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September 2010

DentaLab NewsSeptember 2010
from Mainstreet Systems & Software

FAQ  DentaLab News

 

It's September - Time to Get Back Into High Gear

We were very happy to have a little summer lull while many of you were on vacation so that we could complete several important projects.  And we are also happy to report that they are just about ready for you.  The official release will be in October in keeping with the quarterly schedule, but we hope a couple of you will call us for an advance preview and feedback.  Here they are:

1) A New Design for the Home Page: This will bring simplification, better organization and more space for future enhancements.  There were several areas in the prior design that were overflowing due to many additions from your ideas and suggestions over the past five years.

2) Custom/User-Defined Fields:  This is the starting point for adding custom fields which you define according to your needs.  Each set will consist of up to 10 custom fields of up to 50 characters each.  The first of these is for your Items, which carries over into Case Items. Previously we had a general note field for each case item, in which you could add further specifications or notes, but now you can setup specific field names such as Shade, Tooth Number.  For up to 2 of these, you can transfer to the QuickBooks invoice Other 1 and Other 2 column fields.    We have also included in this release custom fields for Customers.   Here we envision their use in marketing and customer relationship activities in the new Customer Center.  These are already included in the Customer Profile, but there are more plans for the future.

2) Enhanced Error Reporting:  This feature was started in a recent release and continues to be enhanced.  When you encounter an error message while running DQB, rather than having to write it down or copy it or try to figure out all its technical jargon, you can have it sent directly to us.  This feature is one of the best reasons for keeping your system up-to-date.  

QuickBooks 2011 Can Be Ordered September 27

Intuit has announced that QuickBooks Pro, Premier and Enterprise 2011 will be available for new orders on September 27.  There are many new features including 22 that have come from QuickBooks Inner Circle in which we participate.  You will see new histories, searches and snapshots, closer integration with Gmail, Yahoo and Hotmail, a new Collections Center.   Several of you have told us you use the class feature and there will be a new feature to generate balance sheets by class.

A new separate product called QuickBooks Connect will be available for more easily checking essential information from the web or your smart phone.  For those of you who are on the road marketing and those who also work from home or another location, this will be worth considering.

October Training

We have had several requests for group training this fall and have been mulling over possible dates.   For those who love Indian summer and the glorious colors of autumn, October is typically a terrific time to come to Pennsylvania.   Complicating matters is the expected due date for Nathan's second child...a baby boy...on October 8.   So we have finally settled on a date later in the month:  Monday, October 25.   The fee per person is $150 if you have a service agreement, $220 if you do not.   If you would like to secure a spot, please call as soon as possible.   Our ideal count is 8, 10 would be the maximum.

We will be using the new Home Page design of release 1.24 for this training and showing you our very helpful new supplement Automatic Backup and Job Scheduling.   We hope to also have QuickBooks 2011 on our training system too.

 

    Easy, versatile software for the modern dental laboratory.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q:  Will your software be ready for the upcoming medical device excise tax?

A:  It is in QuickBooks that taxation is calculated, billed and tallied.   We will be keeping an eye on the reporting requirements to make sure you will be able to handle this new tax.   You will likely have to setup a new account in your chart of accounts for this, as well as a tax item and rate, and then indicate which items are to be taxed.   In our newsletters, we will help guide you on how to generate an appropriate report and, if desired, memorize it.  Be sure to read the "Uh Oh...Lots of New Requirements" article below on this and other upcoming governmental requirements.

Q:  Do you have a Spanish version of DentaLab for QuickBooks?

A:  No, like QuickBooks, DQB is essentially in English.   But what you do have is the ability to setup records to handle another language or to have dual English plus another language.   You can setup item names and descriptions this way, as well as standard procedures, work center names, lab notes, case memos, case plans and other text areas to handle a different language.   You can also use Windows capabilities to setup regionalization for date formats and character sets.  In recent years, QuickBooks was also setup to handle multiple currencies and you can change the QuickBooks formats for invoices, statements and reports to have titles and headings in another language.  

Q:  Do you have to schedule all the steps to produce a case?

A:  No, you can choose to schedule on any basis you choose, from simple to highly detailed.   Some labs just enter the billable items and critical dates, which are entered, start, end, ship and doctor's request.  Others setup each task as case items and schedule step by step so that technician assignments and completions can be closely tracked.  There are two sets of due reports, one by case status and critical dates; the other by scheduled dates for work centers, case items, and technicians.   You can choose to use reports from either or both, according to your needs.  

Q:  At what point do we need to consider moving up to QuickBooks Enterprise?

A:  QuickBooks Enterprise has been a major success in the mid-size business range with over 70,000 new licenses.  The Pro and Premier versions are suitable up to 5 concurrent users, but if your operation requires (or desires) more, it is time to move up to the Enterprise version. DQB is designed to use all three versions and there are many using the Enterprise version successfully.  

      With the same look and feel of QuickBooks.

Uh Oh...Lots of New Requirements

All over the world, there are increasing governmental requirements involving patient safety, employee health insurance, business taxation and reporting.  In the USA, state governments are becoming more involved in regulations for dental labs and the federal government has announced several important changes that will require you to know and comply.  Those of you who have chosen to synchronize your lab production with your financial and accounting software by choosing DentaLab for QuickBooks and QuickBooks will be ahead of the pack.

On the radar screen for many labs has been the upcoming medical device tax that will be applicable to the work you perform. As formats and reporting requirements are announced, you will need to be sure your software is setup at the appropriate time to determine which items are to be taxed with an appropriate tax item and rate and then an account in your chart of accounts to tally and report the taxable sales and tax amounts.   You will also need to generate at least one report per reporting period to substantiate the tax to be paid.  

For health care insurance benefits, the new requirements are more complicated.   The good news, however, is that your business may be eligible for extra tax credits on the amounts you provide for these benefits.

The upcoming requirement for providing 1099 forms for all of your vendors who are paid over $600 during the calendar year has many in an uproar on the huge burden in costs and time involved in gathering and recording the identification numbers and addresses and then generating and sending these forms.   There are still deliberations in progress on this issue, but thus far no announcements on reducing this requirement.   You have within QuickBooks the capabilities needed to record and report this information, but the gathering of full and accurate information may be on your shoulders. 

If in DentaLab for QuickBooks you have setup standard procedures and materials disclosure and then are recording your case histories, technician assignments and completions, remake and quality control issues, and using the customer activity logs to record issues and resolutions, you are on the right track to comply with federal and state regulations directed toward patient safety.   In some states, you also need to show on your invoices whether all or part of the work was not performed at your lab and if so, where it was performed.

We recommend that you take the time to learn the new requirements and effective dates and determine what you need to do to comply.  Aiding in this effort can be published news, the internet search facilities, and your accountant.  We too will be doing the same and working to make sure your software and documentation help ease the work involved.  For those of you who are in other countries, let us know if you are facing new requirements and if software can be of help.

 

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Contact us at 1-800-257-4535 or www.mainstreet-systems.com.

"This program is fantastic?there is so much you can do with it."

Jim Mandracchia
Harrison Dental Studio
New York


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