Sage ERP MAS 90 Version 4.4 Product Update Recap

There is a significant set of enhancements that Sage has made available via the new downloadable Product Updates for Version 4.4. There are a total of 6 Product Updates, with the last one due out in July 2011. Here is a recap of the features added by module.

Library Master
In Product Update 5:

• Company-Specific Background Colors allow you to assign an easily identifiable background for each of your companies within Sage ERP MAS 90 and 200

Bank Reconciliation
In Product Update 2:

• Download bank statements and Reconcile Checks Automatically
• Enter Checks, Deposits, and Adjustments On-the-Fly through a quick link button on the Reconcile Bank screen
• Recalculate Outstanding Entries Totals Utility added
• Positive Pay Export reduces the chances of check fraud. You can send a file to your financial institution to use for comparison and verification against checks that are presented for payment
• Comment Field expanded to 2048 characters in Check Deposit and Adjustment Entry

In Product Update 3:

• Enter Bank Reconciliation (BR) adjustments and post to the General Ledger directly from BR
• Convert the BR Report and BR Transaction Register to a PDF format
• Quick Access to the Bank Recap Report and the BR Register from buttons on the Reconcile Bank window
• New Security Events provide control over who can use these new features
• The ability to create a PDF file of BR reports

Accounts Receivable
In Product Update 1:

• Cash Receipts Entry By Invoice Number added to assist if you donít know the customer number for the receipt
• Additional search options for Invoice History include Customer Phone Number, Lot/Serial Number, Ship To Zip, Customer PO Number, Invoice Header Comment, Ship To Code, Invoice Date, and user-defined fields

Accounts Payable
In Product Update 1:

• The ability to enter wire transfers in Accounts Payable Manual Check Entry
• In Product Update 2:
• The ability to create an ACH (automated clearinghouse) file to pay vendors electronically
• New Paperless Options: process, send, and retain electronic copies of Accounts Payable documents in electronic PDF format

In Product Update 5:

• Multiple Company Aged Invoice Report
• Choose to print checks alphabetically by vendor name or continue to sort checks by vendor number
• Expense Distribution Table streamlines entry of standard invoices in Accounts Payable when you need to regularly allocate them across multiple departments

Sales Order
In Product Update 1:

• Checking for existing customer POs expanded to include the Invoice History File, the Open Sales Order file, and the Open Sales Order Invoice file
• Disallow shipping of items based on specific customers or States
• Picking sheet printing: print only back-ordered line items and quick print of picking sheets from order entry

Payroll
In Product Update 1:

• Create multiple earnings codes per employee that will be automatically populated in Payroll Data Entry and auto pay operations

In Product Update 4:

• W-2 changes and tax law changes for 2011, including accommodations for the HIRE Act

Job Cost
In Product Update 1:

• Create a list of allowable Job Cost statuses for PO, AP, JC, IM, PR, and SO to prevent accidental postings to closed jobs

Inventory Management
In Product Update 5:

• Improved security and smoother workflows is achieved, with four new inventory item security events and the ability to designate an item as Inactive so that it can no longer be purchased or sold. Physical count cards also were added to speed the physical inventory process

Coming In Product Update 6
Ability for all reports (not only standard reports) to save report settings by form code and user. This customer request received lots of votes on the forum at www.sagemas.com/MAS_90_200_feedback.

All 36 enhancements provided through the Version 4.4 Product Updates will be included in the upcoming Version 4.5 release.

Give us a call with your questions or for assistance in taking advantage of the wealth of new features discussed here.