Business value

Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations has rich functionality for manufacturing companies. But the wide range of functionality may seem complex and can be a challenge for the user.

Advanced Production Control takes you to the next level of production functionality by offering:

• "Touchless" ERP, i.e. automatic scheduling, release and start of production orders at the right moment 
• Transparancy of the production progress
• Status information at your finger tips
• Preparation and monitoring of purchase components for production orders
• Clear call to action: what next step is possible, which actions are urgent
• Automated processing of production orders is possible through the detailed order status field

 

Challenges in standard Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations

The list page "All production orders" displays the production orders and batch orders with the "status": Created, Estimated, Scheduled, Released, Started, Reported as finished or Ended. But finding out whether the production order is ready for the next step can require a lot of clicks. 

The "remain status" displays the next activity, but does not tell whether the activity is possible to start.

The form "Current operations" shows which operations are started and for which operations material is needed, but does not .

If the form is filtered on a resource or operation, it is not visible whether the previous operation has been finished.

 

Generally, the production user wants to see at one glance:

• which production orders are ready for the next step
• which production orders have higher priority because the deadline is near
• at which resource the production order is currently running
• for which operations the remaining lead time is longer than the hours to deadline
• which operations have passed the deadline
• which operations can be started because previous operation is ready
• which production orders are ready to send to the subcontractor

And to accommodate for touchless ERP, automatic batch jobs should schedule, release, start the production order automatically at a suitable moment.

 

 

To verify this in standard Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations , it is necessary to open several additional forms and go to:

• the production BOM, inventory transactions to check the current reservations
• the warehouse tab, open the raw material work to view the material picking status
• the view tab, open the capacity requirements to know at which resource the production order is scheduled
• the production route and view what is the current work center
• the production progress
• the production BOM, reference purchase order, search the related purchase order line for the confirmed receipt date Make to Order (MTO) and Assemble to Order (ATO), i.e. the production order has a reference to a sales order, go to
  • the confirmed delivery date of the related sales order line
  • the scheduled ship date and time of the sales order load or the dock appointment of the sales order load

Advanced Production Control combines all the information above in the production list page in an additional field Order status and other fields, and is refreshed by pressing one button "Update status". It saves a lot of time for the production user.

Just press Update status to get the actual status.

You can filter on fully reserved orders, picked, current workcenter etc. and set up batch jobs with this filtering. 

No setup required.

 

All production orders: Order status

Update order status

Production control > Periodic > Production order status update > Update order status

The production order field Order status is updated for all production orders except for ended orders. This batch job is typically setup to run 1x per hour depending on the rhythm of the production. It traverses all actual production orders and batch orders (for formula items) and determines the current order status.

Use the field "Order status" for setting up other batch jobs like production order Release and start to automate the administrative process. 

 

Order status on list page All production orders

Production control > Production orders > All production orders

Production control > Production orders > Delayed production orders

Production control > Production orders > Productions scheduled

Production control > Production orders > Productions started

Production control > Production orders > Productions released

 

In the ribbon tab Production order, group Production details, select a set of production orders and press Update status to retrieve relevant actual information from various sources.

Or set up a batch job (e.g. 1x per hour) in Production control > Periodic > Production order status update > Update order status

 

Field	Description	Remark
Delayed	Checkmark that indicates that the delivery date is not possible: the countdown hours is less than the remaining time to finish	Action required on material supply, working hours or committed due dates

Order status	Icon and text to indicate the status of the production order
- Asterisk	- Created	Production order is created manually. Remember to estimate beforer the MRP run, otherwise material demand is not taken into account
- Red X	- Material shortage	Material shortage for production order that is on critical path. Remaining lead time > countdown hours and not all physical materials are reserved. Go to Production BOM
- Red diamond	- Delayed	Replaced by a checkmark Delayed
- Yellow triangle	- Warning	One or more components expected late
- Green block	- Ready to release	All materials are available

- Grey block	- Wait for warehouse	Production order is in a warehouse wave, raw material picking not started
- Forklift	- Picking materials	Raw material picking in progress
- Green circle	- Ready to start	All materials are picked
- Black circle	- Ready to subcontract	Delivery note can be printed upon Start
- Arrow →	- Started	Production order has started
- Share  |↗	- Subcontracted	First not-finished operation is type Vendor and operation has started

- Yellow !	- Not reserved materials	Production order has started but some materials are not reserved. Go to production BOM
- Checkmark	- Reported as finished	Production order is reported as finished. If all materials and hours are posted the production order can be ended.
Allocated	Allocated against on hand or pegged supply (dynamic plan)	All physical materials for this production order and its sub-production orders (multi-level) are allocated in the dynamic plan against on hand or pegged supply
Reserved	All physical materials in the production BOM are reserved	Best practice is to reserve all materials before releasing the production order. If materials are reserved upon release or start, check that all materials are allocated by dynamic plan
Picked	Raw material pick work ready and line stock at resource was auto-picked
Countdown	Number of hours to deadline (rounded down)	The production order must be completed in n hours. See calculation logic below.

Resource

Current resource

Resource on which the dynamic plan scheduled the current operation

 

Tab Production order

The Print Production order report button is added to the list page. This report with BOM and routing information for the current production order or batch order can be printed at any moment in the process.

 

Tab Warehouse

Button Wave and work:

• Displays all wave lines for the raw materials production order, incl. the wave and wave status.
• Displays all work lines incl. location, work status and target LP for:
  • raw material picking 
  • finished goods put away
  • co-/by products put away
  • cross docking
  • sales order lines related to this production order
  • transfer order shipment lines related to this production order

Button License plate labels:

• Displays all labels for this production order:
  • raw material pick labels
  • finished goods put away labels
  • co-/by product put away labels

 

Form Production BOM

Production control > Production orders > All production orders > Ribbon tab Production order > BOM

In the form Production BOM, new columns are added for a quick overview which materials are physically reserved, and if there is a confirmed receipt date on the reference purchase order line. This data is refreshed when Update status is executed on the list page All production orders.

 

Field	Description	Remark
Location	Location (can be switched on with Inventory > Display dimensions)	The location can be defaulted from the production inventory status setup

Inventory status

Inventory status (can be switched on with Inventory > Display dimensions)

The inventory status can be defaulted from the production inventory status setup table

Allocated

All open transactions are allocated by the dynamic plan

When reservation is auto-executed upon Release or Start: it is desirable that materials are allocated from on hand stock to this production order before the production order is released or started.

Reserved

All materials are physical reserved

When reservation is manual, or auto-executed upon Estimation or Scheduling: it is desirable that materials are reserved before the production order is released or started.

Confirmed

Confirmed receipt date on the purchase order line

There must be a direct reference from the production BOM line to the purchase order line. The reference is created upon Estimation when BOM line type = Vendor, or can be set by the master planning when the coverage group has type requirement.

 

 

Form Current operations

Production control > Operations > Current operations

Production control > Operations > Current operations for batch orders

In the form Current operations, the factbox Operation material displays a grid of the materials (standard Microsoft Dynamics 365 for Finance and Operations displays only the first material).

 

Additional columns

Field	Description	Remark
Operation status	Icon and text to indicate the status of the production order operation	Red: action required Yellow: attention required Green: ready for next step Grey: in progress

- Red X	- Waiting
- Red diamond	- Delayed	Operation scheduled end time has passed
- Yellow triangle	- Delay warning	Operation will probably not be finished in time
- Green circle	- Operation ready to start	All operations for this production order with a lower number are finished
- Right arrow →	- Operation started
- Checkmark	- Operation finished	Only visible if the form is filtered incl. Reported as finished

 

Calculation logic

The calculation of the Countdown hours depends on the demand order that is supplied by this production order:

 

If a reference to sales order line exists:

• Prio 1: dock appointment time of the load
• Prio 2: scheduled ship date and time of the load
• Prio 3: confirmed ship date and time* of the sales order line
• Prio 4: requested ship date and time* of the sales order line

*) start time for calculating delays according to MRP parameter

 

If a reference to a main production order exists (socalled pegged supply by a sub production order):

• Countdown hours of the main production order minus lead time hours of the main production order

If no reference to a sales order line or production order exists:

• Production order delivery date and time

The remaining leadtime is calculated as the summarized setup and process times of the primary operations, and are always rounded up to full hours.

The countdown is always rounded down to full hours, based on 24 hours per day.

The countdown sequence is not necessarily equal to the scheduling sequence, because the scheduling takes into account resource capacity, and production order due date at the time of creation, but ignores any changes on the sales order ship date after the production order was created.

Use the countdown as an indication and sorting sequence which of the production orders need to be finished first.

The countdown is on the safe side, as long as the status is updated recently (e.g. every hour).

 

Examples:

• If the unrounded countdown is negative, a delay checkmark is visible
• If the unrounded leadtime is 3:05 and the unrounded countdown is 4:55, both are rounded to 4 hours. This production order is on the critical path, and a delay checkmark is visible.
• If the unrounded leadtime is 3:05 and the unrounded countdown is 5:05, the production is not on the critical path.

 

Purchasing components for production

Production control > Inquiries and reports > Purchasing components for production

In a make to order scenario, it is valuable for the account manager for the customer, or the supply chain manager to have a clear overview of all components and parts that are needed for the production.

This form displays concise information on the project, customer delivery name, order number and confirmed ship dates, together with all parts that are purchased directly for the related production order and the sub production orders.

 

Field	Description	Remark
Production	Production order or batch order

Project ID	Project on the sales order
Reference number	Sales order or transfer order	Filled if the production order is supplying a specific sales or transfer order, or a sub (sub..) production order supplies a production order that is supplying a sales or transfer order
Delivery name	Delivery name on the sales order
Confirmed ship date	Confirmed ship date on the sales order
Reference production	Main production order
Reference level

Main item number	Main item	Item to be produced
Component status	Icon and text for the component status
- Asterisk	- Created	Purchase order document status = None
- Hour glass	- Wait for confirmation	Purchase order sent, purchase order line has no confirmation date
- Calendar	- Confirmed on time	Confirmed delivery date before raw material date
- Yellow triangle	- Confirmed critical	Confirmed delivery date = raw material date

- Red square	- Confirmed delayed	Confirmed delivery date later than raw material date
- Red diamond	- Delayed	Confirmed date has passed without receipt, raw material date is after today
- Red X	- Material shortage	Conmfirmed date has passed without receipt, raw material date was today or in the past
- Site	- Material received at dock	Planned functionality 2025
- Green square	- Material at work center	Planned functionality 2025
- Black circle	- Ready to subcontract	Planned functionality 2025

- Half star

- Quality

Open or failed quality order exists on purchase order line or production order

Item number	Component item	Item that is purchased and will be consumed
Product name	Component item name
Estimated	Estimated quantity
Unit	Unit for estimated quantity
Raw material date	Date on which the raw material is needed	This date (and time) is used by the master planning
Reference number	Purchase order

Vendor account	Vendor
Confirmed	Confirmed date purchase order line
Allocated	Physical product allocated against on hand, or pegged supply by dynamic plan

Reserved

Physical reserved

 

Setup

Inventory and location defaults for production orders

Warehouse management > Setup > Inventory > Production inventory status setup

It is possible to default the consumption location and / or inventory status for the raw materials, or the inventory status for the finished goods.

Set one or more rules and use a query if desired to select the finished goods or materials for which the rule applies.

 

Field	Description	Remark
Priority	The logic starts with the lowest number

Site	SIte of the production order
Warehouse	Warehouse of the production order or production BOM line
Inventory status finished goods	Inventory status that is assigned to the finished goods	Select the applicable production orders through Edit query finished goods
Inventory status materials	Inventory status that is defaulted on the production BOM lines and is inherited to the production pick list journal lines	Select the applicable production order BOM lines through Edit query materials
Consumption location materials	Consumption location that is defaulted on the production BOM lines and is inherited to the production pick list journal lines	Select the applicable production order BOM lines through Edit query materials

 

FAQ

Question:	The order status is not actualized when the pick work is closed etc.
Answer:	Note that the field order status is actualized through the batch job or by pressing Update order status in the production order list page.

 

Release notes 

Feature

Introduced in version

ACTION REQUIRED if DYSINS Production order inventory status setup is used in 10041 and earlier Production inventory status setup moved from DYSINS to Advanced Production Control DYSPRD Check and document the setup Install this version 10042.24121000 or later Create a similar setup in the new table Production list page - Button Wave and work added Production list page - Button License plates added Production list page - Button Update order status will now update only selected orders

10042.24121000

 

Feature	Introduced in version
Production order: fields Order status, Allocated, Reserved, Picked added Current operations: field Operation status added Purchasing components for production: new list page Print production order document for selected production order	10041.2409