the relevant options.
- Up to 10 passwords limit access to selected modules and programs. Passwords can be added and changed across the system.
- Full control over your business variables, e.g.: customer groupings, product categories, discount codes, how you analyse your sales, etc.
- Check pointing - data entry can be interrupted at any time to perform other functions (applies to all modules). Logs for audit trails optionally printed.
- Overnight procedures e.g. backup, updates, rolls and reporting can be scheduled.
- Reports can be customised as required to individual needs with full import / export facilities as required.
- Output data can directed to disk or any network printer.
- On-line manuals and help-desk. Modems and software to allow "hands on" assistance and programs to be sent.
- Comprehensive range of programs for changing large amounts of data.
- Report formatting to open data directly into other applications.
SALES ANALYSIS
A flexible and comprehensive module offering complete control over the analysis produced. The report are extremely efficient and can analyse all aspects of your business. Specific reports can be designed for your requirements."Indicators" can specify which Salesmen, Products, Budgets etc. are to be analysed. This enables detailed analysis to be retained for specific customers and products without accumulating masses of unwanted data which can impact on disk space and update time.
Confer with us when planning your Sales tables. Tool kits are available to retrogressively include any missed data and to enable new clients to build up analysis from available sales history.
| Customer Related | Product Related | Transaction Related |
|---|---|---|
| Area | Branch | Credit Reason |
| Customer | Stock Item | Discount |
| Salesman | Product Category | |
| Customer Type | Category 2-3 | |
| Account Type | Sales Code | |
| Supplier |
KEY FEATURES:
- The system allows up to eight levels of analysis and can show quantities, dollar values and gross profit.
- Weekly or monthly analysis available. Up to 110 periods of data held i.e. 9 years monthly or 2 years weekly. Any period or date range may be reported on at any time with "From - To" and "Compare to" date ranges.
- Any number of Budget spreads may be set against any subjects for variance reports.
- Ad hoc reports can be generated from permanent reports. Analysis by "delivery to" or "charge to". Credit returns and discounts accumulated for analysis.
- Reports may be directed to disk or printer. Export options for spreadsheets etc. or for accessing through any ODBC applications. Ability to sub total and format page breaks and to create personalised column headings.
- A variety of options allow for the inclusion / exclusion of subjects including the ability to report on a selected number of top or bottom performers.
DEBTORS
The Debtors File contains all the information required to ensure continuity in your trading practices with each customer.The module provides accurate, current information about your debtors and enables prompt production of debtors statements at the end of month. Delinquent account and "credit limit exceeded" reporting assist implementation of efficient credit control to contribute to improved financial performance.
KEY FEATURES
- Advanced price and discount selections can be set for particular jobs, products, lines or period of time for individual and groups of clients.
- User specified codes for Salesman, Branch, Type etc. Direct maintenance of Debtors records with ample space for details and text. Specific defaults can be set - to reduce keying in time and to check for errors when new records are added.
- Comprehensive on-screen inquiries: details, aged balances, performance, current and historical transactions and direct access to invoice display.
- Customer defaults set for transaction entries.
- Balance Forward or Open Item selectable by Debtor. Automatically or manually select transactions for payment, or allocate at a later time. "Future" payments may be entered between the end of a month and the rolls.
- Supports Prompt payment discounts.
- Each record can carry a "Charge-to" and "Statement-to" indicator and as many "delivery" addresses as required.
- Warn or prevent invoicing to overdue and / or over limit accounts.
- Individual customer's packing slips can show Net, Price and / or Discounts.
- Messages can be set up for customers or groups of customers to show on reports invoices, statements and inquiries.
- Sophisticated Trial Balance report with collection performance percentages.
- Comprehensive Customer and Sales reports tailored to your requirements.
- Information automatically updated to Sales Analysis.
- Selectively printed mailing labels for statements etc.
- Optional Word-processor interface for promotions and debt collection etc.
- Customer balance audited as part of the month end procedure.
CREDITORS / CASH BOOK
The Creditors module is usually integrated with the General Ledger and Suppliers Orders so that only non-stock invoices need be entered.The module is designed to provide an efficient method of controlling your creditors, paying your accounts and giving you greater control over the entire financial position of your company.
A flexible, open system that allows all or selected accounts to be paid manually or by a cheque run at a particular time of month or in several runs during the month. Cash Required reports can be printed any time, expenses can be analysed to as many different expense accounts as required.
KEY FEATURES:
- Creditor's details are validated as entered; defaults to reduce keying in time. Relevant information displayed for operator verification and an audit trail printed.
- One step cheque printing with reprinting corrections: updates payments, cheque Nos., cheque register, General Ledger and Creditors records and supports.
- User defined expense codes, department codes etc. for analysis reports.
- Import Payroll into Creditors or General Ledger.
- Invoices can be selected for payment or held for any payment run, and cash requirements printed.
- Control report produces a summary of the period's invoices, credits, payments, tax and non-tax totals.
- Payment Method can be a mixture of cheque printing, ?Direct credit, Manual cheques, ?Cash.
- Cheque printing allows for reprinting corrections.
- Cheque reconciliation for: Presented Cheques, Miscellaneous Cheques, Delete Old Presented Cheques, Cancelled Cheques, and Report Un-presented/Presented Cheques.
- Provides current inquiry at any time:
Statement type inquiry.
Purchases and Payments this Month and Year and Last Year's Purchases - Trial Balance, Chequing and Direct Credit etc. can be run any time.
- Complete reporting facility - reports are kept brief, as the user is able to specify what is to be reported.
- Produces Remittance Advices on pre-printed or standard stationery.
GENERAL LEDGER
No pre-determined chart of account structure - account codes are up to 10 digits long and may be divided into sections for separate companies, branches and departments. Decide upon a format that suits your company. Monthly, four weekly, or weekly periods accommodated.As many separate company accounts as needed may be run; copy facilities are available. No limit to the number of accounts or to the number of transactions that may be entered. Transactions are available for on-screen enquiries and reporting for as many years as required.
The General Ledger can be fully integrated with Creditors so
that only
those transactions which do not go through Creditors need be entered.
The degree of integration with other modules depends upon your needs.
The Private Ledger offers a large number of reports that are customised
to suit individual charts of accounts.
KEY FEATURES:
- Each account has an optional alpha description for ease of input and inquiry. These need not be unique. Either alpha or numeric codes can be set to default, with the alternative code always available.
- No limit to the budget spreads
- Automatic reversals to the next or other period.
- Postings can be made to any period.
- "Grace" periods 13 - 15 become next year's periods 01 - 03. Current processing may be continued while the previous financial year is being closed off.
- Automatic "close-to" accounts - the balance is transferred / closed to the specified account with the annual roll.
- Automatic "splitting" of transactions to up to five other accounts - for GST / VAT and for spreading costs over several accounts / departments.
- Accounts handle values AND quantities if appropriate.
- Accepts individual postings up to $99,999,999.99 and monthly balances up to $999,999,999.99.
- Inquiries showing Details, Transactions, Budgets and Quantities. Any period or period range totals displayed on-screen for any account.
- Unlimited text may be attached to individual postings.
FINANCIAL REPORTING
Reports can be designed and modified to individual requirements. Once the format of a report has been set up, you can use it at any time to print off current information.KEY FEATURES
- On-line report design (format).
- A "hard copy" listing can be printed.
- Individual accounts can be "tagged" for reporting on groups of otherwise disparate accounts.
- Budgets (quantities and values) may be applied to individual accounts or "totals".
- Ratios can be based on any accumulator and may be turned on and off as required.
- There is no compilation, the report can be run immediately.
- Provides all the facilities of a report generator without the complexities. Reports are easily customised, format your accounts for your accountant.
INVOICING
COGITO provides a highly flexible method of recording sales and producing invoices.At any time, all invoices can be updated, automatically revising the Debtors, Stock and Sales files and producing:
Invoice register: listing invoices and credits with totals and gross profit.
Control report: showing Opening Balance, each Transaction Total and the new Closing Balance with a Trial Balance summary.
Negative or Held (Un-costed) stock report.
A variety of Exception Reports may optionally highlight any transactions that should be brought to management's attention - e.g.: excessive discounts, Items sold below a specified Gross Profit percentage, or Invoices to customers who have overdue balances or have exceeded their credit limit.
The invoicing function may be broken down into several different Transaction Types of your choice: e.g. Trade Invoices, Cash Sales, Packing Slips, Customer Orders, Quotes, Trade and Showroom Credits. The appropriate description appears on the customer's statement and control totals are kept for each transaction type.
Customer Ordering is designed to record stock requirements and enable you to provide improved customer service. Document "future" orders for the new season to assist with your own supplier ordering.
Back-orders can be raised during Invoicing when stock is not available to generate a Customer Order during the next update. The stock can then be issued when it becomes available or when the Order is due. Filling (or part filling) an Order automatically raises an invoice or packing slip and deducts the stock item automatically from the quantity On Order. Priority codes and dates can be used to indicate the urgency of an Order.
KEY FEATURES
- Powerful Sales Kit for quoting assembly parts - make changes and display Gross Profit margins as you go.
- Copy Invoices; change lines and re-calculate for a different customer's prices and discounts, turn into a credit, copy long quotes or regular monthly invoices.
- Non-stocked items can be included on the invoice - a valid sales category can be assigned to ensure your sales analysis totals are complete.
- Alter the standard description for an item.
- Select a Salesman for the entire invoice or per line item.
- Comprehensive editing and error correction facilities.
- Keying in is minimised with defaults picked up from Debtor and Stock records for price, discount, tax, salesman etc. to also ensures consistent trading practices.
- Invoice recall and reprint, includes archived invoices.
- Toggle cost display off or on - especially for counter sales.
- Break out of an invoice and return or do another and return.
- System-generated invoice numbers with different ranges for quotes and credits as desired.
- Warnings e.g. Under Cost, Out of Stock, Over Credit, Stop Credit etc.
- Five standard pricing levels plus unlimited special pricing.
- Choice of standard forms and layouts or customised invoices including A4 paper.
- Single invoices can be printed e.g. at point of sale or produced in batches. Printing behaviour selectable by terminal.
- Any number of text messages can be printed on individual or batches of invoices. Standard messages can be included e.g.: "Temporarily out of stock - Back Ordered".
- "Charge to" and "Deliver to" addresses.
- "Point-of-sale" version available with scanners, costs not displayed.
STOCK CONTROL
The Stock Control System has been designed to meet the needs of the various people dealing with the different aspects of stock management.Managers require information re: the financial impact of the investment in stock: Product performance, stock turns, biggest sellers, best margins. What is the current valuation? Are we overstocked? Do we have too many low profit lines and not enough high margin ones?
Buyers want to know costing and lead time performance by suppliers: Usage, customer / supplier orders, re-order levels, sales history, stock turns, seasonal trends, economic order quantity, bulk orders, freight costs, alternate suppliers with costs and lead times.
Sales Staff need to keep up with current pricing, discounts and availability. What's in stock, on order, reserved? Where is it located? What discount is set for this customer? What's on special?
KEY FEATURES
- Comprehensive on-screen inquiries for stock levels, profiles, transactions and demand. Provides the ability to display e.g. sales only - for a single customer and direct access to orders and invoices. Search by code, description, lookup number, category or a single word.
- Transactions can be retained on file for as long as required. Archived transactions available for inquiry.
- Up to four stock categories plus fourteen status codes.
- Stock valuation options: Average, latest, standard or FIFO by product.
- Replaced by codes and suggested alternative items.
- Unit description per item, e.g. kilo, box. Plus up to three alternate selling units - the prices for these can be based on the main stocking unit, making them subject to automated price changes.
- Five selling prices per item.
- Product discounts can be combined with customer discounts. Over 9,000 different discount combinations available per item.
- Stock Aging
- Price Books
- Automated re-pricing with optional mark-ups.
- Additional text facility which may be included on lookup, reports and invoices selectively.
- Classification for fast or slow moving stock.
- Tax Code: for GST etc. "01" default.
- Main Supplier and country of origin.
- Suggested economic order quantity, supplier's units and weighting for freight calculations.
- Performance Factor.
- Qty / Factor: 1: 2: 3:
- Up to 4 suppliers for each stock item, with product codes, costs and lead times.
- Automatic stock re-ordering levels based on demand history - user-specified limits.
- Up to four bin locations.
- Branch stock
- Reorder, maximum and minimum levels.
- Month and year to date Gross Profit: Sales and Purchase: Quantities and Value:
- Demand quantities Month and Year to Date
- Opening Value and Quantity to Month and Year.
- Average Stock: Over No. of Months. Purchase: details of the last 6 purchases
ACCESSORIES
Several Specialised options may be included into the base module to provide a system tailored more exactly to your requirements:- FIFO costing system
- Branch
- stocks Component parts bill
- Depreciation Transaction history
- Electronic price lists: product / price export facility.
Toolkits:
These programs allow fast changes to various settings for groups of products, saving hours of keying in - e.g. mass price updates. Two extra "sales units" per item allowing sales to be made in units differing from the way in which they are stocked, e.g. an item may be sold in cartons, packets or singly with the stock levels, demand history and sales / margin values adjusted accordingly. Suppliers' product profiles: includes product codes, description and prices (in foreign currencies if applicable), especially useful in suppliers orders.
STOCK REPORTS
The Stock Control Module provides reports on such subjects as:- Product performance
- Inventory valuations
- Inventory write-downs
- Stock availability
- Price books
- Suggested re-ordering
Reports can be "tailored" to your requirements.
Each subject has its own Report Program and each program may have any number of report profiles which can be created, changed or deleted as desired. Ad-hoc reports can be produced as required. Customised reports can be written.
Stock Availability Reports can be listed for stock categories, sales codes, suppliers and/ or product code range. Stock valuation report has summary and detailed options.
The Stock Re-Ordering Report is designed to provide selective reporting of under or over-stocked inventory items based on Order Point, Lead Time or Demand with forecast sales based on the previous 12 months demand history and / or a user-entered "weighting factor".
STOCKTAKE
The Stocktake module helps you to analyse and control your stock and keep your levels down.-
Data can be captured for any product range - by bin location or by
category sequences.
- Stocktake Forms and variance input.
- handles multiple bins per product.
- handles multiple products per bin.
-
Each Stocktake may have a number of Counts and each Count has:
- Up to 8 Category / Product ranges
- Scheduled Date
- "Pick up" "Count" and "Posting" fields.
KEY FEATURES
- Up to 12 bins / counts per record.
- Branch stocktake is independent of all other branch stocks.
- Accommodates rolling stocktakes.
- Store "net" variance for "period" to allow multiple counts for a stocktake "period".
- Facility to re-count - i.e. Capture Stock, clear counts.
- Option to re-capture costs of un-costed receipts.
- Normal method processing during stocktaking can be continued indefinitely. The system will automatically take into account the stock variance from the time of the count to the time of file update.
- Stocktake Forms and variance input.
- Discrepancy reports can be produced between the computer and the count.
- Valuation reports can be made from the counted data.
- The stock file can be updated with the physical count.
SUPPLIER ORDERS
The overall objective of the Stock Control and Supplier Order modules is to reduce investment in stock, minimise lost sales and provide a satisfactory level of customer orders filled. The system monitors the status of orders through shipments and the receipt of goods into stock. The Suppliers Orders module must be installed with the Stock Control module and integrates with the Customer Orders and Creditors Modules.Companies with large inventories require a method for preparing stock orders on their suppliers and to avoid the clerical effort involved in regularly checking thousands of stock items for re-order purposes.
KEY FEATURES:
- Integrates with Stock Control to produce a suggested order report. Orders can be prepared based on: Items below minimum stock (re-order level), Items where lead-time usage may exceed available stock, Items which should be re-ordered to provide sufficient stock to cover expected usage over a specified period.
- Suppliers' costs in foreign currencies.
- Manual intervention to prepare or modify orders. Orders may be re-called, changed or cancelled altogether.
- Records costs, with the opportunity to adjust costs later, if not available on receipt of goods.
- Supplier lead times monitored for use in re-ordering.
- Inquiries by supplier and by product available on screen or printed report.
- Warns of potential "stock-outs".
- Supplier information can be accessed on Creditors file.
- Costed receipts are automatically passed to Creditors.
- Records indent order information from Customer Orders Module.
- Exceptional cost changes high-lighted.
- Exchange rate conversion for foreign currencies (Optional extra).
- Supplier Product Codes can be used in conjunction with your own.