Serial numbers and replaced parts
Parts change during production and old part numbers get replaced. Put both on the price list, and customers who enter their serial number see the parts that fit their machine.
What customers see#
When your price list has serial ranges, the parts list in every catalog starts with Your serial number. A customer types the serial from their machine’s data plate and the catalog shows the parts for that machine:
- A different version fits: the part shows its part number for that serial, with its own price and stock, and ordering uses it. The model still shows the current part, so its size and holes aren’t listed for the other version.
- The part isn’t on that serial: it’s faded in the model and marked “Not on this serial”, and can’t be added to a request or cart.
- A part has been replaced: the old number shows “Replaced by” and the new number, and requests, orders and the cart use the new one.
The serial is filled into the parts request for them. Customers can change or clear it at any time. A link or QR code with serial= in it opens the catalog with the serial already set; see QR code labels.
Columns on the price list#
Add any of these columns to your price list. They’re found by their headings, like the others.
| Column | Headings it recognises | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Serial from | Serial from, First serial, From serial | The first serial this part fits. Leave empty for “from the start”. |
| Serial to | Serial to, Last serial, To serial | The last serial this part fits. Leave empty for “and later”. |
| In place of | In place of, Version of, Instead of | For a different version of a part: the part number in the catalog whose place it takes on its serials. Needs Serial from and/or Serial to. |
| Replaced by | Replaced by, Superseded by, Replacement | The part number to order instead. Chains are followed to the newest part. |
A part with no serial range fits every serial.
Examples#
A part that changed at serial 1200#
The catalog was built from the current CAD, with drum gear W15-303. Machines before W1500-1200 used W15-300:
Part number,Price,Stock,Serial from,Serial to,In place of
W15-303,29.00,12,W1500-1200,,
W15-300,31.00,4,,W1500-1199,W15-303Serial W1500-1100 sees W15-300 in the drum gear’s place, and W1500-1350 sees W15-303.
A part added at a later serial#
Part number,Price,Serial from
W15-500,12.00,W1500-2000On machines before W1500-2000 it’s faded and marked “Not on this serial”.
A replaced part number#
Part number,Price,Stock,Replaced by
W15-404,,,W15-404B
W15-404B,7.20,18,The catalog shows W15-404 replaced by W15-404B and orders W15-404B. Searching the parts portal for W15-404 finds it too, and opens the catalog on that part.
How serials are compared#
Serials are compared piece by piece: letters and punctuation must match exactly (upper or lower case doesn’t matter), and numbers are compared by value, so W1500-0999 comes before W1500-1200, and 900 before 1200.
A serial written differently from the ranges, like MD60-118204 against a range of 1200, can’t be compared. Nothing is assumed: the catalog shows those parts with their serial ranges for the customer to check. Write serials on the price list exactly as they’re stamped on your machines.
When you upload the list, rows that can’t be used are left out and listed: a range whose two serials are written differently, a first serial after the last, a version without a range, or replacements that go round in a circle.
Dealers#
Signed-in dealers see the same thing. Their prices for a version or a replacement come from that part number’s row on the price list, as usual.