MRP Steps

This topic describes three categories of steps associated with MRP planning:

initial setup tasks
periodic maintenance tasks
routine, day-to-day procedures

Initial Setup Steps

Select the Use MRP Planning field on the MRP Mode form to enable the MRP planning mode.
NOTE: If you had been using the APS or Infinite APS planning mode, you must perform some preparatory steps before enabling MRP mode. See Switching from APS Mode to MRP Mode for more information.
Specify the Planning Parameters for your MRP system.

Maintenance Tasks

Perform these tasks on a regular or periodic basis to maintain your production data for planning.

Define planning options for your Items. Options on the Planning tabs on the Items form determine how MRP handles each inventory item.
Define lead times for purchased items.
Create work centers for tracking operation costs.
Create the current routing/BOM for each of your items.
Create the Planning Horizon Calendar to specify the time periods for organizing the output data on the Planning Summary Display, Master Planning Display, and Master Planning Report.
Enter forecasts for items.
Make sure item low-level codes are correct. Check each item's low level code on the General tab on the Items form. Run the Current Bill of Material Processor and then the Job and PS Bill of Material Processor to update the low-level codes.
Create production schedules, jobs, purchase orders, customer orders, and transfer orders to represent demand on the MRP plan.
Create a master production schedule for items for which you want to control end-item requirements separately (usually high-cost items).

Routine Steps

You can place some of these tasks on the Background Queue to be run nightly, when few or no users will be saving changes to records that are included in the plan and schedule. See Scheduling Reports and Utilities to Run in the Background for more information.

Run the Scheduling activity using a Days to Schedule value that is as far into the future as your longest job's processing time. This horizon avoids problems with planning operations for partially scheduled jobs (that is, jobs with operations that have dates outside the Days to Schedule horizon).
Run Lead Time Processor
Run Current Bill of Material Processor.
Run Job and PS Bill of Material Processor.
Run the MPS Processor.
Run MRP Planning.
Respond to the exception messages that display on the Material Planner Workbench, Exceptions Report, or Planning Detail form.
Use the Material Planner Workbench or the Order Action Report to determine when you must generate and release a job order or purchase order to ensure that an item is available when needed.
Firm planned orders on the Material Planner Workbench form or on the Planning Detail form.

MRP Steps

Initial Setup Steps

Maintenance Tasks

Routine Steps

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