Quotation Module

For: People using the software to create and manage quotations (quotes)

Purpose: Understand what the Quotation module does and how it helps your business

What This Module Does

A quotation (or quote) is a formal offer you send to a customer. It shows the items, quantities, prices, and terms you are proposing. The customer can accept, reject, or let it expire. Once a quote is accepted, you can convert it into a Sales Order or an Invoice so you can fulfil and bill the order.

The Quotation module lets you:

• Create and edit quotes (when the status allows).
• Attach documents (e.g. terms, drawings).
• See which quotes have been converted to Sales Orders or Invoices.
• Change quote status (e.g. Draft → Sent → Accepted or Rejected).
• Send a quote to the customer (mark as Sent).
• Delete a quote only when it has not been converted.

Main Features (What You Can Do)

1. Create a New Quotation

When you create a quote you typically enter:

• Customer: who the quote is for.
• Branch and warehouse: where the quote is raised and from where stock may be reserved (if stock check is on).
• Shipping address: the customer's main shipping address or one of their additional addresses. The system checks that this address belongs to the selected customer.
• Items: products or services, quantities, rates, and amounts. The system can check that enough stock is available in the warehouse if your company has stock check enabled for quotations.
• Subject, reference, quote date, expiry date (if used), terms, and total amount.
• Attachments: you can upload files (e.g. PDF, terms). These are stored securely and shown with the quote.

Credit limit

• If the customer has a credit limit and quotations are included in that limit, the system checks that creating this quote does not exceed the limit. The limit can be overall for the customer or per branch, depending on how the customer is set up.
• If the limit would be exceeded, you get a clear message with the total limit, current usage, and remaining amount. You cannot save the quote until the total is within limit (or the limit is increased).

Payment terms / overdue invoices

• If your company restricts creating quotations when the customer has overdue invoices, the system checks for any overdue invoice for that customer. If one exists, you cannot create the quote until the overdue invoice is paid or the restriction is changed.

What the system does when you save

• It generates a unique quote number (e.g. QUO-001).
• It records who created the quote and when.
• It stores your company's authorised signature and primary bank details (for display on the quote, if configured).
• It adds a short note in the quote's history (e.g. "Quote created for ₹X").

2. View and Search Quotations

You can list quotes with:

• Date: a single quote date or a date range (from–to).
• Branch and division: filter by one or more branches or divisions.
• Status: e.g. Draft, Sent, Accepted, Rejected, Expired, Completed, Cancelled.
• Search: by quote number, subject, reference, or customer name (display name or company name). The list shows only quotes that match your filters and search.

The list is paginated (shown in pages). For each quote you can see who added it and who last updated it, along with the main details.

3. Open a Quotation (Full Details)

When you open one quote, the system shows:

• Header: quote number, customer, branch, division, warehouse, dates, status, total.
• Customer: name, code, phone, company name, and address details.
• Items: each line with item name, quantity, rate, amount.
• Shipping address: the address chosen for this quote (main or additional).
• Bank details: primary bank information (if set for your company), for display on the quote.
• Converted to: if this quote was converted, you see the Sales Orders and/or Invoices created from it (with their numbers, dates, totals, status).
• Comment history: who did what and when (e.g. "Quote created", "Status changed from Draft to Sent").
• Attachments: list of attached files.

This helps you see the full picture of the quote and what happened after it was accepted.

4. Edit a Quotation

You can edit a quote only when its status is Draft. Once the quote is Sent, Accepted, Rejected, Expired, Completed, or Cancelled, the system does not allow editing (so the record stays as it was when you sent or closed it).

When you edit a Draft quote:

• You can change customer, branch, warehouse, shipping address, items, dates, terms, total, and attachments.
• The same validations as on create apply: shipping address must belong to the customer; credit limit (if applicable) must not be exceeded; overdue invoice check (if applicable) must pass; stock check (if enabled) must pass for the updated items.
• New attachments are added to existing ones; existing attachments stay unless you remove them.
• The system records who updated the quote and adds a line in the comment history (e.g. "Quote updated" or "Amount changed from ₹X to ₹Y").

5. Send a Quotation to the Customer

You can send a quote to the customer. The system:

• Changes the status from Draft to Sent (only Draft can be sent).
• Records who sent it and when, and adds a note in the comment history.

Sending means "marked as sent to the customer". How you actually deliver it (email, portal, print) may be handled elsewhere in the software or outside it.

6. Change Quotation Status

You can change the status of a quote according to the allowed flow. The usual flow is:

• The system only allows these transitions. For example, you cannot move from Sent directly to Draft; you would first Reject (or Cancel), then optionally move Rejected back to Draft.
• When you change the status, the system records who made the change and adds a line in the comment history (e.g. "Quote status changed from Sent to Accepted").

Cancelling a quote

• You can cancel a quote only if no Sales Order and no Invoice has been created from it. If any Sales Order or Invoice exists from this quote, the system will not allow cancellation and will show which order or invoice was created from it. You would need to cancel or handle that order/invoice first (as per your process).

7. Convert a Quotation to Sales Order or Invoice

Only an Accepted quote can be converted. From the Sales Order or Invoice screen you can choose "Create from Quote" and select an Accepted quote. The system then creates the Sales Order or Invoice using the quote's customer, address, items, and amounts. The quote is linked to the new document, and when you open the quote you see it under Converted to.

• Accepted → can be converted to Sales Order or Invoice.
• Draft, Sent, Rejected, Expired, Cancelled, or Completed are not used for conversion in this way (business rule: only Accepted).

8. Delete a Quotation

You can delete a quote only if no Sales Order and no Invoice has been created from it. If any order or invoice was created from this quote, the system will not allow deletion and will show the related order or invoice numbers. This keeps your records consistent: you cannot remove a quote that is already linked to an order or invoice.

Summary Table (At a Glance)

Important Business Rules

1. Editing: Only a quote in Draft status can be edited. Once it is Sent, Accepted, Rejected, Expired, Completed, or Cancelled, it cannot be edited.
2. Sending: Only a Draft quote can be sent (status becomes Sent).
3. Conversion: Only an Accepted quote can be converted to a Sales Order or an Invoice.
4. Cancellation: You cannot cancel a quote if a Sales Order or an Invoice has already been created from it. The system shows which document(s) block cancellation.
5. Deletion: You cannot delete a quote if a Sales Order or an Invoice has been created from it. The system shows which document(s) block deletion.
6. Credit limit: If the customer has a credit limit and quotations are included, the quote total (create or edit) must stay within the remaining limit. The limit can be overall or per branch.
7. Overdue invoices: If your company restricts quotations for customers with overdue invoices, you cannot create a quote for such a customer until the overdue amount is cleared or the rule is changed.
8. Shipping address: The shipping address on the quote must be one of the selected customer's addresses (main or additional).
9. Stock check: If your company has stock check enabled for quotations, the system checks that the selected warehouse has enough stock for the items on the quote (on create and on edit).