Skip to main content

'Bought' Components

Remember, there are two types of items in Factory Superstar - things you buy from a supplier, and things you make.

To add one that you buy, go to Inventory and click Add Component.

Once it's added it will appear in the Inventory. You can do things with it like:

  • Use it as a subcomponent for something you make (as long as it's a 'primary' component)
  • Sell it to a customer (as long as it's marked as 'for sale')

Add the fields as required:

Component Name​

The name of the component.

Description​

This isn't required. You can use this to make notes about the component if you want.

This component is for sale​

If this box is checked, it means when you go to add a Sales Order it will appear in the list of things you can sell. Don't just say everything is for sale if that's not the case - it'll just clutter things up and make it more difficult for you to find what you're looking for.

This component is a primary component​

A primary component is a component you may sell or use as a subcomponent. If you make furniture then 'wood' and 'screws' might be primary components.

A secondary component is a component that you don't sell and won't use as a subcomponent, but you still need to track costs and inventory for. Examples might be office consumables like toilet paper (wouldn't want to run out of that!), or consumable tools that there's not much point tracking accurately like sandpaper or paint brushes.

Category​

Whatever category best fits this item. You can edit categories in Inventory->Categories.

Location​

Where is this item stored. You can edit locations in Inventory->Locations.

Lead Time​

The approximate time (in days) between ordering this item from a supplier and receiving it.

When you haven't created any Purchase Orders for the item, Factory Superstar uses this Lead Time to estimate when the component can be in stock.

If the item is a subcomponent of something you manufacture it will use the lead time to estimate when the earliest the manufactured item can be produced (because how can you make something if you don't have a subcomponent in stock?).

Always Use Default Lead Time​

After you've added a component to the inventory, you can then make Purchase Orders for it. This basically means that whenever you purchase the item from your supplier make sure you tell Factory Superstar about it, as the system will record how long it took between ordering and receiving the item, and adjust future estimates accordingly (it will also do other things like track costs for time / cost estimation, and allocate the stock when it arrives).

Sometimes you won't want Factory Superstar to do this - if this is the case then check this box.

Each Unit Costs​

The default cost per unit. Factory Superstar will use this if there are no Purchase Orders (i.e. cost history) available for the item.

Each Unit Contains / Units​

Use 'Each Unit Contains' in conjunction with the 'Units' dropdown.

Units are important, especially if an item may be used as a subcomponent. Take some time when you're first starting out in Factory Superstar to think about them.

Have a look at the available units and see what fits your item.

example

Here are some examples of what to put for the Unit:

  • You buy the component as a single item. It can't be broken down further into reasonable chunks. Say a Saw Blade.

    • Each unit contains: 1, Unit = x (units)

      Note that even if the unit is '1 unit' you can break it down further, so for the Saw Blade example you might have a 'cutting wood' process where for each metre of wood you cut the Saw Blade gets consumed by 0.01x. This will tell you when you need to replace the blade.

      This isn't just useful for tools: For some components (e.g. shrink wrap for packaging), you sometimes don't really know what quantity something contains, so instead of saying '100 metres' you can just say 1 unit and say 0.001 units are consumed.

  • You buy the component as a box containing lots of smaller items. Say a box of screws, with 5000x in a box. You don't order the screws individually, so:
    • Each unit contains: 5000, Unit = x (units)
  • The component comes as a carton, and you break it into smaller components by weight. Say a carton of 1000 grams of plastic beads that you use for injection moulding, so:
    • Each unit contains: 1000, Unit = g (grams)
  • You break the component down according to length. Say a plank of wood, 240 cm long that you cut as required:
    • Each unit contains: 240, Unit = cm (centimetres)
  • You break the component down according to volume. Say a tin of paint with 1000 millilitres in it, so:
    • Each unit contains: 1000, Unit = ml (millilitres)

The examples above use metric units, but you can set the units to whatever units you use (e.g. inches, lbs, etc.) by going to Settings.

Minimum Stock Quantity​

This sets the minimum allowable stock quantity for the item (see above). You can change this later through the master inventory.