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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

BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: 6 Powerful Steps to Win With Automation

Anthony Etzel 0 34975 Article rating: No rating

1. Eliminate paper shop packet and distribution of the paperwork to the shop floor.  

2. Eliminate manual (paper-based) recording activities and the need to key in the transactions.

3. Easy electronic scheduling by sequence and changing job priorities.

4. Evaluate differences using actual times compared to standards.

5. Improve data accuracy and eliminate the need to chase and fix errors.

6. Practice Real-Time data reporting to monitor efficiencies and identify problems as they occur.

Optimize Your Manufacturing Today!

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

Kathy Barthelt 0 78049 Article rating: No rating

One common GRINYA issue would be incorrectly entered Integration Setups.

Check the Baan or 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.

Optimize Your Manufacturing Today!

BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: Purchase Order Receive All Processing

Anthony Etzel 0 28840 Article rating: No rating

With this enhancement, the Purchase Receipts screens are optionally shown with the quantity and weight fields populated with the open value on the purchase order.

Previously the user had tomanually enter the quantity received or, for a dynamic weight and measure items, the weightreceived for each line on the purchase order.

Now the screens are populated with the open valueand if the open value is the same as the value received, the user can simply accept the line.

Optimize Your Manufacturing Today!

Baan/LN Tip of the Week: 4 Reasons You Need Timely & Accurate Data

Kathy Barthelt 0 74708 Article rating: No rating

Seems obvious – you want real time data and you want it to be accurate. Do you have the systems in place to allow for this?

Here are 4 reasons you need a data collection system:

  1. See the differences between actuals and standards
  2. Determine the source of project overruns
  3. Prevent mis-shipments to customers
  4. Avoid unnecessary reordering of parts

An automated data collection system will analyze your current data, allowing you to efficiently optimize your manufacturing and the benefits will be huge and far reaching.

Optimize Your Manufacturing Today!

Blonder Tongue Looks for Success on LX With Crossroads MES

Anthony Etzel 0 30454 Article rating: No rating

Blonder Tongue, a global communications equipment supplier for TV broadcasters and cable system operators, has selected Crossroads RMC to upgrade their ERP from BPCS 6.0.04 to the latest version of Infor LX. As part of this project, they will implement FIN, MFG, SCM and Webtop on LX, and will incorporate process improvements company wide in phase 2. Crossroads MES will go live over 6.0.04 in Q4 2017 with a planned cutover to LX as part of the ERP go live in Q1 2018.

Blonder Tongue, a global communications equipment supplier for TV broadcasters and cable system operators, has selected Crossroads RMC to upgrade their ERP from BPCS 6.0.04 to the latest version of Infor LX. As part of this project, they will implement FIN, MFG, SCM and Webtop on LX, and will incorporate process improvements company wide in phase 2. Crossroads MES will go live over 6.0.04 in Q4 2017 with a planned cutover to LX as part of the ERP go live in Q1 2018.  

Blonder Tongue, a global communications equipment supplier for TV broadcasters and cable system operators, has selected Crossroads RMC to upgrade their ERP from BPCS 6.0.04 to the latest version of Infor LX. As part of this project, they will implement FIN, MFG, SCM and Webtop on LX, and will incorporate process improvements company wide in phase 2. Crossroads MES will go live over 6.0.04 in Q4 2017 with a planned cutover to LX as part of the ERP go live in Q1 2018.  
Blonder Tongue, a global communications equipment supplier for TV broadcasters and cable system operators, has selected Crossroads RMC to upgrade their ERP from BPCS 6.0.04 to the latest version of Infor LX. As part of this project, they will implement FIN, MFG, SCM and Webtop on LX, and will incorporate process improvements company wide in phase 2. Crossroads MES will go live over 6.0.04 in Q4 2017 with a planned cutover to LX as part of the ERP go live in Q1 2018.  
Blonder Tongue, a global communications equipment supplier for TV broadcasters and cable system operators, has selected Crossroads RMC to upgrade their ERP from BPCS 6.0.04 to the latest version of Infor LX. As part of this project, they will implement FIN, MFG, SCM and Webtop on LX, and will incorporate process improvements com

BPCS/LX Tip of the Week: Estimates Versus Actuals

Anthony Etzel 0 32586 Article rating: No rating

So, how many of you have updated the estimated cost of material and labor in your ERP system recently? ……Hmmmm. That’s what I thought.

Do you have any idea how accurate those numbers are? Are you making business decisions based on estimates that are completely inaccurate?

Consider switching from estimates to actuals. Furthermore, consider implementing an automated data collection system to make this easy. By collecting production and labor data real time, you can gain real insight into your business and you gain the ability to look at the profitability of individual jobs, projects and employees.

Optimize Your Manufacturing Today!

Baan/LN Tip of the Week: Estimates Versus Actuals

Kathy Barthelt 0 79659 Article rating: 5.0

So, how many of you have updated the estimated cost of material and labor in your ERP system recently? ……Hmmmm. That’s what I thought.

Do you have any idea how accurate those numbers are? Are you making business decisions based on estimates that are completely inaccurate?

Consider switching from estimates to actuals. Furthermore, consider implementing an automated data collection system to make this easy. By collecting production and labor data real time, you can gain real insight into your business and you gain the ability to look at the profitability of individual jobs, projects and employees.

Optimize Your Manufacturing Today!

Baan/LN Tip of the Week: 4 Benefits to Consider - Cross-Docking

Kathy Barthelt 0 78039 Article rating: No rating

Cross Docking is the practice of immediately processing completed goods to fulfill ‘demand’ requests with minimal handling. Cross Docking automatically combines and performs Baan / Infor LN steps to fill demand and shortages at the time items are available. Shortages are sorted and filled by the oldest demand date.

Benefits of Cross Docking include:

  • Direct and indirect labor savings resulting from operational efficiencies gains
  • Increased inventory accuracy, reliable on-hand inventory information and improved data entry
  • Increased productivity
  • Increased customer retention due to faster, more accurate fulfillment

Optimize Your Manufacturing Today!

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Tips:  LX | BPCS | M3

Improves control over PO costing changes during invoice entry by replacing passive warnings with an intentional override action.

  • In ACP500D3 (Invoice Entry PO Costing), users previously could unintentionally accept changes by pressing ENTER, even when quantity to cost or amount to cost values had changed.

  • A new “F14 to Override” warning message replaces the old message:
    “Details have changed. Press enter again to accept data.”
    This ensures users acknowledge and confirm significant changes explicitly.

New System Parameter:

  • “Apply GRN Costing Tolerance for PO Costing” (optional):

    • Within tolerance: Displays the original message —
      “Details have changed. Press enter again to accept data.”

    • Outside tolerance: Triggers the new override requirement —
      “F14 to Override”

Benefits:

  • Enhances oversight and reduces unintentional cost acceptance.

  • Enables better control of PO costs when invoice details differ from expectations.

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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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