Dispatching and Printing Purchase Orders

This chapter provides an overview of purchase order dispatch and discusses how to:

Dispatch purchase orders.
Set up and publish the Purchase Order Dispatch/Purchase Order Change Request EIP (enterprise integration point).

Understanding Purchase Order Dispatch

With PeopleSoft Purchasing, you can dispatch and print purchase orders individually or in volume. You can dispatch purchase orders by printing, fax, phone, email, or electronic data exchange (EDX). You can also dispatch them from the online pages or through a batch process.

A purchase order must have a status of Approved or Dispatched and have passed the commitment control budget check to be eligible for dispatch.

Dispatching Purchase Orders Using Online Pages

Use one of these pages to dispatch purchase orders individually:

Maintain Purchase Order - Purchase Order page.
Express Purchase Order - Purchase Order page.
PO Reconciliation WorkBench page.

Here are the basic steps to dispatch purchase orders from an online page:

Access one of the online pages.
Click the Dispatch button on the page.

The Dispatch Options page appears.
Enter dispatch options for the purchase order.
Click the OK button.

The system dispatches the purchase order using the method set up on the PO Header Details page.

Warning! If a purchase order is on hold, dispatching that purchase order from the Maintain Purchase Order - Purchase Order page, Express Purchase Order - Purchase Order page, or PO Reconciliation WorkBench page automatically removes the purchase order from hold and dispatches it. If a purchase order is on hold, and you dispatch that purchase order through the PO Dispatch/Print process, the system does not dispatch the purchase order and it remains on hold.

Note. You can only print out a limited number of pages when dispatching comments.

Dispatching Purchase Orders Using a Batch Process

Use the Dispatch Purchase Orders page to schedule a background batch job that dispatches a single purchase order or multiple purchase orders that meet your selection criteria. After purchase orders have been successfully dispatched, their statuses are updated to Dispatched.

Note. The PO Dispatch/Print process dispatches purchase orders associated with recurring purchase order vouchers; however, the PO_STATUS values on the purchase orders are never set to D (dispatched).

When you run the PO Dispatch/Print process from the Dispatch Purchase Orders page, the PeopleSoft Process Scheduler Request page offers you three options:

PO Dispatch & Email multi-process job	Select to run the Single PO Dispatch/Print SQR Report process (POPO005) and then the Email Application Engine process (PO_PO_EMAIL).
PO Dispatch/Print process	Select to run only the PO Dispatch/Print SQR Report process (POPO005).
Email process	Select to run only the Email Application Engine process (PO_PO_EMAIL).

When you use the email dispatch method, the PO Dispatch/Print process creates an output file in the location that you specify on the File Locations page. The Email process picks up the output file from the specified location and sends out an email message with the purchase order as an attachment. When the dispatch method is fax, the dispatch process creates a purchase order file and a fax control file in the locations that you specify on the File Locations page.

The PO Dispatch/Print process contains business process logic and is responsible for retrieving data from the database, constructing purchase orders, and sending the output files to the proper locations. To actually deliver purchase orders to the recipients through designated channels, a separate process is required.

To dispatch by email, you first need to run the PO Dispatch/Print process to create the output files and to update the PO Email queue table. You then run the Email process.

The Email process is a PeopleSoft Application Engine process that picks up the email output file created by the PO Dispatch/Print process in the location specified on the File Locations page and generates an email message through the SMTP gateway to be delivered to the recipient through the internet. If you specify a vendor contact on the Vendor Details page on the purchase order, the Email process sends the email to the address that you specify in the Email ID field on the Vendor Information - Contacts page. If you do not specify a vendor contact on the purchase order, the Email process sends the email to the address that you specify in the Email ID field on the Vendor Information - Address page. When a message is sent successfully, it is removed from the email queue table; however, the purchase order output files are not deleted.

To simplify dispatching by email, you can use the PO Dispatch & Email job on the PeopleSoft Process Scheduler Request page that you access from the Dispatch Purchase Orders page. The PO Dispatch & Email job automatically runs the PO Dispatch/Print process and then the Email process. For online dispatches, the system always schedules the PO Dispatch & Email job.

If you are using the fax dispatch method, you must use a third-party fax software to handle the output files.

If the dispatch method is EDX, the PO Dispatch/Print process does not create an output file, but updates a series of EC outbound tables. These are the tables that are updated: PS_PO_HDR_OUT_EC, PS_PO_LINE_OUT_EC, PS_PO_SHIP_OUT_EC, and PS_PO_SHIP_OUT_EC.

When you dispatch a purchase order by telephone, Phone must be selected as the dispatch method. This ensures that when you dispatch a purchase order either from one of the pages or using the PO Dispatch/Print process, the status of the purchase order updates to Dispatched.

An important factor to consider when you select an appropriate output format is the recipient. When you dispatch by email, you may want to select a dispatch output format of PDF or HTM, because these formats employ readers that are commonly found on user systems. When you dispatch by fax, you may want to consider that most fax software applications are compatible with Postscript - (PS) or PCL - (HP) encoded files.

When you generate the PO Dispatch/Print report from the Purchase Orders Print page, a hard copy of the purchase order prints, but the purchase orders are not dispatched. When you print the purchase order using the Purchase Orders Print page, the word Unauthorized prints on the purchase order to differentiate it from an actual dispatched purchase order.

Note. A purchase order cannot be dispatched using email or fax when the email ID or fax number is not available; in other words, they are either not specified on the document or they are not available from the vendor profile. Some purchase orders that are scheduled to be dispatched using the PO Dispatch/Print process may not be processed due to a missing email ID or fax number. Please check the log file for those purchase orders that are not dispatched.

Tips on Dispatching and Printing Transactions

Here are some tips regarding dispatching and printing transactions:

The entry in the SQRDIR set in the PSSQR.INI (Microsoft Windows environment) or PSSQR.UNX (UNIX environment) file must be correctly defined and must point to the correct BINW where the SQR executables are installed.

PeopleSoft delivers an undefined (dummy) SQRDIR to enable you to install the SQRs in a location that best suits your configuration. If the SQRDIR is not pointing to the correct BINW directory, certain features do not work as designed. For example, CSV, enhanced HTM, and Postscript files are not produced correctly.
The email dispatch method is designed to work with a SMTP gateway.

The settings for the SMTP gateway must be entered when you set up a PeopleSoft Process Scheduler server.

Dispatching Purchase Orders

This section discusses how to:

Run the PO Dispatch/Print process.
Select purchase orders for dispatch.

Pages Used to Dispatch Purchase Orders

Page Name	Object Name	Navigation	Usage
Dispatch Purchase Orders	RUN_DISP_POPO005	Purchasing, Purchase Orders, Dispatch POs, Dispatch Purchase Orders	Run the PO Dispatch/Print process and dispatch purchase orders, run the Email process, or run the PO Dispatch & Email multiprocess job.
Select Purchase Order	PO_PICK_ORD2	Click the Select Purchase Order link on the Dispatch Purchase Orders page.	Select a purchase order for processing.
Vendor Search	VENDOR_LOOKUP_SEC	Click the Vendor Lookup link on the Select Purchase Order page.	Search for vendors.

Running the PO Dispatch/Print Process

Access the Dispatch Purchase Orders page.

Process Request Parameters

Contract SetID	Select a contract setID, if the purchase orders that you are to dispatch are associated with a contract.
Contract ID	Select a contract number, if the purchase orders that you are to dispatch are associated with a contract.
Release	Select the release number of the contract.
From Date and Thru Date	Select dates to dispatch purchase orders based on purchase order date values.
Fax Cover Page	Select a fax cover page if some of the purchase orders that you are dispatching are to be sent by fax. Define fax cover letters in the system on the Fax Cover Letters page. The PO Dispatch/Print process writes to the fax control file the file name associated with the selected cover letter combined with the cover letter file extension that you defined on the Dispatch Configuration page.

Note. Support for fax cover pages is purely a function of the fax software that you use. Please consult the fax software vendor to identify the limitations and capabilities of the software fax cover page support.

Statuses to Include

In the Statuses to Include group box, select whether to include purchase orders with approved, dispatched, or pending cancel statuses in this run of the dispatch. When a specific purchase order ID is not entered, you must select at least one option.

Dispatched

Select to redispatch a dispatched purchase order or to print copies of dispatched purchase orders.

Dispatch Methods to Include

Select which dispatch methods to include in this run of the process. Selected values are only used as a part of the data selection criteria. To change the method by which the purchase order is to be dispatched, you must modify the dispatch method on the Maintain Purchase Order - Purchase Order page.

FAX

The default output format from the PeopleSoft Process Scheduler Request page is PDF. If the fax software does not support the PDF file format, then select an output format that the fax software can handle.

If the fax software does not support PDF files, PeopleSoft recommends that you process all of the purchase orders that are to be dispatched through fax together, and that you do not print a hard copy at the same time. In the Dispatch Methods to Include group box, select the FAX method only and do not select the Print Copy check box. Then on the Process Scheduler Request page, select the appropriate output format supported by the fax software.

Miscellaneous Options

Chartfields	Select Recycled AND Valid ChartFields to process purchase orders regardless of whether the ChartFields are valid or recycled. Select Recycled Chartfields to process only purchase orders with distribution lines whose ChartFields are identified as Recycled. (PO_LINE_DISTRIB.CHARTFIELD_STATUS = 'R'). Select Valid Chartfields to process only purchase orders with distribution lines whose ChartFields are identified as Valid. (PO_LINE_DISTRIB.CHARTFIELD_STATUS = 'V').
Change Orders	Select Changed Orders to process only purchase orders that have been changed. Select Changed and Unchanged Orders to process changed and unchanged purchase orders. Select Unchanged Orders to process only purchase orders that have never been changed.
Print Changes Only	If you select to dispatch changed orders in the Change Orders field, the Print Changes Only check box becomes available. Select to dispatch only the changes to the purchase order, rather than the entire purchase order. If you create the purchase order from a contract with the Release To Single PO Only option selected, select this check box to have the system send only the latest changes to the supplier.
Test Dispatch	Select this check box to perform a test run of the dispatch. When you select this check box, the process runs, but the purchase orders processed do not appear in Dispatched status, and the purchase orders are printed with the word Unauthorized at the bottom of the page. This enables you to test the EDX, email, or fax setup without updating the system.
Print Copy	Select this check box to produce a printed copy of each processed purchased order. If any of the processed purchase orders are done by phone, fax, email, or EDX, the system prints a hard copy for review.
Print BU Comments (print business unit comments)	Select this check box to print comments (terms and conditions) defined for the PeopleSoft Purchasing business unit on the purchase order upon dispatch. Assign comments to the PeopleSoft Purchasing business unit by clicking the Comments link on the Purchasing Definition - Business Unit Definition page.
Print PO Item Description	Select this check box to print the item description from the Maintain Purchase Order - Purchase Order page, instead of from the Purchasing Attributes page. The item description stored on the purchase order is in the base language and may have been modified on the purchase order.
Print Duplicate	Select this check box to print the word Duplicate on each purchase order.

Selecting Purchase Orders for Dispatch

Access the Select Purchase Order page.

Note. You can access the PO Reconciliation WorkBench page to select multiple purchase orders for dispatch.

PO Unit	Select a business unit.
ID	Select a purchase order ID.
Start Date and End Date	Used as a comparison against the purchase order date to determine which schedules are retrieved. These values appear by default to the current date plus or minus the value in the Days +/- Today field.
Search	Click this button to display the purchase order lines and schedules that match the criteria that you entered.

In the Retrieved Rows group box, click the Sel check box next to a purchase order to work with that particular purchase order.

Note. After you dispatch the purchase order, the vendor's last activity date (VENDOR.LAST_ACTIVITY_DT) is automatically updated to reflect the current date. You can use the vendor last activity date to deactivate vendors that have had no activity in the previous fiscal year.

Setting Up and Publishing the Purchase Order Dispatch/Purchase Order Change Request EIP

The Purchase Order Dispatch/ Purchase Order Change Request EIP publishes purchase orders and purchase order change requests (change orders) to vendors. This asynchronous batch publish message also supports flat-file processing for EDI transaction X.12 850.

Use this EIP to process change order request to the vendors. You typically use EDI to process these transactions.

Run the PO Dispatch/Print process (POPO005) to stage the purchase order.

Use the common Publish Outbound Message page to initiate the PO_POD Application Engine process that publishes the PURCHASE_ORDER_DISPATCH message.

This section discusses how to:

Set up the Purchase Order Dispatch/ Purchase Order Change Order EIP.
Publish the Purchase Order Dispatch/ Purchase Order Change Order EIP.

Pages Used to Set Up and Publish the Purchase Order Dispatch/Purchase Order Change Request EIP

Page Name	Object Name	Navigation	Usage
Dispatch Purchase Orders	RUN_DISP_POPO005	Purchasing, Purchase Orders, Dispatch POs, Dispatch Purchase Orders	Run the PO Dispatch/Print process and dispatch purchase orders, run the Email process, or run the PO Dispatch & Email multiprocess job.
Publish Outbound Message	IN_RUN_PUB_MSG	SCM Integrations, Publish Outbound Message	Initiate the outbound message publish process for outbound PeopleSoft Supply Chain Management messages that use the batch publish design pattern.
PO Dispatch Message Selection Criteria	PO_RUN_POD	Select the Purchase Order Dispatch check box on the Publish Outbound Message page to enable the Purchase Order Dispatch link. Click the Purchase Order Dispatch link to launch the PO Dispatch Message Selection Criteria page.	Launch the Purchase Order Dispatch Outbound transaction.

Setting Up the Purchase Order Dispatch/Purchase Order Change Request EIP

Before you can publish messages with the Purchase Order Dispatch/Purchase Order Change Request EIP, you must:

Activate the PURCHASE_ORDER_DISPATCH application message.
Define a message node.
Configure the message channel associated with the message.
Set up chunking rules.
Activate the associated batch publish rule.
Address any special setup steps defined for this EIP.
On the purchase order, specify EDX as the dispatch method.

Publishing the Purchase Order Dispatch/Purchase Order Change Request EIP

Access the PO Dispatch Method Selection Criteria page.

The field values on this page are the same fields that appear on the Request for Quote Release Selection Criteria page.

Refer to the section on Request for Quote Release Selection Criteria for more information.

See Publishing the RFQ EIP.