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Baan/LN Tip of the Week: ERP Setup - Pros & Cons

Kathy Barthelt 0 90149 Article rating: No rating

Pros
Each legal entity can have its own general ledger and balance sheet.
Income statements can be generated for the different logistics companies.
Accounting user must go in and out of companies if there is a need to view or create transactions in more than one company.  However, if all companies are tied to the same financial group company, centralized payments, cash receipt application, and display and printing of ledger transactions and trial balances are possible for both companies from within the financial group company.

Cons
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BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: Understanding What Goes On Out On The Factory Floor – Part 4

Anthony Etzel 0 62044 Article rating: No rating

Understanding: What Was Issued to the Shop Order

The shop order inquiry program provides several function keys. By using the function key for the material, the display will present what components have been issued under the issued quantity column. You are also presented with the required quantity. While viewing the quantities you may see that more was issued than what was required. Possibly there was scrap and more material was required to be issued. Perhaps there was an over issue and the balance of the material is slated to be returned to stock.

A red flag should go up if the Shop Order quantity finished is equal to the required quantity for the end item and all the components have not been issued. You may want to investigate why.

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BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: Getting the Most Out of the Shop Order Inquiry Program – Part 3

Anthony Etzel 0 59661 Article rating: No rating

Understanding: The quantities required, finished and remaining at the operation and in total for the Shop Order

The shop order may require 1,000 pieces but only 950 are reported as finished in total for the shop order. The quantity required is what is planned on the SO and it may be a higher number than what is finished, factoring in that there can be scrap. If a 1,000 pieces are required to be produced, and there is always is scrap of 10 pieces, then plan for scheduling a quantity of 1,010.

The quantity finished for the end item is what is reported in the inventory application with a production order receipt transaction. At the operation level, if the quantity is reported at the operation, there will be a value in the PCS Complete field on the operation detail screen showing the pieces completed through that operation.

If you want to get a handle on the difference between the required quantity and the finished quantity, you may want to look into reporting quantities at the operation level as well as examining how scrap is controlled and reported.

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Baan/LN Tip of the Week: ERP Setup - Pros & Cons

Kathy Barthelt 0 81808 Article rating: 5.0

Pros/Cons of Multi Finance / Single Logistic Company Set-Up


Pros
Each legal entity can have its own general ledger and balance sheet.
Income statements can be generated for the different enterprise units included in the logistics company.
Centralized operations – purchasing, sales, manufacturing, planning, warehousing, etc.
Logistics data visible to all logistics users – a pro if this is what is desired.
One BOM, Routing, and Cost for each item.

 
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BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: Getting the Most Out of the Shop Order Inquiry Program – Part 2

Anthony Etzel 0 67143 Article rating: No rating

Understanding: How many hours remain in total and at each operation?

Now let’s look at what information is being supplied from the shop floor.

It’s not uncommon for transaction reporting to be captured manually on the shop packet that was issued to the factory floor when the SO was released.

The big question is, is anything done with the data? Is it collected and keyed to a  spreadsheet and not shared, or is the transaction data keyed to SFC600? If it is being keyed, ask how often and by whom? Some companies use alternative methods to capture transaction data that do not require batch keying via a keyboard.

Not a lot of data is required to be keyed to SFC600 in order for the SO Inquiry to be useful. The data that should be reported for the transaction process is as follows:

  • The type of hours being reported – machine, run labor, setup labor
  • If reporting setup and run labor you want an employee clock number
  • The shop order and the operation that is being reported
  • Is the operation complete
  • How many good were produced at this operation
  • How many hours – the numbers of hours are critical. Do the employees estimate how many hours they worked, or do they track actual time started and stopped in order to calculate the actual number of hours.

Based on what is captured and how often will have an impact on the SO inquiry screen. Understanding the batch times as to when the transactions are keyed will provide you with the window as to the SO status at that point in time. Or, are they keyed as they happen in a near real time fashion so that you can have a more current view of the factory floor.

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Baan/LN Tip of the Week: ERP Setup - Pros & Cons

Kathy Barthelt 0 56756 Article rating: No rating

You may have started your setup of your ERP system one way, and have discovered over time that maybe it no longer fits how you need to do business. Here are some pros/cons to consider for a Single Finance / Multi-Logistic setup. 

 Pros
All accounting functions are centralized into one company.  One balance sheet is generated – even though multiple logistics sites are involved.  Income statements can be generated by logistic company via use of a Dimension to represent the logistic company.
Allows logistical functions to be decentralized within one legal entity – if this is what is desired.
Logistics data not visible across companies – pro if you do not want users to see other company’s data.

 

Cons

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Crossroads RMC Maintains Preferred Partner Status With Honeywell / Intermec for 2016

Crossroads RMC 0 34535 Article rating: No rating

Honeywell has renewed Crossroads RMC’s Silver Level status in their Performance Partner Program for 2016. This recognition provides Crossroads RMC with the authorization to resell Honeywell/Intermec mobile computing products at a substantial discount, thereby allowing Crossroads’ customers to take advantage of that discount as well. 

Crossroads works closely with the Honeywell /Intermec engineering group to provide the best hardware offerings at a good price point for manufacturers across North America.

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BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: Getting the Most Out of the Shop Order Inquiry Program – Part 1

Anthony Etzel 0 64601 Article rating: 5.0

Understanding: How many hours remain in total and at each operation?

First let’s look at some key BPCS Master File data starting with the routing file.

How many routing steps (operations) are set up that reflect how the product is produced in the factory? If you take a short cut and set up only one operation for the entire process, then you will limit the information seen on the SO inquiry program. Set up the operation steps to reflect what you want to report back to from the factory floor.

Will each of the routing steps run in one work center, or in different work centers? To keep it simple you may want to set up work centers as departments. For example:

  • Assembly
  • Machine
  • Paint
  • Etc.

For each operation setup consider how you have set up the following:

  • Load Codes – for example a code 5 is used if reporting both setup time and run labor time. These codes are maintained in the work center file
  • Basis Code – typical codes are P for pieces per hour,  3 is used for hours per 1,000 pieces
  • Setup hours – if you set them up, you also want to report them
  • Run hours – Direct Labor
  • Machine hours

How you set up th

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Crossroads RMC
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End of Year E R P Checklist: Streamline Your Transition to the New Year

The end of the year is a busy time for everyone, but a little preparation can make the start of the next year smoother and more productive. Here's a checklist broken out by the department to help optimize your ERP system as you wrap up this year.

All Departments End of Year Checklist

_____1. Strategic ERP Review

  • Review and Update Reports and Dashboards
    • Evaluate standard reports and dashboards to ensure they align with current business requirements.
    • Adapt them to reflect changing priorities so the information remains relevant and actionable.

_____2. ERP Support and Maintenance

  • Address Outstanding Support Issues
    • Reach out to Crossroads RMC for unresolved support concerns or system issues.
    • Collaborate to resolve lingering problems and clear your to-do list before the year ends.

_____3. Training and Consulting Services

  • Assess Team Training Needs
    • Conduct a skills gap analysis to identify areas where your team may require additional ERP training.
    • Allocate resources for consulting services to help your team remain efficient and effective with the ERP system.

_____4. Future Investments

  • Evaluate New ERP Features or Modules
    • Review potential ERP investments to support business growth.
    • Align new features or modules with the organization’s current and future needs to maximize ROI and operational efficiency.


IT/Technology Checklist

_____1. Data Cleanup

  • Perform data deduplication to eliminate redundant entries.
  • Validate existing data to ensure accuracy and reliability. This reduces errors and boosts confidence in reporting.

_____2. Archive/Remove Obsolete Data

  • Archive or delete outdated data to improve system performance and reduce database clutter.
  • Streamlined data management enhances system usability and reduces search inefficiencies.

_____3. Monitor System Performance

  • Review system logs and performance metrics to identify bottlenecks.
  • Address any recurring lags or slowdowns to improve overall system efficiency.

_____4. Review User Access Controls

  • Audit user roles, permissions, and access rights for accuracy.
  • Remove or update access for users with altered responsibilities or those no longer with the organization.
  • This step mitigates cybersecurity risks and ensures compliance with data governance policies.

_____5. Test Emergency Recovery Procedures

  • Perform a test run of backup and recovery protocols to verify their effectiveness.
  • Ensure all critical data can be restored in the event of a disaster.

_____6. Prepare for Date-Dependent Processes

  • Audit scheduled jobs, scripts, and automation with hard-coded dates.
  • Update these dates to reflect the upcoming year to avoid disruptions in processes.

_____7. Bonus IT Tasks

  • Communicate planned system downtimes with all stakeholders in advance.
  • Document any changes made to the system during this period for future reference.
  • Encourage feedback from end-users on potential system improvements.

Operations Checklist

_____1. Critical Data Accuracy

  • Ensure critical data, such as inventory levels and customer information, is up-to-date and accurate to support efficient facility operations.
  • Remove discontinued items.
  • Delete sold purchase receipts.
  • Clear lot attributes for sold lots.
  • Non-Manufacturing Environments: Update the standard cost field based on current cost.

_____2. Inventory Management

  • Conduct a full physical inventory and update quantities before year-end or establish a cycle-counting program to maintain accuracy.
  • Prepare users for year-end completion of all inventory adjustments, receipts, and invoicing.
  • Determine processes for handling new-year transactions without immediate posting.

_____3. Purchase Orders & Contracts

  • Close out all purchase contracts and purchase orders (POs) to prevent further receipts against any contract line items.

_____4. Costing & Manufacturing Tasks

  • Decide on new standard costs for the upcoming year (for Manufacturing environments).
  • Establish cutoff dates for removing archived BOMs and closed/canceled manufacturing orders.

_____5. LX-Specific Tasks

  • Run PRF900 to update performance measurements and purge closed shop orders.

_____6. Fixed Assets & Depreciation

  • Review and update the depreciation schedule for fixed assets.
  • Verify depreciation expenses for the year have been accurately recorded.
  • For any new assets added during the year, ensure they are included in the depreciation schedule.

Finance Checklist

_____1. Period Closing & Reconciliation

  • Close financial periods and reconcile accounts to ensure financial data consistency and readiness for audits, tax filings, and other financial processes.
  • Set up financial periods for 2025 before the year begins.
  • Open the January 2025 period.
  • Finalize all outstanding transactions from 2024.

_____2. LN-Specific Tasks:

  • Perform a soft-close for any open periods in 2024.

_____3. LX-Specific Tasks:

  • Copy the CEA Book for the new year, ensuring all Journal Sources are set up. This ensures all required records are in place.
  • Run ACP920 (1099 Report) before ACP910 (Year End Close), as the Close Program clears 1099 Payments History.

_____4. Financial Cleanup

  • Address any old sales invoices and ensure they are properly closed.
  • Rectify any outstanding financial integration errors.
  • Set up and test new integration mappings for 2025 in a test environment.
  • Review and update jobs to ensure they are configured correctly for 2025 processing.
  • Identify purchase invoices for cash-flow management that won’t be paid until 2025.

_____5. Payroll Review

  • Verify employee payroll records and reconcile them with financial statements.
  • Ensure all employee information is up-to-date, including unpaid sick leave and vacation time, and carry over or adjust as necessary.

_____6. Accounts Receivable & Payable

  • Resolve any outstanding issues or unpaid invoices in customer or vendor accounts.
  • Record all payments and receipts to maintain accurate financial data.
  • Review outstanding receivables for potential bad debts.
    • Decide whether to carry them over into the new year.
    • Adjust the allowance for bad debts as necessary.

_____7. Bonus Financial Tasks

  • Verify that ERP calendars are set up for the new year with holidays correctly indicated.
  • Ensure proper mapping and testing of financial processes to avoid disruptions in the new year.

Taking these proactive steps will set your ERP system up for success in the coming year.

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