> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.printools.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Purchase orders

> Ordering stock and receiving it against a job.

A purchase order is what you send a supplier to get stock for a job.

## Raising them

Raise POs straight from the job. PRINTOOLS groups the lines by vendor, so a job needing garments from two suppliers produces two POs. You do not sort that out by hand.

You can also create a standalone PO for stock you are holding rather than buying against a specific job.

## Receiving

As stock arrives, record a receipt against the PO line. Partial receipts are expected: order 200, receive 150 now and 50 next week, and the PO reflects that without anyone editing quantities.

<Note>
  Some PO statuses are **derived**, calculated from what has actually been received rather than set by a person. PRINTOOLS refuses attempts to set those directly, so the status always matches the stock.
</Note>

## Vendors

Vendors hold their own contacts and addresses, so a PO goes to the right person at the right warehouse. A vendor can be deactivated when you stop using them, which keeps their history on old jobs instead of deleting it.

## Seeing it all

You can list POs by job (what is this order waiting on) or by vendor (what have we got outstanding with this supplier). Both views matter for different questions.

Archiving a PO takes it out of the working list without removing it from the record.