NetSuite’s Manufacturing and Wholesale business solution integrates with Quickbooks to give you a real-time view of your inventory, sales and expenses while reducing accounting time. This intelligent integration automatically calculates the costs and profitability of your products, helping you make more informed decisions, faster. Plus, it’s easy to use, helping you take the right action the first time.
Manufacturing and wholesale businesses of all sizes can turn to Katana if they wish to take control of their accounting processes. This software offers a number of features that make it especially appealing to time-pressed business owners, including the ability to create estimates and invoices, track sales, generate reports, manage inventory levels, and more.
QuickBooks Online Advanced is the most powerful QuickBooks Online solution, designed for businesses with more complex finance and accounting needs. QuickBooks Online Advanced offers deeper insights, peace of mind and higher productivity to focus on key decisions to hit the next level. QuickBooks Online Advanced is cloud-based, SaaS accounting software designed to simplify accounting for mid-size and growing businesses. QuickBooks Online Advanced includes all the core accounting features of QuickBooks – and is enhanced with powerful tools like customizable business analytics, visual cashflow and revenue dashboards, custom user roles for 25 users, and online back-up and restore. Automated workflows and batch invoicing help save time and reduce cost. The mobile app gives employees real-time data access across multiple locations, and mileage tracking. Premium care, on-demand training and 24/7 U.S.-based technical support is included with Priority Circle membership.
How to Use QuickBooks for Manufacturing
FYI: We’re looking at QuickBooks Online for manufacturing purposes. You can use desktop versions of QuickBooks, but bear in mind that they are more expensive and are rather tailored to medium and large sized businesses.
Using QuickBooks for manufacturing is possible. However, the built-in inventory management system is designed mainly for businesses tracking the stock levels of finished goods.
There is a way you can monitor your more granular raw material, such as the nuts and bolts that go into your products. Although, QuickBooks manufacturing doesn’t track these expenses or calculate your cost of goods sold based on the materials you use.
You’ll monitor your inventory in one of four categories:
- Inventory items;
- Non-inventory items;
- Services; and
- Bundle.
What we’ll be focusing on is non-inventory items mainly, as this is where you’ll be storing your raw materials and components.
Tracking Raw Materials Inventory and Parts-in-Process
Manufacturing is not just about the finished product – but how you get there. Effective raw inventory management can be the make or break of your production management.
Mismanagement of raw materials and sub-assemblies, can derail your production process and lead to unhappy customers.
If you want to track raw materials inventory, parts in process, as well as finished goods – you’ll need a better solution. This is where Katana can help.
Designed for manufacturers, it’s your all-in-one inventory management solution, effortlessly integration with your favorite accounting tool, QuickBooks. Try free for 14-days.
Limitation of QuickBooks for Manufacturing
The biggest issue with using QuickBooks for manufacturing is that you can save how much raw material you have stocked, but you can’t convert that into a finished product.
In manufacturing changes to your raw material levels affects your finished product stock but QuickBooks doesn’t register this.
Of course, it’s fine if you’re using your raw material to repair damaged stock, but that is the exception of doing your raw material inventory management with QuickBooks.
Either way, this can be an issue, considering you’re going to have to update your product levels manually every time you finish a new project. Otherwise, you run the risk of going to Ship Negative.
But, what is this?
What Is Negative Inventory in QuickBooks Manufacturing?
Negative inventory is when you generate an invoice in QuickBooks manufacturing, but you didn’t update the inventory beforehand.
For example, you currently have a product level of zero on your QuickBooks manufacturing system but have just finished a manufacturing order. In a rush and to fulfill a sales order, you ship a product for delivery and generate an invoice for payment.
QuickBooks will update the inventory level as –1.
This might not sound like a big deal. But negative inventory can cause problems such as QuickBooks incorrectly calculating the average costs. Meaning if you generate any inventory valuation type reports in QuickBooks online for manufacturing, it will be incorrect.
Unfortunately, if this issue occurs, it’s not a straight forward fix.
How to Find and Fix Negative Inventory When Using QuickBooks for Manufacturing
To locate any negative inventory, you’ll need to run an Inventory Valuation Detail (IVD) report in QuickBooks:
1. On the QuickBooks Dashboard select “Reports” and select “Inventory Valuation Detail”
2. On the drop-down menu for “Dates” select “All” to get an entire overview of your inventory movement.
3. Under the QTY On Hand column, you’ll be able to see at which point negative inventory has occurred.
So, you’ve found when negative inventory has taken place, so let’s move onto how to fix it:
1. Select the negative inventory under the “QTY On Hand”
2. If you’re legitimately able to do so, adjust the dates of the bills or invoices so that the bill date is set before the invoice dates
So, as you can see, it is quite easy to fall into negative inventory. And this is why using QuickBooks for manufacturing becomes tricky due to not being able to convert raw materials into final products.
So, the big question.
Is QuickBooks Good for Manufacturing?
Let’s cut to the chase, QuickBooks for manufacturing isn’t ideal.
It’s got your business covered for tracking your finances and even handling some inventory. But, the long and short of it is QuickBooks isn’t designed to support a modern manufacturer, at least in terms of running the production side of the business.
You’re still going to need to figure out how to:
- Save your BOMs;
- Plan production; and
- Track inventory at different locations.
That’s why we’ve put together these four steps for you to follow that’ll help you optimize your small business manufacturing for QuickBooks.
Four Ways to Improve Using QuickBooks for Manufacturing
Once you have learned about the QuickBooks for manufacturing limitations and how to avoid getting into negative inventory, you can start to overhaul your manufacturing business by following these steps.
1. Eliminate Bottlenecks
A bottleneck is a term used to describe a point along your manufacturing processes where production slows down for various reasons, such as a tool being in use frequently or even running out of inventory.
So, how do you phase out bottlenecks from your production?
- Improve Your Process
Figure out where your bottlenecks are occurring and then decide which approach you need to take to fix this. This could be in the form of remapping your production known as routing manufacturing. - implement Safety Stock
Another tactic to take is to use safety stock. So, when inventory begins to quickly run out due to an increase in orders, you’ll have a buffer of inventory to help you fulfill orders as you purchase more material and finish your manufacturing orders. - Calculate Your Manufacturing Lead Time
Calculating your manufacturing lead time, which is the period from scheduling production to completing the finished product, will allow you to get an overview of your operations for each product. By having this, you can figure out exactly where in your production process is prone to bottlenecks, address this issue, and potentially lower your lead time.
2. Eliminate Waste
Eliminating waste from within your production process can help you reduce your carrying costs, manufacturing costs, and overhead costs.
All of this will be reflected in your Chart of Accounts.
Eliminating waste isn’t just changing the process of how you handle any discarded raw material during production, but how you run your QuickBooks manufacturing in general.
A practice often referred to as lean manufacturing.
- The Seven Mudas
When a business wants to implement lean manufacturing into their business, they follow a step-by-step plan called The Seven Mudas. However, just as a starting point, we’d recommend looking into Transportation first, how you move inventory around your shop floor, because this can be a quick and easy fix that’ll streamline your production. - How You Store Inventory
When using QuickBooks for manufacturing, it is essential to understand how the built-in inventory management works. By default, QuickBooks tracks inventory using the first in, first out (FIFO) system. Basically, this means whatever is placed into inventory first, is the first to be removed.
However, regardless of if you’re a make to stock or make to order business, this is a good system to follow as it’ll help you better understand your product’s performance in the marketplace and eliminate any potential dead stock from building up.
3. Develop your master production schedule
Your master production schedule (MPS) is going to be the backbone to your entire small business manufacturing for QuickBooks, so if you don’t already have one, quickly implement one now.
Your MPS is going to incorporate key areas of production such as:
- Your demand planning;
- Work schedules;
- Your available raw material levels, onsite and in transit;
- Machine specifications;
- Storage capacity; and
- The estimated frequency for stoppages for maintenance.
By focusing on your scheduling production process, you’re going to be able to maximize the efficiency of your production flow. In turn, allowing you to fulfill orders as soon as possible, minimize delays, meaning less stress for you and a more satisfied customer.
The issue with not having an MPS implemented along with your QuickBooks manufacturing is those small inefficiencies in your business are difficult to notice and only become detectable when they’ve become a significant problem.
4. Automation
You don’t need tons of money, conveyor belts, and heartless machinery working away 24/7 to automate your production.
Automation simply means finding tools and wholesale software which can help boost your QuickBooks for manufacturing. This could be in the form of QuickBooks addons for manufacturing such as marketing automation software or an MRP system.
The purpose of using these QuickBooks add ons for manufacturing is to make running your business that little bit easier and free up time so you can get back to your love of manufacturing your items.
And that’s about it!
Following the few steps listed above is going to be difficult to get your business all in order.
That’s why we’ve put together the ultimate guide on what is manufacturing so you can go above and beyond with optimizing your business.
Optimizing your QuickBooks for manufacturing doesn’t have to be a headache.
Manufacturers who is looking to improve their business management. You don’t have to go through every step and manually identify the issues in your company when you can implement a Smart Manufacturing Software which will help you identify problems automatically.
Then, simply watch all the limitations that come with using QuickBooks for manufacturing melt away.
PRO TIP: When looking for software to use in your business, be sure to be certain that it has QuickBooks integrations so you can bridge any missing features with the new software.
Premium apps for QuickBooks Online Advanced
Bill.com
One of the most highly rated apps you can sync with QuickBooks is Bill.com. Bill.com gives you more financial control by allowing you to set up customized workflows and routing rules for faster and easier approvals from any device. With the Bill.com integration, all of your bank account information syncs with QuickBooks to help you manage your accounts receivable and accounts payable. When you connect Bill.com to your QuickBooks Online Advanced account, the Premium App-only capability of deep linking between bills in both programs is enabled.
Using Bill.com with QuickBooks syncs your invoices, customers, accounts, book balance, and vendors. This functionality allows you to create payment schedules, set reminders, automate approvals, and more. Whenever a bill needs attention, you’ll be able to access it fast with the Bill.com app.
HubSpot
If you’re in need of customer relationship management (CRM) software, the HubSpot integration is a must. With HubSpot and QuickBooks, you can see everything about your leads and customers, all in one place. HubSpot is one of the best QuickBooks integrations because it allows businesses to sync their CRM and accounting softwares to speed up their sales cycle, helping sales and finance teams work better together. With QuickBooks Online Advanced and its HubSpot integration as a Premium App, customers can bring invoices into QuickBooks in a draft state, and set up their own automated flow to move invoices from draft to review and approval between HubSpot and Advanced.
Salesforce
Another top QuickBooks app is Salesforce. Salesforce allows you to connect your business accounting and CRM so you can see how your business is running and where it can be improved. The Salesforce Connector by QuickBooks is a Premium App available for QuickBooks Online Advanced users only. It’s great for bringing your sales and finance teams together to ensure consistent information is maintained between accounts, invoices, and payments. You can also share data such as customer information, sales orders, expenses, and invoicing between these two teams. With these two systems working in tandem, you have complete visibility into your business and cash flow. With data in real time, the connector provides you with accurate data to drive business growth.
DocuSign
E-Signature app DocuSign is the first e-Signature integration added to our suite of Premium Apps. DocuSign eSignature Connector for QuickBooks Online Advanced enables teams to track down signatures from clients, employees, and other professionals when needed. DocuSign eSignature allows you to seamlessly sign, send, and manage digital documents directly from QuickBooks Online Advanced. With DocuSign e-Signature for QuickBooks Online Advanced, you’ll be able to send an estimate out for electronic signature directly from QuickBooks making business convenient for you and your customers.This integration is exclusively available for QuickBooks Online Advanced users only.
LeanLaw
LeanLaw is an industry-specific integration that boosts productivity for law firms and legal businesses. We’ve ranked this as one of the best QuickBooks apps because it puts the data and reporting you need as a law firm right at your fingertips. The QuickBooks Online Advanced integration enables tracking for an array of processes, such as trust accounting, client reports, and billable hours, to name a few.
LeanLaw is a prime example of how QuickBooks Online Advanced’s Premium Apps can meet the specific needs of your business and particular industry.
QuickBooks Payroll
QuickBooks Payroll is owned by Intuit® and works automatically with QuickBooks Online. With QuickBooks Payroll, you can pay and manage your team all in one place. Integrating payroll, human resources, taxes, health benefits, workers’ compensation, and more, QuickBooks Payroll is your go-to app for tackling payday.
QuickBooks Payroll also comes with auto payroll, same-day direct deposit, and advanced mobile time tracking by QuickBooks Time to make tracking hours and paying employees painless. Small business owners can also benefit from QuickBooks Payroll come tax time. This app runs your payroll for you with the latest rates for sales tax, income tax, payroll tax, and more. It also calculates payments and files forms automatically.