Question

Alternate part planning

  • 17 April 2024
  • 3 replies
  • 43 views
J
Rank
Badge +1

Hi all,

I am looking to implement the following sequence in IFS App10 :

  • starting point : A is a purchased inventory part, appearing as a component in multiple finished and/or semi-finished products ; Planning method is set to either A or G, meaning part is handled on a purchase-to-order basis, and there are no parts in inventory ahead of time.
  • step 1 : setup B as an alternate part for part A at master level (B is also a purchased inventory part) : this, I know how to do
  • (side note : B is effectively an alternate purchase structure relative to A : A and B have the same drawing number, A has an empty Purchase structure, B has raw material included in its Purchase structure)
  • step 2 : receive / register PO from customer, launch / release corresponding DOP order, end up with a shop order that has A as a component (all this is fine as well)
  • step 3 (this is where I need help) : based on internal factors, we might decide we want to buy part B instead of part A for this particular shop order / requirement → how do I call upon alternate part B instead of part A so that the Shop Order Material requirement switches from part A to part B and MRP sees that new material requirement and plans the corresponding purchase req. for part B instead of part A ?

From what I have gathered so far, using right-click -> ‘Alternate component’  menu on the shop order component line for part A in order to switch to part B requires that part B be procured into inventory already... how do I work around this ? How do I switch to part B PRIOR to procuring it / as a way to trigger its procurement ?

(I’ve looked into alternate purchase parts already : it won’t work in my case due to the ‘same supplier’ requirement)

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

Julien

3 replies

A
Rank
Userlevel 1
Badge +2

hi! 

I’m afraid that in APP10 IFS’s MRP has support for alternate component replacement, but with the limitations that the main component is always prioritized and open supplies for the alternates are not considered at all. The system will always plan for the main I’m afraid. 

You can ask MRP to use existing stock of Alternate B if available, but if new stock is needed it will always be part A

A very manual workaround is filter requisitions for part A, cancel them, change shop orders to part B and re-run MRP

This functionality has been included in 24R1 though,  some of the improvements around this functionality are:

 

●When setting up an alternate component, it needs to be possible to define which structure types it is valid for
●Possibility to define the priority order for netting of supplies in MRP (main or alternate component first)
●Include also open supplies (e.g. existing purchase orders) of alternate components when alternate parts are included in MRP calculation
●Restrict replace to alternate component based on structure type in operative processes, e.g. shop order material.

 

Thank you!
 
Ana
 
 
 
 
matt.watters
Rank
Userlevel 6
Badge +20

For step 3, the common method is to have the primary structure alternate ‘*’ consist of component A and a second structure alternate consisting of component B. When the shop order is created, the structure alternate can be manually changed from ‘*’ to the other (right-click update materials and/or operations > update structure revision and/or alternate).

I cannot recall, though, if you can change the structure alternate on the DOP Order prior to releasing it to create your shop order.

Regards - Matt
J
Rank
Badge +1

hi! 

I’m afraid that in APP10 IFS’s MRP has support for alternate component replacement, but with the limitations that the main component is always prioritized and open supplies for the alternates are not considered at all. The system will always plan for the main I’m afraid. 

You can ask MRP to use existing stock of Alternate B if available, but if new stock is needed it will always be part A

A very manual workaround is filter requisitions for part A, cancel them, change shop orders to part B and re-run MRP

This functionality has been included in 24R1 though,  some of the improvements around this functionality are:

 

●When setting up an alternate component, it needs to be possible to define which structure types it is valid for
●Possibility to define the priority order for netting of supplies in MRP (main or alternate component first)
●Include also open supplies (e.g. existing purchase orders) of alternate components when alternate parts are included in MRP calculation
●Restrict replace to alternate component based on structure type in operative processes, e.g. shop order material.

 

Thank you!
 
Ana
 
 
 
 

Hi Ana,

Thank you for your reply. Good to hear things have been improved in IFS Cloud on this topic ! Alas, as we’re only now deploying App10, the switch to IFS Cloud shouldn’t happen in the next couple of years… and in the meantime, yes, I am afraid we’re gonna have to resort to some sort of manual workaround !

 

Best regards,

Julien

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