Automating Production and Transfer Orders Based on Minimum Bin Quantities in Business Central

Automating Production and Transfer Orders Based on Minimum Bin Quantities in Business Central

In businesses that manage inventory across multiple locations, ensuring optimal stock levels is crucial for maintaining operational efficiency. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central facilitates streamlined management of this process through automated production and transfer orders. This blog post explains how to automate these orders based on the minimum quantity requirements of different bins across various locations.

Understanding the Need for Automation

Consider a scenario where you have multiple warehouse locations storing the same items but with varying minimum quantity requirements. For instance:

• Location 1 has 800 pieces of item XY, with a minimum required quantity of 500. Thus, no replenishment is needed here.
• Location 2 stores 200 pieces of the same item but requires a minimum of 400 pieces. This indicates a need to replenish 200 pieces to meet the minimum quantity.

The challenge arises when Location 2 requires replenishment, and the item is only produced at Location 1. The goal is to create a production order at Location 1 for the required quantity and then transfer the produced items to Location 2 without affecting the stock level of 800 pieces at Location 1.

Step-by-Step Guide to Automation

1. Set Up Item Replenishment:

• First, configure the replenishment settings for item XY in Business Central. For Location 2, set the replenishment source to be a transfer from Location 1.

2. Reserve Stock at Location 1:

• To ensure that the existing stock at Location 1 is not affected, reserve the 800 pieces against an outbound order, such as a Sales Order (SO). This makes the system recognize these pieces as unavailable for other purposes.

3. Automate Production Order Creation:

• Use the planning features in Business Central to automatically generate production orders when the available inventory at Location 1 (excluding the reserved stock) falls below the demand from Location 2.

4. Implement Transfer Orders:

• Once the production order is completed, set up an automatic transfer order that moves the newly produced stock from Location 1 to Location 2. Ensure that this process considers only the additional produced stock, not the reserved 800 pieces.

5. Monitoring and Adjustment:

• Regularly monitor the automated process and adjust parameters as necessary to ensure that the system accurately reflects changes in demand and production capacity.

Conclusion

By leveraging the capabilities of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, businesses can significantly improve their inventory management processes across multiple locations. Automated production and transfer orders based on minimum bin quantities not only streamline operations but also support better resource allocation and customer service.