A Package is one type of "package" in SI and they are managed in the Package Explorer. These behave differently than the three other types of packages in SI: Allowances, Bundled Cable, and Solutions.
A Package is a grouping of Products and/or Labor Items. Packages provide a quick way to add multiple Items to a Project. They also provide flexibility on how labor is charged for the Package. If the items you add to the Package contain Accessories, you have the option to include or exclude them.
Packages can be something as simple as a wire assembly or as complex as a complete system with every bit and piece accounted for within the Package.
Packages can be created in your Catalog or they can be created "on the fly" within a Project. The Package Explorer allows you to manage the Packages in your Catalog.
A Package created within a Project is not stored in the Catalog. It will only exist in the Project in which it was created unless you use the Update to Catalog feature.
Packages cannot be added to Purchase Orders, Tasks, Service Orders, or Service Plans. The individual Items within the Package can be added to these "entities."
Packages cannot be transferred to QuickBooks on Estimates or Purchase Orders, rather the individual items within the Package are sent as Items to QuickBooks.
The following are the tabs in the Create Package form.
General
The General tab displays basic information about the Package. This includes a Name, Group, Description, Image and Options.
The following are the fields in the General tab.
Field | Description |
Name | The name of the Package. |
Category | The Package Category assigned to the Package.
Click the Package Categories button on the ribbon to manage your groups. |
Abbreviation | This allows you to set an abbreviation for the package that can be used in the Component ID format for the Package. |
Description | The Description of the Package.
Click the Check Spelling button to check the spelling and add to the dictionary.
You can change the case of one or multiple words at a time. Make multiple selections by holding down Shift (to select a series) or Ctrl (to select outside of a series.) Your options are Upper, Lower, Title, and Sentence.
You can also insert an existing Snippet or add a new Snippet. |
Part Number | Here you can enter a Part Number for the Package if desired. |
Image | Here you can add an image to a Package. You can use the Add, Paste, and Clear functions or you can drag and drop images directly into the field.
The Options section allows you to specify how this package will behave when added to a project. |
Prompt Accessories | This setting applies when adding Packages to a Project via the Package Explorer within a Project.
This will prompt you for any accessories when adding the Package to the Project vs. automatically adding them.
Note: For this feature to work, you must also check "Include Accessories." |
Ignore labor in products (Calculate labor only from labor items in the package) | This setting will ignore all Phase/Hour labor rates for all Products in the Package.
Labor for the Package will only be calculated based on Labor Items that have been added to the Package. See Labor Considerations. |
Summarize in Client Reports | This will hide all details for the Package in Client reports.
All that will display by default are the Name, Description, and Price for the Package. |
Include Accessories | When checked, the accessories for any Item added to the Package will be included in the Package. |
Accounting Item Name | This field does not apply to Packages. |
Approved | Indicates whether a Package has been approved for use. |
Price
All pricing and labor hours for a Package come directly from the prices of the items added to the Package.
The following are the fields in the Product section of the Price tab.
Field | Description |
Unit Cost | This displays the sum cost of all Products in the Package. Read-only. |
Unit Cost (With Tax) | This displays the sum cost with tax if a Use Tax is set for any/all Products in the Package. Read-only. |
Unit Price | This displays the sum price of all Products in the Package. Read-only. |
Margin | Margin =(1 - (Unit Cost / Unit Price)) x 100.
This field calculates automatically for you based on the Unit Cost and Unit Price.
This behavior varies based on your Price Settings. Read-only. |
Markup | Markup = (Selling Price - Product Cost) / Product Cost * 100%.
This field calculates automatically for you based on the Unit Cost and Unit Price.
This behavior varies based on your Price Settings. Read-only. |
Discount | Here you can enter a discount percentage for the sum price of the Package. |
Net Unit Price | This field will show the unit price of the Package after the discount is applied. |
The following are the fields in the Labor section of the Price tab.
Field | Description |
Cost | This displays the sum cost of all labor in the Package. Both labor from the Products added to the package as well as Labor Items.
You can choose not to have labor from the Products included in this price if you check the "Ignore labor in products (Calculate labor only from labor items in package)" on the General tab. Read-only. |
Price | This displays the sum price of all labor in the Package. Both labor from the Products added to the package as well as Labor Items.
You can choose not to have labor from the Products included in this price if you check the "Ignore labor in products (Calculate labor only from labor items in package)" on the General tab. Read-only. |
Margin | Margin =(1 - (Unit Cost / Unit Price)) x 100.
This field calculates automatically for you based on the Unit Cost and Unit Price. Read-only. |
Markup | Markup = (Selling Price - Product Cost) / Product Cost * 100%.
This field calculates automatically for you based on the Unit Cost and Unit Price. See "Pricing Settings" below. Read-only. |
Hours | This displays the hours from Products and Labor Items added to the Package. Read-only. |
Factor | Here you can enter a percentage to increase or decrease the number of hours on the Package. |
Net Hours | Here, you can adjust the number of hours on the Package. Editing this field will automatically set the "Factor" field above. |
The following are the fields in the Install (Total) section of the Price tab.
Field | Description |
Cost | This displays the sum cost of all the products and labor in the Package. Tax is not included in this value. Read-only. |
Price | This displays the sum price of all the products and labor in the Bundled Cable. Tax is not included in this value. Read-only. |
Margin | Margin =(1 - (Unit Cost / Unit Price)) x 100.
This field calculates automatically for you based on the Unit Cost and Unit Price. Read-only. |
Markup | Markup = (Selling Price - Product Cost) / Product Cost * 100%.
This field calculates automatically for you based on the Unit Cost and Unit Price. See "Pricing Settings" below. Read-only. |
Estimated Installation Price | To see full details of pricing, including taxes, click the Estimated Installation Price link:
This will open a window and display the details of the pricing for the Package based on your default tax rate and Phase Labor Rates. |
Taxes and Phase values can vary per Project.
Items
The Items Tab displays the list of items in the Package and is where you will add/edit/delete items.
Price Type
The radio buttons will allow you to choose a specific Price Type for the Package items and that will override the Price Type for a Project when added to a Project.
Shapes and Blocks
The Shapes and Blocks tab will allow you to assign a specific shape or block to a Package for use on Visio and AutoCAD Line and Plan pages.
Add a shape or block for each package item
This is standard behavior for Packages and will drop a shape for every item within the Package when the Package is dragged and dropped onto a Visio/AutoCAD page.
Add a shape or block for specific items in the package
This option will allow you to select which items within the Package will drop shapes when the Package is dragged and dropped onto a Visio/AutoCAD page.
Add a single shape or block for this package on Line and Plan views
This will allow you to select a shape for just the Package for Line or Plan pages in Visio/AutoCAD.
Package Categories
The Package Categories button will display your Package Categories and allow you to manage them.
Package Categories allow you to organize your Packages and help with filtering.
Additional Package Fields
Packages have the following additional options when they are added to the Project.
Package ID - This is the Component ID for the Package.
Items in the package can be in different locations and systems - This setting will allow you to assign items within a package to different Locations/Systems within a Project.
Optional - This will make the Package optional within a Project.
There is also the Location hierarchy and System list for the Project.