Create and Send a Purchase Order

Use this guide when you need to raise a Purchase Order for goods or services, send it to the supplier, and leave the order ready for receiving and billing.

A Purchase Order is a commitment to buy from a supplier. It should be submitted before goods are received or supplier invoices are entered, so the purchasing trail stays clear.

Before You Start

Make sure you have:

A Supplier record for the supplier you are buying from.
One or more Item records for the goods or services being ordered.
A Company selected for the order.
A Target Warehouse if you are buying stock items that will be received into inventory.
The expected Required By date.
Any approval, budget, or project details your business requires before committing the order.

If the supplier will be paid through a payment run later, also check that the supplier's bank account details are set up before payment processing. The Purchase Order can still be raised first, but missing supplier payment details will need attention before payment.

Step 1: Open a New Purchase Order

In the awesomebar, search for Purchase Order, then click + Add Purchase Order.

Start with the header fields:

Field	What to enter
Supplier	The supplier you are placing the order with.
Company	The company buying the goods or services.
Date	The order date. This normally defaults to today.
Required By	The date you need the items or services.
Currency	The supplier currency for this order.
Target Warehouse	The receiving warehouse for stock items, if the order is for inventory.

When you select the supplier, NexWave fills supplier address, contact, currency, payment terms, and tax details where they are available on the supplier record.

Step 2: Add the Items

In the Items table, add one row for each item or service you want to order.

Check these fields on each row:

Field	What to check
Item Code	The item or service being ordered.
Quantity	The amount to order.
UOM	The unit used on this purchase, such as Unit, Box, Hour, or Kg.
Required By	The delivery date for this row, if it differs from the header date.
Rate	The supplier's quoted unit price.
Amount	The calculated line total.
Target Warehouse	The warehouse where stock will be received.
Project	Optional, use this if the order belongs to a project.

If the same supplier sends a quote first, you can also create the Purchase Order from the submitted Supplier Quotation. That carries the agreed supplier, item, quantity, and rate onto the order.

Step 3: Review Taxes, Discounts, and Totals

Review the totals before saving:

Check Purchase Taxes and Charges Template if your site uses tax templates.
Check the Purchase Taxes and Charges table if tax rows have been added.
Use Additional Discount only if the supplier discount applies to the whole order.
Confirm Net Total, Total Taxes and Charges, and Grand Total match the supplier quote or agreed purchase value.

If the order is in a foreign currency, confirm the Exchange Rate before submitting. The supplier sees the order currency, while NexWave also stores the company-currency values for reporting.

Step 4: Save and Resolve Warnings

Click Save.

If NexWave shows warnings, resolve them before submitting. Common warnings include:

Warning	What to do
Missing Target Warehouse	Add the receiving warehouse for stock items.
Missing Expense Account	Pick the correct expense account for non-stock items, or review the item defaults.
Quantity is below the item's minimum order quantity	Increase Quantity, or confirm with your manager before changing the item setup.
Budget warning	Review whether the order should proceed, needs approval, or needs a budget adjustment.
Missing supplier address or contact	Add the supplier contact details if they should appear on the printed order or email.

Do not submit the order until the supplier, items, rates, taxes, and delivery details are correct.

Step 5: Submit the Purchase Order

Click Submit when the order is ready to commit.

After submission:

The Status usually changes to To Receive and Bill, To Receive, or To Bill, depending on what remains to be done.
The order can be used to create a Purchase Receipt when goods arrive.
The order can be used to create a Purchase Invoice when the supplier bill arrives.
The % Received and % Billed values track progress against the order.

If the order should not proceed, do not submit it. Leave it in draft or cancel it according to your internal approval process.

Submitted Purchase Order showing supplier, item, status, and totals

Step 6: Email the Purchase Order with the PDF Attached

Use this path when the supplier should receive the Purchase Order directly from NexWave.

Path: submitted Purchase Order > Activity > New Email > Attach Document Print > Send.

Open the submitted Purchase Order.
In Activity, click New Email.
Check To. NexWave fills this when the supplier has a contact email. If it is blank, add the supplier contact email before sending, or enter the approved recipient manually if your team allows it.
Check Subject and add a clear message.
Tick Attach Document Print.
Check Select Print Format. Use your supplier-facing Purchase Order format. Only use Standard if your site has configured it as the approved supplier layout.
Check Print Language if your site sends supplier documents in more than one language.
Click Send.

The attached PDF is generated from the selected print format at send time. If the print format or supplier details have changed recently, preview the PDF first using the print path in the next section.

Email composer with Attach Document Print selected and Purchase Order print format chosen

Step 7: Preview or Download the PDF

Use this path when you need to review the supplier-facing PDF before sending, or when you send the PDF through another email app.

Path: submitted Purchase Order > print action > supplier-facing Purchase Order print preview > Get PDF.

Open the submitted Purchase Order.
Click the print action in the form toolbar.
Confirm the preview is using the supplier-facing Purchase Order print format. Do not use Standard if it shows a generic layout or the wrong heading.
If the preview uses the wrong heading or letterhead, change Letter Head or open the preview without a letterhead before downloading.
Check the supplier name, supplier address, items, quantities, rates, delivery details, and totals.
Click Get PDF.

Your browser downloads the PDF to its configured download location, normally the Downloads folder unless you have changed your browser settings. Attach that downloaded PDF if you need to send the Purchase Order outside NexWave.

Purchase Order print preview showing the supplier-facing layout and Get PDF action

Step 8: Continue to Receiving and Billing

Use the submitted Purchase Order as the source for the next documents:

Create a Purchase Receipt when goods arrive into stock.
Create a Purchase Invoice when the supplier sends the bill.
For services that do not need stock receiving, create the Purchase Invoice directly from the Purchase Order.
For partial deliveries, receive or bill only the rows and quantities that have arrived or been invoiced.

This keeps the Purchase Order, Purchase Receipt, Purchase Invoice, and later payment connected for audit and reporting.

Review Checks Before You Finish

Before you leave the order with the supplier, confirm:

The Supplier is correct.
The Company is correct.
The Items table matches the supplier quote or agreed order.
Quantity, Rate, and Grand Total are correct.
Required By reflects the expected delivery date.
Target Warehouse is filled for stock items.
The supplier-facing PDF shows the right Purchase Order heading, delivery, contact, and terms information.
Attach Document Print is selected if you are emailing the PDF directly from NexWave.
The Status is no longer draft if the order has been formally issued.

Troubleshooting

Issue	What to check
The item is not available in the Item Code search	Confirm the item exists, is not disabled, and is valid for purchase.
The supplier address does not appear	Check the supplier's linked Address records and the selected Supplier Address.
The email recipient is blank	Add or update the supplier's Contact record, then refresh the Purchase Order before opening New Email again.
The PDF is not attached to the email	Tick Attach Document Print, then check Select Print Format before clicking Send.
The PDF uses the wrong layout	Choose the supplier-facing Purchase Order value in Select Print Format instead of Standard. If the heading is still wrong, check Letter Head, or ask your administrator to update the default Purchase Order print format.
The downloaded PDF is hard to find	Check your browser's download location. This is normally the Downloads folder, but it may differ if your browser asks where to save each file.
Taxes do not calculate as expected	Check Purchase Taxes and Charges Template, the supplier tax setup, and the item tax setup.
The submitted order cannot be edited	Cancel and amend the order if the committed details are wrong. Do not change the supplier agreement only in the next document.
The order cannot be submitted because of approval or budget controls	Follow your internal approval process, then return to the Purchase Order and submit it once approved.
The Purchase Receipt or Purchase Invoice has the wrong quantities	Return to the Purchase Order and check Quantity, Received Qty, and Billed Amount on the item rows before creating the next document again.