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202 CHAPTER 6 The Production Process

• A production order may contain references to various documents.
For example, the BOM may include a document item, or a PRT
may refer to a document. In these cases, the production order
includes links to the documents in the document management sys-
tem (DMS). Using the DMS ensures that the most current versions
of the documents are employed during production.
• When the production order has been executed and the materials
have been created, the materials actually produced are recorded in
the production order via confi rmations. We discuss confi rmations in
greater detail later in this chapter.

Tasks
As we discussed earlier, the principal task in the authorize production step is to
create a production order. There are several possible scenarios for performing
this task. We have already seen that a production order can be created with or
without reference to a planned order. Further, planned orders can be converted
individually, collectively, or partially. With individual conversion, one planned
order is converted to one production order. In collective conversion, multiple
planned orders are processed at once, that is, collectively. The outcome can be
one or multiple production orders. Finally in partial conversion, only a portion of
the quantities listed in the planned order are included in the production order.
Partial conversion often generates multiple production orders, each one
refl ecting a partial quantity of the material in the planned order.
Another task in creating a production order is to select the appropriate
master data, such as BOM, routing, and PRTs. Recall that a routing identi-
fi es the operations needed to produce the material. In some cases the ERP
system automatically selects an appropriate routing. The system then transfers
the operations from the selected routing into the production order. A routing
can also be selected manually. In these cases the system displays the available
task lists or routings for the material, and the person creating the production
order decides which one is most appropriate. Signifi cantly, it is possible to cre-
ate a production order without specifying a routing. In this case, the system
automatically generates a default operation, which is incorporated into the
production order.
Recall that the BOM identifi es the components needed to produce the
material. Once again, the system automatically selects a suitable BOM and
transfers the components into the production order. If a BOM is not available,
then the components must be added to the production order manually.
Now consider a scenario in which (1) the production order is created
with reference to a planned order and (2) the planned order includes the
BOM and the routing data. In this case the system automatically transfers
these data into the production order. Note that the actual BOM and rout-
ing data are not retrieved again from the material master. Rather, the data
pertaining to the components and operations are copied directly from the
planned order into the production order. Further, once these data have been
incorporated into the production order, they are not automatically retrieved
from the material master again, even when either the BOM or the routing
changes. To refl ect changes to the BOM and routing data, the system must be
manually instructed to re-read or retrieve these data.

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