Dive into the core functionalities of Katana's user interface with this guide, aimed at empowering users to efficiently manage their manufacturing and inventory processes through the platform's 8 different screens.
This is part of the Basics of Katana articles recommended for beginners to Katana.
The different screens inside Katana are based around managing inventory as a maker, distributor, crafter, small manufacturer, etc. The Sell, Make, Buy, Stock, Items, and Contacts screens give you a quick, dynamic spreadsheet-style view of your data, while the Settings screen allows you to customize Katana to fit your needs and the Insights screen provides analytical information on your data.
If you have the Planning and Forecasting add-on, you'll also see a Plan screen where you can view a scheduled layout for inventory planning, replenishment, and forecasting.
The 8 Katana screens
Sell
Focus on sales order management and prioritization.
Key Features: Managing orders, tracking statuses.
The Sell screen lists all the Sales orders (SO) that have been manually added, imported, or synced through integrations (e.g. Shopify, WooCommerce). Choose the Done table to see all the completed SOs.
From the Sales orders tab > Open table, you can quickly gather an overview of the status of all SOs, making it simple to quickly see what actions need to be taken. This view allows you to see the availability of Sales items and Ingredients for your SOs as well as the status of Production and Delivery.
How can the area be used? Let’s say you don’t have enough products in stock to fulfil a SO - you can track the availability of the required ingredients and create tasks to make these required products, all from the Sell screen.
To view more details of a Sales order, just click on it to open it up.
By clicking on the Quotes tab of the Sell screen, you can find an overview of all of the existing quotes and their statuses.
Learn more about using the Sell screen or how to create a Sales order.
Make
Dedicated to optimizing production scheduling and tracking.
Key Functions: Order management, production status updates.
On the Make screen, you’ll find a table for both your Open and Done Manufacturing orders (MO) under the Schedule tab. From this screen, you can manage your production activities, scheduling, and planning as well as gain an understanding of the Ingredients availability and Production status for each order. If you want to create a production plan, just drag-and-drop MOs to place them in the preferred order of priority.
As products in Katana can be either Make-to-Order or Make-to-Stock, an MO that is make-to-order is linked to a specific SO. If you make products to stock, those MOs won’t be linked directly to a Sales order.
By clicking on the Tasks tab, you’ll see a detailed list of tasks for your production team. To benefit from paperless, live production tracking, assign tasks to Operators using the Shop Floor App.
Learn more about using the Schedule tab and how to create a Manufacturing order.
Buy
Streamlines the procurement process for materials and products.
Core Usage: Tracking and managing purchase orders.
The Buy screen displays a table for both your Open and Done Purchase orders (PO) and their status. In Katana, you can track POs for both raw materials and finished products.
Learn more about creating a new PO.
By clicking the Outsourcing tab on the Buy screen, you'll get an overview of all existing Outsourced purchase orders (OPO) and their statuses. OPOs are used if you fully outsource manufacturing to a contractor while still handling the raw materials necessary for the order.
Learn more about creating a new Outsourced purchase order.
Stock
Keeps track of inventory levels, safety stock levels, and valuations.
What's Included: Inventory insights for effective stock management.
The Stock screen displays your Inventory list, which includes all Products and Materials at a Variant level. This is the main screen for keeping track of stock, analyzing stock levels, and initiating needed actions (creating Purchase or Manufacturing orders).
Stock is shown in real-time and kept automated as purchasing, production, and sales activities trigger stock movements automatically.
You can see the on hand value of stock, quantities In stock (or Committed to Sales or Manufacturing orders), amount Expected from the suppliers or manufacturing, and whether you have too much or little inventory (based on safety stock levels).
Plan
The Plan screen helps you plan out your ordering and replenishment within Katana.
Resource Management: Keep track of when and what needs to be ordered through a clear calendar system.
The Plan screen comes with 2 specific tabs, the Planning tab and the Replenishment tab.
The Planning tab allows you to forecast your future inventory needs and visualize expected inventory levels across different locations based on forecasts from sales, purchase, manufacturing, and outsourcing orders.
The Replenishment tab helps you simplify the inventory restocking process by providing automated suggestions on when and how much to reorder.
Insights
Aggregates key operational data for comprehensive analytics.
Benefits: Access to reports for strategic decision-making
The Insights screen provides you with a dashboard of data that can filtered and sorted, making it easier to analyze trends and make plan accordingly.
Within this screen you'll find insights for sales, manufacturing, and purchasing. You'll also find cost and inventory reports.
Learn more about using Insights.
Items
Lists all your products and materials, with detailed inventory information.
Functionality: Enhanced tracking with sorting and filtering.
On the Items screen, you’ll find 2 lists. 1 for all of your Products and another for Materials. Both lists contain a comprehensive sheet with relevant columns such as Name, Category, Variant codes / SKUs, Sales prices, and Purchase prices.
For a more in-depth view, click on Products to access Product recipes / BOMs and Production operations. You can also see and analyze cost prices and profit margins for all your product Variants.
Items can be used on SOs, MOs, POs, and Stock adjustments. In fact, you can’t do much in Katana without at least first having some Products or Materials.
Learn more about Items, creating Products, and creating Materials.
Contacts
The Contacts screen is your centralized hub for managing customer and supplier information.
Key Features: Simplified contact management, quick access to customer and supplier details.
This screen provides 2 lists — a complete Customers list and a full Suppliers list. Using the table columns, you can quickly add email addresses, phone numbers, and comments to your contacts. Use this information for Sales and Purchase orders or to manage customer and supplier contact information in one place.
Click on a customer to add additional details.
Settings
Navigate the Settings screen to tailor the Katana platform to your business needs.
Advantage: Personalize your workflow and enhance operational efficiency by adjusting the settings to fit your unique business processes.
If you need to change the base currency, add/remove units of measure, adjust tax rates, or add/remove categories, Operations, and Resources, add or adjust your warehouse locations, adjust the order and visibility of print templates – this can all be accomplished via the Settings screen.
If you want to connect with different integrations (such as Shopify, WooCommerce, QuickBooks Online, or Xero), you can find them here under Integrations, or if you need to connect your own personal application via API keys or webhooks, do so through API.
The Settings screen is also where you can download import templates, upload data, and clear data if you need a fresh start on your Katana account.
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