Gasboy PC CFN site controller - Manual (Page 19)

MDE-4489 Gasboy® PC/CFN User’s Guide·July 2005 Page 15
Overview of Tank Inventory Management PC/CFN Basics
Overview of Tank Inventory Management
The PC/CFN software, when run as PC/Fuel, enables you to monitor your tank inventory. The
quality of your output however, depends upon your input. The traditional method of tank
inventory management involves manual sticking of your tanks to measure product, matching
the reading up to a printed tank table or manually calculating inches to gallons, and recording
it according to your site's record keeping procedures. Then later, you must perform
reconciliations comparing book inventory to actual. PC/CFN makes this process easier by
automating some of the tasks involved.
What Does Your Fueling Operation Look Like?
The first thing the PC software needs to know is what your fueling operation looks like? What
size tanks do you have, how many do you have, what product is in each tank? You define this
information using different forms. Use the Setup menu, Administration, Fuel Tank Tables
form to define a name and tank table data for each tank type at each of your sites. If all your
tanks are identical, you need only one tank table; if they are different, each unique tank must
have its own table. A tank table contains an inches to gallons conversion for the tank (This
conversion is used for dipstick readings entered in inches). Tank tables are typically available
from the manufacturer or you can use a tank table calculation program (one is available on the
Steel Tank Institute website: http://www.steeltank.com) to generate your own. This tank table
can then be imported into the PC software (Administration, Fuel Tank Tables, Import Tank
Table). Use the Files, Tanks form to define individual tank information. Some things you need
to include are tank number, tank table assignment, capacity, reorder level, tilt offset (see
Calculating Your Tank Tilt Offset later in this section) and whether the tank is manifolded. In
addition, you must supply the product that is in the tank, the pumps that draw from that tank,
and the initial inventory reading (stick reading).
How Will the Data be Input?
There are several ways that your fuel inventory can be monitored and you can select the way
that best suits your application. You must decide how the information will get into the PC
software. This tells the software how to typically expect data. This data is input for each site.
Presently, you are not limited to the choice you make, for example, if you select stick reading
at PC, you can still use dipstick transactions or vice versa. There are slight processing
variations based on some of your choices, but mostly these choices are informational. Your
input choices on the Files, Fuel Sites, Tank Inventory Configuration tab are:
Tank reading source: This tells the PC software whether your tank readings will come from a
dipstick transaction or a manual entry on the Enter Stick Reading portion of the Tank
Information tab. A dipstick transaction occurs when you take a dipstick reading and enter the
data into the fuel management system using a dipstick card or key (or a manually entered
dipstick transaction). The other choice allows you to take the dipstick reading and enter the
data at the PC using the Files, Tanks, Enter Stick Reading form.
Fuel pumped source: This tells the PC software how to calculate your book inventory. The
usual method is by processing fueling transactions and subtracting their quantity. Another
method is by reading the accumulating totalizers on the pump and inputting those readings
into the PC software either by a totalizer transaction or making a totalizer entry on the Files,
Tanks, Enter Totalizer form. A totalizer transaction occurs when you take a totalizer reading