Before you add yet another price field to acquisitions, I would like to understand the intended function of the "replacement/rrp" field. 

I realize that not all libraries operate the same and that they have a variety of needs and restraints. For Monterey Public Library, the  only reason to even have replacement cost in the order screen is to streamline processing when the item gets to cataloging, i.e., so they don't have to enter it. 

For us, the replacement cost is the price we charge the customer if they lose or damage the item. Is this the intended purpose of this field?

Our replacement cost used to be the list price plus $10 for processing, but never included tax. 

Example 1:

Retail price: $27.99    Actual cost: $15.34  Sales tax:$1.34   In this scenario, the replacement price = $37.99 [27.99 + $10.00 processing]

Now, we use our actual cost [the price discounted from retail]; the only time it is different is when the cost is less than our maximum fine, in which case the maximum fine fee becomes the replacement price.

Example 2:

Retail price: $27.99    Actual cost: $15.34  Sales tax: $1.34   Replacement price = $15.34

Example 3:

Retail price: $18.00   Actual cost: $9.86  Sales tax: $0.83  Replacement price: $10.00  [our maximum late fine for this collection is $10.00, which is more than 9.86]

Other drawbacks to the new way "replacement/rrp" is handled: when you need to create an order for which the cost is $0 (gift, credit allocation, or pre-order for next fiscal year) but you want to have a replacement cost recorded.

Additionally, please note that we do not enter discounts in our vendor records, as even with our largest two vendors the discount varies depending on the type of material and source. With one vendor our contract specifies a 42% discount for many items, but for some we get less, some no discount, and every once in a while we pay more than retail due to a surcharge.

I would be interested to know the methods acquisitions staff at other libraries use. It would be useful to have a better understanding of usage and needs before adding yet another field to the order details.

________________________

Sandre Cunha

Technical Services Supervisor

Monterey Public Library

625 Pacific Street

Monterey, CA 93940

Tel.  831-646-3740

“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up your men to collect wood and give orders and distribute the work. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea." -- Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

On Tue, May 9, 2017 at 1:44 PM, Nick Clemens <nick@bywatersolutions.com> wrote:

Hello All,

With the current versions of Koha there have been some changes in acquisitions and how prices are calculated and there seems to be some confusion in terms and how things are currently being used.

We wanted to clarify what is happening, propose a change and get feedback on what needs to happen.

When placing an order there are several price fields:

Vendor price (listprice in db)
-This is used to populate the Replacement cost and budgeted cost on the order page. It is not used against the budget

Replacement cost (rrp in db)
-This is used to calculate the 'budgeted cost/ecost' in the budget - it also populates the replacement price in the item created by the aqc process once received

Budgeted cost (ecost in db)

-This is the replacement/rpp minus any discount on the order - this is the value that will be encumbered when the order is placed

Actual cost (unitprice)

-This is the eventual 'price' of the item and is the encumbered amount once the item has been received.

With the changes that were made one can no longer adjust the 'Replacement/RRP' once an order is placed - this is because this value is adjusted for tax in the db (rrp_tax_excluded, rrp_tax_included) and used for calculating the ecost tax adjusted (ecost_tax_excluded, ecost_tax_included)

Some libraries have been having issues as they use 'Replacement' cost mostly for populating items and are not used to it being unable to be edited and/or affecting budgets.

We are proposing to rename the current 'Replacement cost' field to match the db value - 'Recommended retail price' (RRP) and add a new 'Replacement cost' field, editable at any point, that is only used for populating the item field.

We think this will clear up how the other values are being used and restore functionality that changed.

Please let us know if this works or what other suggestions you have here.

Thank you,

Nick, Kyle, Jonathan

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