Inventory Specialized Processing

Epicor ERP Inventory Management Specialized Processing Course

10.2.700

Disclaimer

This document is for informational purposes only and is subject to change without notice. This document and its contents, including the viewpoints, dates and functional content expressed herein are believed to be accurate as of its date of publication. However, Epicor Software Corporation makes no guarantee, representations or warranties with regard to the enclosed information and specifically disclaims any applicable implied warranties, such as fitness for a particular purpose, merchantability, satisfactory quality or reasonable skill and care. As each user of Epicor software is likely to be unique in their requirements in the use of such software and their business processes, users of this document are always advised to discuss the content of this document with their Epicor account manager. All information contained herein is subject to change without notice and changes to this document since printing and other important information about the software product are made or published in release notes, and you are urged to obtain the current release notes for the software product. We welcome user comments and reserve the right to revise this publication and/or make improvements or changes to the products or programs described in this publication at any time, without notice. The usage of any Epicor software shall be pursuant to an Epicor end user license agreement and the performance of any consulting services by Epicor personnel shall be pursuant to Epicor's standard services terms and conditions. Usage of the solution(s) described in this document with other Epicor software or third party products may require the purchase of licenses for such other products. Where any software is expressed to be compliant with local laws or requirements in this document, such compliance is not a warranty and is based solely on Epicor's current understanding of such laws and requirements. All laws and requirements are subject to varying interpretations as well as to change and accordingly Epicor cannot guarantee that the software will be compliant and up to date with such changes. All statements of platform and product compatibility in this document shall be considered individually in relation to the products referred to in the relevant statement, i.e., where any Epicor software is stated to be compatible with one product and also stated to be compatible with another product, it should not be interpreted that such Epicor software is compatible with both of the products running at the same time on the same platform or environment. Additionally platform or product compatibility may require the application of Epicor or third-party updates, patches and/or service packs and Epicor has no responsibility for compatibility issues which may be caused by updates, patches and/or service packs released by third parties after the date of publication of this document. Epicor^® is a registered trademark and/or trademark of Epicor Software Corporation in the United States, certain other countries and/or the EU. All other trademarks mentioned are the property of their respective owners. Copyright ^© Epicor Software Corporation 2020. All rights reserved. Not for distribution or republication. Information in this document is subject to Epicor license agreement(s).

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10.2.700 Revision: September 17, 2020 9:28 p.m. Total pages: 74 course.ditaval

Contents

Inventory Management - Specialized Processing Course....................................................6 Before You Begin....................................................................................................................7

Modules Licensing...........................................................................................................................................7

Audience.........................................................................................................................................................7

Prerequisites....................................................................................................................................................7

Environment Setup..........................................................................................................................................9

Workshop Constraints............................................................................................................................10 Overview...............................................................................................................................11 Specialized Inventory Processing........................................................................................12

Part Product Coding and Cross Referencing...................................................................................................12 Part Product Coding...............................................................................................................................12 Workshop - Create a Part With Product Code References................................................................13 Create Product Code References..............................................................................................14 Create Material........................................................................................................................14 Use a Product Code in an Inventory Transaction.......................................................................15 Part Cross References.............................................................................................................................16 Internal Part Cross References.................................................................................................................16 Workshop - Create an Internal Part Cross Reference........................................................................17 Manufacturers and Lifecycle Statuses......................................................................................................17 Create a Manufacturer Record.........................................................................................................18 Qualified Manufacturer Maintenance......................................................................................................18 Workshop - Qualify a Manufacturer and Link to a Part.....................................................................19 Create a New Qualified Manufacturer Part...............................................................................19 Select a Part Cross Reference for an RFQ..................................................................................20 Supplier Part Cross References................................................................................................................21 Workshop - Create Supplier Part Cross References...........................................................................21 Select a Supplier and Part.........................................................................................................21 Add Supplier and Manufacturer Part Cross References..............................................................22 Create a Purchase Order Line....................................................................................................22 Customer Part Cross Reference...............................................................................................................23 Workshop - Create a Customer Part Cross Reference.......................................................................24 Create an Order Line................................................................................................................25 Lot Tracking...................................................................................................................................................26 Workshop - Create a Lot-Tracked Part.....................................................................................................26 Workshop - Create Lot Attributes...........................................................................................................27 Workshop - Create a Purchase Order for a Lot-Tracked Part....................................................................28 Workshop - Receive a Lot-Tracked Part...................................................................................................28 Add a New Stock Line.....................................................................................................................29 Lot Tracker.............................................................................................................................................29 Workshop - View Part Lot Information.............................................................................................29

Part/Lot Where Used Report....................................................................................................................30 Serial Number Tracking..................................................................................................................................31 Application Setup...................................................................................................................................31 Site Configuration Control...............................................................................................................31 Workshop - Select Serial Tracking Site Parameters....................................................................33 Company Configuration..................................................................................................................33 Workshop - Verify the Serial Mask Format................................................................................34 Maintenance Programs....................................................................................................................36 Serial Mask Maintenance..........................................................................................................36 Part Maintenance.....................................................................................................................37 Serialization Processing...........................................................................................................................39 Overview.........................................................................................................................................39 Workshop - Purchase Serialized Material..........................................................................................40 Workshop - Receive Serialized Materials...........................................................................................41 Workshop - Use Lower Level Component Serializing........................................................................42 Create a Job.............................................................................................................................42 Add Operations........................................................................................................................42 Add Materials...........................................................................................................................43 Schedule the Job......................................................................................................................43 Workshop - Generate or Assign Serial Numbers...............................................................................44 Workshop - Issue Material to a Job..................................................................................................44 Workshop - Complete the Operation...............................................................................................45 Serial Matching Process...................................................................................................................47 Workshop - Lower Level Component Matching........................................................................47 Workshop - Receive Completed Job Quantities to Inventory.............................................................48 Workshop - Sell and Ship Serialized Items........................................................................................49 Create a Sales Order.................................................................................................................49 Select Serial Numbers at Customer Shipment............................................................................50 Using the Customer Shipment Tracker......................................................................................51 Serial Number Tracker.....................................................................................................................51 Serial Number Status................................................................................................................51 Workshop - Using the Serial Number Tracker............................................................................52 Unassign or Delete a Serial Number.................................................................................................53 Customer and Supplier Managed Inventories.................................................................................................54 Non-Standard Bin Types..........................................................................................................................54 Workshop - Review Managed Inventory Warehouses.......................................................................55 Review Supplier Managed Bins.................................................................................................55 Review the Customer Managed Bins........................................................................................55 Supplier Managed Inventories.................................................................................................................56 Workshop - Create a Supplier Managed Purchase Order..................................................................56 Create a PO Line......................................................................................................................57 Enter Line Release Information..................................................................................................57 Approve the Purchase Order.....................................................................................................57 Review the Supplier Managed Purchase Order..........................................................................58 Workshop - Receive Purchase Order to a Supplier Managed Bin.......................................................58

Create a New Receipt Line........................................................................................................58 Workshop - Transfer Supplier Managed Parts...................................................................................59 Workshop - Review Supplier Managed Transactions.........................................................................60 Review the Inventory/WIP Reconciliation Report........................................................................60 Review Receipt in the Purchase Order Tracker...........................................................................60 Customer Managed Inventories..............................................................................................................61 Workshop - Review the Managed Suppliers for a Customer.............................................................61 Workshop - Create a Customer Managed Purchase Order...............................................................61 Create a Purchase Order Line....................................................................................................62 Enter Line Release Information..................................................................................................62 Approve the Purchase Order.....................................................................................................62 Review the Customer Managed Purchase Order.......................................................................63 Workshop - Receive Purchase Order to a Customer Managed Bin....................................................63 Create a New Receipt Line........................................................................................................64 Review the Part Label...............................................................................................................64 Review the Customer Managed Purchase Receipt in the Receipt Tracker...................................64 Review Customer Managed Receipt in the Purchase Order Tracker...........................................65 Workshop - Create a Sales Order.....................................................................................................65 Workshop - Ship the Ordered Item..................................................................................................66 Consignment Inventory..................................................................................................................................67 Application Setup...................................................................................................................................67 Site Maintenance.............................................................................................................................67 Workshop - Create a Consignment Site....................................................................................67 Maintenance Programs....................................................................................................................68 Warehouse Maintenance..........................................................................................................68 Part Maintenance.....................................................................................................................68 Consignment Inventory Processing..........................................................................................................68 Material Requirements Planning for Consignment Inventory............................................................69 Shipment of Consignment Inventory................................................................................................69 Order Entry......................................................................................................................................70 Consignment Inventory Counting....................................................................................................70

Conclusion.............................................................................................................................71 Appendix...............................................................................................................................72

Transaction Types..........................................................................................................................................72

Inventory Management - Specialized Processing Course

This course builds on the basic inventory concepts introduced in the Inventory Management course. It provides detailed information on the use of specialized inventory processing, including part cross referencing, material backflushing, lot / serial number tracking and management of customer and supplier owned inventories.

Upon successful completion of this course, you will be able to:

Define the difference between part, supply side, demand side and internal cross referencing.
Create product code, internal, manufacturer, supplier and customer part cross-references.
Understand how material blackflushing operates.
Create and generate lot numbers for inventory tracking purposes.
Establish serial number parameters and masking to standardize the serialization of parts.
Perform Customer Managed Inventory (CMI), Supplier Managed Inventory (SMI) and consignment inventory processing.
Set up and use the Min Max Safety Mass Update.

Before You Begin

Read this topic for information you should know in order to successfully complete this course.

Modules Licensing

The following modules must be licensed to complete all the workshops in this course:

Customer Managed Inventory
Inventory Management
Job Management
Multiple Warehouse
Order Management
Purchase Management
Shipping Receiving
Supplier Managed Inventory
Supplier Relationship Management

Audience

Specific audiences will benefit from this course.

Cost Accountant
Shipping and Receiving
Material Handler
Production Manager

Prerequisites

To complete the workshops in this course, the necessary modules must be licensed and operating in your training environment. For more information on the modules available, contact your Epicor Customer Account Manager. It is also important you understand the prerequisite knowledge contained in other valuable courses.

Foundations Agenda Courses on Epicor Learning Center - These courses describe logging in to Epicor ERP, using menus and toolbars, working with Tree view and sheets. They give you a quick overview how to enter data in Epicor ERP, use searches to find data and work with grids. The courses in this agenda teach you to personalize your application, print forms and reports and use trackers to view information.
• (Recommended) Knowledge Camp Course - This course provides a high level overview of the quote to cash flow through the Epicor application. You begin with how to create a quote, process it as an order, and fill the order across production planning and purchasing. The course also covers the manufacturing plan and shipment of parts to a customer, as well as how to process invoices, enter cash receipts, and generate supplier payments.
Inventory Management - This course provides an overview of the entire inventory management process. Use this module to update and maintain raw materials, work in process (WIP) as well as finished goods inventory quantities and costs.

Environment Setup

The environment setup steps and potential workshop constraints must be reviewed in order to successfully complete the workshops in this course.

Your Epicor training environment, in which the Epicor demonstration database is found, enables you to experience Epicor functionality in action but does not affect data in your live, production environment.

The following steps must be taken to successfully complete the workshops in this course.

1. Verify the following or ask your system administrator to verify for you:

• Your Epicor training icon (or web address if you are using Epicor Web Access) points to your Epicor training environment with the Epicor demonstration database installed. Do not complete the course workshops in your live, production environment.

Note It is recommended that multiple Epicor demonstration databases are installed. Contact Support or Systems Consulting for billable assistance.

The Epicor demonstration database is at the same version as the Epicor application. The demonstration database is installed from the Epicor Administration Console using the "Add Demo Database" command under Database Server. See Epicor ERP installation guides for details. If you are an Epicor Cloud ERP customer (and have licensed embedded education), the demonstration database is installed for you.
Your system administrator restored (refreshed) the Epicor demonstration database prior to starting this course. The Epicor demonstration database comes standard with parts, customers, sales orders, and so on, already defined. If the Epicor demonstration database is shared with multiple users (that is, the database is located on a server and users access the same data, much like your live, production environment) and is not periodically refreshed, unexpected results can occur. For example, if a course workshop requires you to ship a sales order that came standard in the Epicor demonstration database, but a different user already completed this workshop and the Epicor demonstration database was not restored (refreshed), then you will not be able to ship the sales order. If you are an Epicor Cloud ERP customer see section below.

2. Log in to the training environment using the credentials epicor/epicor.

If you are asked to log into your training environment with another User ID, for example, 'nancy' or 'bhoward', on the initial logon, a message appears to inform you the password has expired. Perform the following steps to set a new password:

1. To the Password Expired message, click Yes.

2. In the Current password field, enter the User ID of the user you are asked to log in as, for example, 'nancy'.

3. In the New password field, enter a new password, for example 'Train123'.

Important In Epicor ERP Cloud environment, the password must not contain user ID, must be longer than 7 characters and include at least one uppercase letter.

4. In the Confirm new password field, re-enter the same password.

5. Click OK. The Change Password window closes and you are logged on with the new user ID.

Note Record the new password. This is important as this will be the password everyone uses when they log on with this User ID, until the database is refreshed.

From the Main menu, select the company Epicor Education (EPIC06).
From the Main menu, select the Main site.

Kinetic Interface Specific Information

All the workshops in this course can be completed using the Classic layout. To ensure that the user interfaces used in this course display in the Classic layout, use the steps below:

1. Navigate to Kinetic Application Maintenance. Menu Path: System Setup > Security Maintenance > Kinetic Application Maintenance

2. From the Menu list, select the Epicor Education company. The Company Epic Corporation pane displays.

Note If you need to work in a multi-company environment you will have to disable the Kinetic layout for all the companies used in the course.

3. Inactivate the Enable Kinetic UI ON/OFF button.

4. Exit Kinetic Application Maintenance.

5. On the standard toolbar, select Options > Preferences.

6. In the window that displays, in the Form To Use field, select Classic.

7. Select OK to confirm.

8. Relaunch Epicor ERP.

Epicor Cloud ERP Specific Information

Note If you are an Epicor Cloud ERP customer, then note the following about your Epicor-hosted education company. All logins referenced in the course (such as manager, or epicor) should be changed to be the <site ID>-. For example, if your site ID is 98315, then wherever you are instructed to use the login epicor, instead use 98315-epicor. The password is 'Train18!'.

Note To refresh your Epicor training data, enter a support ticket in EpicCare and include your site ID.

Workshop Constraints

Below is a list of workshops in this course that can be performed only once in each instance of a restored (refreshed) shared database. Where applicable, a detailed explanation of the workshop constraints is documented in the workshop itself.

Serial Number Tracking

• Workshop - Receive Serialized Materials

Overview

The Inventory Management module contains all information related to an item including costs, quantities, and on-hand requirements.

The primary function of this module is to manage the flow of materials from incoming purchase orders (POs) through manufacturing and shipping to the customer. These items can be shipped from stock or inventory, received to stock, or received directly to the job. Inventory transactions are made in the same manner regardless of the manufacturing environment, make-to-order (MTO) or make-to-stock (MTS). Ultimately, these transactions result in revenue and are posted to the general ledger (GL).

Inventory Management Features

Unit of measure (UOM) quantity conversions and tracking
Material, labor, subcontract and burden cost tracking
Inventory transfer
Job material issuance
Cycle and physical counting
Detailed transaction tracking and reporting
Internal, supplier, customer, manufacturer and product code part cross-referencing
Serial control, custom serial formatting, and serial number tracking
Lot control and tracking

Note Many of the Inventory functions not covered in this course are covered in detail in the basic Inventory Management course. Some of these features are also covered in other Epicor courses.

Specialized Inventory Processing

This section of the course discusses specialized inventory management functions the Epicor application.

Part Product Coding and Cross Referencing

You can use Part Maintenance > Part > UOMs > Detail sheet to (optionally) enter product code information for a part and for specific UOM codes. You can also use other part cross referencing functions in Epicor ERP to create relationships between different part numbers defined for the same product. Customers, suppliers, and internal users may use different part numbers to identify the same part; you define as many types of part cross references as needed for all of these situations.

The World Customs Organization recently adopted international standards that encouraged the government and businesses to improve the security of global commerce. According to these standards, customs administrations must use interoperable applications to share information that identifies high-risk containers or cargo. The document also calls for the use of non-intrusive inspection equipment, automated risk assessment applications, and development of performance measures, among other principles.

The Epicor application provides an automated recording process for reporting compliance of these Global Trade Standards. The Global Trade compliance functionality provides the ability to store cross references to a standard part. This allows for a manufactured part number to cross reference to Global Trade Item Number (GTIN), European Article Number (EAN), Universal Product Code (UPC), and Health Industry Barcode codes (such as UPC-12, EAN-13, EAN-14, EAN-8, GTIN-14 and HIBC) defined in the Part Maintenance > Part > UOMs sheet. Product codes are unique registered numbers that identify a specific part and UOM.

For example, UPC bar codes are found on most consumer items purchased in the USA and Canada.
Other product codes are used in various circumstances in different regions but are all similar to the UPC bar code.

Part Product Coding

In the Epicor application, you use the Part Maintenance > Part > UOMs > Detail sheet to (optionally) enter UPC, EAN, GTIN and HIBC product codes for a part and for the inventory UOM (Unit of Measure) code assigned to the part.

All part entry fields in the Epicor application allow for entry or scanning of product codes in lieu of entering an actual part number.
If one of the product codes is entered or scanned in a Part field, the Epicor application replaces it with the internal part number and the correct UOM. The appropriate product code can also be printed on transaction documents, such as a receiving transaction.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Part
Material Management > Purchase Contracts Management > Setup > Part
Material Management > Purchase Management > Setup > Part
Material Management > Supplier Relationship Management > Setup > Part
Production Management > Engineering > Setup > Part
Production Management > Job Management > Setup > Part
Production Management > Material Requirements Planning > Setup > Part
Production Management > Quality Assurance > Setup > Part
Sales Management > Configurator Management > Setup > Part
Sales Management > Demand Management > Setup > Part
Sales Management > Order Management > Setup > Part
Service Management > Field Service > Setup > Part
Service Management > Field Service Automation > Setup > Part

Workshop - Create a Part With Product Code References

In this workshop, create a purchased part for an electronic component you stock. Navigate to Part Maintenance Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Part

From the New menu, select New Part.
In the Part field, enter EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials).
In the Description field, enter Electronic Part.
In the Type field, select Purchased.
In the Sales Unit Price field, enter 5.00.
In the Group field, select Component Parts.
In the Class field, select Electrical Part.
Verify that the Non-Stock Item check box is cleared.
Select the Quantity Bearing check box.
Click Save.

11. Remain in Part Maintenance.

Create Product Code References In this workshop, create UPC, EAN and GTIN product code references for your part.

Note The Product Code Reference field is used when scanning of product codes instead of entering an actual part number. Each product code identifier is unique to the Part Number and the Unit of Measure.

Navigate to the Part > UOMs sheet.
In the UPC-12 field, enter a unique 12-digit Universal Product (UPC) code. Use the last four digits of your telephone number, entered three times in a row (for example, 730573057305). For each product code, the Epicor application verifies that it is unique for that part number only; an error message displays if it is already assigned to another part.
In the EAN-13 field, enter a 13-digit European Article Number (EAN) code, using the last four digits of your telephone number, followed by a unique digit (for example, 7305730573051).
In the GTIN-14 field, enter a 14-digit Global Trade Item Number (GTIN) code, using the last four digits of your telephone number, followed by two unique digits (for example, 73057305730512).
Record one of your product codes for use in the next workshop ____________.
Click Save.
Remain in Part Maintenance.

Create Material In this workshop create a new material that will be issued to the manufactured part later in the course.

1. From the New menu, select New Part.

2. In the Part field, enter XXX-1012 (where XXX are your initials).

3. In the Description field, enter XXX Noise Block Converter (where XXX are your initials).

4. In the Type field, select Purchased.

5. In the Sales Unit Price field, enter 38.00.

6. In the Group field, select Fabricated.

7. In the Class field, select FG-Fabricated.

8. Select the Track Lots check box.

9. Select the Track Serial Numbers check box.

10. Click the S/N Format button. The Serial Number Format window displays.

11. Select the Serial Mask radio button.

12. Click the Serial Mask button and search for and select PDN (Part, Date, Number).

13. Click OK.

Click Save.
Navigate to the Part > Lots > Attributes sheet.
In the Attributes section, mark all the fields as Not Tracked.
Click Save.
Navigate to the Part > Lots > Generate sheet.
In the Prefix field, enter your name initials.
In the Trailing Date String field, select DDMMYYYY.
In the Next Number field, enter 6.
In the Number of Digits field, enter 4.
Select the Leading Zeros check box.
Click Save.
Exit Part Maintenance.

Use a Product Code in an Inventory Transaction

All part entry fields in the Epicor application allow for entry or scanning of product codes in lieu of entering an actual part number. If one of the product codes is entered or scanned, the Epicor application replaces it with the internal part number and the correct UOM. In this workshop, use one of your product codes in an inventory transaction, and note how the Epicor application cross references it and displays the associated part number.

Navigate to Quantity Adjustments.

Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Quantity Adjustment

In the Part field, enter the product code you recorded in the previous workshop, then press Tab. The Epicor application replaces the product code with the cross referenced part number. Likewise, if you had scanned the product code printed on a bar code label, the same processing would take place.
In the Warehouse field, verify Main defaults.
In the Bin field, enter 01-01-01.
In the Quantity field, enter 100.
In the Reason field, select Add New Part.
Click the Adjust button.
Exit Quantity Adjustments.

Part Cross References

Use the part cross referencing functionality in Epicor ERP to create relationships between different part numbers defined for the same product. Customers, suppliers, and internal users may use different part numbers to identify the same part. You can define part cross references as you need for all of these situations.

Types of Cross References

• Internal Cross References - Internal users may need to create their own identifiers for parts in order to simplify data entry or create variations in the part. To accommodate this business need, you can control parts by linking unique part numbers for internal use, for serial tracked parts, and optionally assign alternate serial masks for serial tracked parts. The standard parts functionality also supports EAN-8, EAN-13, EAN-14, GTIN-14 and UPC-12 product coding standards used worldwide for bar-code marking of retail goods, and as part of the data encoded on RFID tags. When you create a global trade standard, Epicor ERP creates a cross reference to the part. This allows you to specify a cross referenced part identifier in Part entry fields system-wide and have it translate into the part number.

Supply Side Cross References - Suppliers often use different part numbers for the parts you purchase. These parts may also be produced through another manufacturer who then provides the supplier (usually a distributor) with these materials; these parts can also use different part numbers.

To accommodate this business need, you can control parts by linking unique part numbers for suppliers and their qualified manufacturers - using the same part record. You can then create RFQs, supplier price lists, and purchase orders that use these unique supplier and manufacturer parts identifiers - while at the same time you place these transactions against the same part record.

To leverage this functionality, you must first create a list of potential manufacturers, the life cycle for each part, and the qualified manufacturer records. You can then link them when you create supplier part records; you can also specify how and on what supplier-facing documents these supplier and manufacturer part cross references display and print.

• Demand Side Cross References - Customers often use different part numbers for the same parts you sell to them. Your customers may also have specific serial format requirements for these parts. To accommodate this business need, you can control parts by linking together unique part numbers for customers, with the option to assign an alternate serial mask for serial tracked parts. You can also specify how and on what customer-facing documents these cross references display and print.

Internal Part Cross References

Use Internal Part Cross Reference to create internal cross references for an internal part number. These cross references are used in Part fields throughout the Epicor application. The usability shortcuts of this feature are designed to simplify data entry.

Create as many internal part references as you need for a single part master record. These references can be used to streamline data entry and processing of long part numbers.

For serial tracked parts, this program allows you to establish alternate serial number masks that can be used when creating jobs in Job Entry. This facilitates situations in which serial masks for a specific part differ according to their intended use by customers.

Note This feature is often a requirement when you act as a supplier to branches of the military.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

• Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Internal Part Cross Reference

Workshop - Create an Internal Part Cross Reference

In this workshop, create an internal cross reference for the part you created in the previous workshop. Navigate to Internal Part Cross Reference. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Internal Part Cross Reference

In the Part Number field, enter EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials) and press Tab. This is the part you created in Workshop - Create a Part with Product Code References.
Click New. The Internal Cross Reference and Description fields activate for entry.
In the Internal Cross Reference field, enter XXX (where XXX are your initials).
In the Description field, enter Cross Reference for EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials).
Click Save and exit Internal Part Cross Reference.

Manufacturers and Lifecycle Statuses

You also create two types of records that are later used to define qualified manufacturers. These records are manufacturers and lifecycle statuses.

Manufacturer Maintenance

Use Manufacturer Maintenance to define manufacturer records used in the definition of manufacturer part cross references in the application.

You only need to establish manufacturer records for manufacturers who do not directly supply materials to you. If a manufacturer is a direct supplier, you can use Supplier Maintenance to create required supplier information and do not have to create a corresponding record in Manufacturer Maintenance. A manufacturer record can be deleted or inactivated as long as it is not applied as a qualified manufacturer for a part in Qualified Manufacturer.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

• Material Management > Purchase Management > Setup > Manufacturer

Life Cycle Status Maintenance

Use Life Cycle Status Maintenance to create lifecycle status codes used in Qualified Manufacturer. A lifecycle status code defines the point at which a manufacturer's part is at its useful period. For example, lifecycle codes within the electronics manufacturing industry include Introduction, New Product, Rapid Growth, Maturity, Saturation, Not Recommended, Phase Out, and so on.

Common usage includes the following values:

Introduction
New Product
Rapid Growth
Maturity
Saturation
Not Recommended / Declining
Phase Out
Last Shipments
Removed
Other

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

• Material Management > Purchase Management > Setup > Lifecycle

Create a Manufacturer Record

In this workshop, create a manufacturer record. Only create manufacturer records for organizations who do not directly supply materials to your company. The manufacturer record is then later used to create part cross references for qualified manufacturers.

Navigate to Manufacturer Maintenance.

Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > Setup > Manufacturer

Click New.
In the Manufacturer field, enter XXX-IND (where XXX are your initials).
In the Name field, enter XXX Industries (where XXX are your initials).
Click Save.
Exit Manufacturer Maintenance.

Qualified Manufacturer Maintenance

Use Qualified Manufacturer Maintenance to link a manufacturer with a specific internal part. You can indicate that multiple manufacturers are qualified for a part. You can also define one or more cross-reference part numbers for each manufacturer.

Typically you use these records for organizations which do not directly supply part quantities to your company. While your engineers design products, they often test a variety of manufacturer's parts for form, fit, and function. Qualified manufacturer parts are verified to have equal form, fit, or function possibilities and are interchangeable within a specific area within a product design.

It is intended for use in supplier-side sourcing and can be used to perform the following functions:

Designate multiple manufacturers as qualified sources for a part.
• Optionally, specify the manufacturer's part number and other attributes of the manufacturer part. Multiple manufacturer part number cross references can be specified for each manufacturer. In the product design phase, design engineers compare specifications and test a variety of manufacturer parts for form, fit, and function, relative to the intended Epicor application.
Form - Form is the shape, size, dimension, mass, weight, and other visual parameters that uniquely characterize an item.
Fit - Fit is the ability of an item to physically interface or interconnect with or become an integral part of another item.
Function - Function is the action or actions that an item is designed to perform.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

• Material Management > Purchase Management > Setup > Qualified Manufacturer

Workshop - Qualify a Manufacturer and Link to a Part

In this workshop, designate the manufacturer you created in Workshop - Create a Manufacturer Record as a qualified manufacturer, and link it to the part created in Workshop - Create a Part With Product Code References. Navigate to Qualified Manufacturer Maintenance. Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > Setup > Qualified Manufacturer

1. In the Part Number field, enter EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials) and press Tab.

Alternately, you can click Search (binoculars) on the Standard toolbar to access Part Search to search for and select EP-XXX.

From the New menu, select New Qualified Manufacturer.
Click the Manufacturer button, and search for and select XXX Industries (where XXX are your initials).
Click Save.

Create a New Qualified Manufacturer Part

From the New menu, select New Qualified Manufacturer Part. The Manufacturer Part > Detail sheet displays.
In the Manufacturer's Part field, enter ELC-XXX (where XXX are your initials). This part number is used by this manufacturer to identify the internal part.
In the Life Cycle Status field, verify Maturity displays.
In the Market Availability field, enter 30-45 Days.

This indicates how long this product is available or how long it typically takes to purchase the material. This value is for your information and is not used in any calculations.

5. Click Save and exit Qualified Manufacturer Maintenance.

Select a Part Cross Reference for an RFQ

In this workshop, select a part cross reference for a request for quote (RFQ) using the defined part and qualified manufacturer created in the previous workshop.

Note To enter an RFQ, the Supply Relationship Management module must be installed. If this module is not installed, skip this workshop and proceed to the next section.

Navigate to RFQ Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Supplier Relationship Management > General Operations > RFQ Entry

1. From the New menu, select New RFQ.

2. In the Due Date field, enter the date three months from today.

3. In the Decision field, enter the date two months from today.

4. In the Respond field, enter the date one month from today.

5. Click Save and record the RFQ number ______________.

6. From the New menu, select New Line. The Line > Detail sheet displays.

7. In the Part field, enter EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials) and press Tab.

8. In the Manufacturer's Parts to be Quoted grid, verify the Include check box is selected for XXX Industries (where XXX are your initials).

9. Navigate to the Line > Suppliers sheet.

10. In the Quotes Req field, enter 1.

11. Click Save.

12. From the New menu, select New Quantity. The Line > Quantities sheet displays.

13. In the Quantity Break field, enter 1.

14. From the New menu, select New Supplier. The Line > Suppliers sheet displays.

15. In the Supplier ID field, enter ABE and press Tab. AB Electronics displays in the Name field.

16. Click Save.

17. From the Actions menu, select RFQ > Print Form. The RFQ Print Form window displays.

18. From the Standard toolbar, click Print Preview. When the RFQ form displays, note the manufacturer part cross reference printed on the form.

19. Close the RFQ form and exit the RFQ Print Form window.

20. Exit RFQ Entry.

Supplier Part Cross References

Suppliers, particularly in the electronics industry, often use different part numbers for the parts you purchase. These parts may also be produced through another manufacturer who then provides the supplier (usually a distributor) with these materials; these parts can also use different part numbers.

To accommodate this business need, you can control parts by linking unique part numbers for suppliers and their qualified manufacturers - using the same part record. You can then create RFQs, supplier price lists, and purchase orders that use these unique supplier and manufacturer parts identifiers - while at the same time you place these transactions against the same part record.

You can link supplier part numbers and qualified manufacturers to specific internal part numbers in Approved Source Maintenance (accessed for the Actions menu in Part Maintenance) and Supplier Price List Maintenance.

When you enter a purchase order line item into the Purchase Order Entry > Lines > Detail sheet, you can use the Part Cross Reference Options dialog to specify part cross reference printing options for supplier, manufacturer or substitute parts selected for the purchase order line.
This determines the level of part cross-reference detail that should print on supplier-facing documents such as the purchase order form.

Workshop - Create Supplier Part Cross References

In this workshop, create a supplier price list with a supplier part cross reference for supplier ABC Electronics, and the part you create in Workshop - Create a Part. Navigate to the Supplier Price List. Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > Setup > Supplier Price List

Select a Supplier and Part

In the Supplier field, search for and select AB Electronics.
From the New menu, select New Part.
In the Part field, enter EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials).
In the Supplier UOM field, accept the default of EA.
In the Effective field, accept the default of today's date.
In the Expires field, enter the date 90 days from today. The Days field returns a value based on the dates you enter.
In the Base Unit Price field, enter 2.50.
In the Price Per field, accept the default of /1. This indicates the part is stocked and purchased in the same unit of measure.
In the Price Break Modifier field, select Percent of Base.
Select the Primary Supplier check box.
Click Save.

Add Supplier and Manufacturer Part Cross References

From the New menu, select New Supplier Part.
Navigate to the Parts > Supplier Parts > Detail sheet.
In the Supplier Part field, enter EP-100S.
In the Reference field, enter your initials.
In the Manufacturer field, select the manufacturer you created in Workshop - Create a Manufacturer Record.
In the Manufacturer Part field, select the manufacturer part you created in the Create a New Qualified Manufacturer Part workshop.
Click Save.
Exit Supplier Price List.

Create a Purchase Order Line

In this workshop, enter a purchase order line for part EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials) for supplier AB Electronics and note how the supplier part cross references work. Navigate to Purchase Order Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Purchase Order Entry

1. From the New menu, click New PO.

2. In the PO Date field, accept the default of the current date.

3. Click the Supplier button, then search for and select AB Electronics.

4. From the New menu, click New Line.

5. Navigate to the Lines > Detail sheet.

6. In the Part/Rev field, enter the internal part number XXX (where XXX are your initials) and press Tab. The standard part number EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials) and description replace the internal part number you entered into the field.

7. In the Manufacturer, Manufacturer Part and Supplier Part fields, verify that each of part cross references you defined in previous workshops display.

8. Click the Cross Reference Options button. The Part Cross Reference Options window displays. You use it to specify part cross reference printing options for supplier, manufacturer or substitute parts selected for the purchase order line. This determines the level of part cross-reference detail that should print on supplier-facing documents such as the purchase order form.

9. Review each of the selected print options in the Part Cross Reference Options window.

10. Click OK.

11. In the Our Qty field, enter 1.

12. Click Save.

13. Navigate to the Summary sheet.

14. Select the Unapproved check box to approve the purchase order.

15. Click Save.

16. From the Actions menu, select Print. The Purchase Order Print Form window displays.

17. From the Standard toolbar, click Print Preview. When the purchase order form displays, note the manufacturer and supplier part cross references printed on the form.

18. Close the purchase order form and exit the Print Purchase Order window.

19. Exit Purchase Order Entry.

Customer Part Cross Reference

Use Customer Part Cross Reference as required to create customer part cross references for an internal part number.

Each customer may have unique part numbers and revisions that they use to define specific parts. These cross references can be selected on specific quote and order lines. These customer part numbers then (optionally) appear on quotes, sales order acknowledgments, and packing slips. They help the customer make sure that they ordered the correct part.

Example A customer orders a part recorded as WIDG123 in your part master file. However, this customer, refers to the part as 111-WDGT. You enter WIDG123 in the order line Part Number field, but you select 111- WDGT in the order line Customer Part Number field.

For serial tracked parts, this program also allows you to establish alternate serial number masks that can be used when creating jobs in the Job Entry program. This facilitates situations in which serial masks for a given part differ according to their intended use by your customers. This is often a requirement when you act as a supplier to branches of the military.

New Customer Parts in Entry Programs

You can also enter a new customer part number on the Sales Order Entry > Lines sheet. When you create a new customer part number on an order line, this number is automatically cross-referenced between both the customer and part records. The next time you create an order line for this customer and part, you can click the Customer Part button to find and select this new number.

Customer part numbers can also be used in Opportunity/Quote Entry. New customer part numbers cannot be saved through this program, but you can enter a customer part reference on a quote line. If that quote line becomes an order line, the part is added to the cross reference file when you use the Get Opportunity/Quote functionality.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

• Sales Management > Order Management > Setup > Customer Part Cross Reference

Workshop - Create a Customer Part Cross Reference

In this workshop, create a customer part cross reference to your part for customer International Products. Navigate to Customer Part Cross Reference. Menu Path: Sales Management > Order Management > Setup > Customer Part Cross Reference

Click the Customer button, then search for and select International Products and press Tab.
Click New.
In the Part Number field, enter EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials). The standard part description displays in the Description field. The Serial Tracked check box indicates if the part is serial tracked.
In the Customer Part Number field, enter INTPR-540.
In the Customer Revision field, enter A.
In the Description field, enter Deluxe Electronic Component.
Click Save.
Exit Customer Part Cross Reference.

Create an Order Line

In this workshop, enter an order line for part EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials) for customer International Products and note how the customer part cross references work. Navigate to Sales Order Entry. Menu Path: Sales Management > Order Management > General Operations > Order Entry

From the New menu, click New Order.
Click the Customer button, then search for and select International Products.
From the New Menu, click New Line.
Navigate to the Lines > Detail sheet.
In the Part/Rev field, enter EP-XXX (where XXX are your initials)
Verify that INTPR-540 displays in the Customer Part Number field. The customer part number prints on all order forms linked to this sales order, including the Sales Order Acknowledgment and packing slips. You can also enter a new customer part number in this field. When you create a new customer part number on an order line, this number is automatically cross-referenced between both the customer and part records. The next time you create an order line for this customer and part, you can click the Customer Part button to find and select this new number.
Exit Sales Order Entry without saving the order line.

Lot Tracking

The Epicor application tracks lot numbers for incoming raw materials through all stages of production and shipment to a customer. A lot number is a subset of the item definition which is established in Part Maintenance.

When a part is enabled for lot tracking, you can create and define lot details for each lot used to track the part. You first define the attributes of the lot; these values indicate what additional inputs are required when a new lot is created or used for the current part. Each lot attribute can be defined as mandatory, tracked, or not tracked during lot creation and processing.

You then define the parameters you want if you wish to automatically generate lot numbers. With these values in place, you can then create as many lot numbers you need for the current part.

Lot Attributes

Lot attributes store number and date information you can track at the lot level. They define requirements needed before a lot is used for tracking. You can display them on specific reports, labels, and search programs.

The default values for the lot attributes are defined with Company Configuration, but if you need, you can override these values on a specific part record. Specify for each attribute whether it is mandatory, tracked, or not tracked.

For a full description of all available fields, refer to the application help.

Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Part

Attributes Sheet

Use the Part > Lots > Attributes sheet to specify which additional lot attributes are required inputs whenever a new lot is first created or used for the specified part. You also select attributes that are tracked and specified during the later stages of the lot processing and attributes that are not required at all. This sheet is only used for parts with the Track Lots check box selected.

Generate Sheet

Use the Part > Lots > Generate sheet to set parameters used to generate lot number strings for the specified part.

The Epicor application uses the parameters defined in this sheet to generate the actual lot number string. These parameters include specifying the lot prefix, assignment of sequential numbers, number of digits, assignment of leading zeroes, and trailing date string structure.

Detail Sheet

Use the Part > Lots > Detail sheet to view existing lot numbers for the part or generate new lot numbers on-the-fly.

Workshop - Create a Lot-Tracked Part

In this workshop, create a lot tracked part. Navigate to Part Maintenance. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Part

From the New menu, select New Part.
Enter or verify the following information (where XXX are your initials):

Field

Part Description Type UOM Class Inventory UOM Sales UOM Purchasing UOM

Data

XXX-Deburr XXX Deburr Lubricant Purchased Liquid Volume Conversion GAL GAL GAL

Click Save.
Remain in Part Maintenance.

Workshop - Create Lot Attributes

In this workshop, define the lot part attributes.

1. Navigate to the Part > Lots > Attributes sheet.

2. In the Attributes pane, select Not Tracked from the list for all attributes except for the following:

Batch - Select Mandatory to indicate that a batch number is required.
MFG Lot - Select Mandatory to indicate that a manufacturing batch number is required.
Original Mfg Date - Select Mandatory to indicate that an original manufacturing date is required.
3. Navigate to the Part > Lots > Generate sheet. This sheet contains the format for the lot numbers to be generated.
4. In the Prefix field, enter XXX (where XXX are your initials). XXX (where XXX are your initials) are the leading characters for the lot numbers.
5. In the Trailing Date String field, select MMDDYYYY as the date structure.
6. In the Number of Digits field, enter 5.
7. Select the Leading Zeros check box.
Select this check box to indicate that additional zeros are to be added in front of the trailing date string. In the The next generated lot will be field, the next lot number displays.
8. Click Save.

9. Exit Part Maintenance.

Workshop - Create a Purchase Order for a Lot-Tracked Part

In this workshop, create a purchase order for the lot-tracked part created in the Workshop - Create a Lot-Tracked Part. Navigate to Purchase Order Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Purchase Order Entry

From the New menu, select New PO.
In the Supplier field, search for and select Gecco Steel.
In the Buyer field, select Brian Howard.
Navigate to the Lines > Detail sheet.
From the New menu, select New Line.
In the Part/Rev field, enter XXX-Deburr (where XXX are your initials) and press Tab.
In the Our Quantity field, enter 10.
In the Unit Price field, enter 5 and click Save.
Navigate to the Summary sheet and select the Unapproved check box. The purchase order status changes to Approved.
Click Save and record the purchase order number_____________.
Exit Purchase Order Entry.

Workshop - Receive a Lot-Tracked Part

In this workshop, receive a lot-tracked part created in the Workshop - Create a Lot-Tracked Part. Navigate to Receipt Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Shipping / Receiving > General Operations > Receipt Entry

From the New menu, select New Receipt.
In the PO field, enter the purchase order number created in the Workshop - Generate a PO for a Lot-Tracked Part and press Tab.
In the Packing Slip field, enter the purchase order number.
In the Ship Via field, select Company Truck.
Click Save.

Add a New Stock Line

From the New menu, select New Receipt Line. The Lines > Detail sheet displays.
In the Line field, enter 1 and press Tab.
In the Warehouse field, verify the default of Receiving Area.
In the Bin field, verify the default of RCV-1.
Click the Next Lot button. This generates the next lot number.
Click Save. The Part Lot Attribute Entry window displays.
In the Batch field, enter 27.
In the MFG Lot field, enter Lot 001.
In the Original Mfg Date field, enter today's date and click OK.
In the Lines > Detail sheet, select the Received check box.
Click Save and exit Receipt Entry.

Lot Tracker

The Lot Tracker displays lot information about part records.

This includes information such as lot numbers, on-hand quantities, and transactions. You cannot add or edit records in this tracker.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

Executive Analysis > Trackers > Lot Tracker
Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Lot Tracker
Production Management > Job Management > General Operations > Lot Tracker

Workshop - View Part Lot Information

Using the Lot Tracker, view part, lot detail, on-hand quantity and transaction information for a selected lot number. Navigate to Lot Tracker. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Lot Tracker

In Part field, search for and select XXX-Deburr (where XXX are your initials). The Lot Tracker displays.
In Lot field, search for and select the lot number generated in Workshop - Receive a Lot-Tracked Part.
In the Detail sheet, review the Batch, MFG Lot, Original Mfg Date and Lot Costing information associated with the selected lot number.
Navigate to the On Hand sheet.
In the On Hand sheet, review the on hand quantity information associated with the selected lot number.
Navigate to the Transactions sheet.
Click Retrieve to retrieve and display transaction history for selected lot number.
Exit the Lot Tracker.

Part/Lot Where Used Report

Use the Part/Lot Where Used Report to produce a list of all job bills of material that use the specific part and lot.

This report is used to inquire about a specific part. You can specify a lot to determine what jobs they were issued to. In researching a lot-controlled part sold to customers, this report could show which customers a serial numbered part might have been shipped to.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

Material Management > Inventory Management > Reports > Part/Lot Where Used
Production Management > Job Management > Reports > Part/Lot Where Used

Serial Number Tracking

Serial number tracking allows for unique identification for each item you use in manufacturing or receive into inventory from manufacturing or purchasing. Serial number tracking meets a very strict standard for product identification. Information captured for each serial number aids in specifying products for recall and help identify defect sources.

For manufactured parts, the serial number tracks the job it was created on, if the part is in inventory, the packing slip the part was shipped on, and the Return Material Authorization (RMA) number if the part was returned.

For purchased parts, the serial number tracks the packing slip on which the part was received, a Defective Material Request (DMR) number if received through DMR Processing, if the part is in inventory, and the job the part was issued.

Serial number tracking is a three step process:

1. Setup the Serial Number Format for a Part

In Part Maintenance, specify that a particular part is serial number tracked and assign a serial number format for the part.

Note Note that serial number tracked parts cannot be mass issued, mass received, or mass shipped, nor can they be dimension tracked or backflushed.

2. Assign Serial Numbers to Parts

Assign serial numbers to parts produced for a job or to purchased parts. Purchased parts that are serial tracked must be assigned a serial number before they are issued to a job. Manufactured parts that are serial tracked cannot be shipped until they are assigned a serial number. Sub-assemblies of a job can also be assigned serial numbers.

3. Track Serial Numbers

Serial number tracking is done through the Serial Number Tracker. There you can find such information as which job or order the part belongs to or whether the part was returned. If you find discrepancies in the serial number information, you can modify the tracked information in Serial Number Maintenance.

Application Setup

This section reviews site configurations, company configurations, and maintenance programs related to Serial Number Tracking.

You define serial number parameters in Site Configuration Control and in Company Configuration. Once you establish the parameters, you create and select parts for serial number tracking in Part Maintenance.

Site Configuration Control

Use the Modules > Inventory Management > Serial Tracking sheet in Site Configuration Control to define how the current site, or multiple sites, handles serial number tracking.

Note You should define serial tracking parameters when you create a site. When you turn on serial number tracking, the Epicor application expects serial numbers to be linked or created based on the following controls set at the Site Configuration.

Menu Path: System Setup > Company/Site Maintenance > Site Configuration

Important This program is not available in Epicor Web Access.

You can set the following parameters in Site Configuration Control:

Serial Tracking Options

Record Serial Numbers on Inventory Move

This check box is selected by default; when selected, it specifies that entry of serial numbers is required whenever a serial tracked part is moved in inventory.

If you clear this check box, the Epicor application does not prompt you for the entry of serial numbers when inventory moves from bin to bin. Inventory movement is allowed within the same warehouse or a shared warehouse providing that the shared warehouse belongs to the current site. If this is not the case, a serial number is required for the serialized parts being moved. All other inventory transactions, including inventory transfers, require you to enter all serial number transactions.

Lower Level Serial Tracking

Any program you use to receive parts from manufacturing (for example, Job Receipt to Inventory, Job Receipt to Job, Job Receipt to Salvage and Sales Order Shipping from manufacturing) requires a link to a serial number. The application maintains a parent/child serial number relationship on all reports. Options include:

No Lower Level Serial Tracking - This option turns off Lower Level Serial Tracking.
• Full Lower Level Serial Tracking - This option determines if there are any serial tracked components used in the Manufacturing process when you receive a job for a serial tracked part. If so, you are presented with a form with navigation control of all the serial numbers on the receipt, with each of the received serial numbers displayed one at a time. The form lists the job materials for the serial tracked items. Against each row, enter the component and serial numbers in the manufacture of the current top level serial number. Each serial number you enter is validated to ensure it is issued to the job being received, does not match another top level serial number, and is not already entered on the current form.
Outbound Serial Tracking Only - This option determines whether or not you are prompted to enter lower level serial numbers once the product is shipped.

Serial Matching Warning - Options include:

Workshop - Select Serial Tracking Site Parameters

Define serial number masking at the site configuration level. Each site in the company can have its own serial number parameters. This workshop provides the opportunity to verify the Main Site settings for Epicor Education. Navigate to Site Configuration Control. Menu Path: System Setup > Company/Site Maintenance > Site Configuration

Important This program is not available in Epicor Web Access.

Click the Site button, then search for and select Main.
Navigate to the Modules > Inventory Management > Serial Tracking sheet.
In the Serial Tracking Options field, verify Full Serial Tracking displays.

This option instructs the Epicor application to require serial number generation or link serial number for all inventory transactions.

4. In the Lower Level Serial Tracking Options field, verify Full Lower Level Serial Tracking displays.

This option requires you to link a serial number at any manufacturing process used to receive parts from manufacturing.

5. In the Serial Matching Warning field, select Warn but Allow Processing.

This option tells the application to check for serial numbers on an assembly to ensure all serialized parts match to a serial number.

Click Save.
Exit Site Configuration Control. Once you establish these parameters, you define the actual serial mask in Company Maintenance.

Company Configuration

Use Company Configuration to set the default foundations for the application which include defining the serial number mask formats.

Serial masks consist of special characters that define what characters you can include in the serial number. The characters you define are replaced with specific values when serial numbers are generated.

The following are characters are used for mask definition.

Mask Description

^ This represents a mandatory variable that can be any alphanumeric character. For example, if you enter 2^ in a mask, when you create a serial number, the ^ must be replaced by a character (not allowed for generation masks).

<M> This represents the month of the year. The default is the letter M (<M>). The mask character replaces two characters of the serial number (only allowed for auto generation masks).

Serial number masking provides the ability to establish default guidelines for your company's serialization. There are two types of serial number masking:

Serial Generation: This type of mask defines the format to be used for all auto-generated serial numbers.
Serial Validation: A serial mask type of validation ensures that all manually created serial numbers meet the defined mask. It is not used for system generated serial numbers.

Workshop - Verify the Serial Mask Format

Once you enable site-level serial number processing in Site Configuration Control, the actual serial number format displays at the company level. Navigate to Company Configuration. Menu Path: System Setup > Company/Site Maintenance > Company Configuration

Select the Modules > Materials > Serial Mask Formats sheet.
Verify the following values are entered in the Serial Masks fields:
Exit Company Maintenance.

Maintenance Programs

This section of the course reviews the most significant maintenance program(s) applicable to the serial number tracking process. In many cases, not all fields in a program are discussed. If you are interested in learning more about a specific program, refer to the Application Help.

Serial Mask Maintenance

Use Serial Mask Maintenance to create a mask in order to change the format of a supplier's serial number to a format compatible with an Epicor application. Creating serial number masks provides you the ability to:

Generate serial numbers consistent with a predefined format.
Generate serial numbers constructed with other elements besides only a suffix and sequential number.
Generate serial numbers at a company level, therefore maintaining a global sequence. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Serial Masking

Workshop - Define the Serial Mask

Define the actual serial mask after you establish the mask elements in Company Configuration. In this workshop, define a new serial mask. Navigate to Serial Mask Maintenance. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Serial Masking

1. On the standard toolbar, click New.

2. In the Serial Mask field, enter XXXclass (where XXX are your initials).

3. In the Description field, enter XXX Class Serial Mask (where XXX are your initials).

4. Select the Active check box.

5. In the Serial Mask Type section, select Generation Type.

6. Verify that 0 defaults in the Prefix Length field. This identifies the length of the numeric field for a serial number prefix, if one is being assigned to the generated serial number.

7. Verify that 0 defaults in the Suffix Length field. This identifies the length of the numeric field for a serial number suffix, if one is being assigned to the generated serial number.

8. In the Mask field, enter @@@######<M><YYYY> and press Tab. This mask creates a serial number, the first three characters are alpha characters, the next six are numeric, followed by the month and the four digit year the serial number was created.

An example of the mask you just defined displays in the Example field. You can manually adjust the Starting Sequence if necessary.

9. Click Save.

10. Exit Serial Mask Maintenance.

A serial number mask is now defined for the site. If you use the Multi-site module, it is important to note

you can use the same serial mask and starting sequence for a part in different sites. To keep the serial

numbers unique, a specific prefix or suffix should be defined for each site.

Part Maintenance

Use Part Maintenance to enter or update part information. Parts are either purchased items you use for raw materials or subassemblies or manufactured items you use to fill sales orders.

Each part record contains crucial data you may need for purchase or production needs. A part record contains general information such as part number, description, and search criteria. Also, a part record defines inventory information, which includes unit of measure (UOM) options for sales, purchases, inventory, non-stock classifications, serial number tracking, and weight values. You also define warehouse and bin information for each part, including Minimum, Maximum, and Safety Stock quantities. If this part is included in a sales kit, define these parameters as well.

When you set up a part, you can access it from each site within the company, and use it on jobs. You can also select parts as materials on quote, job, or part methods of manufacturing. If you use the Engineering module, purchased or manufactured parts on a bill of material must have a record set up in Part Maintenance.

Tip Most modules do not require parts to exist in Part Maintenance, but it is recommended that you enter parts in this program, as each record requires little data and can save you data entry time later.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Part
Material Management > Purchase Contracts Management > Setup > Part
Material Management > Purchase Management > Setup > Part
Material Management > Supplier Relationship Management > Setup > Part
Production Management > Engineering > Setup > Part
Production Management > Job Management > Setup > Part
Production Management > Material Requirements Planning > Setup > Part
Production Management > Quality Assurance > Setup > Part
Sales Management > Configurator Management > Setup > Part
Sales Management > Demand Management > Setup > Part
Sales Management > Order Management > Setup > Part
Service Management > Field Service > Setup > Part
Service Management > Field Service Automation > Setup > Part

Workshop - Create a Serialized Part

You select serialization at the part level by selecting Track Serial Numbers check box. In this workshop, create part XXX-SN001. Navigate to Part Maintenance. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Part

From the New menu, select New Part.
Enter the following information:

Part XXX-SN001 (where XXX are your initials)

Primary UOMs - Purchasing EA

Click the S/N Format button. Use Serial Number Format to define serial numbers.
In the Base Number Structure pane, select Serial Mask.
In the Serial Mask Options pane, click the Serial Mask button.
Search for and select XXX Class Serial Mask (where XXX are your initials) created in the Workshop - Define the Serial Mask.
Click OK to exit Serial Number Format.
Click Save.
Exit Part Maintenance.

Serialization Processing

This section of the course discusses the serial number tracking processes that take place based on the selections made in the Site Configuration Control > Modules > Inventory Management > Serial Tracking sheet.

Once defined serial number parameters apply to all warehouses owned by the current site and do not apply to shared warehouses. The application tracks serial number movement as follows:

When you issue materials to a job, child serial numbers are recorded against the parent serial number. This can either be at the time of issue or post issue.
You must record all serial number movements inside and outside the site in the serial trace data.

The basic steps to create serial numbers are:

Identify the serialization type the site should use.
Use Company Configuration to define format characters.
Create the Serial Mask form of the serial number and make that mask active.
Select the part as serial tracked.
Generate serial numbers as the rules require.

Overview

The serialization process is full, outbound only, or tracked at the lower component level. The Epicor application handles the serial number requirements differently for each.

Note Once you establish serial tracking in the Epicor application and identify a part as serial tracked, transactions involving the part require a serial number. Serialization frequency depends on the rules you establish in Site Configuration Control.

Serial Tracking Options

Note You can select the following options in the Modules > Inventory Management > Serial Tracking sheet in Part Configuration Control.

Full Serial Tracking - If you select this option, transactions involving the part require generation or matching of a serial number. If a serial number is generated, the record is copied into the history table prior to the update of the current transaction. The history table tracks all movement on the serial number from the newest to the oldest.
Outbound Serial Tracking - If you select this option, it only prompts you for a serial number when the item ships. As a result, the Epicor application reacts as follows:

In all Inventory transaction processes you are not prompted to enter serial numbers, this includes purchase receipts.
When you ship a serial tracked part, you must enter the serial numbers being shipped. This can be to a sales order or a transfer order.

• No Serial Tracking - If you select this option, it turns off the tracking of serial numbers.

Lower Level Serial Tracking Options Full Lower Level Serial Tracking - If you select this option, the following process takes place:

If the job you are receiving is for a serial tracked part, the Epicor application determines if there are any serial tracked components used in the manufacturing process.
If serial tracked components are found, all the serial numbers entered on the receipt and each of the received serial numbers display one at a time.
All job materials for serial tracked items display as a separate row for each component multiplied by the number of items per top level component. For example, a top level part uses two serial tracked parts, A1000 as two per and B1000 as four per. In this example, there are six rows in the form, two for A1000 and four for B1000.
Each component serial number is used in the manufacture of the current top level serial number.
Each serial number selected is validated to ensure it was issued to the job received. It also validates the serial number is not matched to any other job. Finally, it checks if the serial number is a duplicate entry.
• Once you save the record, the data is written to a table that allows viewing of a top level serial number and the component serial numbers used in the manufacturing process.
Outbound Serial Tracking Only - If you select this option, the following process is used:
The Epicor application first determines if the item is serialized and checks to see if any components used in the manufacturing process are serial tracked.
If serial tracked components are found, a window displays all the serial numbers entered on the shipment.
All serial tracked component materials for serial tracked items are presented multiplied by the number of items per top level component.
A serial number is required to be entered and validated to ensure it has not been matched to another top level component or duplicated.

Workshop - Purchase Serialized Material

In this workshop, purchase serialized material necessary to satisfy job for the XXX-SN001 part (where XXX are your initials). Navigate to Purchase Order Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Purchase Order Entry

1. From the New menu, select New PO.

2. In the Supplier field, enter GECCO and press Tab.

3. Click Save.

4. From the New menu, select New Line. The Lines > Detail sheet displays. If it does not, navigate to it.

5. In the Part/Rev field, enter part XXX-1012 and press Tab (where XXX are your initials).

6. In the Our Qty field, enter 4.

7. Click Save.

8. Navigate to the Summary sheet.

9. Select the Unapproved check box to approve the purchase order.

10. Select the Unconfirmed check box to confirm the purchase order.

11. Click Save.

12. Record the purchase order number__________.

13. Exit Purchase Order Entry.

Workshop - Receive Serialized Materials

You can issue serial numbers at the time of receipt from a supplier. This workshop provides an example of serial number generation at the time of receipt. Navigate to Receipt Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Shipping/Receiving > General Operations > Receipt Entry

1. From the New menu, select New Receipt.

2. In the PO field, enter the previously recorded purchase order number and press Tab.

3. In the Packing Slip field, enter the purchase order number.

4. Click Save.

5. From the New menu, select New Receipt Line.

6. In the Line field, enter 1 and press Tab.

7. In the Rel field, verify 1 displays.

8. Verify both the Our Quantity and Supplier Qty fields display 4.

9. Click the Next Lot button. The part number you are receiving is designated as both lot and serial number tracked.

10. To the Are you sure you wish to create a lot number? message, click Yes. The assigned lot number displays in the Lot field.

11. Click the Serial Numbers button. The Select Serial Numbers window displays.

12. Navigate to the Create Serial Numbers sheet.

13. Verify the Add Range of Serial Numbers option is selected. By selecting this option, you are ensuring the serial numbers generate for all parts received into stock.

14. Click the Add button.

15. Navigate to the Select sheet and view the generated serial numbers in the Selected Serial Numbers pane. There should be four serial numbers.

16. Click OK.

17. In the Lines > Detail sheet, select the Received check box. The Received status displays.

18. Click Save.

19. Exit Receipt Entry. The lot and serial tracked part is received to inventory.

Workshop - Use Lower Level Component Serializing

You select lower level component serial tracking at the operation level. When you place operations in a method of manufacture, serialization rules apply.

You can select operations for serial number generation in Operations Maintenance or through the Engineering Workbench. Once you select an operation, you enter a job tie it to a method of manufacture.

Create a Job

In this workshop, enter a job for the part created in the Workshop - Create a Serialized Part.

Note Enable lower level component serial tracking at the operation level. When you place an operation in a method of manufacture (MOM), the rules for serialization follow.

Navigate to Job Entry. Menu Path: Production Management > Job Management > General Operations > Job Entry

From the New menu, select New Job.
In the New Job Number window, click the Next Job button and click OK. Record the job number ___________.
In the Part field, enter XXX-SN001 (where XXX are your initials) and press Tab.
In the Req By field, enter the date two weeks from today.
From the New menu, select New Demand Link > Make To Stock. This creates the line item for the job.
In the Job > Make To Stock > Detail sheet, in the Warehouse field, verify Main displays.
In the Quantity field, enter 2.
Click Save. The new part now requires a method of manufacture.

Add Operations

In the tree view, right-click on the word Operations and select Add Operation. The Job Details > Operations > Detail sheet displays.
In the Operation field, select Assemble per print.
In the Production Per Machine section, enter 8 in the Prod Std field. Verify the standard format is Pieces / Hour.
Click Save. After the record saves, and default scheduling resources populate.
In the tree view, right-click on the word Operations and select Add Operation.
In the Operation field, select Deburr.
In the Production Per Machine section, enter 1 in the Prod Std field. Verify the standard format is Pieces / Hour.
In the Scheduling Factors pane, select the Serial Numbers Required From This Operation check box.

Selecting this check box indicates that a serial number reference is required once this operation is completed for all transactions that take place from this point forward.

9. Click Save.

Add Materials

In the tree view, right-click on the word Materials and select Add Material.
In the Part/Rev field, enter XXX-1012 (where XXX are your initials). This is a serialized part.
In the Qty/Parent field, enter 2. This means that two XXX-1012 parts are needed in order to create part XXX-SN001.
Click Save.

Schedule the Job

1. Navigate to the Job sheet and select the Released check box.

You must engineer a job before the schedule can be issued. Select the Released check box to automatically select the Engineered check box. The Schedule Job window displays.

2. In the Schedule Job window, accept the defaults of backward scheduling and click OK. A schedule is created for the job and now production can begin.

3. Click Save and exit Job Entry.

Workshop - Generate or Assign Serial Numbers

You can generate or match serial numbers after several transactions including purchase receipts, transfer order receipts, job receipts (all modes), quantity adjustments, Cycle Counting, and RMA receipts. In this workshop, assign serial numbers to serial tracked parts on a job.

Navigate to Serial Number Assignment. Menu Path: Production Management > Job Management > General Operations > Serial Number Assignment

1. In the Job field, enter the job number created in Workshop - Lower Level Component Serializing and

press Tab. Once you locate the job, the serialized part(s) default automatically.

2. Click the Serial Numbers button. The Select Serial Numbers window displays.

3. Navigate to the Create Serial Numbers sheet and verify Add Range of Serial Numbers is selected.

4. Click the Add button to create new serial numbers.

5. Navigate to the Select sheet and review the serial numbers. Serial numbers display in the Selected Serial Numbers pane.

6. Click OK.

7. Click Save.

8. Exit Serial Number Assignment.

Workshop - Issue Material to a Job

You need to issue part XXX-1012 to a job. Because this is a lower level serialized part, you select serial numbers during this process. Navigate to Issue Material. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Issue Material

1. In the Job field, enter the job number created in the Workshop - Lower Level Component Serializing and press Tab.

2. In the Mtl field, select 10.

This is a reference to part XXX-1012 which you need to create part XXX-SN001 (where XXX are your initials).

3. In the Quantity field, enter 4.

4. In the Warehouse field, select Receiving Area.

5. In the Bin field, search for and select bin RCV-1 (Receiving Area 1).

6. Click the Lot Number button and click the Search button.

7. Select the lot number that is listed in the Search Results grid and click OK.

8. Click the Serial Numbers button. The Select Serial Numbers window displays.

9. In the Select sheet, click the Retrieve Available button.

10. Click the double key arrow to move the serial numbers to the Selected Serial Numbers box.

11. Click OK to close the Select Serial Numbers window.

12. In Issue Material, click OK.

13. Exit Issue Material.

Workshop - Complete the Operation

In this workshop, you will enter labor and the quantity produced to complete the operation. Enter labor through Time and Expense Entry or the Manufacturing Execution System (MES). Navigate to Time and Expense Entry. Menu Path: Production Management > Job Management > General Operations > Time and Expense Entry

1. In the Employee ID field, enter 101 and press Tab. The Time > Daily Time > Detail > Detail displays.

2. From the New menu, select New Time Detail.

3. In the Job field, enter the job number created in the Workshop - Lower Level Component Serializing and press Tab.

4. In the Assembly field, verify 0 displays.

5. In the Operation field, select 20.

This is the Deburr operation for which you which selected Serial Numbers Required From This Operation check box in the Add Operations workshop.

6. In the Labor Qty field, enter 2 and press Tab.

Serial number assignments are required to complete this operation. Although the Select Serial Number button is available, this option is used to report scrap or non-conforming pieces after serialization.

7. In the Clock In field, verify or enter 01:00 PM.

8. In the Clock Out field, enter 04:00 PM.

9. Click the Serial Numbers button.

10. In the Serial Number Selection window, click the Select Serial Numbers button and then click Search.

11. Click the Select All button and then click OK twice. These are the serial numbers created for the parent part XXX-SN001.

12. Click OK.

13. Click the Submit button and exit Time and Expense Entry.

Serial Matching Process

Use Serial Matching to match child serial numbers to parent serial numbers for a particular job or an individual serial number. If you enter a serial number in the Top Serial sheet and it has a job number associated with it, this process operates in job mode, restricting the serial number selection to available numbers on the selected job. If no job number exists for the serial number, however, the process runs in serial number mode; you can match serial numbers with any available related numbers.

If No Lower Level Serial Tracking is set in the Site Configuration Control > Modules > Material > Serial Number Tracking sheet, you can create a table to maintain the parent/child serial number relationships. The information required in this table is as follows:

Parent serial number
Child serial number
• Date matched You can create this table using the following two methods:
Job Serial Matching - Create or maintain the parent/child serial number relationship for a job.
Serial Number Matching - Create or maintain the parent/child serial number relationship for individual serial numbers. The Select column in the Available to Match sheet contains check boxes next to each of the potential serial number match candidates. Select the check box next to each child serial number that should be matched to the parent serial number for the selected subassembly. This allows for matching of more than one child serial number to a parent serial number.

If you first enter a serial number in the Top Serial sheet and it has a job number associated with it, the process operates in job mode. If there is no job number associated with the serial number, the process operates in serial number mode.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Serial Matching
Production Management > Job Management > General Operations > Serial Matching

Workshop - Lower Level Component Matching

Use the Top Serial sheet to start the process for creating parent/child links for a job (job mode) or for individual serial numbers (serial mode).

You must establish parent serial numbers before completing this procedure. If you enter a serial number in the Top Serial sheet first and it has a job number associated with it, the process operates in job mode. If a job number is not associated with the serial number, the process operates in serial number mode.

Navigate to Serial Matching.

Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Serial Matching

1. In the Job field, enter the job number created in the Workshop - Lower Level Component Serializing and press Tab.

2. Click the Serial Number button and click Search.

3. Click the Select All button and then click OK to link the two serial numbers to the highest assembly of the

job. You can switch between these two parent serial numbers using the navigational toolbar at the top.

4. In the tree view, right-click on Materials and select Tree > Expand Tree.

5. In the tree view, under Serial Numbers, select the first material (Mtl:10.1). The Matching Details > Materials > Detail sheet displays.

6. Navigate to the Available to Match sheet.

7. Click the Retrieve button. Four rows of serial numbers display in the grid, referring to the job number you created. You can expand the size of the Serial Number column to see that the four serial numbers are unique.

8. Click the Select check box on the top row to select the first serial number.

9. Click the Match button.

In tree view, notice that Mtl: 10.1 has been assigned the selected serial number. Notice also that there are now three rows of serial numbers in the grid.

10. Click Save.

11. In tree view, select Mtl:10.2. The Matching Details > Materials > Detail sheet displays.

12. Navigate to the Available to Match sheet.

13. Click the Select check box on the top row to select the next serial number.

14. Click the Match button. In tree view, notice that Mtl: 10.2 SN: has been assigned the selected serial number.

15. Click Save.

16. Using the navigational toolbar at the top, click the right arrow to select the second parent serial number.

17. Click Save and exit Serial Matching.

Workshop - Receive Completed Job Quantities to Inventory

Now that you completed the operations on your job order, you need to move those units to the Finished Goods area for eventual shipment to customers. Navigate to Job Receipt to Inventory. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Job Receipt to Inventory

1. In the From Job field, enter the job number created in the Workshop - Lower Level Component Serializing and press Tab. The default inventory details populate based on the part number on the job.

2. In the Quantity field, enter 2. This is the completed quantity you are moving from the Production Floor to Finished Goods bin in the Main Warehouse.

3. Click the Serial Numbers button.

The Select Serial Numbers window displays.

4. In the Select sheet, click the Retrieve Available button. The two serial numbers associated with the units completed in Workshop - Complete the Operation display.

5. Click the double right arrow button to add the selected serial numbers to the Selected Serial Numbers pane.

6. Click OK two times.

7. Click Save.

8. Exit Job Receipt to Inventory.

Workshop - Sell and Ship Serialized Items

In the following workshops, create and ship a sales order for your serialized item, assign serial numbers at time of customer shipment and view shipper serial number detail.

Create a Sales Order

Customer Dalton Manufacturing has placed an order for the newly created part XXX-SN001. In this workshop create a sales order. Navigate to Sales Order Entry. Menu Path: Sales Management > Order Management > General Operations > Order Entry

From the New menu, select New Order.
In the Customer field, enter Dalton and press Tab.
In the PO field, enter the last four digits of your phone number.
From the New menu, select New Line.
Navigate to the Lines > Detail sheet.
In the Part/Rev field, enter the previously created part XXX-SN001 (where XXX are your initials) and press Tab.
In the Order Quantity field, enter 2.
In the Need By field, enter the date one week from today's date.
In the Ship By field, enter the date two days before the Need By date.
Navigate to the Summary sheet.
Record the sales order number _______.
Click Save.
Exit Sales Order Entry.

Select Serial Numbers at Customer Shipment

If you use Outbound Only Serial Number tracking, you issue serial numbers at the time of customer shipment.

Customer shipment is a transaction where you can generate new or select existing serial numbers. In this workshop, select serial numbers for assignment to the shipped items. Navigate to Customer Shipment Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Shipping / Receiving > General Operations > Customer Shipment Entry

From the New menu, select New Pack.
From the New menu, select New Line. The Lines > Customer Shipment Entry > Detail sheet displays.
In the Order Number field, enter the sales order number created in the previous workshop and press Tab.
Click the Line/Rel button, search for and select Line 1 and Release 1, then click OK.
In the Our Ship Qty field, enter 2 and press Tab. The Complete status displays.
In the From Inventory pane, verify that Main displays in the Warehouse field.
Click the Bin button.
In the Warehouse Bin Search window, search for and select bin 00-00-00 then click OK.
Click Save.

Notice the error message that displays. This error message states you need to create or select created serial numbers to ship.

10. Click OK to the message.

11. In the From Inventory pane, click the Serial Number button.

12. In the Select sheet, click the Retrieve Available button.

Notice the two serial numbers that display in the Available Serial Numbers pane. The two serial numbers associated with the units completed in Workshop - Receive Completed Job Quantities to Inventory display.

13. Click the double right arrow button to add the selected serial numbers to the Selected Serial Numbers pane.

14. Click OK and click Save.

15. Navigate to the Summary sheet and record the Pack ID number ___________.

16. Exit Customer Shipment Entry.

Using the Customer Shipment Tracker

The Customer Shipment Tracker provides an online view of shipments made to customers based on the packing slip number. Navigate to the Customer Shipment Tracker. Menu Path: Material Management > Shipping / Receiving > General Operations > Customer Shipment Tracker

In the Pack Number field, enter the packing slip number created in the Workshop - Select Serial Numbers at Customer Shipment and press Tab.
Navigate to the Serial Numbers sheet and click the Retrieve button. The grid populates with data.
Click Print and select Print Preview. Preview the packing slip.
Close all windows and exit the Customer Shipment Tracker.

Serial Number Tracker

Use the Serial Number Tracker to display information about serial-tracked part records including the serial number status, location, and serial-tracked transactions.

This tracker displays information in a dashboard format. A dashboard provides you with current information and processes so you can more efficiently perform your tasks. You cannot add or edit records in a tracker.

Menu Path

Navigate to this program from the Main Menu:

Executive Analysis > Trackers > Serial Number Tracker
Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Serial Number Tracker
Material Management > Purchase Contracts Management > General Operations > Serial Number Tracker
Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Serial Number Tracker
Material Management > Shipping / Receiving > General Operations > Serial Number Tracker
Production Management > Job Management > General Operations > Serial Number Tracker
Production Management > Quality Assurance > General Operations > Serial Number Tracker
Sales Management > Customer Relationship Management > General Operations > Serial Number Tracker
Service Management > Field Service > General Operations > Serial Number Tracker

Serial Number Status

Serial Number Maintenance and Serial Number Tracker

Adjusted - Serialized item was adjusted out of inventory using Quantity Adjustments or Post Cycle Counts, located on the Actions menu in Count Cycle Maintenance.
• Consumed - Serial number was assigned to a parent serial number using Serial Matching or issued to a WIP job using Mass Issues to Manufacturing, Issue Material or Issue Assembly as a material requirement. In the latter case, no serial matching takes place because lower level serial matching is not enabled for the site.
DMR - Serialized item is currently assigned to a DMR in DMR Processing.
Inspection - Serialized item is currently in Inspection, but not yet processed using Inspection Processing.
Inventory - Serialized item is currently in live Inventory and can be consumed by a work order or picked to a sales or transfer order.
Inreceipt - Serialized item is currently assigned to a purchase receipt line that has arrived at your facilities but has not been flagged as Received (it is currently in the process of being received).
Misc-Issue - Serialized item has been issued using Miscellaneous Material Issue.
Packed - Serialized item is packed for shipment to a customer, but not yet shipped.
Rejected - Assigned when one of the following occurs:
Serialized item is rejected in DMR Processing.
Set to Scrapped in the DMR Processing when serial number updates related to transactions entered into Labor Entry or Kanban Receipt are processed (this sets the Status of the DMR to Rejected and the SerialNo.Scrapped flag in the SNTran table to True).
When a DMR is not being used for the serialized item and it is rejected in RMA Disposition.
Picked - Serialized item is picked for a customer order but not yet packed for a shipment.
RMA - Serialized item was entered as an expected serial number in an RMA, but not yet received.
Shipped - Serialized item was shipped to a customer.
Subshipped - Shipped to a supplier via subcontractor shipment and not yet received back.
Unassign - Serialized item was created for a WIP job but was unassigned from the job after some job activity had already taken place against the serial number.
WIP - Serialized item was assigned to a WIP job currently in process.

Important The values in the fields in the Serial Number Maintenance > Detail sheet depend on the current status of the serialized item. This means that some fields may be blank because they are not applicable to the current status. The status of the serialized item also affects which of these fields can be filled or modified in Serial Number Maintenance.

Tip To update the Status field when it is not enabled, while correctly maintaining traceability, follow these recommended methods:

If Status should be WIP, issue the serial number to the relevant job.
If Status should be Shipped, ship the serialized item on the transfer order.
If Status should be Inventory and it is currently WIP, return the material to the warehouse.
If Status should be Inventory and it is Inspection, use Inspection Processing program to complete the inspection process.
If Status is Consumed and it should not be, use Serial Matching and unlink the serial number.
If Status is Shipped and should not be, reverse the Shipment Entry transaction.
If Status is DMR and should not be, disposition the serialized item using DMR Processing.

Workshop - Using the Serial Number Tracker

Use the Serial Number Tracker to view the properties and transaction activity for a serial number in read-only mode.

The Serial Number Tracker provides an online view of the movement of an item after you create or assign the serial number. Serial number transferring is handled in the Serial Number Tracker.

1. Navigate to the Serial Number Tracker.

Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Serial Number Tracker Discuss the entries, such as the shipping information.

Click the Serial Number button to locate a serial number.
In the Part field, enter XXX-SN001 (where XXX are your initials) and click Search.
Select the first serial number and click OK.
Navigate to the Transactions sheet and click the Retrieve button to view the transactions.
Navigate to the Lower Level Serials sheet and click the Retrieve button. Review the child component serial numbers attached to the parent serial number.
Exit the Serial Number Tracker.

Unassign or Delete a Serial Number

If you incorrectly assign a serial number to the wrong job, you can make a correction in the Epicor application, provided that a labor record has not been posted for that serial.

If a serial is assigned to a job in error and no labor has been entered for the associated operation, you can delete the serial number entirely.

In Serial Number Assignment, enter the job that has the part for which you need to delete a serial.
Click the Serial Numbers button to access the Select Serial Numbers program.
In the Selected Serial Numbers pane, select the serial number to unassign and use the Left Arrow button to move it to the Available Serial Numbers pane.

This serial number is completely deleted from the system. If you want to reuse it, use the Create Serial Numbers sheet in Serial Number Assignment and enter it manually.

If an operation with an associated serial number has been completed and time has been saved or submitted, you can still unassign the number in the event of an error.

In Serial Number Assignment, enter the job that has the part for which you need to unassign a serial.
Click the Serial Numbers button to access the Select Serial Numbers program.
In the Selected Serial Numbers pane, select hte serial number to unassign and use the Left Arrow button to move it to the Available Serial Numbers pane.

The status of the serial number is now UNASSIGNED. You can reassign it to another job in Serial Number Assignment:

In Serial Number Assignment, enter the job that has the part for which you need to reassign the serial.
Click the Serial Numbers button to access the Select Serial Numbers program.
In the Serial Number field, manually enter the serial number and click Select. This moves the serial number to the Selected Serial Numbers list.

Customer and Supplier Managed Inventories

The Customer and Supplier Managed Inventory provide you the ability to hold, control, and record inventory items owned by a customer or a supplier.

Customer Managed Inventory (CMI) is primarily aimed at supply chain or distribution users that store inventory on behalf of their customers and then perform the logistics operation to deliver the items to the customer.
Supplier Managed Inventory (SMI) provides a supplier with the ability to store products in a host facility. When it is consumed, an actual purchase receipt is produced for supplier payment. If required, you can also self-invoice on these receipts.

This functionality creates new transactions within the Epicor application. The value of the customer inventory items do not display in your general ledger (GL), but they are visible as quantities currently in stock. When you consume supplier stock and effectively receive these items, the items display in your GL. When you stock these types of items, both the supplier managed inventory and the customer managed inventory bin types can be set up for operational purposes.

Non-Standard Bin Types

You use the Type field in the Warehouse Bin Maintenance > Detail sheet to designate if a particular warehouse bin is a Standard type bin or a non-standard Customer Managed or Supplier Managed type bin. Non-standard customer and supplier-owned inventories provide you with the ability to hold, control, and record inventory items owned by a specific customer or supplier.

Standard - This bin type stores normal inventory balances (that is, those solely owned by your company and not by one of your customers or suppliers).
• Customer Managed - This bin type stores customer-owned inventories. You use the accompanying Customer field to enter or select the identifier for the customer who owns the material in the bin. A customer-owned bin can only contain inventory for one specific customer, though you can define multiple bins for the same customer if needed.
Example If you create a bin called DALTON1, it can only hold inventory for one customer, in this case, Dalton Manufacturing. However, you can establish multiple bins for Dalton Manufacturing if needed (for example, Receiving, Stocking).

Supplier Managed - This bin type stores supplier-owned inventories. You use the accompanying Supplier field to enter or select the identifier for the supplier who owns the material in the bin. A supplier-owned bin can only contain inventory from one specific supplier, though you can define multiple bins for the same supplier if needed.

Example If you create a bin called NORDSTROM1, it can only hold inventory for one customer, in this case, Nordstom Supplies. However, you can establish multiple bins for Nordstom Supplies if needed.

Workshop - Review Managed Inventory Warehouses

In order to demonstrate the concept of customer managed inventory (CMI) bins or supplier managed inventory (SMI) bins, specially designated warehouses have been defined for training purposes. In your business operations, you can create customer or supplied managed bins within your established warehouses, commingled with standard bins. In this workshop, review the warehouses established for CMI and SMI bin types.

Navigate to Warehouse Maintenance.

Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > Setup > Warehouse

Click the Warehouse button and click Search.
From the Search Results grid, press Ctrl and select the CMI and SMI warehouses.
Click OK.

Review Supplier Managed Bins

In the tree view, select the Supplier Managed Inventory warehouse.
In Warehouse Detail sheet, verify the SMI warehouse displays.
Click the Bins button. Warehouse Bin Maintenance displays.
In the Warehouse field, verify Supplier Managed Inventory displays.
Click the Bin button and click Search.
Click Select All and click OK.
In the tree view, select Nordstrom-Stock and review the details.
Close Warehouse Bin Maintenance and remain in Warehouse Maintenance.

Review the Customer Managed Bins

In the tree view, select the Customer Managed Inventory warehouse.
In Warehouse Detail sheet, verify the CMI warehouse displays.
Click the >>Bins button. Warehouse Bin Maintenance displays.
In the Warehouse field, verify Customer Managed Inventory displays.
Click the Bin button and click Search.
Click Select All and click OK.
In the tree view, select Dalton-Stock and review the details.

8. Close Warehouse Bin Maintenance and exit Warehouse Maintenance.

Supplier Managed Inventories

When you designate a warehouse bin as Supplier Managed, you also indicate the specific supplier for which inventory stored in that bin is being held and controlled. This provides your supplier with the ability to store their product in a host facility.

By definition, the inventory stored in a specific supplier-managed bin is owned by that supplier until the point at which it is withdrawn to a non-supplier managed bin for any purpose (for example, used for material replenishment).
Supplier Managed purchase orders must be received to bins designated as Supplier Managed; the supplier associated with the bin must be the same as on the purchase order. PUR-SMI transaction type records are generated for purchase receipts to supplier-managed inventories; these receipts should always have a zero cost because the supplier still owns the stock. These types of receipts cannot go through the inspection process.
When inventory is consumed or withdrawn from a supplier-managed bin to a standard bin, an actual purchase receipt for supplier payment is created, triggering a PUR-STK transaction, with an assigned cost of the oldest Supplier Managed purchase receipt for that part and supplier. At this point, the "purchase" is triggered, ownership changes from the supplier to your company, and the stock assumes a cost. Once stored in a standard bin, you can issue the inventory to manufacturing, ship it to a customer, or use it for other internal purposes. If required, you can also self-invoice these receipts.
Use Cycle Count Maintenance to perform cycle count adjustments as required in supplier-managed bins. The appropriate transactions "carry-back" through the purchasing cycle.

Unlike customer-managed inventories, when you consume supplier stock (and effectively receive these items), the value of the items does directly appear in your general ledger.

Note Due to the differing manner in which the Epicor application processes supplier-managed inventories versus customer-managed inventories, the two types of inventories should never be co-mingled in the same warehouse bin!

Workshop - Create a Supplier Managed Purchase Order

ABC Manufacturing uses part 8400S-625; it is a large bulky item used on a frequent basis. Whenever the need for the item arises in manufacturing, they need immediate and fast access to the part, so they have entered into a supplier managed inventory arrangement with the Nordstrom Suppliers. To eliminate the cost and hassle of frequently shipping the item to ABC Manufacturing, Nordstrom Supplies has agreed that ABC Manufacturing will purchase and then store the inventory on-site in a designated, locked bin location. At the time the purchase is made, ABC Manufacturing does not pay the supplier for the items. When they require use of a unit, they move it to a standard bin, at which point they take ownership of the item and pay Nordstrom Supplies for it.

Navigate to Purchase Order Entry.

Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Purchase Order Entry

Navigate to the Header > Detail sheet.
From the New menu, select New PO.
In the Type field, select Supplier Managed.
Click Supplier field, then search for and select Nordstrom Supplies
In the FOB field, select Factory.
Click Save.

Create a PO Line

From the New menu, select New Line. The Lines > Detail sheet displays.
In the Part/Rev field, enter 8400S-625 and press Tab.
In the Due Date field, enter the date one month from today.
In the Our Qty field, enter 100.
In the Unit Price field, enter 25.00.
Click Save.

Enter Line Release Information

Navigate to the Releases > Detail sheet.
In the Due Date field, enter the date one month from today displays.
In the Our Qty field, enter 100.
In the Warehouse field, select Supplier Managed Inventory.
Click Save.

Approve the Purchase Order

Navigate to the Summary sheet.
Select the Unapproved check box. The Approved status displays.
From the Actions menu, select Print. The Purchase Order window displays.
Click Print Preview. The Purchase Order displays.
Review the purchase order.
Close the purchase order and exit the Purchase Order window.
Record the purchase order number _____________.
Click Save and exit Purchase Order Entry.

Review the Supplier Managed Purchase Order

In this workshop, review the Supplier Managed purchase order information. Navigate to the Purchase Order Tracker. Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Purchase Order Tracker

In the PO Number field, enter the purchase order number created in the Workshop - Create a Supplier-Managed Purchase Order and press Tab.
In the Summary sheet, review the purchase order information.
Navigate to the Header > Detail sheet and review the information.
Navigate to the Releases > Detail sheet and review the information.
Exit the Purchase Order Tracker.

Workshop - Receive Purchase Order to a Supplier Managed Bin

To receive parts into a supplier managed inventory (SMI) bin, you must create a receipt. In this workshop, create a receipt for the Supplier Managed purchase order. Navigate to Receipt Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Shipping / Receiving > General Operations > Receipt Entry

From the New menu, select New Receipt.
In the PO field, enter the purchase order number created in the Workshop - Create a Supplier Managed Purchase Order and press Tab.
In the Packing Slip field, enter the purchase order number.
Click Save.

Create a New Receipt Line

From the New menu, select New Receipt Line. The Lines > Detail sheet displays.
In the Line field, enter 1.
In the Rel field, enter 1.
In the Warehouse field, verify Supplier Managed Inventory displays.
Click Bin, then search for and select NOR-RECV.
In the General sub-sheet at the bottom of the window, verify 0.00 displays in the Unit Cost field.

Note Even though you entered a unit price on the purchase order line, the receipts for the line item into a Supplier Managed bin are costed at zero and do not impact the General Ledger (GL). The

received item assumes a zero cost until the time you transfer a unit of inventory to a standard bin or ship them to a customer, at which time you assume ownership of the item. At this time, the item is costed and impacts the GL.

7. Select the Received check box.

8. Click Save.

9. Navigate to the Summary > Received Lines sheet. In the Received Lines grid, the part 8400S-625 displays.

10. Right click the Part field, then select Open With > Part Transaction History Tracker. The Part Transaction History Tracker displays.

11. Click Retrieve to retrieve and display transaction history for the part. In the Transaction History grid, verify that a PUR-SMI type transaction for a quantity of 100 and Mtl Unit Cost of 0.00 displays.

12. Exit the Part Transaction History Tracker and Receipt Entry.

Workshop - Transfer Supplier Managed Parts

After receiving the supplied managed parts, you decide to move a small portion of the received inventory from the Supplier Managed bin to a standard bin for issuance to manufacturing. A new receipt/packing slip is automatically created, as well as the associated GL transactions.

Navigate to Inventory Transfer. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > General Operations > Inventory Transfer

1. In the Part field, enter 8400S-625 and press Tab.

2. In the Quantity field, enter 20.

3. In the Warehouse field in the From Location pane, select Supplier Managed Inventory.

4. In the Bin field, enter NOR-RECV. A quantity of 100 displays in the On Hand field.

5. In the Warehouse field in the To Location pane, verify Main displays.

6. In the Bin field, search for and select 01-01-01.

7. Click Transfer.

8. Right click the Part field, then select Open With > Part Transaction History Tracker. The Part Transaction History Tracker displays.

9. Click Retrieve to retrieve and display transaction history for the part. In the Transaction History grid, verify that PUR-STK, STK-STK and ADJ-CST transactions have been generated. The ADJ-CST transaction now contains an item unit cost of 25.00. These reflect the ownership change from the supplier for payment and General Ledger purposes.

10. Exit the Part Transaction History Tracker and Inventory Transfer.

Workshop - Review Supplier Managed Transactions

In the following workshop, use the Purchase Order Tracker and Inventory/WIP report to review the transactions that have been generated for the Supplier Managed inventory transaction.

Review the Inventory/WIP Reconciliation Report

Using the Inventory/WIP Reconciliation report, review the transactions that have been generated for the Supplier Managed inventory transfer. Navigate to Inventory/WIP Reconciliation Report. Menu Path: Material Management > Inventory Management > Reports > Inventory/WIP Reconciliation

In the Start field, enter today's date.
In the End field, enter today's date.
On the Standard toolbar, click Print Preview. The Print Preview window displays. Review the transactions that have been generated for the Supplier Managed inventory transfer.
Close the Print Preview window and the Inventory/WIP Reconcilation Report.

Review Receipt in the Purchase Order Tracker

Using the Purchase Order Tracker, review the receipts that were generated against the Supplier Managed inventory transfer for payment and General Ledger purposes. This allows creation of invoices and performance of three-way matching in the Accounts Payable module.

Navigate to Purchase Order Tracker. Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Purchase Order Tracker

In the PO Number field, enter the purchase order number you created in Workshop - Create a Supplier Managed Purchase Order.
Navigate to the Receipts sheet.
Click Retrieve to retrieve and display receipt history for the purchase order. In the PO Receipts grid, verify the original receipt of 10 units on the supplier managed purchase order.
Exit the Purchase Order Tracker.

Customer Managed Inventories

When you designate a warehouse bin as Customer Managed, you also indicate the specific customer for which inventory stored in that bin is being held and controlled. Use of customer managed inventory is intended for use by supply chain or distribution users that store inventory on behalf of a specific customer, and then performs the required logistics processing to distribute these stored items to the customers of their customer.

By definition, the inventory stored in a specific customer-managed bin is owned by the designated customer only for the exclusive purpose of fulfilling that orders initiated by that customer, or for consumption on jobs that are linked to orders for that customer only.
The important concept is that the ownership of a customer-managed bin inventory never changes (that is, the inventory stored in that bin is owned by that customer only for their exclusive consumption).
PUR-CMI transaction type records are automatically generated for purchase or miscellaneous receipts of buy to order (BTO) parts to customer-managed inventories.

The value of the customer-owned inventory items do not appear in your general ledger, but are visible as on-hand quantities currently in stock.

Workshop - Review the Managed Suppliers for a Customer

All customers with customer managed inventory (CMI) must be linked to specific suppliers. In this workshop, review the linked suppliers for Dalton Manufacturing who have CMI bins in your warehouse. Navigate to Customer Maintenance. Menu Path: Sales Management > Order Management > Setup > Customer

In the Customer field, enter DALTON and press Tab.
Navigate to the Customer > Additional > Managed Suppliers sheet.
In the Approved Managed Suppliers grid, review the suppliers linked to Dalton Manufacturing.
Exit Customer Maintenance.

Workshop - Create a Customer Managed Purchase Order

Dalton Manufacturing orders part DCD-300-OR from one of the company's suppliers, Gecco Steel. This part is used within the Epicor Education - Main site to finish a manufactured part supplied to Dalton Manufacturing. Instead of performing a transfer order from Dalton Manufacturing's Main site to Epicor Education - Main site where the part is needed, Dalton Manufacturing has a customer managed inventory (CMI) bin at the Main site. In this workshop, create a purchase order for a CMI purchased part and complete the process to ship the parts to the designated CMI bin.

Navigate to Purchase Order Entry.

Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Purchase Order Entry

Navigate to the Header > Detail sheet.
From the New menu, select New PO.
In the Type field, select Customer Managed.
In the Supplier field, enter Gecco and press Tab.
In the FOB field, select Factory.
Click Save.

Create a Purchase Order Line

From the New menu, select New Line. The Lines > Detail sheet displays.
In the Part/Rev field, enter DCD-300-OR and press Tab.
In the Due Date field, enter the date one month from today.
Click the Managed Customer button and search for and select Dalton.
In the Our Qty field, enter 10.
Click Save.

Enter Line Release Information

Navigate to the Releases > Detail sheet.
In the Due Date field, verify the date one month from today displays.
In the Our Qty field, enter 10.
In the Managed Customer field, verify Dalton displays.
In the Warehouse field, select Customer Managed Inventory.
Click Save. In the Promise Date field, verify that a date one month from today displays.

Approve the Purchase Order

1. Navigate to the Summary sheet.

2. Select the Unapproved check box. The Approved status displays.

3. From the Actions menu, select Print. The Purchase Order window displays.

4. Click Print Preview. The Purchase Order displays.

5. Review the purchase order.

The purchase order states Gecco as the supplier and is shipping the desired parts to the Epicor Education site. The shipping address is not Dalton Manufacturing's location because Epicor Education stores the parts ordered in customer managed inventory (CMI) bins on behalf of Dalton Manufacturing.

6. Close the purchase order and exit the Purchase Order window.

7. Record the purchase order number _____________.

8. Click Save and exit Purchase Order Entry.

Review the Customer Managed Purchase Order

In this workshop, review the Customer Managed purchase order information. Navigate to Purchase Order Tracker. Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Purchase Order Tracker

In the PO Number field, enter the purchase order number created in the Workshop - Create a Customer Managed Purchase Order and press Tab.
In the Summary sheet, review the purchase order information.
Navigate to the Header > Detail sheet and review the information.
Navigate to the Releases > Detail sheet and review the information.
Exit the Purchase Order Tracker.

Workshop - Receive Purchase Order to a Customer Managed Bin

To receive parts into a customer managed inventory (CMI) bin, you must create a receipt. In this workshop, create a receipt for the Customer-Managed purchase order. Navigate to Receipt Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Shipping / Receiving > General Operations > Receipt Entry

From the New menu, select New Receipt.
In the PO field, enter the purchase order number created in the Workshop - Create a Customer Managed Purchase Order and press Tab.
In the Packing Slip field, enter the purchase order number.
Click Save.

Create a New Receipt Line

From the New menu, select New Receipt Line. The Lines > Detail sheet displays.
In the Line and Release fields, enter 1 and 1 and press Tab.
In the Warehouse field, verify Customer Managed Inventory displays.
In the Bin field, verify DAL-010101 displays.
Select the Received check box.
Click Save.
Navigate to the Summary > Received Lines sheet. In the Received Lines grid, the part DCD-300-OR displays.

Review the Part Label

It is essential that customer managed inventory (CMI) parts are labeled accurately to distinguish CMI parts from regular stock parts. Review the print label for Dalton Manufacturing's CMI parts being added to inventory.

From the Actions menu, select Print Labels. The Print Labels window displays.
Click Print Preview. The Receipt Labels display. Review the Receipt Labels.
Close the Receipt Labels and the Print Labels windows.
Exit Receipt Entry.

Review the Customer Managed Purchase Receipt in the Receipt Tracker Navigate to the Receipt Tracker. Menu Path: Material Management > Shipping / Receiving > General Operations > Receipt Tracker

In the PO field, enter the purchase order number created in the Workshop - Create a Customer Managed Purchase Order and press Tab.
In the Packing Slip field, enter the purchase order number and press Tab.
Navigate to the Summary > Received Lines sheet.
In the Received Lines grid, review the information for part DCD-300-OR.
In the Received Lines grid, in the Received To column, verify that Customer Managed displays. This identifies the parts labeled as customer managed inventory (CMI).
Exit the Receipt Tracker.

Review Customer Managed Receipt in the Purchase Order Tracker

Using the Purchase Order Tracker, review the receipt transaction that was created for the Customer Managed material receipt. This receipt registers that you have received materials from a supplier for this customer. It remains open until all of the received items have been consumed or sold, and does not create any GL transactions.

Navigate to Purchase Order Tracker. Menu Path: Material Management > Purchase Management > General Operations > Purchase Order Tracker

In the PO Number field, enter the purchase order number you created in Workshop - Create a Customer Managed Purchase Order.
Navigate to the Receipts sheet.
Click Retrieve to retrieve and display receipt history for the purchase order. In the PO Receipts grid, verify the original receipt of 10 units on the Customer Managed purchase order.
Exit the Purchase Order Tracker.

Workshop - Create a Sales Order

Customer Dalton Manufacturing has placed an order for seven units of DCD-300-OR. In this workshop create a sales order. Navigate to Sales Order Entry. Menu Path: Sales Management > Order Management > General Operations > Order Entry

From the New menu, select New Order.
In the Customer field, enter Dalton and press Tab.
In the PO field, enter the last four digits of your phone number.
From the New menu, select New Line.
Navigate to the Lines > Detail sheet.
In the Part/Rev field, enter the previously created part DCD-300-OR and press Tab.
In the Order Quantity field, enter 7.
In the Need By field, enter the date one week from today's date.
In the Ship By field, enter the date two days before the Need By date.
Navigate to the Summary sheet.
Record the sales order number _______.
Click Save.
Exit Sales Order Entry.

Workshop - Ship the Ordered Item

In this workshop, ship the ordered items to Dalton Manufacturing. A receipt transaction is automatically created against the Customer Managed purchase order so you can track how much is still left to be sold or consumed against the original receipt. This transaction does not affect the General Ledger

Note If you plan on using the Fulfillment Workbench to allocate/ship Customer Managed orders, make sure you use the Customer Managed Inventory bin option on the allocation template.

Navigate to Customer Shipment Entry. Menu Path: Material Management > Shipping / Receiving > General Operations > Customer Shipment Entry

1. From the New menu, select New Pack.

2. From the New menu, select New Line. The Lines > Customer Shipment Entry > Detail sheet displays.

3. In the Order Number field, enter the sales order number created in the previous workshop and press Tab.

4. Click the Line/Rel button, search for and select Line 1 and Release 1, then click OK.

5. In the Our Ship Qty field, enter 7 and press Tab. The Complete status displays.

6. In the Warehouse field in the From Inventory pane, select Customer Managed Inventory.

7. Click the Bin button, then search for and select bin DAL-010101

8. Click Save.

9. Navigate back to the Summary sheet and select the Shipped checkbox.

10. Click Save.

11. From the Shipment Lines grid, right-click on the part DCD-300-OR and then select Open with Part Transaction History Tracker.

12. Click Retrieve.

13. Note that there are no costs for both the PUR-CMI and STK-CUS transactions there is no cost for these transactions.

14. Close the Part Transaction History Tracker.

15. Exit Customer Shipment Entry.

Consignment Inventory

A Consignment Inventory system gives you the ability to manufacture stock for a customer prior to a sales order being created. You are then able to hold ship the stock and hold it at another location. This is done only after a consignment agreement between you and your customer is created.

The Epicor application does not have a defined consignment inventory module. There is, however, a system of defined procedures that you can use to facilitate consignment inventory process for you and your customers. In order to implement this system, it is essential that you have the Material Requirements Planning (MRP) and Multi-Site options on your license.

The advantages for using Epicor ERP for consignment are:

Forecasting consignment usage by location
Management of minimum stocking levels at the manufacturer's and consignment location
Automatic replenishment of minimum levels
Easy shipment of consignment stock
Ability to count consignment inventory for a specific customer
Material requirement for future consignment deliveries based on forecasts

You have the options to set up your consignment system by creating one consignment site, creating consignment sites for each customer ship-to, or creating separate cost tables.

Note Throughout the entire consignment process, the consignment part is still an asset of the manufacturer/distributor. Upon invoice of the sales order for the consignment part, the part becomes a customer's asset.

Application Setup

This section reviews site configurations and maintenance programs related to Consignment Inventory.

You first create a consignment site in Site Maintenance. You then create a warehouse and a bin for your consignment site in Warehouse Maintenance and setup a consignment part in Part Maintenance.

Site Maintenance

Use Site Maintenance to create a consignment site.

The site can be one consignment site, with each customer having its own warehouse. This option is beneficial if there are no common parts between customers. There is also the option to set up consignment sites associated with each customer ship-to, which is beneficial if you ship common assemblies to multiple consignment sites. A third option is to create sites with separate cost tables; this allows each site to have its own average cost.

Workshop - Create a Consignment Site

After you receive a consignment agreement, you are ready to create a consignment site. Navigate to Site Maintenance. Menu Path: System Setup > Company/Site Maintenance > Site Maintenance

From the New button, select New Site.
In the Site ID field, enter XXX (where XXX are you initials).
In the Name field, enter XXX Consignment Site (where XXX are your initials).
Click Save. The Maintenance Site field activates.
In the Maintenance Site field, select Main.
Click Save and exit Site Maintenance.

Maintenance Programs

This section reviews the most significant maintenance program(s) applicable to the consignment inventory process. In many cases, not all fields in a program are discussed. If you are interested in learning more about a specific program, refer to the Application Help.

Warehouse Maintenance

Use Warehouse Maintenance to create a consignment warehouse and consignment bin.

Within your consignment site, it is essential to create a warehouse and a bin to house the consignment stock from the main site. This warehouse and bin also grant you the ability to count the consignment stock. You can label the warehouse with unique identifiers to represent the individual customers within the site. After you create your warehouse, you can then use Warehouse Maintenance to create a bin through the Assign Bin button.

Once you create the warehouse and bin, you can receive the transfer of consignment stock into this location. It is imperative that when you complete a sales order for consignment stock, you select the correct consignment warehouse to keep counts accurate and drive the replenishment.

Part Maintenance

Use Part Maintenance to define the parameters for a consignment part.

In order for the defined consignment process to function, it is necessary to adjust part records. It is important that you adjust part records to reflect their addition to the consignment site.

Add a new site to a part record
Specify the part as a transfer item
Identify the supply site as the main manufacturing site
Specify the transfer lead time
Identify the minimum stocking levels in both consignment and manufacturing sites

After you set up your part in your consignment site and verify that is correctly identified as a transfer item from the main manufacturing site, you then create MRP forecasts for the customer consignment part. The forecasts are for inventory that is intended to be consumed from the consignment site, not the main manufacturing site.

Consignment Inventory Processing

After the creation of the consignment site, warehouse, and bins, the application is ready to process consignment inventory. You use Material Requirements Planning, transfer orders, and sales orders to create the consignment process. The process flows through MRP, to the creation of the product, shipment and receipt of the product, and finally the consumption. The manufacturer/distributor is the party responsible for ensuring the count of the consignment inventory.

This section discusses a basic overview of the consignment inventory process that must be adhered to, or else risk failure of consignment inventory. The basic process is:

Create the MRP forecasts for the selected consignment warehouse and parts
Ship the consignment stock as a transfer order
Enter a sales order that ships and invoices immediately
Count the consignment inventory

Note Throughout this entire consignment inventory process, the consignment stock remains as an asset with the manufacturer/distributor.

This process only completes correctly if:

Inventory is considered nettable
Forecasts are adhered to and placed in the correct locations
Transfer lead times are entered
Sales orders are placed against the correct warehouses
Customers are invoiced only after receipt of a report for the consumption of the goods.

Towards the end of the consignment contract, ensure that you do not end up with large quantities of goods to be returned to you. To avoid this situation, closely monitor the consignment parts as the contract heads towards its close. You can reduce the minimum and on-hand safety stock levels defined in the system and verify that your customer's forecasts represent an attainable goal. This helps reduce the risk of large quantities being returned.

Material Requirements Planning for Consignment Inventory

Use Forecast Entry to create forecasts for the consignment part in the consignment location.

Material Requirements Planning (MRP) and the minimum on-hand levels in the consignment locations drive the fulfillment of the consignment stock. MRP drives the first fulfillment for the consignment stock occurs after you create the forecast for the consignment part at the consignment and MRP completes its nightly run. This creates an unfirm job within Time Phase Inquiry to be completed within the main site. Once the job is marked as firm, the job completes as normal. After the job completes, MRP creates a suggested transfer orderto move the stock from the main manufacturing to consignment sites.

Shipment of Consignment Inventory

Use Transfer Order Shipment Entry to move the consignment stock from the manufacturer's site to the consignment site.

After the MRP process completes, and the consignment stock is made, a it displays a Suggested Transfer Order displays in Time Phase Iquiry. You then shipment the consignment stock to the consignment location as a transfer within inventory locations. The manufacturer and distributor is still fiscally responsible for the consignment stock. Once the customer acknowledges the new stock for their consignment site through an informal confirmation, you receive the transfer order in Receive Transfer Order. The consignment part moves out of transit and into the site

Important This is neither a customer shipment nor a transfer of ownership. This is a transfer within the manufacturer's sites.

Order Entry

Use Order Entry to account for consumption of consignment stock at the consignment site.

After the customer provides you with a report for the consumption of the goods, you can then create a sales order, ship the order, and invoice the order. There are multiple ways to account for this consumption.

The simplest way to process the consignment inventory transaction is to use the Counter Sales pane in Order Entry. To complete a counter sale you:

Create a sales order
Specify it as a counter sale
Select the ship and invoice check boxes
• Process the sales order For larger quantities you can:
Copy and paste an Excel spreadsheet into the grid section of a sales order
Use Service Connect to create an automated consumption process to create and ship the orders

Important Regardless of the method in which you complete the transaction, you must verify that the sales order registers the part as being sold from the appropriate consignment warehouse. This automatically reduces the quantity on-hand and helps with the replenishment.

Consignment Inventory Counting

The consignment stock still remains as an asset of the company until proof of consumption is produced. The benefit of using Epicor ERP is the ability to cycle count of perform a full physical count by warehouse.

It is the distributor's fiscal responsibility to periodically count that inventory to verify that it is still in the proper location.

There are three possible outcomes from the inventory count results. These outcomes are:

No variances were found, no action required
Fewer items discovered than recorded, issue an invoice
More items discovered than recorded, issue a credit

In order to be able to either cycle count, or physically count the consignment stock, it is essential that you still have access to the consignment stock.

Conclusion

Congratulations! You have completed the Inventory Management - Specialized Processing course.

Appendix

This section consists of documents used during this course, as well as when using the system. Documents included are:

• Transaction types

Transaction Types

Each time an action occurs that affects inventory, the system makes a transaction to the PartTran file using the following transaction types. The Material Transaction Details report found in the Inventory Management module uses these and can be filtered by them.

Adjustments

ADJ-MTL -Adjustment to job cost material
ADJ-SUB -Adjustment to job cost subcontract
ADJ-PUR -Adjustment to purchase cost variance
ADJ-CST -Adjustment to stock cost
ADJ-QTY -Adjustment to stock quantity

Discrepant Material Reporting

DMR-MTL -DMR to job material
DMR-REJ -DMR to reject
DMR-SUB -DMR to subcontract
STK-DMR -Stock to DMR
SUB-DMR -Subcontract to DMR
DMR-STK -DMR to stock

Inspection Processing

ASM-INS -Assembly to inspection
INS-ASM -Inspection to assembly
INS-DMR -Inspection to DMR
INS-MTL -Inspection to job material
INS-STK -Inspection to stock
INS-REJ -Inspection to reject
INS-SUB -Inspection to subcontract
STK-INS -Stock to inspection
SUB-INS -Subcontract to inspection

Manufacturing

MFG-WIP -Manufacturing receipt to job
MFG-PLT -Manufacturing receipt to site
MFG-STK -Manufacturing receipt to stock
MFG-VAR -Manufacturing receipt to variance
MTL-DMR -Job material to DMR
MTL-INS -Job material to inspection

Purchasing

PUR-INS -Purchase receipt to inspection
PUR-MTL -Purchase receipt to job material
PUR-STK -Purchase receipt to stock
PUR-SUB -Purchase receipt to subcontract
PUR-UNK -Purchase receipt to unknown

Return Material Processing

• RMA-INS -RMA receipt to inspection

Salvage Material Processing

• SVG-STK - Salvage material receipt to stock

Shipments

MFG-CUS -Shipment of manufacturing job to customer
MFG-VEN -Shipment of manufacturing job to supplier
STK-CUS -Shipment of stock to customer

Site

PLT-ASM -Site to assembly
PLT-MTL -Site to job material
PLT-STK -Site to stock

Stock Transactions

STK-ASM -Stock to job assembly
STK-MTL -Stock to job material
STK-PLT -Stock to site
STK-SRV -Stock to service
STK-STK -Stock to stock transfer
STK-UNK -Stock to unknown

Additional information is available at the Education and Documentation areas of the EPICweb Customer Portal. To access this site, you need a Site ID and an EPICweb account. To create an account, go to http://support.epicor.com.

Inventory Specialized Processing

Information about navigating the Epicor ERP application