What are Groups in TraceGains?

Supplier and Item groups allow TraceGains customers to categorize suppliers and items for the sole purpose of being more efficient with their data. Suppliers and Items can be grouped under such names as raw materials, finished goods, produce, packaging, etc.

Why use Groups?

Categorizations permit more-efficient COAs, external compliance documents, specifications, allergen control policies, various addenda, and so on. Both suppliers and items can be organized into groups. Organizing suppliers into groups can be helpful for reporting, maintaining accurate information, and organizing them to create User Defined Dashboards (UDDs) to update required documents. You can always add a new supplier or item to a group or add/update existing supplier or items.

Supplier Groups

For a New Supplier

Step 1: Go to the Supplier Management > Suppliers sub-tab

Step 2: Click 'New' at top-right, and select "Supplier" from the drop-down. This will open a new TraceStation template. 

Step 3: Click the Group drop-down and select the desired group. You'll also see a link to "Manage Groups" above its box in case you need to add a new group to the list.

For an Existing Supplier

Step 1: Go to the Supplier Management > Suppliers sub-tab

Step 2: Find the correct supplier and click the edit icon near the left end of its row. 

Step 3: Select the desired group from the drop-down. If you need to create a new group for this supplier, click the "Manage Groups" link above the drop-down box.

Item Groups

Note: While you can put each individual supplier into a different group if you wish, the same is not exactly true of "individual items". A single item can be linked to many suppliers, but that item can only be a member of ONE group. So while you'll see a "Group" box like this on a supplier TraceStation... 

...you will never see the Manage Groups link on an item TraceStation - you'll only ever see this:

Regardless of which supplier's item TraceStation you're on, you're always looking at the same item (just provided by a different supplier) - the item group will always be the same. See the next section for Managing your item group names.

Steps to Manage Your Item Groups

Step 1: Hover over the Configuration Icon at far-upper-right and select Items. 

Step 2: Find the item you want to edit or add a group to and open it. 

Step 3: Select the desired group from the dropdown.

Selecting a group-name from this list will change the group on EVERY instance of this one item, no matter which suppliers, or how many, it is linked to.

Observe that there is a "Manage Groups" link above this box. Once clicked, the Add button in the pop-up will allow you to add group name(s) to this overall list of groups. Adding to this list will have no effect on your existing items.