Dynamics 365 & Master Data Migration Series - Items

CONTENTS Introduction Export released item sample data Released item importation

INTRODUCTION

This article explains how to import items using entities. Entities help us for managing master data. 

Once released items are created with that method, item masters also will be created automatically by the system.

EXPORT RELEASED ITEM SAMPLE DATA

"Guide item" approach helps users to understand what is going to be filled in excel template. Create your own guide items accordingly business needs and export them.

Click on data management workspace

Select export tile

Fill in project fields

Use "released product creation" entity

Select project and click on export button

Export job has been scheduled

Note that symbols show that export is still in progress

Once scheduled job is completed, refresh the page and see results

Check the staging table

Go back and download the staging file

D1065 and D1066 will be guide items for that exercise

Find guide items in excel and delete other lines

Then fill in items that is going to be imported and delete guide item lines

Save this file as. This is the final document to be uploaded. It is time to import.

RELEASED ITEM IMPORTATION

Click on data management workspace.

Select import tile

Fill in project fields

Select the template that is going to be uploaded

Once you select the template, mapping is done automatically

Select the project and click on the import button

Import job has been scheduled

Once the scheduled job is completed, check the released items

All items are ready to be used!

Dynamics 365 & Manufacturing Strategies - PART 1 - General Concept

This article is about manufacturing strategies and their Dynamics 365 ERP applications. Knowledge transfer has been planned in 2 posts:

PART 1: Dynamics 365 & Manufacturing Strategies - PART 1 - General Concept

PART 2: Dynamics 365 & Manufacturing Strategies - PART 2 - Make-To-Stock (MTS)

Let's get started with PART 1

CONTENTS   Introduction Manufacturing strategies with APICS explanations

INTRODUCTION

Those series of articles aim to provide advanced knowledge of different manufacturing approaches. You will find:
 • Conceptual background of various manufacturing scenarios from the business point of view and expectations from ERP to support those scenarios.
 • How AX 365 for Operations supports various Manufacturing Strategies.

 

Let's take a look at APICS(American Production and Inventory Control Society) definitions to understand manufacturing strategies.

 

MANUFACTURING/SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGIES

COMPARISON OF MANUFACTURING/SUPPLY CHAIN STRATEGY APPROACHES OF APICS AND MICROSOFT

APICS Approach says that there are four basic manufacturing strategies in terms of delivery lead time.

Dynamics AX Approaches with 2 dominant strategies. Make-to-stock (MTS) and make-to-order (MTO). MTO includes PTO, ATO, CTO and ETO, in other saying they are all varieties of make-to-order.

According to Oracle, pick-to-order is a type of assemble-to-order. On the other side, SAP uses Pick to Order strategy as a part of order fulfillment process as Supply Chain Strategy, not a manufacturing strategy.

 

All these strategies aim to minimize delivery lead time. To minimize lead time, all operations must be optimized. One of the best way of optimizing operations is lean manufacturing. You can support your MTO manufacturing with lean manufacturing strategy. It is a support execution strategy within overall MTO manufacturing strategies.

 

So table becomes as follows

What is lean manufacturing then?
Lean Manufacturing is a supporting execution philosophy within MTO Manufacturing strategy and endeavors to optimize MTO Supply Chain by "eliminating waste" in the entire value stream by using a set of tools and techniques (Microsoft).

Lean production is a concept that has evolved from JIT concepts over the years. The development of highly integrated production systems was rapidly evolving. MRP was recognized to be an effective engine to drive an integrated enterprise-wide information system that is today called ERP. Purchasing and logistics activities were similarly being integrated with fundamental internal materials management principles into an enterprise-wide approach, today called supply chain management.  Similarly, the fundamental concepts of JIT evolved to an enterprise-wide perspective called lean production. Lean production implies understanding and correctly implementing the major enterprise-wide changes required to truly eliminate or significantly reduce waste in the system. It is the system-wide philosophical approach used to integrate the system toward an ultimate goal of maximized customer service with minimal system waste. Lean production is a philosophy that relates to the way a manufacturing company organizes and operates its business. It includes both the approach to organizing the business and the practice of just-in-time production (JIT) (APICS).

Let's go through all manufacturing strategies in Dynamics 365 one by one.

Sit tight!

The rest of the article will be quite striking!

To be continued...