Creating Contract Lines in Dynamics CRM 2011

Simon Phillips, 15 May 2011

Adding contract lines to a contract is the second step in creating a contract. The contract lines provide the details of the contract. You can define several contract lines for each contract (for example, one for parts and another for maintenance), but you must have at least one contract line to invoice and activate the contract.

The contract lines, also known as service contract lines, describe the specific support the contract covers, including:

• The specific coverage dates: The dates must fall within the boundaries of the contract’s start and end dates.

• The product covered: A product is not required. If you use a product, you can only specify one product for each contract line.

• The allotment details: This indicated how many cases or minutes of allotted support are provided for this contract item, such as 100 allotted minutes or 15 cases.

An example that I will be using to show you how to create a contract line is a contract for a washing machine a customer has just purchased. One of the contract lines that the contract will need is an installation contract line.

Procedure to add a Contract Line

The following procedure will add a line item to a contract:

1. In the navigation pane, click Service and then click Contracts.

2. In the list, select and open the contract to which you want to add a contract line.

3. In the forms navigation pane, click Contract Lines.

4. On the ribbon click Add New Contract Line.

5. On the General section, in the Title field enter a descriptive title to identify the contract line, e.g. Installation. Enter information as needed, such as:

a. Product: Enter the product pertaining to this contract line. You can use the Lookup icon to search for a product, for example Washing Machine.

b. Unit: If you enter a product, enter the unit of the product. You can use the Lookup icon to search for a unit.

c. Location: If the contract line pertains to only a specific location for this customer, enter the address name. You can use the Lookup icon to search for a location.

d. Start Date: Enter the date that service for this line item begins. The start date must be within the dates established in the contract.

e. End Date: Enter the date that service for this line item ends. The end date must be within the dates established in the contract.

f. Total Cases/Minutes: Enter the allotment for this contract line, such as the total number of minutes allowed for this item.

g. Total Price: Enter the total price for this contract line.

6. Click Save and Close.

As these contract lines are associated to the Contract depending on what your contract is for will in turn define your contract lines, but say you have a contract for your product e.g. washing machine: you could have some contract lines for service, repair, installation, and even replacement.