Setting up your product catalog

A well-organized product catalog is the foundation of efficient inventory management. This guide walks you through adding products, configuring units of measure, and setting up composite items in EQUOS.

Overview of product setup

Every inventory item in EQUOS includes:

• Identifiers — SKU, barcode, GTIN, and EAN for unique identification
• Product details — Name, description, category, brand, and supplier
• Unit of measure — How the item is counted and sold
• Stock warnings — Thresholds to prevent stockouts
• Location — Default storage position in your warehouse

You can add products one at a time or bulk import hundreds from a CSV file.

Creating your first product

Step 1: Open the Add Item form

1. Navigate to Inventory from the main menu.
2. In the sidebar, click Add Item under Quick Actions.
3. A blank product form opens.

Step 2: Enter basic information

Fill in the required fields:

• SKU: Enter a unique stock-keeping unit code (e.g., “WDG-001” or “BOLT-M8-50”).
• Product Name: Enter a clear, descriptive name.
• Status: Select Active for items ready to use, or Inactive for items you’re preparing.

Step 3: Add identifiers (optional)

Add barcodes and other identifiers to speed up scanning and lookups:

• Barcode: Enter or scan a barcode value.
• GTIN: Global Trade Item Number for retail products.
• EAN: European Article Number for international products.

If you don’t have barcodes yet, you can add them later using the Add Barcodes tool in the sidebar.

Step 4: Fill in product details

Add descriptive information to help your team identify and organize products:

• Description: Enter detailed notes about the product.
• Category: Group similar items (e.g., “Hardware”, “Electronics”, “Consumables”).
• Brand: Manufacturer or brand name.
• Supplier: Default supplier for reordering.
• Location: Default storage location (e.g., “Aisle A1, Bin B3”).

Categories make filtering and reporting easier. Establish a consistent category structure before adding many products.

Step 5: Configure unit of measure

See the Configuring units of measure section below for detailed instructions.

Step 6: Set stock warning levels

Configure alerts to prevent running out of stock:

Step 7: Save the item

Click Create Item to save the product to your catalog. The item is now available for use in orders and warehouse operations.

Configuring units of measure

Units of measure (UOM) define how products are counted, sold, and stored. EQUOS supports both simple single-unit items and complex multi-level hierarchies.

Single unit setup

For simple products, set one base unit:

1. In the UOM section, select Unit of Measure (e.g., “Each”, “Unit”, “Piece”, “Kilogram”).
2. Leave the hierarchy empty for single-level products.

This works for items sold in one standard quantity.

Multi-level hierarchy

For products sold in different quantities (e.g., individual units, cartons, pallets), create a conversion hierarchy.

Example hierarchy:

Unit → Carton (12 units) → Pallet (48 cartons = 576 units)

Step 1: Open the UOM editor

1. In the product form, locate the Unit of Measure Configuration section.
2. Click Edit Hierarchy to open the UOM editor.

Step 2: Add conversion levels

1. Click Add Level to create a new tier in the hierarchy.
2. Enter the Unit Name (e.g., “Carton”).
3. Enter the Conversion Factor (how many base units per level — e.g., 12).
4. Optionally add dimensions (length, width, height, weight) for each level.

Step 3: Add additional levels

Repeat the process to build deeper hierarchies. Each level references the one below it:

• Base: Unit (1 unit)
• Level 1: Carton = 12 units
• Level 2: Pallet = 48 cartons = 576 units

The UOM summary card displays the full conversion chain for easy reference.

Step 4: Save the hierarchy

Click Save to apply the hierarchy to the product. Orders and stock movements can now use any level in the hierarchy.

Setting up composite items

Composite items (kits or bundles) are virtual products built from existing inventory components. Their available stock is automatically calculated based on component availability.

When to use composite items

Use composite items for:

• Kits: Pre-packaged sets of multiple products (e.g., “Starter Kit” with 5 components)
• Bundles: Promotional bundles that consume individual items
• Assemblies: Products assembled from parts before shipping

Step 1: Enable composite mode

1. In the product form, locate the Composite Item section.
2. Toggle Composite Item to Enabled.

Step 2: Add components

1. Click Add Component to open the component picker.
2. Browse or search for inventory items to include.
3. Select a component and click Confirm.

Step 3: Set component quantities

For each component, set how many units are required per composite:

• Quantity per Composite: Number of this component needed to build one composite unit.

Example:

• Component: “Bolt M8” → Quantity: 4
• Component: “Washer M8” → Quantity: 4
• Component: “Nut M8” → Quantity: 4

One composite unit requires 4 of each component.

Step 4: Review calculated stock

The system automatically calculates available composite stock based on the lowest component availability.

Example calculation:

• Bolt M8: 50 available ÷ 4 needed = 12.5 → 12 composite units
• Washer M8: 60 available ÷ 4 needed = 15 composite units
• Nut M8: 40 available ÷ 4 needed = 10 composite units

Available composite stock: 10 units (limited by Nut M8 availability).

Step 5: Save the composite item

Click Create Item (or Save) to finalize the composite. The item now appears in your inventory with calculated availability.

Adding barcodes

The Add Barcodes tool helps you quickly assign barcodes to products using a dedicated scanning interface.

Scan-first workflow

Use this approach when you have physical products to scan:

1. Open Inventory → Add Barcodes from the sidebar.
2. Click the Scan button or floating scan action.
3. Scan a barcode with your device camera.
4. Select the product to assign the barcode to.
5. Click Confirm to save the assignment.

Item-first workflow

Use this approach when entering barcodes manually:

1. Open Inventory → Add Barcodes from the sidebar.
2. Use the tabs to filter items: All, Has Barcode, No Barcode.
3. Click an item to edit its barcode.
4. Scan or manually enter the barcode value.
5. Click Save to confirm.

The No Barcode tab helps you quickly identify products missing barcodes.

Bulk importing products

For large catalogs, use the CSV importer to add hundreds of products at once.

Step 1: Download the template

1. Open Inventory → Import Products from the sidebar.
2. Click Download Template to get a pre-formatted CSV file.

The template includes column headers for all product fields.

Step 2: Prepare your data

Fill in the template with your product information:

• Use consistent values for categories, brands, and suppliers.
• Set Status to “active” or “inactive”.
• Leave optional columns blank if not needed.

Step 3: Upload the file

1. In the Import Products screen, click Upload File.
2. Select your completed CSV file.
3. Review the preview to ensure columns mapped correctly.

Step 4: Configure import options

• Dry Run: Preview changes without writing to the database.
• Update Existing: Overwrite existing products with matching SKUs.

Use Dry Run first to verify the import before committing changes.

Step 5: Execute the import

Click Import Products to begin the import. The system processes rows and reports any errors encountered.

Review the import summary to verify all products were added successfully.

Best practices for SKU naming

A good SKU structure makes products easy to find and manage. Consider these approaches:

Hierarchical structure

Group related products using prefixes:

CAT-SUB-VARIANT-SIZE

Examples:

• BOLT-HEX-M8-50 → Category: BOLT, Type: HEX, Size: M8, Length: 50mm
• ELEC-CABLE-CAT6-100M → Category: ELEC, Type: CABLE, Subtype: CAT6, Length: 100M

Sequential numbering

Simple incrementing numbers with category codes:

PREFIX-0001, PREFIX-0002, PREFIX-0003

Examples:

• HW-0001, HW-0002 → Hardware category
• CONS-0001, CONS-0002 → Consumables category

Key principles

• Keep it short: 8-15 characters is ideal.
• Avoid special characters: Stick to alphanumeric and hyphens.
• Be consistent: Use the same format across your entire catalog.
• Make it meaningful: Include category or type information.
• Plan for growth: Leave room for expansion (e.g., use 4-digit numbers, not 2).

Tips for organizing your catalog

1. Set meaningful SKUs early: Changing SKUs later affects orders, reports, and integrations.
2. Use categories consistently: Standardize category names across your team.
3. Configure warning levels: Set thresholds before you start selling to avoid stockouts.
4. Add barcodes progressively: Use the Add Barcodes tool as products arrive in your warehouse.
5. Review composite stock regularly: Check that component levels support your composite inventory needs.
6. Test imports with dry run: Always preview bulk imports before committing changes.

Related documentation

• Managing stock levels — Track stock, set reorder points, and perform stocktakes
• Inventory module — Module overview and features
• Order Manager module — Create orders that move inventory
• Warehouse module — Fulfillment and bin management