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

Crossroads Connections

Infor ERP Tips & News from the Experts

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

It’s mid-January and IT’S GO TIME!

Infor LX | BPCS | Infor LN | Baan

Crossroads RMC 0 19828 Article rating: 5.0

The calendar is fresh, the resolutions are made and the opportunities are endless!

So, it is time to dive right in and start tackling your to-do’s?

Right??

...Not just yet!

First, you need to take the time to think about your ERP strategy.

What’s an ERP strategy?

Infor LX & BPCS Tip: What is IDF and Why Do I Need It?

George Moroses 0 26910 Article rating: 5.0

The Infor Development Framework (IDF) re-architects the way a user interacts with the application by providing an efficient, task-oriented process to view the application information that is contained within Infor LX. IDF enables users to configure their view of the application data without modifying the core application and its supportability.

The examples below describe how users can configure their display of data and maximize overall productivity:

  • Arrange application information into multiple groupings and sequences that make sense for the job.
  • Hide information that does not apply to a particular job or task.
  • Filter records to show only the information that applies to the job or task that the user is performing.
  • Customize the information for an individual user, for a group of users, or for all users.

To get more details on how IDF can benefit your company, please contact Anthony Etzel today!

Infor LN & Baan | Infor LX & BPCS Tip: Time for the dreaded three words?

Crossroads RMC 0 27620 Article rating: 5.0

Manual     Physical     Inventory

While it may be accurate (and I say MAY), is a Manual Physical Inventory the right way? Best practices would say absolutely not!

The better way is implementing Cycle Counting. Why Cycle Counting instead of a full physical inventory? With a cycle count, the count focuses on a selected range of stock that can be carried out in parallel with a company’s normal operations. Cycle Counts represent a streamlined method of inventory management to ensure less disruption on the business processes associated with receiving, consuming, or dispatching of stock. 

The “freeze” is no longer required, your staff doesn't need to work long hours over the holidays, and you get accurate inventory counts all year long! Crossroads RMC can help you implement Cycle Counting efficiently and painlessly, contact us today to get started. 800.762.2077

Infor LN & Baan Period End & Fiscal Year End Processing Checklist

Kathy Barthelt 0 57984 Article rating: 5.0

Year-end is always a busy time and it is easy to forget things that must be done in your ERP system to close out the year properly and also set you up for a good start to the following year. Here are some things that you should make sure to add to your to-do checklist:

The year-end close process provides an opportunity to:

_____ Remove discontinued items.

_____ Remove sold purchase receipts.

_____ Remove lot attributes for sold lots.

_____ Update standard cost based on current cost field (for environments without Manufacturing only).

Prepare for Year-End Close

_____ Conduct full physical...

Infor LX & BPCS Period End & Fiscal Year End Processing Checklist

George Moroses 0 21926 Article rating: 5.0

Infor LX & BPCS Year-End Close Checklist

Year-end is always a busy time and it is easy to forget all the things that must be done in your Infor ERP system to close out the year properly and set you up for success the following year. Here are some things you should have on your checklist:

The year-end close process provides an opportunity to:

_____ Remove discontinued items.

_____ Remove sold purchase receipts.

_____ Remove lot attributes for sold lots.

_____ Update standard cost based on current cost field (only for environments without Manufacturing).


Preparing for Year-End Close:

_____ Conduct full physical...

Infor LN & Baan Tip: Using the “Use Up” Functionality in Infor LN

Kathy Barthelt 0 54612 Article rating: 5.0

To use the ‘Use-Up’ or ‘Alternative’ functionality the correct ATP settings of the use-up item must be defined. Order Planning makes use of ATP to determine if there is still supply available. The component needs to have a CTP horizon greater than 0. Then a top down item selection should be chosen when generating order planning in order for the ATP checks to be done and for the system to plan for the correct components.

Selecting the 'top down item' box when generating order planning is essential because when order planning is generated for only the top level item the components aren't "really" planned for. But when a top down selection is run, the system goes through the BOM and plans for each component accordingly.

Tim Baker – Infor LX User Group’s Newest Board Member!

George Moroses 0 25574 Article rating: 5.0

We are proud to announce that Tim Baker, Crossroads RMC Senior Solutions Architect & Project Manager, has become a member of the Infor LX User Community Board of Directors!

Tim brings 32 years of experience to Crossroads RMC and takes pride in offering exceptional leadership and expertise to achieve the goals and objectives of his clients. It is this level of experience that will make Tim an excellent representative for the Infor LX Community going forward as a member of the board.

At Crossroads RMC, Tim serves as a Senior Solutions Architect and Project Manager for Infor LX and Infor ION implementations. He has been a Senior Manager of Software Development and Support, Senior System Analyst, and has managed software development team objectives and projects, which included planning, installation, and software modification of BPCS, Infor LX (ERP LX), I2, DC Service, and web development software. Additionally, he has managed a multitude of projects and led analysis, design, training, and development efforts across multiple ERP verticals.

Please join us in congratulating Tim and wishing him well in his efforts to help the Infor LX User Community!
Infor User Communities allow you to network with other customers and discuss any of Infor’s software solutions. 

Not currently a member of the Infor LX User Group?
The LX User Group has moved to https://concierge.infor.com. All access requests require approval by your organization's support admin. Once you have access to https://concierge.infor.com, click on the Communities box, and join the LX - User Group - LX. 

Infor LX & BPCS Tip: Inventory Stocking Levels – Warehouses, Locations and Lots…Oh My!

George Moroses 0 21767 Article rating: 4.0

The Infor LX system supports 4 levels of inventory. You can view summaries of stock at each level through the Material Status Inquiry program or through reports. Below are the 4 levels:

  • Item
  • Item + warehouse
  • Item + warehouse + location
  • Item + warehouse + location + lot

The lot number level and/or container of inventory can...

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Tips:  LX | BPCS | M3

Item Facility Master has a new attribute to define the override inspection days lead time CICP.ICINSD.

  • When an item facility has a defined override inspection days lead time, that value will be used instead of the system parameter inspection days lead time.

MRP exception report, MRP200B
Purchase planning report, PUR285B
Purchase order / Requisition maintenance, PUR500D3
Purchase order consolidation / release, PUR640B1
Vendor splits, PUR653B

This enhancement improved the subfile utilized in MRP320D Master Schedule Detail Inquiry -SCR001 by expanding the subfile with data rather than clearing the subfile as user pages. This change provides full support for the WebTop 4.8 Grid decorator.

This enhancement updated the approach used to populate the subfile to allow a deployed Webtop Grid to function correctly. There is no visible or user-impacted change to the way the program functions.

This enhancement provides improved functionality and full support of a Webtop grid applied to the subfile.

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Tips: LN | Baan

George Moroses

Infor LX & BPCS Tip: PowerLink

PowerLink is a Windows-based client for end-users within the Infor Development Framework (IDF). PowerLink allows exports/imports from/to the ERP database, but how much do you really know about it? Here is some helpful information about PowerLink.​

Why does PowerLink sometimes fail to export all records?
There's not a finite amount of records that PowerLink can export. However, PowerLink export was never intended to handle large volumes of data. It was designed as a quick snapshot of a fairly small subset and a simple view of the user's PowerLink card. 

What is the maximum amount of data that can be exported?
The maximum number of records is only limited by the system resource like memory, etc. When the system runs out of resources, an OutOfMemory error should occur. In previous testings, we have exported +1 million records, although the size of records differs greatly between business objects, the total size of the data could be an issue. For larger volumes of data, customers should investigate other tools such as the iSeries Access "Data Transfer from iSeries Server" feature to download directly to Excel.

How do I know if the size of the data is an issue?
1. When exporting to an external file (text, HTML) then importing to Excel: You can easily check the output (text, HTML) to see if the intermediate output has all the records. This can be done by visual inspection or through the use of column totals. Simply compare between the output and what you see in PowerLink. If the exported file has all the records, then the problem is definitely Excel.
2. When exporting to clipboard, then copy/paste to Excel: There is a clipboard export size limit that is controlled through client preferences. Check the exported data in the clipboard, and see if it contains all the records or only partial records due to the size limitation set in client preferences. If limited, change the client preferences using Customize from the Main browser > Preferences > Miscellaneous tab > Limit Clipboard Export, and try the export again. If the clipboard has all the records the problem is in Excel, which we don't have jurisdiction over.

Suggestions for improving the export process. 

  1. Reduce the number of columns seen in the view. This will serve to reduce the data being exported and may increase the number of records that can be exported. 
     
  2. Reduce the complexity of the view. If the view has one column that lives on a related object, then it has to build SQL behind the scenes to get that related record. If all of the columns come from a single business object, then the processing will be significantly faster.
     
  3. Export to HTML, which can be opened directly by Excel, Access, and many other programs. This reduces the processing of the export formatting because PowerLink needs only to put begin and end tags around each data element. This will also preserve column alignment when Excel or other programs open the file.
     
  4. Unless you are exporting a fairly small volume of data, export to a file, not clipboard. Clipboard is held in memory until the entire view is read, and records are written to the file as they are retrieved.
     

 Also see KB 1357068 for more information about testing your view.

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