• General Ledger
• Cash Management
• Job Costing
• Purchase Order Processing
• Fixed Assets
• BACS
• Project Accounting

General Ledger

• Posts transactions to different control accounts, according to the type of vendor, currency, transaction (such as purchase of fixed assets or purchase of stock).
• Allows only authorised users to post transactions to the General Ledger.
• Keeps Accounts Payable up to a year in advance of the General Ledger, by posting transactions to future periods in the General Ledger.

The Accounts Payable may be fully or partially integrated with the General Ledger. If the two modules are fully integrated, the General Ledger Account table and transaction tables are updated every time a batch of invoices, cash or journals is posted to the Accounts Payable. If the modules are partially integrated, the purchase invoice distributions are posted to the General Ledger in one program at the end of the period, and cash and journal transactions must be recorded manually through General Ledger journals.

Control and Distribution Accounts

The General Ledger accounts to which Accounts Payable transactions are posted must be set up in the General Ledger Account table before any invoices, cash or journals can be entered in the Accounts Payable.

Cash payments, settlement discount, exchange differences between invoiced and cash amounts on foreign currency transactions, and journal totals are posted to specific control accounts in the General Ledger. The balancing sums of all invoice, cash and journal transactions are posted to the Accounts Payable control account (Trade Creditors) in the General Ledger.

Purchase invoices are posted to the relevant control account held on the Control Accounts table. This also applies to unallocated cash and journals. Any allocated cash, refunds and journals will be posted to the control account of the original transaction. The control accounts are defined in the General Configuration option Control Accounts.

Invoice lines are posted to General Ledger distribution accounts, which must be identified by either the full General Ledger posting code or a short code from the General Ledger Short Code table. The short code can hold either one distribution account or several distributions, to which the value of the line is apportioned by a percentage. The posting codes are set up through the option Posting Code Generation in the General Ledger. Short codes are set up in the option Short Codes in the General Ledger.

Should you wish to trace the origin of any journals you can set system key NLJRNTRACE.

It is possible to generate posting codes on an invoice line. This can be done by entering a valid cost centre and account code from the General Ledger, on to the distribution line. This is known as automatic generation of posting codes. It is important to ensure that both the cost centre and account code have been set up to enable automatic generation to take place.

All control accounts and distribution accounts must be General Ledger posting codes. Header and sub-header levels of the posting codes may not be specified, either in the system keys or in the Invoices program.

Posting to the General Ledger

The following General Ledger tables are updated when transactions are posted from the Accounts Payable:

• Transaction table
• Posting Code table

All levels of the posting code can be checked before posting takes place (NLCHECKLEV).

The Accounts Payable may be integrated with the General Ledger either in full or in part, in accordance with company practice. The degree of integration is determined by the system key PLNLPOST, i.e. Partial or Full:

1. Full Integration:

PLNLPOST must be set to YES.

The General Ledger tables will be updated automatically every time a batch of invoices, cash payments or journals is posted within the Accounts Payable.

Each distribution posted to the transaction tables is identified by the item number, date, supplier name or special narrative (optionally entered with the invoice) and amount. Depending on the type of batch posted, the control accounts are updated with the batch number, date and the wording "P/L invoice [cash/journal] batch".

2. Partial Integration:

PLNLPOST must be set to NO.

The option General Ledger Distribution Analysis (pl_nl_dist_anal) allows you to produce a report of all General Ledger distributions from the Invoice Batch table at the end of each period. This takes the form of a report and a posting file. The report should be printed for reference purposes. The data from the posting file must be posted to the General Ledger through the option Post General Ledger Distributions.

The option Post G/L Distributions (pl_nl_post_dist) allows you to post invoice distributions either in detail (one movement per invoice line), or in summary (one movement for the total of all distributions to each account). Each distribution in a detailed posting is identified by the item number, date, supplier name or a short narrative (optionally entered with the invoice) and amount. If posted in summary, each General Ledger movement comprises the value and a journal number, date and description which are entered by the operator.

Accounts Payable journals and cash payments must be posted to the General Ledger manually, through the General Ledger Journals option.

Levels of Control Accounts

Invoice and cash postings to control accounts can be made in summary by batch or in detail as individual transactions, as defined by system key PLCONTPOST. In addition, if posting by batch you can group the control account postings by effective date by setting system key PLCONTEFF.

Cash postings can be posted as a further level of item on a control account basis.

Document Headers

The concept of document headers was introduced by the General Ledger Document Headers project; they record document level details in the General Ledger.

The creation of document headers in Accounts Payable is controlled by system keys NL_INSTAL, PLNLPOST and NLDOCPL, which must all be set to YES.
The options Invoices, Invoice Registration, Cash, Journals, and Foreign Currency Analysis will all create document headers and post document data to the General Ledger.
The option Code and Post Registered Invoices will attach subsequent postings to the original document using the document suffix number.
You can use the Transactions enquiry to display the document details of a selected transaction.
Transaction Archiving will archive the document extension file.

If system key PLCONTPOST is set to TRANSACTION a document will be created for each payment, with separate control and bank postings for each transaction paid.

If system key PLCONTPOST is set to ITEM a document will be created for each payment, with control and bank postings for each payment.

If system key PLCONTPOST is set to BATCH it will be overridden and postings will be made as if it were set to ITEM.

Cash Management

If Cash Management is installed, all cash payments entered through Accounts Payable can be posted to Cash Management, so that they can be matched with the appropriate items on bank statements. The system key PLCBPOST controls this option. If it is set to YES, payments will be posted to Cash Management by the Cash Batch Entry/Posting program. One transaction is written to Cash Management for each cheque, credit transfer or BACS payment.

Payments which are entered directly into Cash Management do not appear in the Accounts Payable Transactions enquiry or the Cash Audit Trail. Payees do not have to be suppliers with accounts in Accounts Payable.

Bank Accounts

Each bank code used in Accounts Payable must correspond to a bank account used in Cash Management. The system key CBBANK links the bank codes to the bank accounts. For example, if a Lloyds Bank account is identified in Accounts Payable by the bank code LL and in Cash Management by the account name LLOYDS, the code LL and name LLOYDS must be set up in CBBANK.

If the General Ledger is installed, the General Ledger bank account for each bank code in the system key PLNLBANK must be the same as the General Ledger account which is held on the record for the bank in the Cash Management Bank Account table.

Foreign Currencies

The same foreign currency codes must be used in the Accounts Payable and Cash Management. Each currency must be set up in both modules. The Accounts Payable Cash entry program takes the rate of exchange from the Accounts Payable Currency table.

A cash payment to a foreign supplier can be entered and posted to a bank account held in either the supplier's currency (e.g. US dollars) or the base currency.

Job Costing

If Job Costing is installed, data can be passed from the Accounts Payable to Job Costing. Each invoice line may be assigned to a specific job and expense code. The Job Summary table and transaction tables are updated when the invoice batch is posted to the Accounts Payable.

The Accounts Payable is integrated with Job Costing if the system key PLJCPOST is set to YES.

Job and expense codes are entered in the Invoices option. Each distribution line may be assigned to a specific job and expense. Records for the job(s) and expense(s) must already exist in the Job Master table and Expense Code table respectively.

The job and expense codes may be amended through the Invoices program at any point until the batch is posted to the Accounts Payable.

When invoices are posted to the Accounts Payable Open Item table, the program also posts the transactions to the Job Costing Period Transaction table and the Cumulative Transaction table (if full job histories are maintained). The following information is written to the transaction tables:

• Invoice number
• Supplier name
• P/L (to identify the source of the transaction)
• Base currency value

The value is added to the period-to-date, year-to-date and cumulative totals held on the record in the Job Summary table for the job and expense.

The Job Costing period need not be the same as the Accounts Payable, but a warning is displayed on the screen by the Invoices program if it is not.

Purchase Order Processing

Purchase Order Processing is also linked to the Accounts Payable. Purchase Orders must be placed with suppliers who have accounts in the Supplier table, and a batch of Accounts Payable invoices is created when suppliers' invoices are posted to the Purchase Order tables.

If installed, Purchase Order Processing is automatically integrated with the Accounts Payable. Orders must be placed with suppliers who have accounts in the Accounts Payable.

A batch of Accounts Payable invoices is automatically produced when purchase invoices are posted to the Purchase Order Processing tables. Invoices can be posted directly to the General Ledger. The system key POPLPOST, which is used in conjunction with the system key PLNLPOST, controls this as follows:

• Set POPLPOST = DIRECT if details of Purchase Order Processing invoices are to be posted directly to the General Ledger. This can only take place if the system key PLNLPOST is set to YES.
• Set POPLPOST = NO if invoices are to be posted to Accounts Payable as unposted batches, and the posting to General Ledger will take place either directly or indirectly from within Accounts Payable (depending on whether PLNLPOST is set to YES or NO).
  

Note that you will not be able to run the Purchase Order Processing Invoices program, or post an invoice if PLNLPOST is set to NO.

The invoice distribution lines are derived from the system key PONLACC in conjunction with the General Ledger categories on the records of stock and service items. Because products and services of a similar type will share the same General Ledger purchase distribution account, the distribution lines on the Accounts Payable invoice may hold the amounts for many more items than are on the supplier's invoice. In this respect, the Accounts Payable invoice is a summary of the invoice entered in Purchase Order Processing.

The batch of Accounts Payable invoices may be posted to the Open Item table at any time. If necessary, it can be held over to a new Accounts Payable period.

Invoices created from Purchase Order Processing, whether posted or unposted, can be viewed separately in the Transaction Enquiry option.

Landed Costs can be used to record additional costs incurred when purchasing goods, for example, freight costs or import duties. The costs may be broken down into four different levels.

The estimated costs can be calculated automatically using the Landed Costs Matrix or the actual costs can be entered when entering purchase order receipts. 'Actual costs' can be amended and new logs manually added using the Landed Costs Log Entry option. These costs will be for reporting purposes only, no posting will take place.

A landed cost can be related to a combination of a specific supplier and product, which has been set up in the Landed Costs Matrix in Purchase Order Processing. The combination is identified by the product's 'Stock General Ledger category' and the supplier's 'Supplier category'. Each combination can have up to four landed costs entered. The landed costs can be entered as specific values, a percentage of the total of the costs incurred or calculated using a specified formula.

Fixed Assets

If you use Fixed Assets and your system is set up to use Fixed Assets Integration with Accounts Payable, the Accounts Payable option Invoices (pl_invoice_entry) allows the input of fixed asset details while the invoice is being entered. The details can be at invoice level or invoice line level. The General Ledger code is automatically selected as the Accounts Payable distribution line. You can review and maintain the fixed asset template before finally posting the invoice and creating the fixed asset record.

The options Invoices and Invoice Registration (pl_invoice_reg) allow a Fixed Asset Template record to be created from the Accounts Payable invoice details. Each General Ledger distribution line within an invoice can have a Fixed Asset Template record associated with it. This is controlled by invoking the Fixed Asset Integration form from the invoice distribution lines to display the Fixed Asset Template Entry forms.

This Fixed Asset Template record is in turn used to provide the information necessary to create a new fixed or add-on asset – when the invoice is subsequently posted.

When an asset is purchased, the invoice distribution must be posted to the asset suspense account in the General Ledger.

It is possible to report, review and maintain the fixed asset template before finally posting the invoice and creating the fixed asset record.

BACS

• Supplier's account number and name
• Supplier's bank sort code and account number
• Amount of the payment

You can control the amount per item, to be paid via BACS. The system key PLBACSMAX will hold the maximum value permitted. Any transactions in a BACS payment run will be ignored if the amount is above the maximum held in this system key. They will then be picked up when remittances are produced for manual type payments.

The transactions must be submitted to BACS as soon as possible via the BACS interface.

Project Accounting

If Project Accounting is installed, the distribution lines on Invoices and Registered invoices will allow you to enter the Project Code and Expense code instead of the G/L code. You can however, enter the G/L posting code instead of a project and expense code.

Integrating with Project Accounting/General Ledger:

If your system is also set up to use Project Accounting, Accounts Payable transactions can only post to Project Accounting if the General Ledger is fully integrated, i.e. PLNLPOST is set to YES.

When A/P transactions are posted, the G/L is posted to first. Project Accounting is only updated if the G/L posting is successful. If the G/L posting fails, an error journal is created which also contain the associated Project codes. If the posting to Project Accounting fails, the whole posting fails.

Note: Any project remapping takes place before posting to G/L and Project Accounting.