Achieving Consistency: A NetSuite Case Study of Streamlining Invoicing by Customizing Invoice Dates

Overview 

The default NetSuite functionality links Invoice Start and End Dates to Sales Order Start and End Dates. However, the client wished to derive the Invoice Start Date and End Date from the Custom Delivery Start and End Dates of the Item Fufilment. Despite having a pre-existing User Event script to implement this custom functionality, it encountered issues and did not perform as expected. To overcome the challenges, the client reached out to SuiteMatrix, a well-known NetSuite solutions provider.

Challenges Faced

• Certain invoices had their Start and End Dates populated from the Sales Order instead of the Item Fulfilment.
• The script encountered difficulties in locating the associated Item Fulfilment for the Invoice record.
• Failure to trigger for Invoices generated through Bulk Processing.
• The process operated correctly for only a few records.
• Challenges arose when multiple Item Fulfilments share the same item and quantity, leading to difficulties in populating the value.

Solution Offered

• Analysed and identified an additional condition as necessary to precisely match the Invoice with the respective Item Fulfilment.
• The Posting Period condition was introduced in conjunction with the Item and Quantity.
• The Before Submit functionality was implemented in the same script to ensure it triggers when an Invoice is generated through Bulk Processing.
• The script populated the Invoice’s start and end date with the accurate Delivery Start Date and Delivery End Date of the corresponding Item Fulfilment.

Result 

After implementing the modifications, the script operated as expected, both when the invoice is generated by clicking the Bill button and during Bulk Processing. With the help of SuiteMatrix’s NetSuite consultants and developers, the script was actively monitored over a specific period to confirm its consistent and smooth operation, ensuring there were no indications of a recurrence of the previously encountered issue.