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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

Don't laugh - the average lifespan of an ERP system is 7-10 years

Crossroads RMC 0 33430 Article rating: 5.0

Don’t laugh! I know, I know…many of our customers say that after 7-10 years they are finally settling in after the implementation! We have seen many a customer stretch out the lifespan of their ERP system to 20+ years. That sounds great for the company’s bank account, but is it good for the business?

An outdated ERP system hurts your business in many ways, not just with slow performance. The best-of-breed functionality is now 2 decades old, and obsolete technology can't leverage newer technology. Lack of integration leads to siloed data that hurts communication and your internal teams feel the pain, and your customers are noticing. Poor visibility into your operations makes it nearly impossible to achieve industry-based regulatory compliance and meet financial auditing requirements. Not to mention the sheer size of Big Data that is being collected today vs. 2 decades ago or the fact that your vendor is no longer supporting your ERP version.

Let’s scrap it all and start over!...

Infor LN & Baan Tip: Purchase Order Text

Kathy Barthelt 0 63414 Article rating: 5.0

Is the text linked to the purchase order just an information field? Could it be used for another purpose?

The text editor is just an information field when linked to the purchase order line and there is no other logic behind this functionality. The line text or the header text could be a part of the printed document. When you add text to a purchase order line you are creating a unique code that links the purchase order line (Baan - tdpur041/ LN - tdpur401) to the text (tttxt010).

Infor LX & BPCS Tip: Vendor Terms Maintenance, ACP160D1

George Moroses 0 33724 Article rating: 5.0

This program allows maintenance of vendor terms, which you individually assign to each vendor. Vendor terms designate the due date and the discount date as a number of days after the invoice date. You establish the discount percentage here. Vendor terms are stored in the AVT file. Rather than use the method specified above, you can override due dates and discount dates so those calendar days are used to age invoices.

Access: Menu ACP02

Infor LN & Baan: BIG DATA - Keeping Track of Key Metrics

Kathy Barthelt 0 65118 Article rating: 5.0

In order to communicate effectively as a team, everyone needs to speak the same language and operate off the same playbook. If decisions are made based on the data or the view of data that individuals are maintaining through their own spreadsheets or other data silos, then communication is negatively impacted.

Manufacturers need to review large amounts of data every day, making it difficult to keep track of key metrics within your department.

That’s where Crossroads RMC’s Analytics Dashboard solution comes in. Our Analytics Dashboard was developed to make tasks easier by putting all of the key information in one convenient location so you can view all of your crucial data in real-time. 

With powerful dashboards, you can...

Infor LX & BPCS: Waste in Manufacturing

George Moroses 0 28934 Article rating: 5.0

In manufacturing, waste is anything that doesn’t add value to or benefit the end customer. Reducing waste enables manufacturers to save money and increase productivity. Where is the waste happening in your processes?

How often is your department spending time and resources on the following tasks?...

Infor LX & BPCS Tip: Overhead Costs - CST120D1

George Moroses 0 27095 Article rating: 4.0

Use this program to enter period overhead expenses to distribute to various work centers. You can set up this overhead cost allocation on either a per-hour or a per-piece basis, depending on the overhead allocation type specified for each work center on the Work Center Maintenance screen, CAP100D2-01. The system spreads the amounts entered across all shop orders posted by Shop Floor Posting, SFC600, or Production Reporting, JIT600, when you run Overhead Cost Allocation, CST510. The system stores allocated overhead in the Labor Ticket file, FLT, and updates actual item cost when you run Shop Order Close and Post, CST900.

Access: Menu CST

Infor LX & BPCS: BIG DATA - Keeping Track of Key Metrics

George Moroses 0 32440 Article rating: 5.0

In order to communicate effectively as a team, everyone needs to speak the same language and operate off the same playbook. If decisions are made based on the data or the view of data that individuals are maintaining through their own spreadsheets or other data silos, then communication is negatively impacted.

Manufacturers need to review large amounts of data every day, making it difficult to keep track of key metrics within your department.

That’s where Crossroads RMC’s Analytics Dashboard solution comes in. Our Analytics Dashboard was developed to make tasks easier by putting all of the key information in one convenient location so you can view all of your crucial data in real-time. 

With powerful dashboards, you can...

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Tips:  LX | BPCS | M3

Kathy Barthelt

Tip of the Week: 10 Ways to Succeed at an OEE Project Where 90% Fail

  1. Collect the requirements. Learn from everyone with the intent of developing a phased approach to implementing on your shop floor with OEE being Phase 1. 
  2. Create your list. Capture all of required functions, taking into account what the “output” of the system will be. What does the plant manager need to see in real-time? What KPI’s does each line need displayed in real-time? What reports are required?
  3. Insist Upon Real-time. In the moment data for the right OEE is the right approach. If it’s possible, collect the data automatically. Remember that real-time feedback to line operators results in an automatic increase in OEE.
  4. Evaluate your lines. Focus where production counts can be monitored automatically. If the data is in your PLC’s, can you get it out? OPC communication is the right way to go here. If not, the approach is to install a new dedicated PLC with sensors installed on each line.
  5. Find Your Data Points. If automatic production monitoring is not applicable, what will be your collection points and how will you collect the data?
  6. Calculate the Load. Determine how to load the “job” you’re reporting on into the OEE system. This will typically be the order/operation or the product from the ERP.
  7. Recognize Great Data. Do not accept “manual collection of data” as a viable approach because it produces false results and is labor-intensive.
  8. Be Tough. Evaluate systems based on OEE specificity to start and expandability to future phase functions as determined by your requirements. Plan to justify the OEE purchase on its own merits.
  9. Go Easy. Make sure the system is easy to implement. Software installation and configuration should take no more than 2 weeks.
  10. Be Simple. Put together a detailed but simple project plan indicating who will do what, how long it will take, and how you will monitor progress.
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Tips: LN | Baan

You can move monthly periods to a different parent period. For example, if you have a monthly calendar, you can create quarter periods and move months to the quarters.

  1. Select Financials > Global Ledger > Setup > Finance Enterprise Group > Maintenance.
  2. Open the finance enterprise group.
  3. Click the Calendar tab.
  4. Open the calendar for which you want to move periods.
  5. Click the Hierarchy tab.
  6. Select the periods to move.
  7. Select Actions > Move.
  8. Select the new parent period under which you want to move the periods.
  9. Click OK.

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