You can track actual entries by creating a separate table to log the inventory transactions. This table can store information about received inventory and inventory used, including quantities, lot numbers, and associated jobs.

Here's an example of how you can structure the table:

Inventory Transactions Table:
   - TransactionID (Primary Key)
   - JobID (Foreign Key referencing the Jobs table)
   - MaterialID (Foreign Key referencing the Inventory Items table)
   - TransactionTypeID (Foreign Key referencing the Transaction Type table(Received/Used))
   - Transaction Date
   - Lot Number
   - Quantity

Whenever you receive inventory, you would insert a new record into the Inventory Transactions table with the transaction type set as "Received." Similarly, when inventory is used, a new record would be added with the transaction type set as "Used." The Material ID and Job ID fields allow you to link the transaction to the respective items.

By maintaining this separate log of entries, you can track the exact quantities received and used, as well as associate them with specific lot numbers and jobs. This will help you identify any discrepancies in the quantity on hand, such as the missing 250 gallons you mentioned.

You can create forms or queries to facilitate data entry and retrieval from the Inventory Transactions table. This way, you can easily view the history of inventory transactions and identify any potential issues.

Remember to update the quantity on hand in the Inventory Items table based on the transactions recorded in the Inventory Transactions table. You can use queries to calculate the current quantity on hand by summing the received quantities and subtracting the used quantities.

By implementing this secondary log of entries, you can enhance the accuracy and traceability of your inventory tracking system.

I hope this helps.

yeah it makes complete sense, I'll work on implementing it.  If i have any more questions I'll post back here.  Once again youve been a huge help.  thank you!  Oh one last thing would this look like Richards transaction log techhelp?

One other point of reference is I keep the Qty on hand with the inventory item in the inventory table.  I either add to or subtract from using an update query for each way i.e. one to add for receiving, and one to subtract based on daily amounts used.  We typically purchase the spray components every quarter in a 500 gallon tote set of our most used material.  I suspecting that we either missed a tote (250) gallons when we did physical inventory, and that is where the error started.  But that is just a guess.  thank you again