Assembly Block Build Requirements

The assembly build and component stock check processes within Stock Control work on an assembly by assembly basis – if the same component is used in several assemblies for which build is required then the component stock check may report there is sufficient quantity on an individual item basis to build the assembly but taken in total there is insufficient stock available to build the full requirements list.

This feature allows you to create a block build requirement list - entering details for all the assemblies required for build and the quantities of each required - the system then creates a component requirement list showing the total quantities required for each item and any shortfall.

On initial selection of Block Build of Assemblies the system asks for a reference for this build - <F4-Select> is available to pick up an existing build or you can enter a new reference to create a new requirement.

If you enter a new reference you will be prompted if you wish to create a new build requirement and asked to set a description for the build and an expansion level. If you choose to update an existing block build reference (<F4-Select> is available) the system will display the status of the requirement.

Explode to Level (1-9) – set the expansion level for the explosion of sub-assemblies. The system will explode components to the lowest applicable level (regardless of quantity held in the sub-assembly).

When creating a new requirement list the system displays a blank list allowing you to enter the list of assemblies required.

To add an assembly into the list you can press the <Enter> key on blank entry in the grid or <Insert> to insert a requirement on the current entry.

When inserting a new entry you’re prompted for the assembly code (<F4-Select> is available), the system displays the stock quantity settings (physical, reserved, on-order and free quantities) and you can then enter the quantity required for build.

Once assembly entries are recorded you can edit an entry by pressing the <Enter> key against a highlighted entry. Alternatively to increase or decrease the quantity you can use the <F5> to increase the quantity by one and <F6> to decrease the quantity by one.Pressing the <DELETE> key allows you to remove the highlighted entry from the list.

At the bottom of the assembly grid a series of options are available:

Print – prints the Block Assembly List report which is listing of the assembly requirements entered for this requirement. Selecting the PRINT option allows you the normal OPTIONS parameter to amend the format of the printout, selecting PRINT again then gives you the normal printer dialog with the standard print options (including Excel / Spreadsheet).

Report – this option allows the system to reprint the requirement list generated on the last calculation. Note that the shortfalls reported are as per the last calculation and stock levels may have changed, to generate a current shortfall requirement list you should elect to run the calculate option again.

Issue – this process issues the components from stock as per the requirements list as assembly issue transactions.

The system will prompt for the transaction date, reference and description to be used for the component issues. The reference will default to the block build reference and the description to the block build description.

When generating issues for the component stock items if there is insufficient physical stock available the operator will be prompted if they wish to abandon this (and remaining) issues, to build without the component, to skip issue of this component for now or to issue the quantity available (issue reduced quantity).

Depending on the system parameters the system can also offer to allow the full quantity to be issued regardless of the stock level (allowing negative stock balances). Note that if you select to build without component or to issue a reduced quantity the (balance of) the component cannot be issued again as part of this build reference.

If any component items are batch / serial tracked then the system will pause during the issue to allow the operator to enter the batch / serial items to be issued. Generally batch / serial tracked items will not allow negative stock (this is configurable via the Batch Tracking System Profiles).

After issuing the stock components the system will prompt the operator to print the block issues report which details the items issued from stock.

If the operator selects the Issues option after the issue has been fully generated then they will be warned accordingly and the system will offer to reprint the issues report.If a shortfall resulted in the operator electing to abandon remaining issues or to issue component later then re-selecting this option will attempt to re-issue the remaining components.

Build - this process books the finished items into stock as per the entered block build assembly list.

As with the issue process the system will prompt for the build date, reference and description to be used for the generated assembly build transactions. If finished items are batch or serial tracked the system will pause during the build for the operator to enter / confirm the appropriate batch references.

As with component issues the system will offer to print a block build report detailing the items booked into stock. If the operator selects the Build option after the assemblies have been built then the system will prompt to reprint the above report.

Reset – available for use prior to component issue this option clears the current build list and component requirements allowing you to re-start this block build from scratch.

Close – exits from this block build and returns you to the initial block build selection screen allowing the operator to update/create another block build or to exit back to the menu.

Installation

Database Changes

The Block Build procedure uses three new databases to process the build assemblies and requirements:

Block Build Header(???-BBH.DFD) – holds the list of block build definitions.

Block Build Assemblies(???-BBA.DFD) – holds the list of assemblies within a block build.

Block Build Requirements(???-BBR.DFD) – holds the list of component requirements for a block build.

As part of the update the installation procedures will install BASE structures of the above files and you can use the Datafiler ‘Create / Amend Database’ tools to create live equivalents of these databases.

After creating the live equivalents you may want to restructure selected files for quantity handling purposes (where stock or component quantities are held to 4dp) or to copy your own items from the Stock file into the Assembly Block Build / Requirements files for inclusion on the block build reports.

Note that apart from when adding your own items to the assembly/requirements file the system uses a fixed structure for the build databases and system items must be in set item positions.

The base structure for the block build databases include:

File No Item Name Type Description

BBH 1 BUILD-NO X (16) Holds the build reference number. This is the prime-index item of this database and ties the build requirements in all three databases together.

BBH 2 DESCRIPTION X (30) Holds the build description which is also used as the default description for the issues and builds created from the block build.

BBH 3 LAST-ACTION X (1) Status character used as display control for the last action processed for the build.

BBH 4 DATE-ADDED D / E Holds the date the build requirement was created.

BBH 5 DATE-AMENDED D / E Holds the date the build requirement was last amended.

BBH 6 DATE-CALC D / E Holds the date of the last calculation of component requirements for this block build.

BBH 7 DATE-ISSUE D / E Holds the date of the component issues for this block build

BBH 8 DATE-BUILT D / E Holds the date the finished items for this block build were built into stock.

BBH 9 DATE-CLEAR D / E Holds the date of the last reset / clear of the build requirement.

BBH 10 EXPLODE-LEVEL N Holds the assembly level that component items are to be exploded to for the build process.

BBA 1 BUILD-NO X (16) Holds the build reference number this assembly record relates to.

BBA 2 ASS-NO X (30) Holds the assembly code of the assembled stock item to be built.

BBA 3 QTY-REQ K, L, M Holds the quantity of the assembly item required.

BBA 4 BUILT ? Flag set to ‘Y’ when this assembly item has been built.

BBA 5 QTY-BUILT K, L, M Holds the quantity of the assembly built.

BBA 6 COST-PRICE K, L, M Holds the accumulated cost of components issued.

NB: When restructuring this database to include your own data items please add to item 321+ (Items 1-160 are reserved for future use)

BBR 1 BUILD-NO X (16) Holds the build reference this component requirement relates to.

BBR 2 STOCK-CODE X (30) Holds the stock code this component requirement relates to.

BBR 3 QTY-REQUIRED K, L, M Holds the quantity of this component required to fulfil the assemblies of this block build.

BBR 4 STK-PHYSICAL K, L, M Holds the physical quantity recorded on the stock file for the component as of last calculation.

BBR 5 STK-ON-ORDER K, L, M Holds the on-order quantity recorded on the stock file for the component as of last calculation.

BBR 6 STK-RESERVED K, L, M Holds the reserved quantity recorded on the stock file for the component as of last calculation.

BBR 7 STK-FREE * Calculation adding the Stock Physical and the On-Order and subtracting the Reserved quantity to record the free quantity for the component as of last calculation.

BBR 8 STK-BOM-ORD K, L, M If Bill of Materials in use this is the quantity, included in the STK-ON-ORDER above that relates to outstanding works order as of the last calculation.

BBR 9 STK-BOM-RES K, L, M If BOM in use this is the quantity, included in the STK-RESERVED above that relates to outstanding works orders as of the last calculation.

BBR 10 COMPARE-QTY * Defaulting to a calculation of the physical quantity (but if negative set to zero). This is the quantity used when calculating the shortfall for the requirements report.You may wish to adjust this calculation to base the shortfall on available stock (which would be PHYSICAL less RESERVED) or free stock.

BBR 11 SHORTFALL K, L, M Updated with the result of COMPARE-QTY less REQUIRED-QTY but zeroed if negative (no shortfall) or if stock item is flagged as non-stock.

BBR 12 ISSUED ? Flag to show the components from this requirement have been fully issued.

BBR 13 ISSUED-QTY K, L, M Holds the quantity of the component actually issued when the component issues generated.

BBR 14 ISSUE-O/S * Calculation of required quantity less issued quantity showing the quantity remaining to be issued or, if issue actually generated, the quantity unable to be issued due to insufficient stock.

BBR 15 ISSUE-RESULT T Table Item allowing commentary of the result of any component issues against this build line. Table range is defined as 1-5 and allows options for:

1 – Full Stock Issued

2 – Built Without Component

3 – Issue Components Later

4 – Issue Reduced Quantity

5 – Negative Qty Allowed

BBR 321 ASSEMBLY-1 X (30) Holds the assembly code that this component is used within. Items 322-400 allow the component to be used within a further 79 assemblies. These items are only required if build costs for the finished item are to be calculated based on the components, if omitting cost accumulations according to system profile settings then these items can be omitted.

BBR 401 ASS-QTY-1 K, L, M Holds the quantity of the component used within the first assembly.Items 402-480 allow the recording of a further 79 assembly quantities. As with item above these options are only required where calculating costs for the build of the finished item.

NB: When restructuring this database to include your own data items please add to items 80-160 (Items 1-79 and 321-480 are reserved for future use)

System Profiles

A new parameter has been added to screen 3 of the Stock parameters to enable the block build options. To update the profiles select Installation from the main menu and lock out the system before selecting the System Profiles option and, firstly, the Stock Control application.

Allow Block Build of Multiple Assemblies – set this option to enable the block build assembly options. Once set a pop-up parameter screen allows configuration of additional items.

Header Database Pathname – enter the path and filename for the block build header database (i.e. DATA\???-BBH.DFD where ??? is replaced with the current company id)

Assemblies Database Pathname – enter the path and filename for the block build assemblies database (i.e. DATA\???-BBA.DFD)

Requirements Database Pathname – enter the path and filename for the block build requirements database (i.e. DATA\???-BBR.DFD)

Code Format for Reference – enter the code format for the build reference – i.e. 99999 for a six-digit number, or UUUUUU to allow any combination of letters and numbers.

Prevent Negative Stocks – set to remove the option to allow negative stock when issuing components with insufficient physical quantity.

Auto-Expand Block Files– set to record the auto-expansion settings for the block build files. When set you will be able to define the usual expansion settings of expand by / when less than and minimum record numbers.

Copy Stock to Block Assemblies – set to enable copy of additional data items from the stock file to the assemblies file for inclusion on the build reports. When set you will be able to define up to ten copy items.

Copy Stock to Block Requirements – set to enable copy of additional data items from the stock file to the requirements file for inclusion in the calculate / issue reports. When set you will be able to define up to ten copy items.

Omit Assembly Cost Calculations – set to omit calculation of cost prices on assembly build. If set then the cost price for the build is based on the current cost recorded on the build stock item rather than an accumulation of cost items.

Default Action if Out-of-Stock – on issue of components this option allows setting of a default response when a shortfall is detected.Options allowed include:

0No Default (Stop and Ask)

1Ignore Component (omits from issue and will not issue later)

2Let Quantity Go Negative

3Use Reduced Quantity (issues the quantity it can and abandons balance)

4Issue Later (skips from issue but will allow to be issued later)

Stop and Ask – if the default action set as 1-4 then the response is automatically accepted without user confirmation. Setting this option allows the system to default the out-of-stock action but requires confirmation from the operator.

Application User Facilities

Four reporting options are available for the Block Build processes – the block assembly list, the requirements list and the issues and build reports. These reports are configured via the Application User Facilities for Stock Control. To update the report layout select Installation from the main menu followed by Application Manager and then Application User Facilities before selecting the Stock Control application and the Assembly Reports option.

The Block Assembly List is the report available from the PRINT option that lists the assemblies for the current build reference and reports from the Block Build Assembly (BBA) file.

The Block Requirement List is the report generated from the CALCULATE option (and the REPORT option) and lists the component requirements for the current build reference, this option reports from the Block Build Requirements (BBR) database .

The Block Issue Report is the report printed as part of the issue and reports from the BBR database.

The Block Build Report is the report printed as part of the build and reports from the BBA database.

Each report is configured in a similar manner:

Print Control – this sets the report print style for users using the old style print configuration. Typically you would set these reports to either style 1 which is usually the 80-column configuration or style 2 which is the 132-column configuration.

Data Items – you can nominate up to ten items from the database for each report.Keep an eye on the help bubble at the bottom right of the screen which indicates when any special 161+ items are available.

Options – selecting this button allows the configuration options for the new style print configuration allowing selection of page size and font settings.

Menu Design

The Block Build of Assemblies option needs to be added as required to the Stock assemblies menu.To add a new menu option sign-on as the CONFIG user and select Application Menu Design, choose the menu to update (the main Stock reports menu is STASS.D03) and then select to update either the left or right-hand menu. Move down to a blank menu entry and enter the title required then press <Enter> to enter the menu parameters.

Applic, Program or Notes P-Program

Menu Name or Program Path ST.EXE

Parameter 6500

NB: Other options can be set as required.