- Overview
- Adding a System Vendor and DC
- Creating an Account-Specific Vendor and its DC (i.e., Local Vendor)
- Note Regarding Locked APL Published to Child Account from Parent Account
Overview
A facility account may have the ability to add to its account a non-partner vendor and an associated distribution center (DC) that exists in the system. (This ability depends on the facility account's permissions granted by its parent corporate account.)
Alternatively, a facility account can create a new vendor and its DC to add to its account (i.e., a local vendor).
Once the vendor and DC are added, then its vendor product list will need to be manually uploaded and subsequently maintained with future uploads:
- The facility account can publish and maintain the vendor product list themselves (see Importing Vendor Product List from Excel® File).
- If the parent account has added the vendor and DC to its account, then the parent account can be responsible for maintaining the vendor product list for the child account by publishing the list to the child account. A facility must consult with its parent account to determine if the facility itself or its parent account will be maintaining the vendor product list.
There are two types of non-partner vendors that can be added to your account:
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System vendor - a vendor and its DCs that exist in the system and can be selected by a facility account. With a system vendor, its products are also maintained in the system, meaning they will be verified and linked to their appropriate food items (i.e., ingredient or prepared food). Note that a system vendor is also referred to as a "managed vendor".
- Account-specific vendor (i.e., local vendor) - a local vendor and its DCs that are manually created by your account. Because the vendor is specific to your account, any products added by your account will only be specific to your account, and as such you will have to request that the products be verified and linked to the appropriate food items (i.e., ingredient or prepared food) in the system (see Suggesting a Vendor Product be Linked to a Food Item). Note that in the system an account-specific vendor is also referred to as "user-maintained vendor".
Adding a System Vendor and DC
Assuming as a facility account you have the permissions granted by your corporate account to add a system vendor and DC, complete the following steps to add a system vendor and DC.
- Select Procurement > Vendors & Products. The Vendors screen appears.
- Click the Add New button. The Add Vendor slide-out panel appears (screenshot below).
- From the Other Vendors drop-down at the bottom of the slide-out panel (first screenshot below), select the vendor you want to add to your MealSuite account. The vendor slide-out panel appears (second screenshot below).
Note: If the Other Vendors drop-down is not available, it indicates that you do not have the permissions granted by your corporate account to add a system vendor.
Note: If the system vendor is not available from the Other Vendors drop-down, it could be that your parent account has published a locked approved purchasing list (APL) to your account for that vendor. An APL is ideal for a parent account to control what vendor products their child accounts can purchase, and if the parent account sets the APL as "locked", it indicates the highest level of control. To see if an APL is published to your account, click here.
- In the Customer Number field, enter your customer number with the vendor.
- If your facility account is set up with more than one business line, then the Business Lines field is available. From this field, select the business line(s) associated with the customer number. If a separate customer number is associated with a business line, then click the Add customer number link to add another customer number and associated business line. Note: A business line can only be associated with one customer number.
- In the Which Distribution Center/store do you purchase from? field, select the DC your facility purchases from.
- If the DC is not available, then click the Request New link to refresh the screen with the following fields:
- Distribution Center/Store Name - enter the name of the DC.
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Distribution Center/Store ID - enter the ID of the DC.
When you save the vendor, the system will send your request for a new DC to MealSuite Support. Once approved, the DC will be created and available for use in the vendor account. You will be notified via email and also on the home page (accessed by clicking logo at top left of screen).
- Click Save. A message appears asking you if you want to import product. Click No, Thanks to the message, and instead see When to Import Product List section below for your next steps.
When to Import Product List
Importing the product list depends if your account or your parent account will maintain the vendor product list:
If your Account Will Maintain the Vendor Product List:
- If the DC was requested (step 7 above), then products cannot be imported until the request is approved by MealSuite. Once you receive approval, then see Importing Vendor Product List from Excel® File for instructions.
- If the DC already exists in the system for the vendor, then you can import the products now. See Importing Vendor Product List from Excel® File for instructions.
If your Parent Account Will Maintain the Vendor Product List:
Contact your parent account to publish the vendor product list. They can refer to the Importing Vendor Product List from Excel® File for instructions.
Creating an Account-Specific Vendor and its DC (i.e., Local Vendor)
A facility account can create a vendor and DC specific to its account whose products the facility orders from. For example, a local dairy vendor with a fixed product catalog. To add a vendor specific to your account, complete the following steps:
- Select Procurement > Vendors & Products. The Vendors screen appears.
- Click the Add New button. The Add Vendor slide-out panel appears.
- Click the Create My Own Vendor button. The New Vendor slide-out panel appears.
- In the Name field, enter the name of the vendor.
- If the vendor is to be used for demo or testing purposes, then you can select the Test/Demo Vendor check box. You can select this check box to identify the vendor for testing or demo purposes. This setting can then be used as a filter by MealSuite Nutrition Services team when verifying vendor products for food items.
- In the Customer Number field, enter your customer number with the vendor.
- If your facility account is set up with more than one business line, then the Business Lines field is available. From this field, select the business line(s) associated with the customer number. If a separate customer number is associated with a business line, then click the Add customer number link to add another customer number and associated business line. Note: A business line can only be associated with one customer number.
- In the Distribution Center/Store Name field, enter the name of the distribution center/store you purchase from. In the Distribution Center/Store ID, enter the ID of the distribution center/store you purchase from.
- Click Save. The system will send your request for a new vendor and DC to MealSuite Support.
- When the request for the new vendor and DC is approved, the vendor and DC will be created and available for use in the vendor account, and you will be notified via email and also on the home page (accessed by clicking logo at top left of screen).
- To import a product list, or add individuals products, for your newly-created vendor, see Uploading Vendor Product List (e.g., Order Guide) / Adding Individual Products.
Note Regarding Locked APL Published to Child Account from the Parent
When a child account is using a Locked APL published from their parent account, the vendor product list associated with the vendor of that APL is hidden from the Vendors screen (Procurement > Vendors & Products) in the child account.