Production Runs

Introduction to Production Runs

The opentaps Production Run guides the actual production of products, once the preliminaries are finished (refer to Example Manufacturing Scenario with User Guide Links) and there are approved requirements for additional products. In this section of the User Guide we will introduction the Production Run, and then walk through the management of a run. The following section is a refresher leading up to the Production Run execution.

Planning for a Production Run

The next step after preliminaries (product definitions in the Catalog Manager) and documentation (Bill of Materials, Routing, Routing Tasks) are ready is the planning for needed production runs. Planning can be done manually of course, but the use of opentaps Material Resource Planning will really expedite the whole process.

Production of your products is necessary whenever the actual inventory level of the products is less than the planned inventory quantities, or when a sales forecast for your products clearly indicates that more production is required, or when actual sales orders will require additional production for fulfillment. These situations represent requirements for production.

When there are recognized and approved requirements for additional production, then steps must be taken to order any needed raw materials or services, to receive and stock the materials or components inventory, to schedule the needed work force and machines, and to calender the planned production runs. Of course, the company management team must be consulted about, and then notified of production plans.

Material Resource Planning (MRP) provided in opentaps manufacturing process automates a great deal of this whole planning cycle every time you need to use it.

The completed cycle of this planning process results in receipt of the inventory needed for production runs that will satisfy the approved requirements for product manufacturing. The next step is to execute the production runs identified in the (MRP) plan.

Producing Products

Production Runs are created on the system with a full and detailed description of what is to be produced, in the needed quantity, and in the required time frame. Once the production run is created it can then be executed step by step, records of all costs and times can be captured, adjustments to the production run can be implemented in mid-flight when changes must be made, and then the product inventory can be recorded and moved into assigned storage spaces used by order fulfillment teams.

Manufacturing Production Runs can be created on the opentaps system in several ways, next we will discuss creating and executing a production run using the set of the Manufacturing Tab screens manually.

In one of the examples that follow, we will inspect how a Production Run can be created automatically by an incoming order for a configurable product, or via the Material Resource Planning functions, and then listed in the pending production runs without manual intervention.

Creating and Editing a Production Run Manually

To access the Production Run screens from the Main Navigation screen,
Click: [Warehouse] Icon > [Manufacturing] Tab
Use these screens at outlined in the following step by step guide.

"Create the Production Run"

• Use Create Production Run button to create a new Production Run.
• Use Find Production Run button to find an existing run to review.

Once a Production Run is created or opened for editing, the View Production Run screen is displayed.

"Editing the Production Run"

• Using the View Production Run screen to view and edit runs.
• How to Cancel a production run or Stop a run that has already been Started, refer to Reverting a Production Run and View Production Run for details.

"Other Functions Relating to Production Runs"

• Using Production Transfers with your Production Run.
• Using the Outsourcing Manufacturing features.
  • Using the Receive Outsourced PO with your Production Run.
• About using the Reverse Assembly which is a type of Production Run that disassembles your product into its first level of component parts.

"Managing the Production Run"

For details about managing your production runs, once you have defined the run and are ready to start executing it, refer to Managing Production Runs in this section of the User Guide.