Managing Raw Material Item Masters

Raw materials are purchased materials that are at the lowest level of Bill of Materials and are not normally sold. Most items are set up through the initial DEACOM implementation, but new items can be added at any time via Inventory > Item Master. For various methods of designing a part numbering system and information on how to create parts in general, refer to Designing a Part Numbering System and Creating Parts. Bill of Material line items default the BOM Unit based on the new BOM Unit of the item selected.

Configuration

Refer to the Configuration section of Designing a Part Numbering System and Creating Parts for the setup required.

Process

To create a new Raw Material or edit an existing one:

Navigate to Inventory > Item Master.
Select "Raw Materials" from the "Item Type" pick list, fill in the rest of the pre-filter as desired, then click "View".
1. If editing an existing Part, select it and click "Modify", make the desired changes, and skip to the last step.
2. If creating a new Part, click "New".
Fill in all required fields, marked in blue, and on the General 1 tab:
1. Enter a name and description for the new part. (The retail code will fill in automatically but can be changed to an internal reference number, for example.)
2. Select a Category if desired; Sub-category is optional.
3. Select an Item Planner (if necessary). There is security around who can see which parts based on the Item Planner.
4. Designate a Default Location Type and Default Location, including Default Receiving Locations/Location Types, if using these features.
5. Define Scrap values, if using this feature. Refer to Utilizing Scrap Factors or more information on how this is used.
6. Define which field on the Item Master should be used to generate the default Purchase Order price by selecting an option from the PO Price Type pick list.
7. Specify if inventory for this item should be allowed to go negative and how often it should be counted via Cycle Counts (ABC field)
8. Select an Item Type of "Raw Materials".
On the General 2 tab (all optional):
1. Enter text in the "PO Pop-up Notes" field if a prompt should appear when entering a Purchase Order for this item.
2. Define Over-issue values, if using this feature.
3. Enter shelf life days if using the expiration dates for an item. If a limit should be placed on the amount that can be received on a Purchase Order, define the percent in the "Over Receipt % Limit" field and check off the "Enforce Over Receipt % Limit" flag.
On the Units tab:
1. Select the appropriate units of measure, including a Stock Unit and Stock Pricing Unit.
2. Fill in the other unit or measure fields as necessary.
On the MRP tab (all optional):
1. Min Quantity 1: If there are minimum and maximum levels needed (i.e. safety stock), enter these in the Minimum and Maximum fields. These will drive MRP. Enter the default level, in stock units, where additional material should be ordered when compared with net on hand inventory.
  1. Note: if no on hand is an acceptable scenario, a value of -1 can be entered in this field to signal MRP not to reorder when the on hand quantity is zero. This is generally done on the finished goods or subassemblies.
2. Min Quantity 2: Enter a seasonal reorder point, in stock units, where additional material should be ordered when compared with net on hand inventory.
3. Max Quantity : Enter the default level, in stock units, that computer- generated purchase orders should not exceed. In MRP, the Create PO function will order Max Quantity 1 – Net On Hand, whenever Net On Hand is less than or equal to Reorder Point 1. If the Max Quantity 1 is zero, Create PO will order enough to reach the Min Quantity 1.
4. Max Quantity 2: Seasonal value to be used instead of Max Quantity 1, where additional material should be ordered when compared with net on hand inventory.
5. PO Quantity: Enter the default order multiple, in purchase units. In MRP, the Create PO function will modify the order amount to be a multiple of PO Quantity that takes the stock level to just above the Max Quantity. For manually entered Purchase Orders, the PO quantity will be the default order quantity. There is security around bypassing this restriction.
6. Incremental PO Qty: If entered, all quantities entered on purchase orders for this item must be entered according to the increment, in Stock Units, specified in this field. Note that the incremental PO Qty field also exists on the item master facilities tab and the vendor part cross record. The incremental PO Qty field on the facilities tab will be used, if the "use reorder points" flag is checked, and when specifying this facility on a purchase order. For the vendor part cross incremental PO Qty, the system will use the vendor part cross incremental PO quantity instead of the item master value when a purchase order for the selected vendor and part are created in the system. There is security on bypassing this restriction. In addition, if the Split MRP POs By PO Quantity flag is checked under the Properties tab, POs generated from MRP will be split based on the quantity in this field.
7. Minimum Purchasable: The minimum order quantity that will be allowed on purchase orders created for this part, including POs generated within MRP. MRP also uses this quantity when making suggestions. For example, if the suggestion for a purchased part is truly "7" and the minimum quantity is "10," the suggestion will be "10". Note that the minimum purchase field also exists on the item master facilities tab and the vendor part cross record. The minimum purchasable field on the facilities tab will be used, if the "use reorder points" flag is checked, and when specifying this facility on a purchase order or viewing this item for the specified facility in MRP. For the vendor part cross minimum purchasable quantity, the system will use the vendor part cross minimum purchasable quantity instead of the item master value, when a purchase order for the selected vendor and vendor part are created in the system or when viewing MRP and the selected vendor is indicated in MRP.
  1. Notes:
    1. The "ordmin" field may be added to MRP grids in order to display the minimum purchasable quantity.
    2. In order for MRP to factor the vendor part cross minimum purchasable quantity, the "Use MRP Settings" and "Preferred" flags must be set on the vendor part cross record.
8. Lead Time: Total time required to manufacture an item. For make-to-order products, it is the time taken from release on an order to production and shipment. For make-to stock products, it is the time taken from the release of an order to production and receipt into finished goods inventory. In DEACOM, an item’s lead time determines in which bucket or time period the suggestion(s) and in certain cases the indirect requirement(s) will appear.
  1. Note: If an item contains an entry on the facilities tab, and the tab is marked to use reorder points, creating a job from MRP in that facility will use the facility lead time instead of the Item Master lead time.
9. QC Lead Time: QC testing lead time in Days. Estimated amount of time QC will take. QC Lead Time is factored into MRP and is useful for raw materials that require more in-depth testing. The QC lead time impacts the purchasing lead time that is necessary for a part. If the part is purchased, MRP will schedule it to arrive QC lead time + lead time days prior to the date it is needed. In addition, when creating jobs from MRP, the due date will be moved back based on the number of QC days as well.
10. Safety Days - Defines the time, in calendar days, used as a buffer to ensure material is ready for use by the specified date. Affects the Purchase Order "Due to Dock" date - The system will move the "Due to Dock" date up based on the value in this field. Used in conjunction with the "Lead Time" and "QC Lead Time" fields to determine total overall lead time.
11. Split POs By: Options are None, PO Quantity, and Incremental PO Qty. If set, multiple purchase orders will be created using the PO Quantity, or Incremental PO Quantity specified on the MRP tab. For instance, if the required quantity is 100 and the incremental quantity is 20, 5 POs for 20 items will be created. If PO Qty is selected, MRP will set the suggested amount to fulfill the PO Qty specified. For instance, if the PO Qty on the Item Master is 100, and the demand for that part is 150, MRP will show the suggestion as 200 in order to satisfy the PO Qty specified.
On the Costs tab, enter values for all known and estimated costs, current and future.
On the Costs 2 tab, define the default Purchase Price.
On the Properties tab:
1. Raw Materials should be marked Active
2. Raw Materials should be marked Stocked if they are stocked in the stock room, whether or not they are lot tracked or not. Note that regular tap water can be marked stocked, but should be checked as allow negative inventory as always on the General tab.
3. These items should be marked as Purchasable, Allow on BOMs, and any other selections for Production (see Item Master Properties Tab Templates for more information.
4. Options are available to assist with running MRP and are detailed below:
5. Include in MRP: If checked, the selected item will be included in MRP.
6. Create Separate MRP PO: If marked as true and the item is included in MRP when the “Create PO” or “Auto PO” is selected, this item will be placed on a separate, individual purchase order.
7. Consolidate All Buckets for MRP PO Creation: If marked as true, MRP will generate a single PO for the total quantity suggested across all buckets dated to arrive in time to satisfy the first bucket with a suggested quantity. Example, MRP is run for six weeks for Part A. The suggested quantities for weeks two, four, and five are 100, 100, and 200 respectively. If the user selects the part and clicks the "Create PO" button within MRP, the system will create one PO for a quantity of 400 with a Due to Dock date set to the beginning of week two. If this box is unchecked, MRP will create three POs with a quantity of 100, 100, and 200. Each PO will have a Due to Dock set to the beginning of week two, four, and five.
8. The Item Master Properties Tab Templates page may be referenced for additional information and examples on the properties that should be set for raw materials.
If User Fields are being utilized for this item, enter the proper values and make selections from the Item Search 1-5 fields on the User Fields tab.
On the Accounts tab, define all accounts that this part will be affecting during Purchasing and consumption.
If this part will have Facility-specific information associated with it, navigate to the Facilities tab, click "Add", fill in the desired fields, then save and exit back to the Edit Item Master form.
Define UPC Numbers and Descriptions, if utilized.
Assign the default SDS, COA, and, if desired, PO Label forms on the Part Forms tab. For information on how to configure these forms, refer to the Modifying SDS and Managing Part Forms pages.
If the creation of this Part requires a Work Flow, add it on the Work Flow tab. For more information, refer to the Configuring Work Flows page.
If QC testing will be performed on this Part, on the QC/Stability Test tab:
1. Click "Add" to assign a new QC Group and Frequency.
2. Click "Next" if the Part should belong to more than one QC Group, otherwise save and exit back to the Edit Item Master form.
3. If this Part will be received and QC testing will be performed at a later date, the "Receive to At-Risk" flag may be checked. For more information on this option, refer to the Managing At-Risk Inventory page.
Once all information has been entered, click "Save" and "Exit" to commit the changes and close the form.