Create and manage materials

Overview

The Materials library is the central record of every product, part, or consumable you use on jobs. A material record holds name, description, unit of measure, cost, markup, selling price, category, storage location(s), and quantity on hand. Materials can be used on quotes, jobs, and supplier invoices, and MyApprentice tracks the stock movements.

Who This Workflow Is For

The Sole Trader role.

Before You Start

Have the material details — name, description, unit (kg, sqm, m, each, etc.), cost, markup percentage (or selling price), category, and any storage locations and on-hand quantities.

Step-by-Step Process

Create a material

1. In the left sidebar, select Materials.
2. Select Add Material.
3. Enter the material name.
4. (Optional) Add a description.
5. Choose the unit.
6. Enter the cost.
7. (Optional) Enter a markup percentage.
8. Enter or review the selling price.
9. Select a category (add a new one if needed).
10. (Optional) Add a location and the quantity held at that location. Multiple locations per material are supported.
11. Select Create.

Edit a material

1. Open Materials and locate the material.
2. Select the material row to open it.
3. Update the fields.
4. Select Update (or Save Changes). Editing a material’s price affects only future records — existing draft quotes and jobs keep their prices.

Adjust stock manually

1. Open Materials and find the material.
2. Select Adjust Stock next to it.
3. Choose the transaction type — Restock, Usage, Damage, Adjustment, Waste/Damage, or Return.
4. Enter the quantity.
5. (Optional) Add a reason.
6. Select Update Stock. The adjustment is logged in stock transaction history.

Review low stock and stock transactions

1. Open Materials.
2. Sort or filter by stock status to bring low-stock items to the top.
3. Open Stock Transactions to see the audit trail of all stock movements.

What Happens Next

Materials are available throughout the platform — attach to quotes, link to jobs, apply supplier invoices to update stock automatically.

Common Issues

• Existing quote uses the old price. Price edits affect only future records.
• Stock count is wrong. Use Adjust Stock with the right transaction type and a reason.
• Cannot find a material on a quote. Confirm it is in the library — create it first.

Related Guides

• Upload a supplier invoice
• Create and send a quote
• Create a job manually