Solution Configurator
General Overview
The Solution Configurator is an electronic price book where you go to configure your proposed new solutions including their models, accessories, proposed volumes and select pricing options. The blue buttons are numbered 1,2, and 3 indicating the order in which you will use those areas. You’ll notice two sides of the screen, Build Solution and Proposed Solution, with a divider in the middle to separate the two. To move this divider to show either side click on the line and slide to the position you want.
Or simply click on the bold lettering of each side. Build Solution or Proposed Solution Build Solution – Left Side of the Screen
Selecting a Model:
To Select a model to configure and price out use the filter dropdown and type in a keyword (or leave the keyword field blank) and click the Search button. A list of models that your company sells will appear in the list. Models in Red are discontinued.
Check the checkbox to the left of the main model and a list of accessories will pull down for you to choose from. If you want to just choose an accessory and not the main model, don’t use the check box; you will want to use the + button to the left of the main model it’s associated with, and just check the accessory or accessories you want to price out.
Load Favorite: If you have Favorite Configurations set up, you can choose from those by using the Load Favorite button (see Favorite Configurations section of this manual).
A form will pop up for you to choose from your favorites list using the dropdown. Highlight the one you want to use and click the Load button.
Use Asset Strategy: If you added equipment into Asset Strategy, click on the Use Asset Strategy button and it will limit the list to just those models that you added, and remember the volume that you allocated to those machines. This will make it easier to find the model(s) you want to propose. It will also remember the assigned volume that you entered in Asset Strategy when you get to the #2 Select Pricing options. After you have configured and priced each device, you can go back to the main search by using the Go Back to Search button if you want to configure additional devices.
Manually Add Item: If you are proposing a model that is not in the Solutions Configurator (for example, a used machine) you can manually add it as a ‘one time’ add into a deal. Make sure you enter all the needed information.
- Click on the Manually Add Item button.
- Enter in the quantity of a model to be proposed.
- Select the Category from the Category drop down (required). The categories are set up by your Compass Administrator.
- Manually type in the Make, Model (required), Product #, Description, Outcost, MSRP
- Manually type in the Service Information, including proposed Mono and Color volume, service rates, and overage rates.
- Percent of MSRP will take a percentage of the MSRP you entered and add it to the service portion of the total payment.
- Enter any notes regarding the equipment, and remember to use proper capitalization and spelling, as these will later be populated into the proposal for client consideration.
- Type in any accessories to be configured with the model and click on Add Accessory.
- If you don’t have any more accessories to add, click the Add button at the bottom of the page
Save / Reset Grid Layout: In the grid view, you can sort by columns by clicking on the header row and move columns around by clicking and dragging the columns to the position you would like them in. To save this view, click the Save Grid Layout button. To Rest the view to the default, click the Reset Grid Layout button.
Color Legend: The Color Legend will give you a view of what the color coding means in the grids:
- Red highlight – this is a discontinued model
- Green highlight – it is a required accessory with the main model (for accessories only)
- Red font – the accessory has another required accessory with it (for accessories only)
- Yellow highlight – it is an editable field (only applies to the right side of the screen in Proposed Solution)
Exclusions: For Accessories that your Administrator has exclusions set, you will receive 2 different types of pop-up messages. It will depend on if they have chosen to prevent the accessory from being selected when another accessory is chosen or if they have chosen to warn you that the accessory is excluded to another accessory when selected.
Prevent: In the example below if I were to select the Punch Unit PU30 NA and then try to also select the Punch Unit PU3060 NA, it will prevent me from doing so and show this pop-up:
Warn: In the example below if I were to select the Finisher SR3210 and then try to also select the Finisher SR3230 it will warn me that this accessory is excluded and show this pop up, warning me that this accessory is excluded and show the below.
While in the Accessories tab you can rearrange the grid layout to your liking and save that grid layout so every time you log back into Sherpa your grid will save to your reading layout
Pricing Views: If you have multiple pricing levels that are applicable to the model(s) you are searching and viewing, you can limit the pricing levels that you see in the grid. Just check or uncheck the boxes of what you want to view in the grid. The pricing levels checked by default are the pricing levels that are currently active.
Selecting Pricing Options: After selecting a model and the desired accessories, click on the Select Pricing Level Button and choose the pricing level you would like for the main model (Regular is Outcost).
Select Service Rate:
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Billing Frequency - Choose the service billing term. Most often, Monthly will be the only option. Please note that even if you select Quarterly or Annually as the billing term, Compass will always calculate a payment in Monthly financial figures.
- Note: The first model added to the proposed equipment in the Solution Configurator will set the billing frequency for all models on that proposal. For example, if Quarterly is chosen for the first model added, all equipment on that proposal must also be of the Quarterly billing frequency. If Monthly is chosen, all must be Monthly.
- If a model which only has Quarterly service rate frequency is added and another model which only has Monthly is selected, no billing frequency will appear if Quarterly is not also an option for that model. Different billing frequencies must be split into separate proposals and cannot be mixed on the same proposal.
- Service Rate - Select which service pricing level you are using for servicing the machine.
- Min Mono & Color - The minimum mono & color volume requirement for that machine is determined by your company. You will not be able to change the volume to be lower than the minimum.
- Mono Vol & Color Vol - You can either select from the drop down list a volume that you wish to propose for the new machine, or you may manually type in a volume. If the volume field already has a number in it, that is a minimum volume requirement for that machine as determined by your company. You will not be able to change the volume to be lower than the minimum.
Note: if a mono or color machine has no volume then the service rate in financials won’t appear. The suggestion is to put a volume of 1 on the machine, in Solution Configurator in the volume area so that the service pricing appears.
- Click the green arrow button to proceed to sending it as part of the proposed solution, or the Undo button to go back to the search criteria.
Adding in Additional New Equipment: After you have gone through steps 1, 2 and 3, you may at this time go back and start over at step one to propose additional equipment. Go through the same procedures as before.
Proposed Solution:
Once you’ve moved your equipment using the green arrow, it will populate on the right side of the screen under Proposed Solution. There, you can change quantity, pricing levels, volumes and add accessories.
If there are any Install Fees applied to the Model in Item Pricing a column will reflect in the grid. If it does not show up, you may have to right click, choose column and select Install Fees.
Edit Service Rate:
This will allow you to edit a service rate, per machine, with the authorized password in the Admin Control Panel. Enter the Password and the service rate column will become editable.
Once authorized, you can type in the new service rate and make sure you click the red flashing “Stop Editing” button when you are done, or, if you are not the user, the person creating the proposal can continue to make edits. Once the Stop Editing button is clicked the service rate fields will again not be editable.
Remove: Allows you to remove an item, or all items, from the Proposed Solution list. To remove one item, or accessory, highlight the row and choose Remove Selected. To remove all items and start over, just select Remove All.
Add Accessory: Allows you to add accessories to a main model that is already proposed. Highlight the main model and click the Add Accessory button. A list of available accessories for that model will pop up and you can use the check box to the left of the accessories to add to the model. You can also use the Search field to search by a key word.
Copy: This feature takes the main item currently highlighted on the Proposed Solution side and makes an exact copy of it, including accessories, pricing level, service, etc. If you are configuring models with Qty1 this will come in handy for you. If you are configuring a certain machine and have 10 instances of it, the “copy” option will save them a bunch of times.
Favorite Configurations: Once you’ve configured a device, you can save this in a list of configurations to use at any time. Click on Favorite Configurations, and you have the options to Save, Edit, or Load.
- Save – This will save the configuration highlighted in the proposed list to use with any other proposal. A form will pop up for you to give it a name and description and click Save. You can also share a configuration with other users that are assigned to you by clicking the Share Configuration check box and choosing the users to whom you want to have access. This would be determined by your Admin if you are able to share configurations.
- Edit – This will pull up a form with current favorites, where you can edit or delete the favorite configuration.
- Load – If you wish to load a favorite configuration after you have configured the other equipment, choose Load, and pick from the dropdown and click the Load button.
Save / Reset Grid Layout: In the grid view, you can sort by columns by clicking on the header row and move columns around by clicking and dragging the columns to the position you would like them in. To save this view, click the Save Grid Layout button. To Rest the view to the default, click the Reset Grid Layout button.
View Service Rates: This option will give a printable report of the service used for the proposed solution.
Transfer to Summary:
After you are done configuring the equipment for your proposal and making any needed adjustments, click on the Transfer to Summary button.
If you have previously transferred information into the Product Summary tab, a message box will appear (see below). Clicking REPLACE ALL ITEMS IN PRODUCT SUMMARY means it will override and replace any existing information in the Product Summary and Financials Tab. Clicking ONLY NEW ITEMS will leave the previous information and append this additional information to it.
If you do not have any information in the Product Summary tab you will not get this message. Your information will automatically transfer over.
Last Updated 8/5/2020
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