Add conversions to a Product
Lesson 12 of 24 7 min read
Tell Supply Lens how a Product's units relate, such as 1 case = 6 bags, and check your work with the conversion diagram.
Conversions are what let Supply Lens understand that an order for three cases and a stock movement of eighteen bags are the same coffee in the same amount. In this lesson you will add a conversion, learn to read the Add conversion window, and check your conversions visually.
Read the Add conversion window
The window reads as a sentence:
1 [Single unit] is equivalent to [Multiple quantity] [Multiple unit]
| Single quantity | Fixed at 1. One side of every conversion is always one of something. |
|---|---|
| Single unit | The single containing unit, usually the larger one, such as Case. |
| Multiple quantity | How many of the unit below make up the single unit above, such as 6. |
| Multiple unit | The smaller contained unit, such as Bag. |
So "1 Case is equivalent to 6 Bag" means a case holds six bags. The multiple quantity can also be a value below 1, such as 0.5, for the less common case where the single unit is the smaller one.
Add a conversion
- Open Settings → Reference data → Products and open the Product.
- In the Conversions section, click + ADD.
- Choose the Single unit at the top: the single containing unit.
- Enter the Multiple quantity and choose the Multiple unit: how many of the smaller unit the single unit is equivalent to.
- Click SAVE CONVERSION.
Check it with Visualise
In the Conversions section, click Visualise to see a diagram of how the Product's units link together. It is the quickest way to spot a conversion entered upside down (1 Bag = 6 Case) or one you forgot.
You can zoom in and out of the diagram, drag to move around it, fit it to the view, and download it as an SVG or PNG image.
Cover every pack size partners trade in
When an order line says it is in a pack of a certain size (a traded unit size, for example "a pack of 6"), Supply Lens looks for a conversion on the Product that holds that many single units. If there isn't one, the order fails with an error such as:
Line 1 specified a traded unit size of 6.000 but no conversion to this size could be found
So add a conversion for every pack size any partner orders in, not just the one you use internally.
House Blend's conversions
House Blend 250g comes six bags to a case. Priya adds:
1 Case is equivalent to 6 Bag
She clicks Visualise and sees Case and Bag joined with 6 between them, as expected.
House Blend 1kg is packed four to a case, so on that Product she adds 1 Case = 4 Bag. The same unit name, Case, means a different number of bags on each Product. That is exactly why conversions live on the Product rather than on the unit.
Upside-down conversions
"1 Bag is equivalent to 6 Case" is easy to enter by accident and turns an order for three cases into half a bag. Always read the window back as a sentence, and check the diagram, before you save.
Recap
- Conversions read as a sentence: 1 single unit is equivalent to a number of multiple units.
- Put the containing unit at the top and the contained unit below, for example 1 Case = 6 Bag.
- Use Visualise to check your conversions; the diagram can be zoomed and downloaded.
- Add a conversion for every pack size partners trade in, or those orders will fail.
- The same unit can mean different amounts on different Products, which is why conversions live on the Product.
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