Training home / Planning what to buy, make and deliver

Planning what to buy, make and deliver

Six screens that tell you what is running short, what is arriving late and what must go out this week.

At a glance

Who it is for: Plant, Procurement, Accounts and Admin, who plan stock, buying and deliveries.
What you can do: spot reorder needs, late supply and due deliveries, run stock counts and review rejections and scrap.
What you need first: reorder levels and lead times set on the part, and expected dates on purchase orders.

The big picture

WorkCrest watches your own stock, your approved purchase orders, your open jobs and your customer orders. These screens turn that data into a to-do list.

The screens only show you the problem. You still raise the purchase order, create the job or call the supplier.

Screen	Where to find it	The question it answers
Reorder Alerts	Inventory › Reorder Alerts	Which parts are below their reorder level right now?
Min/Max Planning	Inventory › Min/Max Planning	How much should I order to get each part back up to its maximum?
Supply & Demand	Inventory › Supply & Demand	Will supply cover everything customers and jobs need, and on time?
Delivery Schedule	Sales › Delivery Schedule	What must ship, and what must arrive, and what is overdue?
Physical Inventory	Inventory › Physical Inventory	Does the shelf match the book, and how do I correct it?
Rejections & Scrap	Inventory › Rejections & Scrap	Where are we losing material to bad supply, returns and scrap?

Same numbers everywhere. Reorder Alerts, Min/Max Planning and Supply & Demand use the same definitions of stock and open purchase orders, so they should not disagree. Only your own stock counts. Stock sitting in the Receiving warehouse, waiting for inspection, is not counted as available.

Related guides: Plant and shop floor, Procurement and Reports guide.

Before you start: set the numbers on the part

Reorder Alerts and Min/Max Planning only work for parts that have the right numbers filled in.

Open the part (Inventory › Parts) and choose to edit it.
Fill in Reorder level for Reorder Alerts.
Fill in Min quantity and Max quantity for Min/Max Planning.
Save. Only active, stockable parts appear on these screens. Services and deactivated parts are left out.

1. Reorder Alerts

Inventory › Reorder Alerts

Purpose. A simple list of parts whose own stock on hand has fallen below the reorder level you set. Who can open it: Procurement, Sales, Plant, Accounts and Admin.

How to read it

Column	What it means
Code, Name, UoM	The part and its unit of measure.
Own stock on hand	Your own stock across all warehouses, not counting the Receiving warehouse.
Reorder level	The level you set on the part.
Shortfall	Reorder level minus stock on hand.
Severity	Out of stock (red) means nothing is on hand. Below reorder means some stock remains but under the level.
(last column)	A Raise PO link, or "Not purchasable" if the part is made in-house.

The list is sorted with out-of-stock parts first, then by how large the shortfall is compared with the reorder level. A line at the top of the page tells you how many active parts have no reorder level and are therefore not checked.

What to do

Start at the top of the list.
For a bought part, click Raise PO. A new purchase order opens with the part and the shortfall quantity filled in.
For a part you make, create a stock job instead (see the Plant guide).

This screen ignores orders already placed. It looks at stock on hand only. A part may still show here although a purchase order is on its way. Check Min/Max Planning or Supply & Demand before raising a second order.

Reorder Alerts list showing parts below their reorder level, with shortfall, severity and Raise PO links — Reorder Alerts: parts below their reorder level, worst first, with a Raise PO link on each bought part.

2. Min/Max Planning

Inventory › Min/Max Planning

Purpose. Like Reorder Alerts, but smarter: it adds the quantity already on approved purchase orders, so stock that is on its way does not trigger a second order. Who can open it: Procurement, Sales, Plant, Accounts and Admin.

How to read it

Column	What it means
Min, Max	The limits set on the part. A dash means not set.
On hand	Your own stock, excluding the Receiving warehouse.
On order	Quantity still to arrive on approved purchase orders that are open or partly received. Draft and pending orders are not counted.
Position	On hand plus On order. This is the number compared with Min and Max.
Suggested order	Only shown when Position is below Min. It is the amount needed to reach Max, or to reach Min if no Max is set.
Status	Below min (red), OK, Above max (grey) or Not set.
(last column)	Raise PO when there is a suggested quantity and the part is purchasable.

The tabs above the table filter by status: All parts, Below min, OK, Above max and Not set, each with a count.

What to do

Open the Below min tab.
Click Raise PO on each row. The suggested quantity is filled in. Change it if a supplier has a minimum order or a better pack size.
Look at the Above max tab now and then. Those parts are over-stocked: hold back new orders and consider whether the maximum is set too low.
Look at the Not set tab to find parts that need a Min and Max.

Min/Max Planning with status tabs and suggested order quantities — Min/Max Planning: position against Min and Max, with a suggested order quantity.

3. Supply & Demand

Inventory › Supply & Demand

Purpose. The full picture for each part: everything that will arrive, against everything that is wanted, with dates. It is the best single screen to find out what to buy or make first. Who can open it: Procurement, Sales, Plant, Accounts and Admin.

The columns

Column	What it means
Warnings	Coloured badges, worst first. Hover over a badge for a short explanation. "OK" means no warning.
On hand	Own stock available.
On order	Open quantity on approved purchase orders.
In production	Quantity still to be made on open jobs that produce this part.
Supply	On hand + On order + In production.
Customer orders	Quantity still to dispatch on confirmed, in-progress and partly delivered sales orders.
Job material	Material that open jobs still have to draw for this part.
Demand	Customer orders + Job material.
Net	Supply minus Demand. Negative (red) means a shortage.
Needed by	The earliest date something needs this part. For orders it is the line's ship date, or else the order's required delivery date. For job material it is the job's planned start.
Next supply	The earliest date something is promised to arrive: a purchase order's expected delivery date or a job's planned end.
Orders, Jobs needing it, Jobs making it	Links to the customer orders and jobs behind the numbers (the first three are shown, then "+ more").

The warnings

Warning	Meaning	Action
Shortage	Demand is more than stock, open purchase orders and jobs in progress can cover.	Raise a PO or create a job.
No usable supplier	The part is short, but no approved supplier in good standing is listed for it.	Add or fix an entry in the Approved Supplier List first (see the Procurement guide).
Order at risk	A customer order line cannot be met by its date: supply arrives after it, or does not cover it.	Chase the supplier or job, or tell the customer early.
Late supply	Supply that would cover an order or job material arrives after the date it is needed.	Ask the supplier to expedite, or move the need date.
Overdue PO	An approved purchase order is past its expected date and not fully received.	Call the supplier.
Below min	On hand plus on order is under the part's Min.	Same as Min/Max Planning.
No complete routing	A made part is needed and short, but it has no complete routing, so no job can be created.	Complete the Routing master first.
In inspection	Received stock is waiting in the Receiving warehouse and is not available yet.	Ask Quality or stores to finish the inspection.
Above max	On hand plus on order is over the Max.	Hold back orders.

The tabs across the top filter by warning and show how many parts have each one. A line under them says how many parts have a warning.

How the dated check works

WorkCrest serves the earliest-needed demand first. It uses stock on hand first, then the purchase orders and jobs that arrive earliest.

If the only supply that covers a demand arrives after its date, you get Late supply.
If nothing covers it, the order is at risk.
A purchase order with no expected date is never called late, because there is nothing to be late against.

Add expected dates to your POs so this check can work.

Work from the red badges. Click the Shortage tab, deal with those parts, then Order at risk, Late supply and Overdue PO. Idle parts with nothing on hand, ordered or wanted and no Min or Max are left off the list.

Supply and Demand with warning tabs, supply and demand columns and net position — Supply & Demand: warnings first, then supply against demand with needed-by and next-supply dates.

4. Delivery Schedule

Sales › Delivery Schedule

Purpose. A date-ordered list of what must go out to customers and what suppliers still owe you. Who can open it: Sales, Plant and Admin.

The page has two panels, each with its own count of overdue and due-this-week items.

Panel	What is listed
Customer orders to ship	Confirmed, in-progress and partly delivered customer orders that have a required delivery date and quantity still to ship.
Supplier deliveries expected	Approved purchase orders that are open or partly received, with an expected date and quantity still to receive.

The columns

Column	What it means
Document	The order or PO number. Click it to open the document.
Customer / Supplier	The other party.
Due date	The delivery date on the document.
Status	Overdue (red), Due this week (amber, the next 7 days) or Later, with a note such as how many days late.
Qty to ship / Qty to receive	The total quantity still outstanding on the document.

Overdue items are listed first, then items due this week, then the rest, each in date order.

What to do

In Customer orders to ship, open each overdue order. Make sure the job is moving or the goods are ready, then create the delivery challan.
In Supplier deliveries expected, phone the supplier for each overdue line. If the supplier gives a new date, update the PO.
Match this screen with Supply & Demand: a supplier delivery that is overdue here is usually the reason for a Late supply warning there.

A document with no delivery date does not appear on this screen at all. If an order seems to be missing, check that it has a required delivery date and is not still a draft.

Delivery Schedule with customer orders to ship and supplier deliveries expected — Delivery Schedule: customer orders to ship and supplier deliveries expected, overdue first.

5. Physical Inventory (stock counts)

Inventory › Physical Inventory

Purpose. To check the shelf against the book and correct the book when they differ.

A count freezes the quantities the system expects.
You enter what you actually counted.
Any difference goes through approval before stock is changed.

Who can open it: Plant, Procurement, Accounts and Admin. Only Plant and Admin can create or submit a count, and your login must be linked to an employee record.

The list

Column	What it means
Count	The count number. Click to open it.
Warehouse	The warehouse being counted.
Date	The count date.
Lines	How many part and lot lines were frozen.
Status	Draft, pending approval, approved, rejected or cancelled.
Pending with	Who must approve it next.

Use the status tabs and the Warehouse filter to narrow the list.

Run a count, step by step

Click New count.
Choose the Warehouse and the Count date.
Under Parts to count, leave it empty to count everything in the warehouse, or pick some parts to narrow it. The warehouse must hold some own stock or the count cannot be created.
Optionally tick the option to show the snapshot quantity on the count screen. Leave it off for a blind count, where the counter cannot see the book quantity. Add Remarks if useful, then save.
The count opens as a Draft with its lines frozen. Click Enter counted quantities. This takes you to Inventory › Stock Counting, where the counter types in what is on the shelf. Counted quantities for parts that use lots are entered per lot.
Back on the count, check the Frozen lines table: Part, Lot / Serial, Book, Counted and Variance. A green badge is a surplus (more found than expected). An amber badge is a shortage. The heading tells you how many lines have a variance.
Click Submit for approval. WorkCrest refuses if counted quantities have not been entered yet.
The approver opens the count and sees Approve and Reject buttons, with a comments box. On Approve, the variances are posted to stock. The approval route is shown at the bottom of the page.

Other buttons

Button	When it appears
Cancel count	While the count is a Draft.
Revise (back to Draft)	After a rejection. Recount, then submit again.

Do not move stock while counting. The book quantities are frozen when you create the count. Receipts or issues after that point will show up as false variances. Count when the warehouse is quiet.

The approval rules for a count follow the amount of the variance, using the stock-in rules when the net result is a surplus and the stock-out rules when it is a shortage. Ask your Admin who approves counts at your company.

Physical Inventory list of stock counts with status and pending approver — Physical Inventory: each count with its warehouse, date, status and who must approve it.

For the stock on hand you are comparing against, see Inventory › Stock Balances, and for the history of a correction, Inventory › Stock Movements.

Stock Balances list — Stock Balances: the book quantity that a count is checked against.

Stock Movements list — Stock Movements: every stock change, including approved count variances.

6. Rejections & Scrap

Inventory › Rejections & Scrap

Purpose. A report on where material is being wasted, so you can raise it with a supplier, a customer or the shop floor. Who can open it: Plant, Procurement, Accounts, Sales, Quality and Admin.

Choose the dates at the top and apply them. Then pick one of three tabs. The text under the heading changes to explain the tab you are on. Every table can be sorted and exported.

Supplier rejections

Goods receipts dated in the period, by part and supplier, worst reject rate first.

Column	What it means
Part, Supplier	What was received, and from whom.
Receipts	Number of goods receipts.
Received	Quantity that arrived.
Rejected	Quantity rejected at receipt or inspection.
Reject %	Rejected as a share of received. Red when above zero.
Rejected value	Valued at the PO price before GST.
Main reason	The most common rejection reason.

Action: take the worst supplier and part pairs to the supplier, ask for a corrective plan and, if it keeps happening, review them in the Approved Supplier List.

Customer returns

Approved sales returns dated in the period, by part, against what was dispatched in the same period.

Column	What it means
Part	The returned part.
Returns, Customers	How many returns and from how many customers.
Returned, Dispatched	Quantity sent back, and quantity sent out in the same period.
Return %	Returned as a share of dispatched.
Returned value (cost)	Valued at standard cost. Shown only if you have the View costs permission.
Main reason	The most common return reason.

Action: look for a part that keeps coming back and ask Quality to investigate. Read it as the return rate for the period, not for the whole life of the goods.

Shop-floor scrap

Scrap recorded on job steps in the period, by the part the job makes.

Column	What it means
Part	The part the jobs make.
Jobs	Number of jobs involved.
Planned, Scrapped	Planned quantity of those jobs, and pieces scrapped.
Scrap %	Scrapped as a share of planned.
Scrap value (std cost)	Valued at the part's standard cost. Needs the View costs permission.
Main step, Main reason	The operation and reason behind most of the scrap.

Action: start with the Main step of the highest-scrap part. A high figure usually means a machine, tool or method problem at that step. Feed it back into your routing and planned quantities.

If you do not have the View costs permission, the value columns are simply missing from the tables.

Rejections and Scrap report with period selector and three tabs — Rejections & Scrap: choose a period, then switch between supplier rejections, customer returns and shop-floor scrap.

Weekly planning routine

Do this once a week, for example on Monday morning.

Delivery Schedule. Note everything overdue or due this week, for customers and suppliers. Phone suppliers for overdue lines.
Supply & Demand. Go through the Shortage, Order at risk, Late supply and Overdue PO tabs. For each part decide: buy, make, expedite or warn the customer.
Min/Max Planning. Open Below min and raise purchase orders from the suggested quantities. Skim Above max for over-stock.
Reorder Alerts. Check that any out-of-stock part is already covered by an order. Raise any that are not.
Approvals. Send the new purchase orders for approval. Orders that wait in the approval queue do not count as supply (see Approvals).
Physical Inventory. Once a month, or on a rolling cycle, count a few fast-moving or high-value locations. Submit the count and chase its approval.
Rejections & Scrap. Once a month, set the period to last month. Take the top supplier, return and scrap items to the right person.

Common mistakes

Mistake	What happens	Fix
Min, Max or Reorder level left empty on a part	The part never shows an alert or a suggestion.	Use the Not set tab on Min/Max Planning to find them.
Raising a PO from Reorder Alerts without checking what is on order	You double-order.	Check On order on Min/Max Planning or Supply & Demand first.
Leaving purchase orders in Draft or pending approval	They do not count as On order, so the part keeps showing as short.	Submit and get them approved.
No expected delivery date on POs or no delivery date on orders	No Late supply warning, and the document is missing from Delivery Schedule.	Always fill in the dates.
Stock still sitting in Receiving	It shows as In inspection and is not counted as available.	Finish the inspection and put the stock away.
Moving stock during a physical count	False variances are posted when the count is approved.	Count while the warehouse is quiet, or recount after a rejection.
Short part with no approved supplier	"No usable supplier" and nobody can buy it.	Fix the Approved Supplier List.
Made part with no complete routing	"No complete routing": no job can be created.	Finish the routing.

Back to the training home.