How to Generate a Foundation Order

A Foundation Order tells the cemetery (or a third-party contractor) exactly what foundation needs to be poured for a monument. It's cleaner than the shop ticket because it only includes what the foundation pourer needs.

To generate one, open the order, click Document Generation at the top right, and select Generate Foundation Order from the dropdown.

A Foundation Order is for a cemetery installation, so the order needs a cemetery on it. On a customer pickup order, where there is no cemetery because the customer collects the stone, Generate Foundation Order is greyed out. Hovering it explains: "This order has no cemetery attached. Click 'Edit Order' at the top and add a cemetery in Step 2." (on a quote it reads "This quote has no cemetery attached. Click 'Edit Quote' at the top and add a cemetery in Step 2."). Open Edit Order, pick a cemetery on step 2 Cemetery & Logistics, save, and the option turns back on.

The popup

Most fields auto-fill from the order:

• Cemetery, section, lot, and grave. On the PDF the Lot / Grave row also carries the Block and Tier from Cemetery & Logistics when they are filled in, for example 12 / 2, Block 4, Tier 1.

• Memorial type

• Decedent name (or names if there are multiple), printed in bold on the PDF

• Base size

• Foundation size

You can also fill in:

• Number of graves the foundation covers

• Centering: where on the lot to center the foundation

• Notes for whoever is doing the pour

Everything you enter here prints on the Foundation Order PDF, so the installer gets the full picture on one page.

If your order doesn't have plot data filled in, those fields stay empty and the popup re-balances on its own. On the PDF these appear as line items, with a Base row and a Foundation row (Item / Size / Type / Qty., plus Finish for a granite foundation).

The Type column on the Foundation row prints the foundation material set on the stone: Concrete or Granite. A granite foundation also prints its finish in a Finish column: the same finish as the base. A concrete foundation has no finish, so its sheet has no Finish column.

A stone can also be sold with no foundation at all. If Foundation Material on the stone is set to None, there is nothing to pour, so Generate Foundation Order is greyed out for that stone. Hovering the greyed-out option explains: "This order has no foundation. Set a foundation material in Step 3 to generate a Foundation Order."

New stones start at None, so set the foundation material on the stone in Edit Order before you come here.

The Base row only prints when the stone actually has a base. A stone sold without a base has no Base row on the sheet. A base that exists but has never been sized still prints, as Not specified, so a real part of the order can't quietly disappear off the document.

Who is doing the pour?

At the top of the popup you pick who you're sending this to:

• Cemetery (default): the document will be addressed to the cemetery on the order, using the cemetery's contact info.

• Vendor: switches the recipient to a third-party contractor. A vendor search field appears, and you pick whichever vendor is doing the pour.

The recipient block on the PDF updates accordingly. Only one mode is active at a time.

The From block, the sender side of the document, is the office location this order belongs to, printed with that office's name and address rather than the head company's. A cemetery dealing with one of your branches sees that branch's details.

Phone numbers in the From block and the recipient block print the way they are written in your company's country, for example (239) 049-0234 for a US company or 030 901820 for a German one. A number from another country keeps its country code. Text that is not a valid phone number prints as it was typed.

Foundation type

Click Specify foundation type (optional) and tick one of Above Ground, Ground Level (Flush) or Recessed. This is the placement, not the material. It prints on the line directly beneath Concrete or Granite in the Type column of the Foundation row. Leave it unspecified and the Foundation row just shows the material on its own.

Select images

The popup has a Select images section with a thumbnail for every image on this order. Tick up to two to print them on the Foundation Order; the cap is shown on screen as Maximum 2 images per document.

It is not limited to files filed under Drawing. Every image on the quote or order is offered: a design drawing, a sketch from the Sketch & Inscription step, a reference photo, and a shot of the existing stone. Only image files (JPG, PNG and the like) can be printed on a document, so PDFs and other attachments are not listed. The saved cemetery location map is listed separately, in its own section below the thumbnails.

The selector only reads files that are already on the order. You cannot upload from inside the popup. If nothing is listed it reads "Upload a drawing or reference image in Notes & Files to include it here." Upload the file under Notes & Files first, then reopen the popup.

The cemetery location map

MonuDesk can print the pinned grave location on the Foundation Order, which saves the crew a phone call about where in the cemetery to pour.

1. In the order, open Edit Order and go to step 2 Cemetery & Logistics.

2. Switch on Pinpoint Location on Map, then search an address or click the map to drop the pin.

3. Save the order. MonuDesk stores two images on it, named Cemetery Location Map (Satellite) - [cemetery] and Cemetery Location Map (Street Map) - [cemetery]. They are listed under Notes & Files and can be renamed there. Moving the pin replaces them, and switching the pin off removes them.

Back in the Generate Foundation Order popup, the two views sit under their own Cemetery location map heading, below Select images, with the line "Optional. Pick one view to print the pinned grave location on this document." Neither is ticked for you. Tick the one you want and the other unticks itself, because the document has room for one view.

A ticked map does not count against Maximum 2 images per document, so you can still print two drawings alongside it. On the Foundation Order the map prints in its own box headed Cemetery Location, not among the drawings.

After you click Generate

The PDF is created and automatically saved to the order's Notes & Files. Like the other generated documents (invoices, receipts, contracts), the Foundation Order is stored as a Financial Document, and it is not forced to internal. Only the shop ticket is locked to internal-only Instructions. Like every generated document apart from the shop ticket, it is saved customer-visible (External), so it shows in the Customer Portal; flip it to Internal on the file if you would rather keep it from the customer. You can download it from the popup or from the Notes & Files tab anytime later.

Your logo prints on the Foundation Order. If you have uploaded a logo it prints at the top of the PDF, in the position you picked for it (left, center or right). MonuDesk uses the logo belonging to the order's own office location when that office has one, and falls back to the company logo on Settings → Company Profile when it does not. If you have no logo anywhere, the Foundation Order prints without one.

Every page of the PDF also carries your company name in bold above Powered by MonuDesk in the footer, with the page number in the bottom corner.

Related articles:

• How to Add and Manage Vendors

• How to View and Download Documents