RSMUS.comDid you know that in Business Central you can create custom report layouts and assign them to either your customers or your vendors? This gives you the ability to have different formats of the same document for different customers or vendors. Especially important if you have a customer or vendor that requires a specific format.
The first step is to create a custom report layout. When custom layouts are defined, you can select them from either the customer or the vendor cards to specify which layouts will be used for different types of documents. The value in the usage field, defines the process for which the document layout will be used.
In addition to setting up which layouts to use for what document, you can save time when sending documents to different customer and vendor contacts by setting up specific contacts’ email addresses to use with the specific documents.
Before you can define which document layout to use for which processes, and which contact to send the document to, you must load all the available reports (documents) from the Report Selections page. You can quickly do this with the Copy from Report Selection function.
Custom Reports for Vendors
In Business Central, access the vendor card and navigate to the Related > Vendor > Document Layouts actions on the Edit Document Layouts page. Then choose the Copy from Report Selection action. This causes the Document Layouts page for the vendor to fill with all the report layouts for purchases that exist in the system. You can now proceed to adjust the list with any email addresses for the contacts that the documents must be sent to and/or define the custom report layouts for this vendor.
On the Document Layouts page, select the line for a report layout that you want to use a custom layout for, choose the Custom Layout Description field. The field is pre-filled if vendor layout is already selected, or it will be blank.
Then, on the Custom Report Layouts page, select the special document layout that you want to use for the purchase document type in question.
You can also set up which contact receives which document layout for the vendor. This will save time when sending documents to different vendor contacts by specifying contact email addresses on the different lines on the Document Layouts page. For example, purchase orders to vendors’ salespeople or account managers.
On the Document Layouts page, select the line for a report layout that you want to send to a specific contact for the vendor, choose the Select Email from Contacts action. Then on the Contacts page, select the line for the relevant contact, and choose the OK button. The email address of the contact is now inserted on the document layout line for that purchase document.
Custom Reports for Customers
Similarly, you can do the same for your customers. You simply select the applicable customer card and then navigate to Related > Customer > Document Layouts.
This brings you to the Edit Document Layouts page. Again, you will need to choose the Copy from Report Selection action to populate the Documents Layout page. This will fill the Document Layouts page with all the report layouts for sales that exist in the system.
You can now proceed to adjust the list with any custom report layouts or email addresses for the document’s associated contacts. Follow the same process as you did for vendor report creation.
On the Document Layouts page, select the line for a report layout that you want to use a custom layout for, then choose the Custom Layout Description field. The field is pre-filled if the customer layout is already selected, or it will be blank.
On the Custom Report Layouts page, select the special document layout that you want to use for the sales document type in question. Then define which contact receives which document layout for a customer.
This will save time when sending documents to different customer contacts by specifying contact email addresses on the different lines on the Document Layouts page. For example, sales invoices to the finance/accounting department.
On the Document Layouts page, select the line for a report layout that you want to send to a specific contact for the customer, then choose the Select Email from Contacts action. On the Contacts page, select the line for the relevant contact, then choose the OK button. The email address of the contact is now inserted on the document layout line for that purchase document.
It really is a simple process. Give it a try!
