Procurement & Inventory
The Procurement module manages the complete purchase-to-pay lifecycle for your facility -- from requisitions and purchase orders to goods receipt, vendor...
2026-02-01 · 6 min
Manual area
Procurement
Coverage
8 sections, 1 workflow diagram
Operator notes
2 implementation notes
Overview
The Procurement module manages the complete purchase-to-pay lifecycle for your facility -- from requisitions and purchase orders to goods receipt, vendor management, and inventory tracking. It integrates tightly with the Pharmacy and Billing modules to ensure stock levels stay optimal and costs remain transparent.
Module Components
Procurement is organized into five areas:
- Purchase Orders -- create, approve, and track POs with multi-level approval workflows.
- Goods Receipt Notes (GRN) -- receive shipments, verify quantities against POs, and record batch/expiry details.
- Vendor Management -- maintain a vendor registry with performance ratings, contract terms, and compliance documents.
- Inventory -- real-time stock visibility across all stores with reorder alerts and expiry management.
- Returns & Credits -- handle defective or expired goods returns with credit note tracking.
Workflow
A typical procurement cycle follows these steps:
- A department raises an indent (material request).
- The procurement team consolidates indents and creates a Purchase Order.
- The PO goes through the configured approval hierarchy.
- Once approved, the PO is sent to the vendor (email/PDF).
- When goods arrive, a GRN is created against the PO.
- Received items are inspected and moved to the appropriate store.
- The vendor invoice is matched against the GRN and PO (three-way match).
- Payment is processed through the Finance module.
Key Settings
Configure procurement under Settings > Procurement:
- Approval Hierarchy -- define multi-level approval based on PO value thresholds (e.g., below 10K auto-approve, 10K-1L needs HOD, above 1L needs Director).
- Tax Configuration -- set up GST rates (5%, 12%, 18%, 28%) for different item categories.
- Store Locations -- create multiple stores (Main Store, Pharmacy Store, Lab Store, OT Store) with separate inventory tracking.
- Reorder Levels -- define minimum stock and reorder quantities per item per store.
Requisitions
Departments raise requisitions for materials they need:
- Navigate to Procurement > Requisitions to create or view requests.
- Each requisition includes department, requested items, quantities, and urgency level.
- Requisition approval workflow: Requester > HOD > Procurement.
- Approved requisitions are consolidated into purchase orders.
- Track requisition status: Draft, Submitted, Approved, Converted to PO, Rejected.
- Requisition history with audit trail.
Item Master
Centralized catalog of all procurable items:
- Navigate to Procurement > Item Master for the full inventory catalog.
- Each item has: code, name, category, unit of measure, HSN code, GST rate.
- Categories: Medicines, Surgical, Lab Reagents, Equipment, Consumables, Stationery.
- Reorder level and reorder quantity per store.
- Active/inactive status to manage lifecycle.
- Linked to pharmacy formulary for medicines.
Special Materials
Manage non-standard and custom procurement items:
- Navigate to Procurement > Special Materials for items not in the standard catalog.
- Used for implants, prosthetics, custom surgical instruments, and specialty reagents.
- Vendor-specific items with lead time tracking.
- Special approval workflow for high-value special items.
- GST and pricing tracked per item.
Workflow Configuration
Configure procurement approval rules:
- Navigate to Procurement > Workflow Config to set up approval chains.
- Define workflows by type: Purchase Order, Requisition, GRN, Vendor Registration.
- Amount-based thresholds: different approval levels for different value ranges.
- Auto-approve option for low-value routine purchases.
- Multi-level approval with sequential or parallel approval paths.
- Configurable number of approval levels per workflow type.
Visual workflow
Requisition to stock update, with approvals and vendor accountability.
Department requests stock, service, or special material.
Approver checks budget, quantity, and urgency.
Vendor, price, tax, delivery terms, and items are confirmed.
Goods receipt records batch, expiry, quantity, and variance.
Inventory moves to store or department stock.
Invoice and purchase records support finance reconciliation.
Notes
Clinic tip
Solo doctors and small clinics can simplify procurement by using the Quick PO feature which skips the indent step and creates direct purchase orders for routine supplies.
Tip
Enable the auto-reorder feature to automatically generate draft POs when stock falls below the configured reorder level.
Related topics
Purchase Orders
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Special Materials
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Item Master
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