Manage units of measure

This article describes how to define a unit of measure, provide translations for the unit and its description, and define conversion rules for related units.

Open the Units page

To create and work with the units of measure that are available in your system, go to Organization administration > Setup > Units > Units.

The remaining sections of this article describe what you can do on the Units page.

Create standard units and conversions

If your system doesn't already include the most commonly used units of measure for the metric system and/or the US customary system (USCS), the unit setup wizard can help you quickly get started with basic unit definitions and conversions. To complete the wizard, select Unit creation wizard on the Action Pane, and then follow the on-screen instructions.

Create or edit a unit of measure

To create or edit a unit of measure, follow these steps.

1. Follow one of these steps:

   • To edit an existing unit, select it in the list pane.
   • To create a new unit, select New on the Action Pane.

2. On the header of the record, set the following fields:

   • Unit – Enter the ID or symbol to use to refer to the unit in the system language. This ID or symbol is usually a common abbreviation for the unit, such as ea for each or cm for centimeter.
   • Description – Enter a descriptive name for the unit in the system language. This name is usually the full name of the unit, such as Each or Centimeter.

3. On the General FastTab, set the following fields:

   • Unit class – Select the property that the unit measures (such as length, area, mass, or quantity).

   • System of units – Select the measurement system that the unit belongs to (Metric units or United States customary units).

   • Base unit – Set this option to Yes to use the current unit as the base unit for its unit class. In this case, you only have to specify the conversion factor between the base unit and each additional unit in the unit class. The system can then convert between all units in that unit class. Therefore, it's easier to set up conversions.

     For example, if gallon is the base unit for the Volume unit class, you only have to set up conversion factors from quart to gallon and from pint to gallon. The system can then also convert from quart to pint.

     You can have only one base unit per unit class.

   • System unit – Set this option to Yes to use the current unit as the assumed unit for all unspecified measurements in its unit class. For example, if a field that is used to enter a quantity doesn't allow a unit to be specified (of if the user doesn't select a unit), the system uses the unit that is set as the system unit for the Quantity unit class. You can have only one system unit per unit class.

   • Decimal precision – Specify the number of decimal places that values that are specified for the current unit or converted to it should be rounded to.

4. On the Action Pane, select Save.

Define unit translations

To define translations for the ID or symbol and the description for a unit of measure, follow these steps.

1. Create or select the unit to create translations for.

2. On the Action Pane, select Unit texts.

   The Unit texts page appears. You use this page to define translations for the ID or symbol for the selected unit. Those translations can then be used on external documents in customer-specific or vendor-specific languages.

3. On the Action Pane, select New.

4. In the Language field, select the language to translate the unit ID or symbol to.

5. In the Text field, enter the translation of the unit ID or symbol in the selected language.

6. On the Action Pane, select Save.

7. Close the page.

8. On the Action Pane, select Translated unit descriptions.

   The Translated unit descriptions page appears. You use this page to define language-specific descriptions for the selected unit.

9. On the Action Pane, select New.

10. In the Language field, select the language to translate the unit description to.

11. In the Description field, enter the translation of the unit description in the selected language.

12. On the Action Pane, select Save.

13. Close the page.

Define unit conversion rules

To define rules for conversions between units of measure, follow these steps.

1. Create or select the unit to define conversion rules for.

2. On the Action Pane, select Unit conversions.

   The Unit conversions page appears. You use this page to define rules for converting the selected unit to and from other units in the unit class.

3. Select one of the following tabs, depending on the type of conversion that you want to set up:

   • Standard conversions – Set up standard conversion rules for all products.
   • Intra-class conversions – Set up product-specific conversion rules for units in the same unit class.
   • Inter-class conversions – Set up product-specific conversion rules for units across unit classes.

4. Follow one of these steps:

   • To create a new conversion, select New on the toolbar.
   • To edit an existing conversion, select the conversion in the grid, and then select Edit on the toolbar.

5. In the drop-down dialog box that appears, set the following fields:

   • Product – Select the specific product that the conversion applies to. This field is available only for intra-class and inter-class conversions.
   • Formula layout – Leave this field set to Simple to specify a simple conversion that has a single factor. Set it to Advanced to set up a more complex equation. The format for advanced equations varies, depending on the unit class.
   • From unit – This field shows the selected unit. Usually, you shouldn't change the value. (If you do change the value, you must open the Unit conversions page for the selected unit to view your new conversion after you save it.)
   • To unit – Select the unit to convert to.
   • Rounding – Select how fractions should be rounded, based on the Decimal precision value of the selected unit (To nearest, Up, or Down).
   • Conversion formula – Use the remaining fields at the top of the drop-down dialog box to specify the formula for converting between the two units. The available fields vary, depending on the unit class and formula layout that you've selected.

6. Select OK.

7. Close the page.