DYNAMICS GP IRP vs. MRP

Mark Spain, MCP, NCTS
Senior GP Consultant

ACE Microtechnology, Inc.

DYNAMICS GP Item Resource Planning (IRP) vs. Manufacturing Resource Planning Tool (MRP)

DYNAMICS GP has a light duty MRP (Manufacturing Resource Planning) tool.   I call it IRP for Item Resource Planning. If you are a light manufacturer or a large scale distributor, then you should learn about IRP.

IRP is part of the inventory module and it provides you with a planning tool so that you can set MIN and MAX by inventory item and site.   You can also elect to have items included in the PO Generator feature.

In the screen shot below, for the Jaguar Harness Assembly at the site WH there is a minimum quantity of 15 and a maximum quantity of 50.   GP calls MIN order point quantity which means when the quantity available reaches 15 then it is eligible to reorder and we will order up to or MAX 50.

There is a purchase advice report available or you can set a smart list reminder that compares two fields, quantity available and order point qty. When quantity available is less than order point quantity a reminder will appear on the home page. We can also setup business alerts to email when the condition is true.

Also, the PO generator feature will monitor this information as well and can be used to generate multiple purchases all at one time.

By using the IRP feature, a purchasing manager can quickly make decisions about raw materials that need to be purchased while the production manager can quickly make decisions about what needs to be produced.

Assembly Work Orders for Dynamics GP Light Manufacturing

If you use the GP light manufacturing feature that comes with the Dynamics GP inventory module, then assembly work orders can be generated. Assembly work orders are work to be performed. A bill of material is defined as raw materials, labor and any other costs which becomes the recipe for the assembly work order. The Bill of Materials can be up to 10 levels deep. The number of units to be built will multiply by the BOM quantities so that raw materials are relieved and unearned labor cost can be calculated. An assembly work order has three statuses New, Not Released and Released.

Not Released can be used as a scheduling tool as it only sets up the work but does not relieve inventory. Released means the work order has hit the manufacturing floor and raw materials are relieved.

SSRS reports can be built to show the status of all inventory, finished goods and raw materials. Production reports can look at quantity on hand, quantity scheduled, quantity in WIP, quantity allocated, MIN, MAX and then calculate a suggested quantity to make by item.

About the only component this solution does not cover is capacity resource planning. But, this solution is very simple and easy to use and it provides management with the tools they need to keep their businesses growing.

If you'd like more information, please contact ACE

by ACE Microtechnology