Service Contract

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Service Contract#

This section provides text and video instruction regarding the use of the Service Contract module within Q360

Create a Service Contract Manually#

There are three (3) methods to create a Service Contract:

  1. “Manually” through the Customer or Site record
  2. After the substantial completion phase(s) of a Project, create a Service Contract from the Project, thereby allowing us to seamlessly roll Projects into Service Contracts
  3. After selling a Service Contract, i.e. by creating an Opportunity, processing the Quote, and finally creating a Service Contract from the Sales Order

Create a Service Contract manually

  1. Go to Sales or Service > Customers
    • Search for the Customer record
    • Drill in to the Site for which you wish to create the Service Contract
  2. On the Site > Service Contracts tab, click the grid Add icon
    • Fill out the Service Contract attributes including Line Item details, e.g.
      • Start / End Dates, Con Type, Bill Frequency, Bill In Advance Days, Renewal Type, Tax Code, Company, Branch, Department
      • Reference further setup steps, as required prior to first time invoicing

    • Notice the system has assigned a unique Service Contract number for this record
  3. Click the Save icon

Create a Service Contract from a Project#

Assumptions:

  1. On the Project Extended Menu, select the Create Warranty Service Contract
    • Notice a list of all Warranty Revenue Deferred Line Items appears, along with any Product / System on the Project
    • Highlight the M Type warr/rev def flagged Line Item, and the Product / System(s) you wish to cover under this new Service Contract, then click Select
  2. A prompt will appear: “Create new Contract or update existing Contract?”
    • Click the “Create” button
  3. Specify the Contract Start and End Dates
    • e.g. for a year-long Contract, select date Oct 1, 2021 to Sep 30, 2022
    • Click “Submit” button
  4. System will create the Service Contract with a new Service Contract Number
    • Notice the Header and Line Items tabs prefill the attributes you selected above, including the Product / System(s) and M type Line Items
    • Complete further Service Contract setup steps prior to first time invoicing

Create a Service Contract from a Sales Order#

Assumptions:

  • Previously, a Sales Opportunity was defined with key values, including the Recurring Monthly Revenue (“RMR”) informational value and the Sale Type value (configured to create a Service Contract upon approving the Order)
  • A Sales Quote – with M Type warr/def rev flagged Line Item (recommended) upon which the Service Contract will be based – was created from that Sales Opportunity, and later converted to the corresponding Sales Order
  1.  Go to the Sales Order and process it to “Approved” Status
    • System will prompt you with “Create Service Contract for Warranty Items from Order?”
    • Confirm you wish to proceed
  2. Notice system creates a Service Contract
    • It is associated with the appropriate Customer and most of the header information is pre-filled
  3. In Edit mode, validate and continue to set up the Service Contract including the details and Line Items
    • Refer to the Recurring Monthly Revenue (“RMR”) intended value from the Sales Order

Set Up Service Contract: Details, Line Items#

Once a Service Contract is created, we need to finish the setup prior to the first billing

  1. Go to the Service Contract > Header tab
    • Fill in and / or verify the attributes including: Start Date and End Date
      • Best practice:  Set the Start Date at the beginning of a month, and the End Date at the end of a month
      • E.g. for a calendar year / 12 month coverage, set dates as: Jan 1st, 2022, to Dec 31st, 2022
      • Bill Frequency for the invoicing interval(s)
      • Bill In Advance Days to specify how many days ahead of the next coverage period the next Invoice should be created
        • Upon saving, system will populate Next Invoice Date with that calculation (i.e. when the Contract is to be invoiced again taking, into account the Bill In Advance Days value)

      • Con Type to identify this Service Contract Type (based on general code SCTYPE)
      • Sale Type to identify this Service Contract’s line of business type (based on general code UNIFIEDTYP values, defined with Create Type CONTRACT or blank)

  2. On Customer Level tab, fill in the Service Hours (as configured in Service Coverage Hours)
  3. On Line Items tab, verify the following:
    • Have at least one Line Item (whether created manually or inherited from a Project or Order, depending on how Service Contract was created)
    • On each Line Item with a price, the Detail sub tab should be defined with the appropriate Price (annual vs period amount) and Srv. Master No (impacts accounting entries)

Set Up Service Contract: Associate with a Vendor Contract#

There are two use cases for linking vendor(s) to a Service Contract

  1. Associate one Vendor’s Contract for all Items on that Service Contract:
    • On Service Contract > Line Items tab, click Add icon to select Add a Misc Item
    • Edit the Description to refer to the Vendor’s Contract
    • On Vendor sub tab for this Item, fill out the associated Vendor Service Contract coverage details:
      • Vendor Cust No: Search and select the associated Vendor Name (assumption: the Vendor record exists)
      • Start Date, End Date: coverage dates
      • Vendor Ref No: the Vendor’s Contract No.
      • Vendor Cost: the Cost you pay the Vendor for the coverage dates specified
      • Status: select from list of values as configured in your system

    • Click the Save icon
  2. Associate a Vendor’s Contract at the Line Item level:
    • On Vendor sub tab for the selected Line Item, fill out the associated Vendor Service Contract coverage details (as described above)
    • Repeat for every Line Item, as needed

Tip: Proactively monitor the Vendor Service Contracts that come up for renewal:  Service menu > Work Queues > Vendor Service Contract Renewal Q

Create a Block Amount Service Contract#

  1. Create a Service Contract manually (see below) or refer to an existing Service Contract (go directly to step #2)
    • Go to Sales or Service > Customers
    • Search for the Customer record
    • On the Srv Cont tab, click the grid Add icon
    • Set up the Service Contract including Line Item(s) and details
  2. On Line items tab, in Edit mode, click the Add icon
    • Select Add Block Amount
    • Specify the amount
    • Click Submit
  3. Click the Save icon
    • System populates Block Amount value on the Line Items > Detail subtab > Block Amount
  4. In order to apply the Block Amount to the Customer’s Service Call
    • Invoice Service Contract form > Extended Menu > Invoice Block Amount, and
    • Post the invoice
      • Notice on the Service Contract > Header tab > Block Amount Balance field now includes the Block Amount (previously 0.00)

Monitor Service Contract Renewal Queues#

Monitor these two Queues:

  • Service Contract Renewal Queue
    • List of Customer Contracts nearing their expiry dates to remind us to reach out for possible extensions or give us a heads up to expire ending Contracts
    • Accessible from
        • Service > Work Queues
        • Accounting > Service Contracts
        • Workflow > Service Overview

       

  • Vendor Service Contract Renewal Queue

Monitor Balance of Block Amount#

Regularly monitor balance and usage of a Block Amount (prepaid) Service Contract

  1. From a specific Block Amount Service Contract > Header tab, you can view the Block Amount Balance field value at this point in time
  2. There are several Live Data reports that give visibility to Block Amount Service Contracts defined in the system: go to Live Data menu > Live Data Reports and search for “Block Amount”
    • Block Amount Summary | displays Block Amount Service Contracts, with the option to zoom into a specific Contract, i.e. the Block Amount Detail report
    • Block Amount Detail | displays how Block Amounts were used, and when they were added to a specific Service Contract within a given time period
    • Block Amount Summary Ext | intended for External Users (e.g. your Customer) to access their own reports through the Customer Portal

Monitor Service Contract Profitability#

Monitor Service Contract profitability including invoicing and revenue projections from these tools:

  1. Service Contract > Profit tab displays associated Cost and Profit for that Service Contract
      • As time passes by and Revenue is recognized, a new row is created highlighting the Cost and Revenue Earned from the Service Contract
      • Any Service Call created and associated with the Service Contract creates a separate row and represents the associated Costs and Revenue from the Service Call
      • Associated Cost and Revenue with Q, A, and K type Items that are present on the Order linked to the Service Contract, and that have been invoiced, are included here

     

    2.  Live Data Reports

    • Service Contract Invoicing Projection | Q0069 | Reports on Service Contract invoicing based on Contract’s Billing Frequency
    • Service Contract Profitability | Q0070 | Reports on the profitability of Service Contracts at a point in time
    • Service Contract Revenue Forecast | Q0071 |Forecasts Revenue to be recognized on Service Contracts over time, with an option to include Service Contracts yet to be billed.  Drills into:
        • Service Contract Revenue Forecast Detail | Q0275

       

    • Service Contract List | Q0180 | List of Service Contracts filterable by Customer, Contract Type, Contract Status, Branch and Department

Automatically Renew a Service Contract#

  1. Go to the Service Contract Header tab > Renewal Information section:
    • Select Renewal Type drop down value “AUTO”
  2. When the End Date is reached, Q360 automatically sets the new End Date to 12 months in the future
    • Note: Service Contract will be available to be billed / invoiced as per its Billing Frequency and Days in Advance setup
    • Furthermore, if configured as a nightly SQL job, the creation of the Invoice will occur automatically

Top Up a Block Amount Service Contract#

  1. On the Service Contract Line items tab, in Edit mode, click the Add icon
    • Select Add Block Amount
    • Specify the amount
    • Click Submit
  2. Click the Save icon
    • System adds a new Line Item and for that line, populates Block Amount value on the Line Items > Detail sub tab > Block Amount
  3. In order to apply the Block Amount to the Customer’s service call,
    • Invoice Service Contract form > Extended Menu > Invoice Block Amount, and
    • Post the Invoice
      • Notice on the Service Contract > Header tab > Block Amount Balance field now includes the additional top up amount

Expire a Service Contract Manually#

  1. Go to the Service Contract to be expired
    • You may identify Service Contracts to expire (or renew) via the Service Contract Renewal Q – accessible from:
        • Service > Work Queues > Service Contract Renewal Q
        • Service Overview Workflow > Expiring Service Contracts Bucket

       

  2. In Edit mode, update the Service Contract Statuscode drop down to a value that is configured as ‘inactive’ for you (i.e. General Code SCSTATUS with Active Flag value = N)
  3. Click the Save icon

Invoice a Service Contract#

Invoice a Service Contract from the Contract’s Extended Menu

  1. On the Service Contract, click on the Extended Menu icon
  2. Select “Bill this contract” option.  An unposted Customer Invoice will be generated and will appear in the Invoices grid on the Cust. Invoice tab
  3. Drill into the Invoice, open the Invoice Extended Menu and select “Post Invoice”
  4. See above video for details regarding Invoice form fields and grids, including billing dates and deferred revenue

Invoice all Service Contracts#

Invoice all Service Contracts due for billing, and within their “Bill in Advance Days” setting

  1. Go to Main Accounting Menu > Service Contracts > Bill Service Contracts.  The Bill Service Contracts window will open
  2. Select Company for which you would like to bill Service Contracts and press OK button.  A confirmation window will open.  Click Yes button
  3. The new Invoices will be created and added to the Invoices to Print Queue.  To view this queue, go to Accounting Menu > Accounts Receivable > Print Invoices.  The Invoices to Print Queue will open.  Note: Invoices will only appear here if they fall within the Days in Advance billing period
  4. Highlight the Invoices you would like to post and then select “Post Selected Invoice(s)” from the Extended Menu.  A confirmation window will open.  Press the Yes button.  Once an Invoice has been posted, it will be removed from the Invoices to Print Queue

 

Invoice a Block Amount Service Contract#

Invoice a Block Amount Service Contract

Note: You must already have a Service Contract with a Block Amount on it

  1. Open the Service Contract
  2. From the  Service Contract Extended Menu, select “Invoice Block Amount”
  3. An Unposted Invoice will open.  From the Invoice Extended Menu, select Post Invoice
  4. An AR Journal entry will be created and may be viewed on the AR Journal tab of the Invoice

Invoice Warranty as Part of a Project (Offset)#

You may optionally invoice the Service Warranty Amount as part of a Project

Invoice Warranty as Part of a Project

Prerequisite: Config PROJINVINCLUDEWARRANTY = ON.  This allows us to bill a Warranty with a Project.  Warranty will then become part of a billing milestone and be reflected on the Project Profit tab

  1. Open a Project
  2. From the Extended Menu, select Create Warranty Service Contract.  The Select Warranty Items and Products window will open
  3. Highlight desired Warranty Products and click the Select button
  4. A window will open asking  you to choose to either Create a new Contract, or Update an existing Contract.  Make your selection
  5. A window will open asking you to set the Start / End Dates.  Do this and click Submit button.  Note: when the Service Contract is created, the system will also create an Offset Invoice against it – this may be viewed on the Orders / Invoices tab of the Project
    • Note: the Recurring Revenue process will run off this Warranty item for the period of the Contract

 

 

 

Advanced Service Contract Procedures#

This section contains more advanced and administrative procedures for Service Contracts in Q360

Advanced Service Procedures

Apply a Block Amount Against a Service Call#

Scenario:

  • You have a Block Amount Service Contract with a non-zero balance.
  • There is a posted Invoice for a Service Call
    • This Service Call is linked to the Block Amount Service Contract (via the line item)
    • You want to apply part or all of the Block Amount to that Service Call Invoice
  1. Go to the posted invoice for the Service Call
  2. Select the Invoice > Extended Menu > Apply To Block Amount
    • Specify the amount you would like to use up from the Block Amount balance
    • Notice system has updated the Invoice’s balance, reflecting the Block Amount applied
  3. Also, system has updated the Block Amount Service Contract > Header tab > Block Amount Balance field

Credit / Refund Unused Block Amount#

You may credit / refund unused (prepaid) Block Amount balance on a Customer’s Service Contract

  1. Go to the Customer’s Service Contract > Line items tab
  2. In Edit mode, click the Line Items grid Add button
    • Select drop down value “Add Block Amount”
    • Enter the amount you would like to credit, e.g. “-500”
      • Ensure value entered is a) of equal or less than the current Block Amount Balance, b) entered with a negative “-” sign
      • Click Submit button
          • Notice: system adds a new Line Item with “Block Amount” description, and Detail sub tab > Block Amount field is prefilled with the amount you entered, e.g.” -500″

         

  3. Follow these steps (typically done by the Accounting team or someone with permissions) to update the Block Amount Balance accordingly:
    • Create the Credit:
        • Click the Service Contract > Extended Menu option “Invoice Block Amount”
        • System creates and opens an Unposted Credit (negative Invoice) for the Customer, with the amount of the credit / refund you previously entered

       

    • Post the Credit:
      • Click the Credit (negative Invoice form) > Extended Menu option “Post Invoice”
      • System applies the credit and updates the Service Contract Block Amount balance by the specified amount
      • The summary of this action is visible in multiple places:

         

      • If the Customer wants a refund for this credit, advise the Accounting team

Create Product / System from a Project#

Assumption: We have a project with shipped A/Q master item types that is nearing substantial completion.

  1. Go to the Project > Material tab
  2. On Material grid, highlight the Line Item(s) for which you would like to create a Product
    • Note: system only considers A / Q Master Item Types in SHIPPED status
    • TIP: Group your Project Material Grid Items (e.g. as part of GROUP1, GROUP2, etc.) for easier selection and filtering when creating the Product / System
  3. Select the Material grid > Extended Menu > Create Product for Selected Items
    • System prompts for a Product Name and Install Date
  4. Once you have entered those values, the following occurs:
    • The Product / System is created and the Product form pops-up, prefilled with:
      • Description and Install Date pre-filled with your previous inputs
      • Product ID: A unique identifier for this Product / System
      • Product > Product Detail sub tab grid: rows represent the SHIPPED A / Q Master Items that make up this Product / System
          • Notice: “Q” Item Types of same MasterNo are consolidated under one Product Detail row with the corresponding Quantity value

         

      • Project > Material grid:
          • System ID column: updated with the unique Product ID for the Items linked to the newly created Product / System (above)

         

Typically, next step would be to hand off from Project to Service department: Create a Service Contract from a Project

 

Add Additional Project Item(s) to an Existing Product / System#

Assumption: We have a Project with additional shipped A / Q Master Item Types that are nearing ‘substantial completion’

Scenario: Instead of creating a new Product / System record for those, we choose to add them to an existing Product / System record

  1. Go to the Project > Material tab, and highlight the Line Item(s) you would like to add to an existing Product / System
    • Note: system only considers A / Q Master Item Types in SHIPPED status
  2. Select the Material grid > Extended Menu “Add Items to Product”
    • System prompts for an existing Product / System; make your selection
    • Notice the system updates the existing Product / System > Product Detail sub tab grid with additional row(s) representing the recently added SHIPPED A / Q Master Items that NOW make up this Product / System
        • Notice: “Q” Item Types of same MasterNo are consolidated under one Product Detail row with the corresponding Quantity value

       

  3. Project > Material grid > System ID column for the selected items in Step 1:
    • System populates the column with the Product ID of the existing Product / System (from Step 2)

Create Product / System Manually#

You may manually create a Product / System (e.g. in the case where you wish to record a System not installed by your Project team, or a separate System altogether)

  1. Go to the Customer > Products tab, or – if you know the specific site location – go to the Customer’s Site > Products tab
  2. Click the Add icon to add a new Product / System
    • Fill in the details, including the Product ID, Description, Quantity, Install Date
    • In Product Details sub tab grid, click the Add icon to add the Items that make up this Product / System
  3. Click the Save icon

Adjust a Service Contract's Product Coverage From a Project#

Assumptions: We have a Project with additional shipped A / Q / K Master Item Type(s) that is / are nearing ‘substantial completion’ and a new Product / System has been created from the Project.  Now, we would like to add that new Product / System directly under an existing Service Contract’s Product / System Coverage

  1. On the Project Extended Menu, select the Create Warranty Service Contract
    • Notice a list of all Warranty Revenue Deferred Line Items appears, along with any Product / System on the Project
    • Highlight the new Product / System(s) you wish to cover under this new Service Contract, then click Select
  2. A pop-up prompts you whether to “Create new Contract or update existing Contract?”
    • Click the “Update” button
    • Another pop-up prompts you to Select Service Contract from the list
        • Select the Service Contract and click the “Select” button

       

  3. System displays the updated the Service Contract you selected
    • Notice the Line Items tab now displays the additional row(s) for the Product / System(s)
    • You may adjust the row(s) attributes and details as required

Create Service Coverage Hours Profiles#

Service Coverage Hour Profiles in Q360 are essential for managing Service Level Agreements (SLAs).  These profiles allow you to define Response and Resolution times, ensure accurate SLA tracking, and handle exemptions like holidays

  1. Go to Accounting > Admin > Service Coverage Hours
  2. Click the Add icon to add a new Service Coverage Profile or search for an existing Profile to update
  3. Define the details on
    • Coverage tab:
      • Title | Description of the coverage hours
        • Note: Title text will appear on a Service Call > Call > Covg. Hours field for any call whose Service Contract is defined with this coverage

         

      • Default Hours | If checked, system uses this Service Coverage Profile as the default option to automatically apply to a Service Contract that has no Service Coverage defined (in Service Contract > Customer Level tab).  Ensure only 1 profile is set as the default
      • Use Customer TZ (Time Zone)| If checked, system uses Time Zone of the Customer Site on a Call, otherwise system uses its Server Time zone
        • Note: A Customer Site Time Zone is configured in Customer Site > Location sub tab

         

      • Start / End Hours  | Starting and ending hours of operation by day of week, specified on a 24 hour clock, e.g. 08:00 to 17:00
      • Response Time > Default | Service level target time (in minutes) within which to make first response on a call; option to define further by priority 1-5
        • Note: A Call’s actual Response Time is reported on Service > Reports > Customer Call History, where it is defined as “time between first Dispatch and first time billing Start Time entry”

         

      • Resolve Time > Default | Service level target time (in minutes) within which a solution is administered on a Call; option to define further by priority 1-5
      • SLA Events | “Response Delivered”: Choose an Event that marks a Response as delivered (e.g., EMAIL) and “Resolution Achieved”:  Select a Call Status that indicates resolution (e.g., TECH DONE).  Note:  This status does not close the Call

       

    • Exemptions tab:
        • Add any applicable exemption days, such as federal / public / statutory holidays.  Example: If New Year’s Day is an exemption, a call received at 11:59 PM on December 31st will pause SLA timing until January 2nd

       

  4. Click the Save icon

Apply a Coverage Hour Profile to a Service Contract:

  1. Open a Service Contract: Navigate to a new or existing Service Contract
  2. Verify Products: Ensure the Line Items tab contains at least one Product eligible for a Service Call
  3. Assign a Coverage Hour Profile: On the Customer Level tab of a Service Contract, select a Profile from the Service Hours drop down menu to link it to the Contract
  4. Generate a Service Call: On the Line Items tab of a Service Contract, select a Product, then click the tab Extended Menu and select “Create Call for Selected Product”
  5. Monitor SLA Performance: Use the Service Overview Workflow to track SLA performance for Response and Resolve buckets
Popular Searches:25.01, Permissions List, Release Notes