Catalog & Stock
📚 On Ply, 'catalog' and 'stock' are two distinct components of your materials management system:
- Catalog: Think of the catalog as your comprehensive library of materials. It contains detailed listings of all the items you might need for your projects, regardless of their current quantities or locations.
- Stock: Your stock, on the other hand, refers to the actual quantities of materials you have on hand at various locations. It represents the physical inventory that's available for use or sale. Stock locations = Warehouses & Trucks.
How They Interact:
- When setting up a new stock location, you select items from your catalog and specify the quantities to establish your starting inventory.
- If you have a new item in your FSM or create a new item from an RFQ it will create a record of that item within your catalog and can be moved into your stock location
This separation enhances the functionality of Ply's 'Manage' and 'Buy' products, allowing for efficient inventory tracking and procurement across your business operations.
Catalog Management Overview
How To Use Tags on My Items?
Tags in Ply work a lot like categories, they’re simply another way to organize and filter your catalog so you can quickly find specific materials.
While you can’t search for tags directly in the main search bar, you can filter by them. To do this, click the Filter option above your material list, enter the tags you’d like to filter for, and then click Show. You’ll then see all materials that match the tags you selected.
How To Create And Use Categories on My Items?
Categories help you organize your catalog at a high level, so it’s easier to browse, filter, and report on your inventory. Think of categories as your “top-level buckets”, for example: Electrical, Plumbing, HVAC, Tools, or Safety.
Once items are categorized, your team can quickly find what they need and keep your inventory structure consistent across warehouses, trucks, and jobs.
Examples of common categories
- Electrical (all electrical materials)
- Plumbing (all plumbing materials)
- HVAC
- Fasteners
- Tools & Equipment
If you need more detailed grouping (like cables vs. outlets), we recommend using sub-categories fields.
You can set them up here: https://app.getply.com/settings/catalog/categories
Activating and Deactivating Materials
Instead of simply discarding valuable materials you no longer need, try for a safer alternative: deactivation. By choosing deactivation over direct delete, you retain control and ensure traceability.
Follow the steps in the video below to deactivate your materials:
1) Go to Your Catalog
2) Select the Material you Need to Deactivate
3) Go to the Stock Tab
4) Click on the button on the right to Deactivate the material
To reactivate your materials, you can do it through the same button, turning it on.
How to Add Multiple UPCs to an Item?
In this video, we'll show you how to effortlessly add multiple UPCs to a single item in our catalog.
Follow along as we guide you step-by-step, starting from your dashboard and navigating to the catalog section. Once there, we'll demonstrate how to find an item and access its details.
The main highlight of this tutorial is our new "Manage UPC" button, which allows you to add UPCs for manufacturers, suppliers, or distributors with ease 🛠️. Plus, we'll cover how to add multiple UPCs for different suppliers.
How to Generate Picklist PDF for Warehouse Management?
In this article, we’ll show you how to generate a picklist PDF for warehouse managers or technicians to efficiently pick specific items for a job.
We will guide you through accessing the picklist tab in stock locations, selecting a picklist with the required materials, and generating a printable PDF.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact our customer success team! We are here to help.