Please Wait a Moment
X

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

Crossroads Connections

Infor ERP Tips & News from the Experts

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

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

George Moroses 0 23763 Article rating: 5.0

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

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

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

With powerful dashboards, you can...

Infor LX & BPCS Tip: Transaction History – Did you know?

George Moroses 0 19924 Article rating: 5.0

Did you know that the system stores a record of every inventory transaction and makes them available for inquiries and reports? Transaction history is available for immediate inquiry by item, or by item and location in the Material Status Inquiry program. The inventory transaction record holds data such as the quantity, date, reference number, cost/value, transaction type, scheduled date, and master reference number, lot numbers, and warehouse/location information.

Infor LN & Baan Tip: How to deal with data growth of your ERP system…

Kathy Barthelt 0 28196 Article rating: 5.0

Spending time on managing ERP data can deliver huge benefits, not just in reducing storage costs, but also in improving the experience of business users. Proactively managing application data also helps accelerate key business processes which has a positive impact on customers, suppliers, and partners. Use these solutions to reduce the data growth and disk storage used on your system:

• Use database compression. See...

Check-Ups are important… Including Infor LN & Baan ERP Check-Ups!

Kathy Barthelt 0 24300 Article rating: 5.0

What would you say to someone if they never went to a doctor for a check-up, or never took their car in for regular maintenance, like an oil change?

You might say that they were asking for problems, right? The point of those check-ups is to catch a problem early, or better yet before it occurs. Going for check-ups gives you the peace of mind that things are running well and if an issue is identified early enough you can reduce overall risk. Regular check-ups can help reduce out-of-pocket expenses over time.

What about Finance, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Company-wide Check-Ups for your Infor ERP system? What will happen if you NEVER hit pause?

Here are some questions by department to consider.

Finance:...

Is your Baan or Infor LN system STILL not integrated with UPS and FedEx?

Kathy Barthelt 0 17470 Article rating: 2.5

It's hard to find a manufacturing article, or talk to a manufacturer for that matter without hearing about the importance of efficiency. In fact, 92% of manufacturers reported that their most significant business imperative is improving efficiency, according to a major new report published by The Manufacturer and IBM. Improving efficiency cuts costs, improves throughput, and ultimately improves competitiveness.

One way to improve efficiency is to eliminate the redundant process of manually keying data from Baan and Infor LN to your third-party logistics systems such as UPS or FedEx. Third-party systems need to know what you want shipped, how it is being shipped, the weight, quantity, etc. Once the shipment is ready, the tracking number, freight cost, and other information need to be entered into Baan and Infor LN in order to process your sales orders and ultimately invoice your customer. This process is time-consuming, error-prone, and causes delays in shipping and invoicing.

Why waste time and energy when the entire process can be automated on-premise or cloud with RMCship?

RMCship provides a complete one-way or two-way communication channel between Baan IV, Baan V, and Infor LN to UPS Worldship & FedEx Ship Manager.

TO UPS & FedEx -
RMCship....

Infor LN & Baan Tip: Rework of Serialized Items

Kathy Barthelt 0 25221 Article rating: 5.0

There are two options for rework of serialized items. One is to define the serial numbers upfront by defining the as-built serial header before releasing the rework order. The second option is to not define serials in the as-built header and instead, the serials are defined through issuing the material to the rework order. Manually entering the serial number after release of the rework order is not supported.

Check-Ups are important… Including Infor LX & BPCS ERP Check-Ups!

George Moroses 0 20281 Article rating: 5.0

What would you say to someone if they never went to a doctor for a check-up, or never took their car in for regular maintenance, like an oil change?

You might say that they were asking for problems, right? The point of those check-ups is to catch a problem early, or better yet before it occurs. Going for check-ups gives you the peace of mind that things are running well and if an issue is identified early enough you can reduce overall risk. Regular check-ups can help reduce out-of-pocket expenses over time.

What about Finance, Manufacturing, Supply Chain, and Company-wide Check-Ups for your Infor ERP system? What will happen if you NEVER hit pause?

Here are some questions by department to consider.

Finance:...

Infor LX & BPCS Tip: Return Material Authorization (RMAs)

George Moroses 0 21467 Article rating: 5.0

The Return Material Authorization process, RMA, controls and monitors the return of goods. Infor LX generates an RMA which mirrors the terms and conditions of the return. You can copy the RMA from a processed invoice or create it independently of an existing order. If you copy an invoice to create an RMA, Infor LX copies only regular lines, not special lines. You can manually add special...

RSS
First2324252628303132Last

Theme picker

Tips:  LX | BPCS | M3

Previously, Material Requirements Planning (MRP) preferred practices meant that the component's due date was the same as the parent's shop order release date. Because MRP trends have changed, the preference for this due date is the day before the release date of the parent. Although Infor LX already has this functionality in Shop Order Maintenance programs (SFC500), users could not change how due dates were determined for lower-level shop orders in Multi-Level Shop Order Release, SFC530D.

This enhancement provides an additional parameter for Multi-Level Shop Order Release. This parameter allows the user to change how the due date of the child components is determined. The Multi-Level Shop Order Release, SFC5302, has a new parameter for shop orders. The Due Date of Children = Release Date of Prent (Due Date of Children) field allows the user to set the due date determined for multi-level shop orders.

This feature uses different exchange rates in the user's inventory processes by using new macros in Post Inventory to G/L, INV920D. INV920 used macros limited by the Override Exchange Rate parameter set on the book in Book Definition, CEA105D3. If the Override Exchange rate parameter is set to No, the macro uses the Rate Type of the Book. If the Override Exchange parameter is set to Yes, the macro uses the Rate Type of the Order Company. This enhancement provides macros that use the Rate Type of the Order Company. This enhancement provides macros that use the Rate Type of the Warehouse Company, Order Company, or the Book regardless of the Override Exchange Rate parameter in the Book.

12345678910Last

Theme picker

Tips: LN | Baan

Kathy Barthelt

Infor LN & Baan Tips & Tricks for EXECUTIVES

FINANCE: Can accounts receivable invoices be uploaded into LN using Excel?
Yes, this is possible, by following the steps below:

1. Maintain a batch

2. Maintain an invoice headerexport it, add an additional invoice header to the Excel file, and import it

3. Maintain an invoice line for the first invoice, export it, add additional invoice lines to the Excel file and import it
 

Below the above steps are described in detail.

1a. Open the transactions (tfgld1101m000) session and create a batch.

1b. Insert a transaction type, used for creating sales invoices, like ACR, and open it.

2a. The Sales Invoices (tfacr1110s000) session starts. Maintain the invoice header and save it. For example sales invoice ACR 4497.

2b. In the Actions menu select Export and Import -> Advanced Export (fields: All tabs).

2c. In the excel file created during previous step, add the headers for the invoices to be uploaded. Notice if for the transaction type the Documents in Fixed Sequence checkbox is ticked in the Transaction Types (tfgld0511m000) session, the document number for the not-yet existing invoices to be imported in LN should be equal to the default series for this transaction type. Otherwise, so if the Documents in Fixed Sequence checkbox is not ticked, the desired document numbers can be maintained in the excel file.

2d. In the Sales Invoices (tfacr1110s000) session in the Actions menu select Export and Import -> Settings, and make sure the Import Only in This View checkbox is NOT ticked. Then select in the Actions menu select Export and Import -> Import, select the excel file as saved in the prior step, and import it. Afterwards the invoice headers should be visible in the Sales Invoices (tfacr1110s000) session.

3a. Navigate to the first invoice, select Lines. The Transactions (tfgld1102m300) session opens. Maintain at least 1 line and save it.

3b. Open the line created in the prior step. Notice the detailed version of the Transactions (tfgld1102m300) session opens.

3c. In the Actions menu select Export and Import -> Advanced Export (fields: All tabs).

3d. In the excel file created during previous step, add lines for the header invoice numbers as available in the Sales Invoices (tfacr1110s000) session (as per step 2d).

3e. In the detailed version of the Transactions (tfgld1102m300) session in the Actions menu select Export and Import -> Import, select the excel file as saved in the prior step, and import it.


OPERATIONS: MPS Planned vs. MRP Planned
When deciding what items should be MPS (Master Production Schedule) planned and what items should be MRP (Material Requirements Planning) planned, it's crucial to understand the nature of the items and their demand sources. Here's a breakdown:

  • Master Scheduled Items:

    • Master Scheduled Items are typically finished goods or service items.
    • These items receive their requirements from both Independent and Dependent demand sources.
       
  • Independent Demand:

    • Independent demand cannot be calculated from higher-level demand in the product structure.
    • It is driven by forecasts or actual customer orders, primarily applicable to Finished Goods or Service parts sold to customers.
       
  • Dependent Demand:

    • Dependent demand is derived from higher-level demand in the product structure.
    • It includes components, raw materials, and sub-assemblies.
    • Dependent demand items are not typically part of Master Production Scheduling (MPS).
       
  • Service Parts:

    • Service parts can have both independent demand from forecasts or customer orders and dependent demand from higher-level demand if they are used in sub-assemblies or other products.
       
  • Cumulative Lead Time:

    • Cumulative Lead Time is a concept used in MPS.
    • It combines the fixed lead time and variable lead time required to produce a product.
    • It represents the longest path through a Bill-of-Materials (BOM).
    • Your ERP system will calculate the cumulative lead time (Critical Path) based on MPS setup options.
       
  • Infor LN Approach:

    • Infor LN does not differentiate between MPS and MRP planning.
    • It uses Enterprise Planning (EP) with one set of planned orders.
    • While you can set up items and generate orders at plan levels, it's not always necessary.
    • In theory, you could treat plan level 1 similar to MPS items.
       
  • Defining Independent Demand in LN:

    • In LN terms, independent demand is demand not related to other planned items.
    • Dependent demand comes from related planned items higher up in the BOM structure.
       
  • COLT (Cumulative Order Lead Time):

    • COLT exists in the purchase and manufactured planned items.
    • It considers non-critical and critical lead times based on components marked as critical.
    • Once calculated, COLT can be used to update the order and planning horizons of a planned item.

Relevant Sessions:

In Baan IV:

  • Maintain Item Data (tiitm0101m000)
  • Generate MPS (timps3201m000)
  • Maintain Master Production Schedule (timps3101m000)
  • Display Planned Inventory Movements by Item (timrp1510m000)
  • Display Planned MRP Purchase Orders (timrp1521m000)

In Baan V:

  • Plan Item Data (cprpd1500m000)
  • Item Master Plan (cprmp2101m000)
  • Time-Phased Overview (cprrp0520m000)

In Infor LN:

  • Item – Planning (cprpd1100m000)
  • Item Master Plan (cprmp2101m000) - Same as Master MPS if used


TECHNOLOGY: Are you running the latest Infor components?
Always good to stay on top of new releases for your various Infor components. Here is a list of knowledge base articles that you can check for the components listed below:

For the last Infor LN, Infor Baan5, and Infor Baan4 porting set see KB 22923520

For the last BaanIVc 6.1c porting set see KB 22923521  No fixes are made based on the 6.1c porting set.

For the last Worktop set see KB 22881488 For the last BW set see KB 22881483 For the last EME set see KB 22866552 For the last Office integration set see KB 22867312 For the last Dynamic Form Editor see KB 22881485

For more information and assistance, you can contact Crossroads RMC at 800.762.2077 or via email at solutions@crossroadsrmc.com.

Previous Article Infor LN & Baan OPERATIONS Tip: MPS Planned vs. MRP Planned
Next Article Infor LN & Baan Tip & Tricks for TECHNOLOGY: Infor LN Rest API
Print
6450 Rate this article:
5.0
Kathy Barthelt

Kathy BartheltKathy Barthelt

Other posts by Kathy Barthelt

Theme picker

Contact author

x

Categories