Creating a Purchase Order
Purchase orders (POs) in AccuArk track everything you buy from vendors, from initial order through receiving and payment. This guide walks through every section of the PO form and the full creation workflow.
Opening the Purchase Order Form
Navigate to Inventory > Purchase Orders > New Purchase Order from the main menu, or click New PO from the purchase order browser. The form opens ready for a new order.
You can also create a PO pre-populated with a specific item from other parts of the system, such as the Reorder Dashboard or by right-clicking an item in reports and selecting "Purchase".
Vendor Selection
The top section of the form handles vendor selection. You have several options:
- Search by ID — Type a vendor ID directly into the search field
- Browse — Opens the vendor browser to search and select from your vendor list
- Edit — Opens the selected vendor's profile for viewing or editing without leaving the PO
- Create New — Opens a blank vendor form to add a new vendor on the fly
- Clear — Removes the selected vendor and resets the vendor section
Once a vendor is selected, the form displays their key information: company name, contact name, address, phone, fax, email, and website. This information is pulled from the vendor record and helps you verify you have the right vendor before proceeding.
Location
Every PO is scoped to a single location. Select the destination location from the Location dropdown, which shows only locations you have access to. The selected location determines:
- Where received stock will be added
- Which zone routing rules apply during receiving
- Which location's stock levels are updated
The location cannot be changed after items have been received on the PO.
Order Details
Fill in the order header fields:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Order Date | The date the order is placed. Defaults to today. |
| Expected Delivery Date | When you expect to receive the goods. Used for planning and PO tracking. |
| Terms | Payment terms dropdown with options from 0 to 180 days (e.g., Net 30, Net 60). Controls when the linked bill becomes due. |
| Reference | Optional external reference number such as a vendor quote number or internal requisition ID. |
| Notes | Free-text notes for the order. Useful for special instructions, shipping notes, or internal comments. |
Adding Items to the PO
The item grid is the main working area of the PO. There are several ways to add items:
Search Box
Type in the search box above the grid to find items. The search supports special prefixes:
- ITEMID, ITMID, or ITM followed by a number — Searches by item ID only (e.g., "ITM1042" finds item 1042)
- Without a prefix — Searches by name, SKU, model, and other fields
Browse Items Button
Clicks Browse Items to open the inventory browser, where you can search, filter by category or type, and select one or more items to add. Virtual Kits are excluded from the browser since they do not track stock and cannot be purchased.
Pre-Populated Items
When a PO is opened from another form (such as the Reorder Dashboard), the triggering item is automatically added to the grid with the suggested quantity pre-filled.
Item Grid Columns
Each item row in the grid contains:
| Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Ordered Quantity | The number of units you are ordering from the vendor |
| Already Received | Units already received on previous receiving sessions (read-only) |
| Newly Received | Units being received in the current session (editable) |
| Unit Cost | The per-unit cost for this item on this PO |
| Line Total | Automatically calculated as Ordered Quantity x Unit Cost |
| Track Stock | Checkbox indicating whether receiving this item updates stock levels |
| Info | Button that opens the item's detail view |
| Delete / Return | Button to remove an unreceived item or initiate a return for a received item |
Mark Stock Received on Item Entry
The Mark Stock Received on Item Entry checkbox at the top of the form controls a convenience behavior: when checked, any newly added item automatically has its Newly Received quantity set equal to its Ordered Quantity. This is useful when you are creating a PO to record stock that has already physically arrived, so you do not have to manually enter the received quantity for each item.
When unchecked (the default), items are added with zero in the Newly Received column, and you enter received quantities manually during the receiving process.
Totals Section
The bottom of the PO form displays a running summary of all financial totals:
| Total | Description |
|---|---|
| Items Subtotal | Sum of all line totals (Ordered Quantity x Unit Cost for each item) |
| Returns | Total value of returned items on this PO (displayed as a negative amount) |
| Shipping | Shipping charges (editable field) |
| Discount | Discount amount — click to open the discount editor where you can enter a fixed amount or percentage |
| Payments | Total payments already applied to this PO |
| Refunds & Credits | Total vendor refunds and credits applied |
| Order Total | Final calculated total after shipping, discounts, returns |
| Balance | Amount still owed: (Total - Returns) - (Payments - Refunds & Credits) |
Save Options
The form provides three save workflows:
- Save & New — Saves the current PO and opens a fresh form for a new purchase order
- Save & Close — Saves the current PO and closes the form
- Save & Pay — Saves the current PO and immediately opens the payment form so you can record a payment against this order
Every save creates or updates a linked accounts payable bill inside the same database transaction. This ensures that no purchase exists without corresponding AP tracking.
Tips
- Select the vendor first — The vendor selection affects which items are suggested and how the bill is linked
- Set terms early — Payment terms determine the bill due date, which drives the billing status and overdue alerts
- Use Mark Stock Received for catch-up POs — If you are entering a PO for stock that already arrived, check this box to save time on data entry
- Check the Balance before closing — The balance field tells you exactly how much is still owed. Use Save & Pay if you want to record payment immediately.
- Use references for cross-referencing — Enter the vendor's invoice number or quote reference in the Reference field so you can match POs to vendor documents easily