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Uniform stock management for healthcare linen rooms: the coordinator app, the phone counter and the staff app, for your own server. Built from a113353 on 2026-09-15. Licensed under the Functional Source License (FSL-1.1-ALv2).

docs/manual/stock/suppliers.md

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+---
+title: Suppliers
+section: stock
+order: 7
+summary: The supplier directory, the contact, account, order email and lead time each supplier carries, the supplier's code for each size, and where each is used.
+screen: Settings › Catalogue & suppliers
+role: Admin
+keywords: supplier, vendor, supplier directory, lead time, account number, order email, contact, supplier code, product code, remove supplier
+---
+
+## The supplier directory
+
+`Settings › Catalogue & suppliers` lists every supplier the facility buys from, each in its own panel with the number of products and orders that use it.
+
+1. **Type the name** into `New supplier`, for example `Northline Workwear`.
+2. **Press Add supplier.** A name already on the list, in any mix of capitals, is refused.
+
+A supplier is also added when a garment is saved, bulk-changed or imported with a supplier name the directory doesn't hold. The match is made without regard to capitals, and the garment is stored with the directory's spelling, so `northline workwear` finds `Northline Workwear`.
+
+A supplier's name can't be changed once added. **Export CSV** downloads the supplier, contact, phone, account number, lead time, and the number of products and orders for each.
+
+## Each supplier's details
+
+| Field | What it holds |
+|---|---|
+| `Contact person` | Who to ask for |
+| `Phone` | The supplier's phone number |
+| `Account no.` | The facility's account with the supplier |
+| `Order email` | Where purchase orders are emailed; blank means print or CSV only |
+| `Lead time (days)` | Days from ordering to delivery; blank means none set |
+
+Changes save as you type. An order email that isn't an email address is refused, and it is stored in lower case. An Issuer sees the fields but can't change them.
+
+## Where the details are used
+
+- **Lead time** sets the expected delivery date: in `New order` when the supplier is picked, on orders raised from the [order list](/docs/stock/order-list), on replenishment drafts, and on back orders. With none set, those orders expect delivery in 14 days. The forecast reads it in weeks, and assumes 2 weeks when none is set (see [reorder levels](/docs/stock/reorder-levels)).
+- **Contact, phone and account number** print on purchase orders. The A4 order sheet also prints the order email, and the order list shows the account number beside each supplier's group.
+- **Order email** is the only address **Email** and **Email supplier** send to. Without it they are refused with a note to add one here.
+
+## The supplier's code for each size
+
+Suppliers number each size and colour of a garment separately. Record that code on the product page, in the `Ordering` panel, against each size (up to 60 characters). An Issuer sees the codes but can't change them.
+
+The code is printed against the line on the A4 order sheet, in the order CSV and in the order email, so it can be keyed into the supplier's own site. Where a size has none, the sheet and the email use the garment's SKU. On the order list a missing code shows as `no code`, linked back to the product page.
+
+The supplier code is separate from the barcode: it is what the supplier calls the size, and the [barcode](/docs/stock/barcodes) is what a scanner reads.
+
+## Changing and removing a supplier
+
+A garment's supplier is changed on its product page with **Edit product**, or for several at once with `Change supplier…` on the multi-select bar of `Stock › On hand`. Changing a garment's supplier doesn't change existing orders. An order's supplier can be changed on the order page until it is received or cancelled.
+
+**×** on a supplier's panel removes it, and appears only when no product and no order uses it. The server refuses the removal otherwise.
+
+> **In plain terms** A supplier that has ever been used stays in the directory, so its orders keep their contact and account details.
+
+## What is written
+
+| Action | Record · Change | Undo |
+|---|---|---|
+| Add supplier | Supplier record with its name | Remove it while nothing uses it |
+| Edit a detail | That field on the supplier | Edit it again |
+| Remove | Supplier record deleted | Add it again and re-enter the details |
+| Supplier code | The code on that size of the garment | Edit or clear it |