How to Use a Supply Order Form Template for Your Restaurant

What is a Supply Order Form Template?

Every restaurant begins its workday with supplies, making sure the day's rations arrive on time, and meet expected quality and quantity. Restaurants with multiple vendors have to repeat this exercise over and over. It's a task that needs attention and organization, and it can't be done without a supply order form.

A supply order is a document that lists the items requested by a restaurant from its vendors or suppliers. It's an essential tool for a retail business because it helps plan and keep track of orders placed. A supply order form makes sure every item of inventory needed is ordered before stocks run out.

A supply order form template is a replicable model that can be used over and over again as it is, or in a modified form. It's a tabulated document, with sections for order details, payment details, and vendor contact information. It can also frame rules for non-compliance and include other details an operator may wish to bring to then notice of the vendor. A form template saves a restaurant the trouble of having to fill in the same order details day after day, particularly in the case of repeat orders.

How to Create a Supply Order Form

A restaurant needs to draw up a complete and detailed order form for a vendor. Here's a checklist of what an order form template-

1. Order date on which the supply order form was issued
2. Customer number which may have been allotted by the supplier
3. Contact details like the name, phone number and the address of buyer and vendor
4. Item number assigned for each item on the order form
5. Description of each item
6. Price of each item on the supply request form,plus total cost of items
7. Method of payment (cash, card, credit, or bank transfer)
8. Discounts offered
9. Authorised signature of buyer and vendor

Controlling a restaurant's daily supplies can be a gruelling task.

A supply order form template helps track and organize orders. This article shows you how to use one.

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Purchase Order, Sales Order, Supply Order- What's the Difference?

A business just starting out will encounter several similar, and often confusing terms when placing an order with a vendor for inventory supplies. Let's take a quick look at what these are-

Supply Order- The supply order is an order form template for a supply request made by a restaurant's staff. The template can be used by any restaurant department, be it the beverage, bar, or food department, listing every item it needs. Based on the order, a Purchase Requisition is drawn up. Once the requisition form is approved by the restaurant manager, a purchase order is issued by the restaurant to the vendor.

Purchase Order- A purchase order is a legally binding contract for the purchase of goods from a vendor at an agreed rate. It gives the vendor insurance against non-payment. Both, the supply order and purchase order are created after inventory is taken. The basic difference between a supply order and a purchase order is that a supply order signifies a buyer's intent to buy, while a purchase order is a legal agreement between the buyer and vendor.

Sales Order- A sales order is generated by the vendor after receiving the purchase order from the buyer. A sales order has details about the Food & Beverage, quantity of items purchased, price, and conditions of the sale.

5 Websites for Free Supply Order Template Downloads

If you want to use order forms for your restaurant inventory, there are plenty of websites from where you can download supply form templates for free. However, processing supply order forms manually is not for the faint-hearted. It can be a tedious and time-consuming process. It's better to automate the process. There are several software systems that can make Order Management for Food & Beverages smooth and efficient.
But if you still want to go the manual route, especially if you're on a tight budget, here are five websites from where you can download free supply order form templates-

1. Jotforms- This is an online form builder that offers easy-use templates of registration forms, application forms, and supply order forms. Select the supply order form you want, download it, fill it on your computer or mobile device, or make a print-out for your staff.
2. Typeform- The online platform offers various types of business forms, including evaluation forms, web forms and order forms, with multiple templates to choose from.
3. Chefs-Resources- This website has PDF form templates that can be downloaded for the easy organization of various tasks in a restaurant. These include a kitchen order guide, break schedule, and produce order form.
4. Sampleforms- The website offers form templates for different restaurant functions, like supply requisition, reservation, evaluation, and accounting. You simply have to create an account and log in to access the various templates available.
5. Smartsheet.com- This website offers different form templates as PDFs or Google sheets for download.

5 Drawbacks of Supply Order Spreadsheets

Many are already familiar with Excel spreadsheets and their functions and layouts. Therefore, using a spreadsheet to create a supply order may seem like the Best Inventory management option for most people. But supply order spreadsheets fall far short of order management software.

Here are some of the drawbacks of supply order spreadsheets-

1.Error-prone and inaccurate
Data has to be manually entered in Excel supply form templates. There's a strong chance that items can be filed under a wrong code or an incorrect quantity may be ordered. In addition, the formula for calculating order costs has to be entered manually. Any error in the formula and the entire stock record may change.

2. No real time information
Inventory is updated in real time in a software system, but on an Excel sheet it's updated manually. You will have no idea how old the data is if it isn't clearly specified and regularly updated.

3. Limited access
Excel spreadsheets can be accessed by a limited number of users. Some spreadsheets likeGoogle Sheets can grant access to multiple users, but not every order template can do that. This can cause a delay in processing the order forms.

4. Lack of accountability
There is no way to determine who has entered data in a supply order form spreadsheet, unlike a software which tracks every user by their user id. Without transparency, it's difficult to catch the source of an error or make staff more accountable.

5. Lack of analytics
Excel spreadsheets cannot give you detailed analytics and reports about inventory management due to lack of real time data. It's therefore difficult to use Excel spreadsheets for functions like Forecasting Inventory.

Managing supplies can be taxing. You need to track your vendors, their prices, and delivery dates.

A supply order form template gathers all the information you need in one place. This article helps you find the best free templates for your business.

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How Technology is Changing Supply Order Management

A restaurant needs an efficient, speedy, and reliable system to track stocks, inventory management, sales, and to help with Inventory Forecasting. It needs to additionally automate steps in the Supply Chain to improve supply order management. A great ordering software system can do all of this.

Real time data- An automated order management system offers real time inventory data, making it easy for a manager to prepare and process supply order forms.

Control Costs- An automated system will help a restaurant optimize food costs by comparing vendor prices and previous purchase order price lists. A restaurant can then negotiate for better discounts with vendors.

Stock prediction- An order management system can predict how long Food & Beverage stocks will last from the frequency of previous supply orders. A manager can adjust stock quantities accordingly to ensure optimal inventory counts.

Generate purchase orders- The software can generate purchase orders based on the supply order forms keyed into the system. You can also customize the software to generate supply order forms based on historical data.

5 Best Supply Order Management Software for Restaurants

If you're in the market for an order management system that can help with order processing and inventory management, here's a list of the top Order Management software for restaurants.

1. Hubworks- It's a power-packed back office solution for restaurants, with a range of software solutions that includes ZipOrdering, an intuitive order management system. ZipOrdering allows operators to order products and supplies directly from the app, and receive and finalize invoices there too. This means supplies can be ordered on the go.
2. MarketMan- This cloud-based inventory management app includes features like inventory counting, automated ordering and vendor management.
3. xtraCHEF by Toast- xtraCHEF by Toast is also a cloud-based restaurant inventory and vendor management app that can track invoices too.
4. Revel Systems- It offers customizable solutions for order management and heightened security features.
5. Upserve by Lightspeed- This order management app offers tools for inventory management, alerts for purchase orders and even offline inventory counts.

You have a long list of suppliers, but you find it hard to compare their products and pricing.

Using a supply order form template will help you track each supplier, their performance and pricing easily. This article shows you how.

Download now!