I know I'm sounding very 19th Century here, but is there a program that just does moulding pricing that updates as new price lists come out? We don't use a POS system. We tried Lifesaver, but setting the pricing tables for moulding is really ponderous.
For most of the moulding, we just need something that uses "between w & x multiply by y to get z". regardless of who makes the moulding.
We don't need the program to do more than that. The rest of our price list is an arcane thing that evolved over 35 years and doesn't bend to fit logical tables, so we're not going to change that part.
The various POS companies that support US moulding vendor price updates work pretty much the same way. The POS receives price changes weekly from the vendors, and automatically update/transmit the info to the POS companies. (in some cases it is automatic, in others, you have to click an update button to refresh your database tables).
For the framer, setting up the pricing part is fairly easy. All you specify is the markup multiplier, and pricing method. For example if the current cost for a foot of Moulding xyx was $5 and you had it set to price 3x CHOP cost, it would price it at $15 per foot. If the price went up to $6 per foot next week, it would know to mark it up 3x to $18/ft. (based on the rule you set).
I'm over simplifying it a bit, but that is the basic idea. It allows for waste from corner cuts, you can optionally add a fixed cost per foot in addition to the above formula, as some industry experts who speak at trade shows suggest, etc.
Mat and fabric calculations work in a very similar way, of cost * area sold, which has a setting to make sure you always cover the cost of a full sheet even for very small orders.
Glazing can be priced by the Lite you cut it from (How we do it in our shop), by SF, UI, etc.
It's good for just pricing moulding, but it can do the whole package including the full frame job, legible invoices for customer that dont have part #s, legible workorders for the framer that show part #s and do the measurements for you, pick lists of materials to order or pull, an automatically generated customer list, an order history, and lots of reports.
If you haven't already, it's very worthy of consideration, IMO.
Disclaimer: If going to WCAF or Framecon, I'll be volunteering at the Lifesaver booth as a customer testimonial. Stop by and I'll gladly show you how it all works, and how to set the moulding prices. Specialtysoft, FrameReady, and Lifesaver will ALL be there. Regardless of which of the top products you choose (there are several that are excellent), get the demos and give them a good test drive, call support to ask questions, etc. With that, you'll have the tools to make the best decision for your situation.
Best regards,
Mike