Adding a Contract

  1. On the Contracts form, turn off Filter-in-Place, and select Actions > New.
  2. Specify this information:
    Contract
    Specify an alphanumeric code for the contract. Optionally, leave the field blank so the system generates the next available number.
    Service Type
    Select a type of service, which represents the type of contract sold to a customer. The codes available are set up and maintained through the Contract Service Types form.
    Customer
    Select a customer for the contract.

    Optionally, filter by the customer name.

    Ship To
    To change the default location, select a ship to location.

    Optionally, filter the form by the ship to name.

    If the customer is on credit hold, a red X is displayed, otherwise a green check mark is displayed.

    The system checks the Credit Hold field on the Customers form to determine if the customer is on credit hold. If you are integrated with SX.e, the system performs an SX.e API call to retrieve the customer credit hold and period hold information from CloudSuite Distribution.

    Ship To ID
    If you are integrated with Infor Distribution SX.e, this field is displayed instead of the Ship To field and functions similarly, in that it will populate related fields.
    (Contract) Status
    The status is automatically set to Open.
    Salesperson
    The salesperson associated with the SRO or contract is displayed. You can select a different salesperson.
    Billing Frequency
    The frequency of the billing cycle is displayed. You can select a different frequency. See Contract Billing Frequency for more information.
    Bill In Arrears
    The setting of this check box is inherited from the setting of the Bill In Arrears field on the Contract Parameters form. If the check box is not selected on the Contract Parameters form, then the system checks the Bill In Arrears field on the Contract Service Types form, and inherits that setting for the current service type.

    Optionally, select the check box to bill at the end of the contract, or clear the check box.

    Billing Type
    For fixed billing, the contract price is based on the manually entered total. For calculated billing, the contract price is based on the rates and time periods set up between billing cycles.

    The default billing type selected on the Contract Parameters form is displayed. Optionally, select the other option.

    Card Authorized and Active Authorization
    These fields are read-only. If a credit card has been authorized for this contract, then Active Authorization is selected and the last four digits of the credit card are displayed in the Card Authorized field. You can right-click on the Card Authorized field and select Credit Card Transactions to open the Credit Card Transactions form, filtered for the associated card.
    Customer PO
    Specify the customer purchase order that relates to the contract or contract line.
    Start/End Date
    The Start Date is set to the current date. If you know the date the contract will end, select that date in the End Date field.
    Note: When crediting a contract, select an End Date that is one day prior to the Billed Thru Date to ensure the billing period is calculated correctly.
    Billed Thru Date
    Select the date through which the contract or contract line will be invoiced.
    Type
    Select if the contract is a service contract or rental contract. Once you have selected the type, it cannot be reversed. You must delete the record and create a new one.
    Warehouse
    The contract warehouse is displayed. This field is only enabled for rental contracts.
  3. Optionally, specify this information on the General tab:
    Fixed Contract Total
    Specify the yearly price total for a fixed contract.
    Discount
    Specify any discounted amount for the contract.
    Prorate End of Billing
    Select this check box to automatically calculate the amount to be invoiced based on the rate type and the amount of time remaining on the contract line, for the final contract billing.

    For example, if a contract ends on day four in and the Billing Frequency is set to Weekly, then the prorate function will bill 4/7 of the weekly bill.

    Note: 
    • We recommend that you clear this check box when trying to find a better rental rate using the Calculate Better Rate functionality. If the check box is selected, the longest term Unit of Rate is typically selected when using the Calculate Better Rate functionality.
    • If the Billing Frequency is set to Day or the unit of rate is Hour, the system will prorate down to an hour.
    Renewal Date
    Select the date by which the contract needs to be renewed. Recurring billing for all contract lines uses the specified date.
    Note: 
    • The Prorate End of Billing check box and Renewal Date act independently. The Prorate End of Billing check box is only used when prorating the end of the contract.
    • When contracts are calculated, the method for prorating to align the date with the Renewal Date is not the same as the prorate method when used to prorate to the end of the contract.
    • When prorating, the number of days is determined by the Weekly Billing Times on the Contract tab of the Service Parameters form, and the holidays noted in the system.
    • The Renewal Date value does not apply to rental contracts.
    Waiver Charge
    Specify a percentage for the contract waiver charge. This charge is added to each contract invoice.
    Freight
    Specify the amount of freight charges to be invoiced. Freight is only enabled for rental contracts.
    Last Invoice
    The last invoice number is displayed.
    Last Invoice Date
    The date of the last invoice is displayed.
    Last Payment Received
    The date of the most recent payment receipt for the contract is displayed.
    Last Processed
    The date of the most recent payment processing for the contract is displayed.
    Outstanding Balance
    The total outstanding A/R balance for all invoices of the contract is displayed.
    Product Code
    Select the product code to use for the contract. This code is used by default for all new lines. This code is used for posting the cost of goods sold and revenue amounts during the Contract Invoicing activity. Invoicing references the product code of each line during processing.
    Terms Code
    The customer terms code is displayed. The terms code is used to identify specific billing terms that apply to this customer. The terms code is used when determining the transaction due date and the discount information.
    Fixed Rate

    If this check box is selected, the exchange rate for calculating the invoice amount is hard-coded and does not change over time. If cleared, the exchange rate is acquired from the Currency Code and Currency Rates .

    Currency
    The customer currency is displayed.
    Exchange Rate
    The exchange rate is displayed, if applicable.
    Single PO
    Optionally, select this check box to assign the same purchase order number on all cross-referenced purchase orders for the contract lines, instead of creating new purchase orders for each line.
    Note: If you select Single PO and more than one purchase order already exists for the contract, then a message is displayed and you are unable to save the changes. To work around this issue, manually enter an existing purchase order number in the Reference field on the Contract Lines form, so that an existing rental contract line can be cross-referenced to an existing purchase order.
  4. The Address tab shows contact information for the customer.
  5. On the Tax tab, specify this information:
    Tax Code
    The tax code assigned to the customer is displayed.
    Freight Code
    If you are charging freight, select the tax code to use for the freight charge.
  6. The grid on the Lines tab shows information for each contract line.
  7. The Maintenance tab shows maintenance information by schedule, items/units, and operations.
  8. The information displayed on the Service Level tab is populated based on service level agreement information on the Contract Service Types form:
    Priority Code
    The priority level that should be given to incidents that are logged for customers and units associated with the contract is displayed.
    Override Business Hours
    This check box is selected if the contract has more specific business hours than the associated service type.
    Start/End Time
    For each day, the time during which the items/units under contract are covered is displayed. Optionally, specify different start and end times for the contract.
    Time Zone
    The time zone for the contract area of service is displayed.
  9. On the Other tab, select Allow Credit Override to bypass any credit limits or credit holds for the customer when a rental contract item is checked out.

    When you select this check box, the Reason Code field is enabled for you to select a reason for the override. The date and user name are captured when an override is performed.

  10. Click Save.

Use these buttons on the form as described here:

  • Click Contract Lines to open the linked Contract Lines form.
  • Click Create Contract to open the Contract Copy/Create Utility modally.
  • Click Re-Price to recalculate the pricing for items on the contract using the current prices, which may be adjusted since the time the contract was created.
  • Click Print Estimate to open the Contract Estimate Report form.
  • Click Contract Maintenance Schedules to open the linked Contract Maintenance Schedules form.
  • Click Rental Agreement to perform a credit balance check. If you are over your credit limit, a warning message is displayed to alert you. Click OK to open the Rental Contract Agreement form or click Cancel. If you are not over your credit limit, the Rental Contract Agreement form opens automatically.
  • Click Rental Check Out to open the Rental Checkout/In form and check out the rental.
  • Click Rental Check In to open the Rental Checkout/In form and check in the rental.
  • Click Pay With Credit Card to open the Credit Card Payments form, where you can authorize a  customer's credit card to be used for payments on all future invoices for that contract.
  • Click Interactions to open the Interactions form.
  • If you are integrated with SX.e, click SX.e Order Inquiry to open the Order Inquiry form in SX.e. On this form you can quickly see all sales orders for the current customer for whom you are setting up a rental contract.
  • Click Contract Invoice Listing to open the Contract Invoice Listing form, filtered for the current contract.
  • Click Close Contract to open the Contract Close Utility and close the current contract, or set the fields to close multiple contracts.