Batch Sales Order Line Processing

Batch Sales Order Line Processing (BSOLP) provides advantage functionality in the supply and invoice functions when processing sales orders.  It can add automation and adds efficiencies to the process. In particular it:

• Provides a view of sales order lines that is not constrained by sales order number boundaries. Lines in a batch may be from multiple sales orders and may also be a subset of lines on those orders.
• Allows pre-definition of each of the Tasks in the process.  Standard tasks for the common workflow processes are configured in the database by default. MYOB EXO Business implementers and administrators and may also create customised Tasks to suit the client's needs.  Tasks are tagged with a user profile, thus providing a method of controlling which staff members they are available to.
• Provides enhanced functions for automatically populating quantity fields from a number of different "free stock" calculations.  These can be automated within the Task definition.
• Optionally allows grid style manipulation of quantities across the entire batch facilitating user intervention. This can be useful if "best fit" refinement is required following the systems suggested "Free stock" calculated quantities or if only manual entry of figures is required.
• Optionally shows additional breakdown of stock level information for the stock item of the sales order line in focus.

The Standard tasks provided are:

• Release Stock for Backorders (Backorders Only) Print Picking Documents
• Release Stock to unreleased orders (all outstanding orders) Print Picking Documents
• Confirm Picked quantities on Orders currently in picking Print Picking Confirmation
• Supply all Picked Order lines and print Packing Slips
• Invoice all as supplied Print Invoices

Task Definition

If required then the above Standard Tasks may be customised, cloned and changed, or additional custom tasks may be created to establish variants. This may be especially relevant to creating tasks with additional section criteria such as processing preferential customers and products, or where multiple branches operate independently.

Creating tasks is done as a set up process. When creating a batch of sales order lines to process, a pre-defined Task is selected. Task definitions specify the criteria applying to three basic steps in processing a batch:

• Selection criteria to build a list of participating sales order lines.
• An action list to apply to the selected lines that automatically sets quantities to process (optional).
• The transactional process and printing functions required when the Process button is clicked.

Specifying the selection criteria employs a wizard approach. Additional selection criteria can include:

• Select orders from a single location (all or single location)
• Select orders of a particular status (statuses are defined by the system and are not user definable).
• Select orders with a specified combination of outstanding quantity types (e.g. combinations of "has backorders", "has unreleased", "has unpicked", "has unsupplied", and/or "has uninvoiced").
• Select orders from a selection of branches (multiple select).
• Select order lines containing specific stock items (multiple select).
• Exclude order lines for stock items that are serial tracked, batch tracked, part of a kit, and/or are a lookup item.
• Select order lines with stock from specific primary suppliers (multiple select).
• Select orders relating to specific sales people (multiple select).
• Select orders for specific customers (multiple select).
• Select orders within a specific range of due dates. A date range measured in days relative to today’s date are specified in the task set up and then resolved to actual start and end dates at run time. Quick select options are also available for ranges Today and Overdue.

Action codes can set (or clear for manual input) quantities for Backorder, Release, Pick, Supply and Invoice.  These can be based on one of several calculation methods for "free stock" or a preceding quantity in the workflow (e.g. Invoice as per Supply).

The process functions designate if quantities for Release, Pick Supply, and/or Invoice are to be processed along with printing their corresponding documents.

Constraints

Quantity constraints

The BSOLP function will apply quantity constraints to ensure a subsequent step is not processed with a greater quantity than the step preceding it.  This is most obvious by the constraint that invoicing may not occur before supply.  

The preceding process for some steps may vary depending on profile settings (e.g. Picked Quantity is only relevant if the profile Sales Order Pick Quantity Enabled is selected).

When processing a negative sales order quantity (credit) the system does quantity comparison by taking absolute value to ensure that “less than” tests are applied.

Within the batch-processing grid, any cell that does not comply with the constraint rules will be highlighted by a red background colour and an error message defining the exception condition will be displayed on the status bar. The user will be inhibited from processing the batch (using the Process button) whist there are any cells with exceptions.

Bill of Material constraints

BOMs of type Build are always excluded from the BSOLP process.  Builds require that all lines (components and output item) be processed as a group (i.e. as an embedded works order).  The restriction exists to avoid partially processing a build when the selection criteria may include only some of the component lines within the build.

This restriction does not apply to BOMs of type Kit or Template. A Task may optionally exclude Kits as part of its selection criteria. Template lines are treated as ordinary lines.

Serial and batch numbered items

As these require additional information to be supplied they may also be optionally excluded as part of a Task’s definition.

Provision exists in the grid to key batch numbers on sales order lines appearing within the batch, however there is no provision to split lines where multiple batch codes may be required for a single sales order line. No provision exists to key or alter batch code expiry dates. These dates are determined from the pre-existing batch being consumed.

Serial numbers will pop up the usual serials number selection window for each sales order requiring serials.  This can significantly increase the required user interaction with the system when pressing the Process button. Excluding serialised items or pre-assigning serial numbers should be considered if the number of participating serialised orders would otherwise be high.