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Infor LX Tips, Infor LN Tips, BPCS Tips, Baan Tips, Infor M3 Tips & Infor ERP News

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Infor ERP Tips & News from the Experts

Infor LX | Infor LN | BPCS | Baan | Infor M3

Baan/LN Tip of the Week: Financial Year End – Have you done all you need to do?

Kathy Barthelt 0 54593 Article rating: No rating

Came across an article online from Lauber CFO’s, and thought I would share. Here is a checklist for things to consider in order to finish out the year and help you plan for 2016:

  • Is your accounting records up to date so that you can make a projection of how the current year will turn out?
  • Are all account reconciliations currently up to date to facilitate the closing of the books after year-end?
  • Are there accounts receivable that should be reserved for or written off prior to the end of the year?
  • If your business carries inventory, do you need to plan a physical count as of the end of the year?
  • Has depreciation on your fixed assets been recorded during the year? Have you considered depreciation on current year additions?
  • Have all new asset purchases and bank loans been recorded on your books?
  • Are there any liabilities, for example, pending legal actions or warranty issues, which will need to be recorded prior to the year-end? 
  • Do you have a plan in place to properly “cut-off” revenue at year-end to properly match revenue and expense?
  • Will there be bonuses, profit sharing contributions, or discretionary retirement plan contributions paid prior to the end of the year? How will these payments affect cash flow?
  • Will you be in compliance with your bank covenants at year-end?
  • Do you need to make arrangements to receive statements as of the end of the year for the cash value of life insurance, loan balances, etc.?

BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: Using Pre-Assigned Lot Numbers

Anthony Etzel 0 56149 Article rating: No rating

Some items in the manufacturing process may require a lot number. A quick and easy way to release the Shop Orders with lot numbers is by using the Multi-Level Shop Order Release.

Simply select the end item from the selection screen and use action 10 for the multi-level order release. At the bottom of the release screen is the field “Pre-Assign a Lot Number to Shop Orders”. Select 1 for the pre-assigned lot number assignment option.

This option will use the pre-assigned lot number on the shop order, if the lot number exists. If the lot number does not exist, the system will automatically create a lot number and assign it to the shop order for all items that are lot-controlled.

CST Adds Warranty Service Claim System to Dealer Portal for LN

Crossroads RMC 0 32821 Article rating: No rating

Crossroads RMC has once again partnered with Xenitel Managed Service Solutions and CST Industries to create a warranty service claim system for CST’s dealers. The project will provide a way for dealers to create a “warranty request claim” from within the dealer portal, defining the customer and product, and parts that failed, and selecting what parts they are claiming for replacement to install the replacement part. This service will be offered in addition to the parts online ordering system previously developed for CST. 

 

CST is a global leader in the manufacture and construction of factory coated metal storage tanks, aluminum domes and specialty covers.

Baan/LN Tip of the Week: How Accurate is Your Inventory?

Kathy Barthelt 0 54356 Article rating: No rating

Just a refresher on a tip I’ve shared previously from Supply Chain Technology Bulletin regarding how to attain greater inventory accuracy. I thought it would be worthwhile to share again:

  1. Record data regarding your inventory as soon as the items arrive at your door / receiving dock. With information, you can make decisions. Without it, you waste money, time, and effort.
  2. Leverage data collection, label generation, and RFID solutions to make your life easier.
  3. Set inventory accuracy goals for the business and for employees.
  4. Train your employees so they know what is expected of them, and how to best perform their job and therefore how best to maintain accurate inventory counts.
  5. Count the inventory – and do it regularly. Find a method that works best for your employees, and for your business.

BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: How Accurate is Your Inventory?

Anthony Etzel 0 67775 Article rating: No rating

Just a refresher on a tip I’ve shared previously from supply Chain Technology Bulletin regarding how to attain greater inventory accuracy. I thought it would be worthwhile to share again:

  1. Record data regarding your inventory as soon as the items arrive at your door / receiving dock. With information, you can make decisions. Without it, you waste money, time, and effort.
  2. Leverage data collection, label generation, and RFID solutions to make your life easier.
  3. Set inventory accuracy goals for the business and for employees.
  4. Train your employees so they know what is expected of them, and how to best perform their job and therefore how best to maintain accurate inventory counts.
  5. Count the inventory – and do it regularly. Find a method that works best for your employees, and for your business.

BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: User Defined Transactions

Anthony Etzel 0 57951 Article rating: No rating

When to use a user-defined inventory transaction

ERP LX (BPCS) provides you with the flexibility to create inventory transactions without program modifications. The typical transaction types are defined with effects set on how the transaction will impact inventory balances.

Perhaps you want to process a customer return and don’t want the inventory to be impacted. You can create a user define transaction effect to allow the customer receipt and not update the inventory balance.

Baan/LN Tip of the Week: Month End – Miscellaneous To-Do’s

Kathy Barthelt 0 55628 Article rating: No rating
  • Print Sales Order History Information
    • all invoices processed through sales
  • Check Inventory Valuation
    • this should tie out to your inventory accounts
  • Print Integration Information
    • see all postings from WIP to finished goods
  • Print G/L Transaction Information
    • print specific transaction types for any GL account
  • Print Lot Control Information
    • will show where serial numbers were used

Baan/LN Tip of the Week: GRINYA Reconciliation – What Could Go Wrong?

Kathy Barthelt 0 57958 Article rating: No rating

One common GRINYA issue would be incorrectly entered Integration Setups.

Check the Baan or Infor LN manual for recommended Integration setups. If such a mistake were to occur, it is important to know for what period of time the Integration was in error.

To ensure, it’s recommended that the Integrations Setup tables should be audited either through Baan/LN or Database Auditing. Corrections can be quickly calculated when an exact timeframe can be determined.

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Tips:  LX | BPCS | M3

Tips: LN | Baan

An ERP System Review is NOT a Report Card

It's a no-judgment-review - we promise!

report card C minusWe all remember our school days and the nervousness that we felt when it came time to get our grades. Even if we were doing well, we were still nervous. Sometimes we experienced that same nervousness when it came time for a performance review on our job. Nervousness…sometimes dread…knowing that our performance was not what we wanted it to be, or others expected it to be. 

Somehow I think the feelings that we felt in our past often find ways to creep into our present. I have seen this recently when I suggested an ERP system review to one of our customers. They immediately became flustered and thought about every possible problem that they knew existed within the software and how they were currently using it. I asked them to consider the purpose of the ERP system review.

An ERP Utilization Review will:

  • Document how your company is using your ERP system (or a particular aspect of the system) and to what extent the system meets the needs of the business.
  • Identify challenges encountered using the software.
  • Create opportunities for improving business processes and generating additional value.
  • Identify potential risks and areas that need improvement.


key hole to the futureSo, if the result of ERP system review is to establish a path forward for growth based on current status, then why doesn’t every company take advantage of it? I think for some, the answer lies in the feelings of nervousness and dread still stuck in the recesses of our brains.

An ERP system review or more specifically a utilization review is NOT a personal report card, or performance review showing how well a particular individual does his/hers/their job, nor is it an attack on the team that implemented the software. 

As they say, hindsight is 20/20. What we view now to be a less than ideal implementation methodology may have been absolutely appropriate at the time the software was originally deployed. The software has likely matured and the skillsets of the individuals responsible for the system have likely matured as well. In some cases, those resources are no longer with the company, leaving those that remain with no back story as to how and why implementation decisions were made.

Instead of viewing the ERP utilization review as a reason to find fault in previous decisions, think of it as discovering untapped potential – both of the ERP system and the people who use it. Viewing an ERP utilization review in this way puts a positive spin on it and allows us to challenge ourselves to identify opportunities for growth far greater than anything we imagined before. This means not only moving our businesses forward faster but also advancing the strength of the company as individuals and as a team.

What untapped potential lies within your company?

Consider a utilization review of your entire ERP system, or just a part of it like Finance, Technology, Materials Management, Order Processing, or Shop Floor Control. You just might be surprised at what greatness can be achieved… far greater than anyone could have imagined.  

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Kathy Barthelt

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