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Documentation Index

Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://developers.novala.ai/llms.txt

Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

The Purchasing & Vendors module handles everything between deciding you need parts and having them on your shelf. You create a purchase order, specify the vendor and line items, submit it, and then receive against it as goods arrive. Receiving a PO automatically updates inventory quantities at the destination location — no separate stock adjustment required. Novala also monitors your inventory levels and can flag when a low-stock alert should trigger a new order from a preferred vendor.

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Purchase order lifecycle

Draft

Created and editable. Line items, quantities, and pricing can still change.

Submitted

Sent to the vendor. Visible on your open POs dashboard and counted toward your total on-order value.

Partially Received

Some line items have been received but the order is not yet complete.

Received

All items received. Inventory has been updated at the receiving location.

Cancelled

Closed without receiving. No inventory changes are made.

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Create a purchase order

1

Open the new PO form

From Purchasing, click New PO.
2

Select a vendor

Search for the supplier from your vendor directory. If the vendor doesn’t exist yet, you can add them from the Vendors section first.
3

Add line items

Add one or more line items. For each, enter the part or description, the quantity ordered, and the unit cost. Novala matches line items to parts in your catalog so receiving can update the correct stock records.
4

Set an expected delivery date

Enter when you expect the goods to arrive. This populates the Expected Delivery column on your PO list so you can track what’s due when.
5

Save as draft or submit

Save as a draft to review before committing, or Submit the PO to move it to your open orders queue.

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Receive a purchase order

When goods arrive, record the receipt against the PO to update inventory automatically.
1

Open the PO

Find the submitted PO in Purchasing → Purchase Orders and click to open it.
2

Click Receive

Click the Receive button on the PO detail page.
3

Enter received quantities

For each line item, enter how many units arrived. You can receive a partial quantity — the PO moves to Partially Received and the remaining quantities stay open.
4

Select the receiving location

Choose the warehouse or truck location where the stock is being put away. Novala will increase the quantity on hand at that location.
5

Confirm receipt

Submit the receipt. Inventory levels update immediately and an immutable stock movement record is created.
When all line items have been fully received, the PO status changes to Received automatically.

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Vendor management

Your vendor directory lives under Purchasing → Vendors. Each vendor record stores contact details, purchase history, and vendor-specific part pricing.
Click New Vendor and fill in the company name, primary contact, and payment terms. Vendors are shared across the Purchasing and Inventory modules.
Attach vendor part records to a vendor to store the price each supplier charges for a given part. When you add a part to a PO from that vendor, Novala can pre-fill the vendor’s price automatically.
The vendor detail page shows all POs ever raised for that supplier, including status and total spend — useful for evaluating vendor performance or negotiating better rates.

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Low-stock suggestions

When an inventory item falls below its reorder threshold, Novala generates a low-stock alert. If that part has a preferred vendor configured, Novala surfaces a suggested PO so you can reorder in one click.
Set a reorder threshold on each part in your inventory catalog to take full advantage of automatic reorder suggestions. See Parts & Inventory for details.

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Purchasing dashboard

The summary cards at the top of the Purchasing page give you a live view of your procurement position:

Open POs

Count of POs in Submitted or Partially Received status.

On Order

Total dollar value of all submitted POs.

Vendors

Total number of suppliers in your directory.

Pending Delivery

Number of POs that are partially received and still waiting on remaining stock.

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Permissions

Read-only access to the vendor directory.
Create and edit vendor records, contacts, and vendor-specific pricing.
Read-only access to the purchase orders list and detail pages.
Create, edit, submit, and receive purchase orders.