V8 - Kits (item groups)

A kit or item group is a collection of inventory items that are bundled together at the time of purchase or sale. The individual items that make up a kit are still separate items and can be sold individually if desired. In contrast, an assembly is an item that is manufactured (built) from component items. A common example of a kit is a sampler pack, where you bundle individual products together when you ship them, although they still remain individual items.

In working with kits, note the following:
 

• Since a kit is bundled at the time of sale, it does not have an in-stock quantity. However, a kit does have an available quantity, based on the available quantities of its component items, as specified in the kit's bill of materials (BOM). 
• Because a kit is bundled at the time of sale, it also does not have a transaction history. But the history of a kit's component items are tracked by SOS Inventory. Use the Transaction history feature on the component items' Actions menu if needed. 

Creating a kit (item group)

To create a kit, add or edit the item that will represent your kit. For the item type, select Kit (item group). This will create a kit item.

To add components to the kit, be sure that you’ve created the kit items. Then, go to the Items list and find that item. In the Actions Menu for the kit item, select Bill of materials. This will take you to a page where you can enter the items that make up the kit. Be sure to include a quantity for each item.

Using kits (item groups) on transactions

Once you have created the kit's bill of materials, you can use the kit as a regular item. The system will recognize the items that make up the kits.

Kits act differently on different types of transactions:

• Purchase orders and item receipts. On purchase orders, the kit has a button to allow the user to expand the kit to list the items that make up the kit instead. On the item receipt, you have the same option, but when you save the item receipt, all unexpanded kits will be expanded to affect the inventory appropriately.
• Sales forms. Do not expand kits on estimates, sales orders, invoices, and sales receipts. If a kit has discount pricing, the discount will no longer apply when the kit is expanded. The sales price becomes the sum of the individual components' prices. If you expand a kit on a sales order, for example, you cannot un-expand the kit to generate an invoice from the sales order.
• Pick tickets and shipment transactions. On pick tickets and shipments, kits will expand upon saving automatically since the warehouse needs to know which items to pull from the shelves for the kit.

Bulk editing kits (item groups)

Kits may be edited in bulk using the same process that is used for assemblies. See Editing assemblies and kits (item groups) via a BOM bulk edit for details.