You can delete expired contracts using the Expired Contract Removal (SOU520) program.
Use Contract Maintenance to quickly add/copy/create/chain/delete/list/modify a contract or group of contracts. You may also save “Collections” of contracts, or manage/modify a collection of contracts. The term collection, from here forward, refers to contracts displayed in the list browser (whether one contract or many contracts is displayed).
In Contract Maintenance, you can use the available menu options to aggregate/compile/build a collection that you want to work with or modify in some way. Once you have assembled a collection (even if the collection has only one contract), you can save that collection and give it a name for later use, i.e. collections can be saved and retrieved. A saved collection is visible upon ‘look-up’ only to the user who created it.
Once a collection is saved, it can be modified using the menu options displayed under “Collection”, or, the individual contracts that make up the collection can be modified using the menu options displayed under “Contract”. Creating a saved collection is not required. You can use Contract Maintenance without ever saving that collection. Without saving a collection, the user can simply use the menu options each time they come into Contract Maintenance. Saved collections do not ‘update-automatically’ with contracts that have been added/changed since the date the collection was last saved – e.g. if you create a collection for “all contracts that have not yet been approved”, and save it, and then a week later open that collection, all the contracts since created in that week (that are not as yet reviewed) will have to be added/merged to that collection (through using the ‘Filter’ menu option or adding those contracts specifically through the collection menu option ‘Add Contract’).
In the list browser, the system displays the contracts comprising the collection and includes the following information: contract number, type, description, effective date, expiration date, chain from, chain to, approve, priority, customer, item, last Daily Sales Register, and Quote number, the contract was generated from. The Customer column displays ‘All’ if the ‘all customers’ check box is selected for the contract. If customers are listed, then up to 2 customers (separated by a comma) will be listed; if there are more than 2 customers then after the second customer will be “”. If there are no customers listed in the contract, instead the contract has only customer price classes, and then the display of two classes, as above, applies for customer price class listing in this column. If customers exist in the contract (even if only one) then no customer price class entries will display in this column, only customers. The Item column works identically to Customer column but for Items. First for items; if no items are listed in the contract then the display is for item price class; if no item price classes listed either, then the display is for primary vendors..
1. Last Filter Used
The description of the last filter used (accessed from the menu option ‘Collection, Filter’). FACTS displays “None” if not used (yet) or if reset by the user.
2. Collection
The collection name being worked on. FACTS displays “None” if the collection has never been saved or if reset by the user.
3. List Browser
In the list browser, the system displays the contracts of the collection and includes the following information: contract number, type, description, effective date, expiration date, chain from, chain to, approve, priority, customer, item, last Daily Sales Register, and Quote number, the contract was generated from.
You can select from the follow buttons/options:
Col Open--- displays the Collection Look up window to allow selection of an existing collection for the user. After selecting a collection to open, if the current collection has not been saved or has been changed then the user is prompted to save, or not, the collection as it currently exists before it is replaced by the collection being opened. *If you have made changes to an opened collection and choose to open the same collection again you will not be prompted to save the collection as it exists and the collection as it exists will be replaced with the collection as it existed at its last save.
Col Filter-- displays the Contract Maintenance Filter (SOE567) screen whose entry options set the selection criteria for retrieving existing contracts from the system for inclusion in a collection. Click here for Contract Maintenance Filter (SOE567) information. If the filter returns contracts and the filter is set to “replace” the current collection and the current collection has not been saved or has been changed, then FACTS prompts you to save the collection as it currently exists before it is replaced by the contract(s) returned by the filter.
Col Save--The current contracts in the list view will be saved as a collection. If you save an already existing collection then that existing collection name will display. If you select Save and the collection has never been saved then FACTS displays the option to give a description to the new collection.
Copy Con--Copy the contract highlighted in the collection, or, create a copy from a specifically selected contract. (When entering Copy from Contract Maintenance and no contract line is highlighted in the collection, this prompt is blank and all other entries are disabled – in such a case you must enter a contract to ‘copy from’.) Optionally, the copied contract can merge with the current collection, replace the current collection, or neither (perform a copy only). You can select to edit the contract that is being created by selecting a check box – this will allow you to edit the newly copied contract prior to returning to Contract Maintenance.
Quick Add—Accesses the Quick Contract Add (SOE567) screen. Quick create of a contract (without entry through the standard contract entry/edit screen) using a pared-down entry screen. Optionally, you can merge the newly created contract with the current collection, replace the current collection, or, neither (create the contract only).
Done--If the contracts of the list view have not been saved (as a collection), or have changed, then FACTS prompts you to save the collection prior to exiting. Depending if the collection has been saved once before there can be 1 or 2 options (see ‘Save As’ under Collection, below). Select No to stop the save. If a collection has been saved or opened and then all contracts removed from the list view then that collection must be deleted before exiting, or, must have a contract or contracts added/merged to it and saved before exiting. Empty collections are not allowed to remain empty before exiting.
Menu Options
File Menu
Exit – This menu option performs the same as selecting the Done button. If the contracts of the list view have not been saved (as a collection), or have changed, then the user is prompted to save the collection prior to exiting. Depending if the collection has been saved once before there can be 1 or 2 options (see ‘Save As’ under Collection, below). Select No if you do not want to save. If a collection has been saved or opened and then all contracts removed from the list view then that collection must be deleted before exiting, or, must have a contract or contracts added/merged to it and saved before exiting. Empty collections are not allowed to remain empty before exiting.
Collection Menu
This menu option works with the contract of the list view. The contracts of the list view are termed a collection, thus, the menu options apply to actions that can be performed to affect the collection. A saved collection cannot be left empty and the program exited - if all contracts are removed from a collection then delete that collection. If a collection is opened, worked with, and saved then that collection can be replaced by another collection, or filter, or reset, without the user being asked to save the currently opened (and just saved) collection.
Filter Menu
Displays the Contract Maintenance Filter screen whose entry options set the selection criteria for retrieving existing contracts from the system for inclusion in a collection. If the filter returns contracts and the filter is set to “replace” the current collection then if the collection has not been saved or has been changed then you are prompted to save the collection before it is replaced. Select No if you do want to not save the collection.
Open – Displays the Collection Look up window for selecting from an existing collection of contracts for the user. There will be no entries if the user has never saved a collection or if the user has deleted all of their collections. After selecting a collection to open, if a current collection has not been saved or has been changed then you are prompted to save the current collection before this collection is opened. Select No if you do want to not save the current collection. If you have made changes to an opened collection and choose to open the same collection again you will not be prompted to save the collection as it exists and the collection as it exists will be replaced with the collection as it existed at its last save.
Save – The current contracts of the list view will be saved as a collection. If you select Save for an already existing collection then that collection name and information will display. If you save the collection for the first time then FACTS displays the option to give a description to the new collection.
Save As – Depending on whether the collection has been saved before there can be 1 or 2 options: 1. to save the collection with the existing description already used, and/or 2. to save as a new collection. Select No if you do want to not save the information. If you are working with an opened/saved collection to which contracts have been added/removed and then selecting to save as ‘new’, after entering the new collection description, you will immediately be working with the newly created collection – the ‘past collection’ will be those contract in that old collection prior to working with the ‘new collection’ (any changes made to the past collection will not be saved unless that past collection was saved prior to creating the new collection).
Properties – This option allows you to change the description of an opened or saved collection. If the collection is not yet saved then the option to enter a description and save the new collection will be presented. This option does not save the contracts if it has been previously saved/opened; a change of description only is preformed. Select No if you do want to change the description.
Reset – The current contents of the list view will be cleared, as will any collection that is currently opened. After selecting Reset, if the current collection has not been saved or has been changed then the system prompts you to save the collection before the reset completes.
Delete – The currently opened or most recently saved collection (as indicated on screen by collection description) will be deleted. FACTS prompts you to continue with the delete (in case Delete was selected accidentally). Select Yes to delete the collection. Select No if you do want to not delete the displayed collection.
Add Contract – FACTS displays the Contract Look up so you can select individual contracts to add to the current collection. If the contract is already in the collection a message will display and the contract will not be added. Select Cancel in the Contract Look up to return to Contract Maintenance.
Remove Contract – The highlighted contract will be removed from the collection. This does not delete the contract from the system (see menu option Contract, Delete).
Collection Menu Notes:
*Changes made to an already saved collection will present the user the option to save that collection (if not already done so) before certain other menu tasks, as discussed, can be completed. A description field may be modified under certain conditions. If a duplicate description is entered (another collection has the same entered description as the one entered) then the user will be alerted and allowed to keep the duplicate description or to change the entered description.
*A collection that has been saved which contains contracts which have been deleted from the system upon the next open of that collection the user will be alerted that the contract has been deleted and is no longer included in the collection.
*Opened collections are not affected by changes until you have saved the collection. This allows for maximum flexibility in managing collections of contracts through Contract Maintenance.
Examples:
First example: Open a collection, remove the contracts listed in that collection using the ‘collection’ menu option ‘remove contracts’, run a filter and merge the found matching contracts to that collection, exit Contract Maintenance whereupon you’ll be asked to save the collection, choose no (indicating no desire to save the collection in its current state) and the exit continues back to the menu. What is the result for the collection? The original collection you opened still has its original contents (since no save was performed during the steps outlined and the automated option that showed when exiting, because changes had occurred to the collection after it was opened, was refused).
Second example: If you have opened a collection, have then added contracts by menu action ‘add contracts’ or ‘merging a filter,’ then use the filter menu option again and choose to ‘replace’ the current collection you’ll be asked to save the current collection (and can save as current collection or save as new collection) and choose to save as a new collection, the filter then loads the returned contracts into a new non-described collection, you then choose to exit, are asked about saving the current non-described collection and save it with its own description. What is the result? The initial collection you opened exists as it was before you added contracts by add/merge, a new collection made of the initial opened collection’s contracts and the added/merged contracts exists (with whatever description given) and a third collection exists based on the filters’ returned contracts given whatever description supplied as you exited.
Contracts
This menu option performs actions upon the contracts listed in the list view collection.
*Contract menu actions may prompt you to save the collection listed in the list view before an action may complete. Contract menu actions that do not alter the collection displayed (through adding/removing contracts) will not require a saved collection to be re-saved.
Quick Add – Quick create of a contract (without entry through the standard contract entry/edit screen) using a pared-down entry screen. Optionally, merge the newly created contract with the current collection, replace the current collection, or, neither (create the new contract only). Click here for more information about Quick Add.
Edit – Edit the contract highlighted in the collection using the standard contract entry/edit screen. You may not delete the contract from the standard contract entry/edit screen when opened through Contract Maintenance – instead, use the menu option for ‘Contract, Delete’ within Contract Maintenance.
Copy – Copy the contract highlighted in the collection, or, create a copied contract from a specifically selected contract. (When entering Copy from Contract Maintenance and no contract line is highlighted in the collection this prompt will be blank and all other entries disabled – in such a case the user must enter a contract to ‘copy from’.) Optionally, merge with the current collection, replace the current collection, or, neither (perform a copy only).
Chain – Create a new contract that is chained-to (copied-from) the contract that is highlighted in the collection, or, create a copied/chained contract from a specifically selected contract. Click Chain a Contract for more information. Optionally, merge with the current collection, replace the current collection, or, neither (perform a chain/copy only).
NOTE:
Chaining Contracts: A chain of contracts refers to one contract ‘being followed by another contract’ at a specific point in time – their effective and expiration dates are ‘chained’. One contract in the chain expires just when the next one becomes effective. Any one contract can only be chained to one contract before it and one contract after it. Changing the effective date on a chained contract immediately changes the expiration date of the contract before it, and changing its expiration date immediately changes the effective date of the contract after it. The purpose of chaining contracts is to amend a deal, or an offer, at a specific time leaving most other contractual information intact/unchanged. Examples might include price increases that are effective at a specific time, monthly sale sheets, etc. Chaining options are available from the Contract Menu.
Chain All – Create new contracts based on the contract(s) displayed in the collection. Click for more Chain All Contracts information. Optionally, merge with the current collection, replace the current collection, or, neither (perform a chain/copy only).
Break – Sever the chain to either the previous, the next, or to both chained contracts for the highlighted contract in the collection. (If a contract in the collection has a previous-chained-contract entry/value and that previous-chained-contract is also listed in the collection then any change to first affects the other and will be reflected in the collection; therefore if you highlight the first contract (with the previous chain) and remove its previous chain then the other contract in the collection will have its next-contract value removed.)
Break All – Sever the chain to either the previous, the next, or to both chained contracts for all contracts in the collection.
Approve – Approve the highlighted contract (if the person has review capabilities). The contract will no longer be awaiting review.
Approve All – Approve all contracts listed in the collection (if the person has review capabilities). The contracts will no longer be awaiting review.
Unapprove – Unapprove the highlighted contract (if the person has review capabilities). The contract will be awaiting review.
Unapprove All – Unapprove all contracts listed in the collection (if the person has review capabilities). The contracts will be awaiting review.
Listing – Print the listing for the highlighted contract. Printing the listing closes Contract Maintenance. You will be alerted and given the opportunity to return to the collection to save it (if it needs to be saved) before printing the listing.
Listing All – Print the listing for all contracts in the collection. Printing the listing closes Contract Maintenance. You will be alerted and given the opportunity to return to the collection to save it (if it needs to be saved) before printing the listing.
Delete – Delete the contract highlighted – this removes the contract from the system, breaks any chains this contract may be part of and removes the contract from the collection. Any user who has access to Contract Maintenance may delete a contract.
Delete All – Delete all contracts in the list view – this removes the contracts from the system, breaks any chains the contracts may be part of and removes all contracts from the collection. Any user who has access to Contract Maintenance may delete a contract.
Contract Notes:
*Delete and Delete All: As with opening/saving collections, deleting contracts from a collection present the same issues. If a collection is not loaded and you have added contracts to the list view and then delete all contracts listed (one by one or all at once) then when exiting the program, you will not be prompted to save the collection – no collection was created nor loaded nor was it saved prior to deleting the listed contracts so there is nothing to prompt to save.
*Listing and Listing All: - Printing a listing will close Contract Maintenance. You will have the opportunity to ‘cancel’ the print and save the collection if it is not yet saved (a warning displays to allow the user to continue to print the listing and not save the collection or to cancel printing the listing and save the collection). If the collection is saved then displays a message indicating that printing the listing will close Contract Maintenance and that you can return to Contract Maintenance after the print is complete.
Data
The Export and Import options on the Data menu allow you to export contracts to Microsoft Excel, where the contracts values can be updated (only certain values may be changed in Excel), and then re-import the contracts into FACTS. Any user may export contracts to Excel or import contracts from Excel, provided the user has access to Contract Maintenance).
Export - Accesses the Collection Export (SOE567) program to export the contract collection to Excel.
Import - Accesses the Import Contracts (SOE567) program to import the contract collection from Excel back into Contract Maintenance . Upon import from Excel, if a contract in FACTS is already approved and the importing-user does not have approval permission then the only rows that import for that user are those rows for contracts that are currently awaiting approval. Refer to Using Excel for Contract Maintenance Import/Export for more information.
You can delete expired contracts using the Expired Contract Removal (SOU520) program.
See Also
Contract Maintenance Filter (SOE567)