Specification and Standards in Technical Procurement

Technical procurement can be complex. In most cases you are not purchasing simple widgets. More often than not, the engineered components you are sourcing require strict adherence to Specifications (technical requirements, technical standards, 'specs'), and Standard Drawings (standards) which describe everything from material types and tolerances to the rules testing requirements, safety certifications, layouts, and more.

Current SCM already makes the process of defining the applicable Specification and Standards painless. So, we asked ourselves:

"What else can we do to optimize the workflow for users in the Engineering and Fabrication space"?  

We quickly realized that defining, controlling and selecting the correct specification is important. But communicating and distributing these documents to the selling party is equally or even more important.

This week we extended the application to automatically package all applicable Specification and Standards into a single PDF document, with a document index, and easy PDF navigation for specific transactions. All with a single press of a button. This will remove a huge administrative burden within the normal EPC / Engineering Procurement process.

We believe this new feature will significantly reduce the time spent compiling documentation packages when preparing material requisitions, bid documents, and purchase orders. All while boosting the quality and auditability of the outputs.

In the legacy world of a procurement, a normal activity of this type for an engineer, or a member of the supply chain team, was much more tedious:

1. Reference the documentation requirements for different types of purchases from a matrix
2. Select the applicable types
3. Then seek out the underlying document
4. And then manually compile a package (or packages) of PDFs to be attached to the purchase order or agreement

In some cases, this process could take hours or days depending on the complexity of the purchase. Like most human based processes, this was also at the whim of human error. Did the buyer select the correct specification? What about the correct revision? A single misstep means time and budget loss that could be spent on other projects.

Below is a quick introduction to our new feature.

Generating Automatic Specification and Standard Index for your transactions

To get started, simply navigate to your Team Settings and open up the Documentation Module settings. From there, simply define the applicable Specification or Standard, and using the on-screen prompts attach the Print Version of the document.

Once this is complete, the system will take over, and each time the Specification or Standard is utilized by a transaction, this provided document will be added automatically to the generated index for distribution to relevant stakeholders.

It's as easy as that.

How Current SCM Does Procurement  

Current SCM is a supply chain management software that empowers your team to procure better. Manage your projects and regain control of your organization's project management with detailed reporting, purchase orders, materials management, workflows, and more. Our team is dedicated to making integration and implementation of Current SCM seamless. We work with you to understand your business needs and set you up for success.  

Get in touch for a virtual demo with a member of our team to find out if Current SCM is the right software for you.