Inventory Utilities & Data Maintenance Utilities and Procedures

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Inventory Utilities & Data Maintenance Utilities and Procedures

Over time:

👉 inventory data changes.

Parts:

move

become obsolete

change vendors

remain on backorder

accumulate history

require reorganization

throughout normal business operations.

MLS 2026 includes a series of:

👉 Inventory Utilities

designed to simplify:

inventory maintenance

database cleanup

vendor reassignment

shelf reorganization

Purchase Order management

yearly inventory history processing

while preserving:

historical integrity

inventory statistics

operational continuity

throughout the system.


Deleting Parts From Inventory

⚠️ In general:

👉 deleting inventory parts is NOT recommended.

Even inactive inventory records contain valuable:

sales history

pricing history

purchasing history

vendor information

stocking patterns

which may later become useful for:

purchasing decisions

historical analysis

seasonal trends

customer service

accounting review

Inventory records consume:

👉 very little storage space

compared to the value of the historical information they contain.


When Deleting May Be Appropriate

In limited situations:

👉 deletion may be appropriate

for:

duplicate records

incorrect entries

accidental setup errors

invalid inventory items

However:

⚠️ never delete:

active inventory

stocked parts

parts on Purchase Orders

parts with current activity

unless you are absolutely certain the record is no longer needed.


How To Delete A Part

To remove a part:

highlight the inventory item

select:

👉 Delete

from the:

👉 Inventory Editor buttons.

MLS 2026 will then confirm the deletion request before processing.


Changing Location Codes By Group

As inventory systems evolve:

👉 shelf layouts often change.

New:

shelving

bins

storage rooms

warehouse sections

may require:

👉 inventory relocation.

Changing location codes manually for hundreds of parts would be:

slow

error-prone

inefficient

Therefore:

👉 MLS 2026 includes:

a Location Utility

for mass updating location assignments.


How Group Location Changes Work

Instead of editing:

👉 each inventory record individually

you may update:

👉 entire groups of parts

with a single operation.

Example:

all parts in:

L-1-5

may be moved to:

V-2-4

The utility automatically updates:

👉 all matching records

throughout inventory.


Using The Location Utility

When selected:

👉 the utility asks for:

the existing location code

the new location code

Simply enter:

the current value

the replacement value

and MLS 2026 automatically updates:

👉 all matching inventory records.

No further editing is required.


Why The Location Utility Matters

This utility becomes especially valuable when:

adding shelving

reorganizing stockrooms

redesigning inventory layouts

expanding facilities

improving workflow efficiency

It allows inventory reorganization to occur quickly while maintaining:

👉 accurate inventory lookup information.


Zero Purchase Orders Utility

Sometimes:

👉 Purchase Orders remain open

because:

items were cancelled

vendors discontinued products

backorders were abandoned

orders were never completed

MLS 2026 provides:

👉 the Zero P/O Utility

to properly close these Purchase Orders.


Closing Open Purchase Orders

When selected:

👉 the utility displays:

currently open Purchase Orders.

If a Purchase Order is selected for closure:

👉 all remaining backordered items are:

zeroed out

removed from pending status

and the Purchase Order is:

👉 cleared from active processing.

This helps maintain:

clean purchasing records

accurate On Order counts

proper inventory statistics

throughout the system.


Changing Vendors

Over time:

👉 vendors may:

discontinue product lines

merge

close operations

change distributors

lose preferred supplier status

MLS 2026 includes:

👉 a Vendor Change Utility

to quickly update vendor assignments throughout inventory.


How Vendor Reassignment Works

The utility asks for:

the old vendor code

the replacement vendor code

MLS 2026 then automatically updates:

👉 matching inventory records

throughout the system.


Important Vendor Number Requirement

⚠️ Always use:

👉 the official Accounts Payable vendor number

assigned within MLS 2026.

Vendor account numbers normally:

begin with:

👉 P

and integrate directly with:

Purchase Orders

Accounts Payable

vendor reporting

inventory purchasing

throughout the system.


Placeholder Vendor Accounts

In some cases:

👉 a vendor may be removed

without immediately assigning a replacement.

In these situations:

👉 a temporary holding vendor

may be used, such as:

👉 P9999

This allows:

future reassignment

temporary vendor suspension

inventory preservation

without deleting vendor references entirely.


Manual Vendor Editing

Although vendor assignments may always be edited manually:

👉 the Vendor Utility saves substantial time

when:

large product groups

entire vendor lines

multiple inventory records

must be updated simultaneously.


Year End Inventory Closing

MLS 2026 maintains:

👉 historical inventory statistics

including:

current year totals

prior year totals

two-year historical totals

The:

👉 Year End Closing Utility

manages these inventory history transitions automatically.


Performing Year End Closing

When selected:

👉 MLS 2026 asks the operator to type:

CLOSE

as a confirmation step.

This helps prevent:

accidental closing procedures

unintended history resets

within the system.


What The Year End Close Does

The utility automatically:

moves current year totals into prior year history

moves prior year totals into two-year history

resets Year-To-Date totals to zero

for the upcoming year.

After closing:

👉 new sales activity begins accumulating automatically.


Important Accounting Clarification

⚠️ The Inventory Year End Close:

👉 does NOT:

post accounting entries

affect General Ledger balances

alter accounting history

It only:

👉 resets inventory statistical counters

used for:

inventory analysis

stocking trends

sales history

reporting

within MLS 2026.


Why Inventory Utilities Matter

Inventory systems continuously evolve.

Without maintenance utilities:

👉 businesses often experience:

inaccurate inventory data

poor shelf organization

obsolete vendor references

misleading purchasing statistics

unresolved Purchase Orders

historical reporting problems

MLS 2026 utilities help maintain:

clean inventory records

accurate statistics

organized shelf layouts

efficient purchasing workflows

reliable reporting

throughout long-term operations.


Recommended Best Practices

Avoid deleting inventory records whenever possible

Preserve historical sales information

Use grouped location updates during reorganizations

Review open Purchase Orders regularly

Close abandoned backorders promptly

Maintain accurate vendor assignments

Use placeholder vendor accounts carefully

Perform Year End Closing only after confirming reports

Retain printed inventory reports before yearly close

Review inventory statistics before resetting counters

Reorganize shelving using logical location code structures


Recommended Companion Sections

This section works closely with:

Inventory Editor

Purchase Orders

Stock Input

Vendor Management

Inventory Reports

Stocking Parts

Non-Stocking Parts

Inventory Costing

Core Processing

Accounts Payable

General Ledger Integration

Together, these sections provide a complete inventory management and maintenance system within MLS 2026.