I was wondering if anyone is using MRP and/or PO Suggestions and Job Suggestions.
I am evaluating if we want to purchase MRP. (Its very unfortunate that Epicor will not grant a trial or real demo of the actual product, so I have not been able to get into it to see how it works.)
I am looking for feedback on how MRP processes suggestions for jobs and purchase orders.
Epicor’s PO Suggestions or Job Suggestions is useless for us because they suggest buying and making parts that are in stock or already have jobs or POs as applicable open. I don’t understand their logic on this…
We don’t generally stock parts or material so everything is marked purchase / make.
But due to MOQs, we end up with inventory of parts we sell to customers or materials we need for jobs. Because the item is marked purchase / make, E10 suggests we buy or make, even when the item is in stock or already has a job or PO open. I checked with technical support and they say this is as designed.
I have never seen a software system that does not consider inventory and open orders…
How do you all handle this? Any feedback is appreciated. I can also be reached at dmirzadegan@mcneal.com.
i.e. you already run E10, just without the MRP module and you want to test that?
Hmmm… I remember Epicor supplying temp licenses on several occasions to a site where I worked for the purpose of testing. ( but… that was a long time ago ).
Have checked with your CAM (again?) to confirm what if/any options are available these days for testing? If Epicor doesn’t give out temp licenses anymore, then I’m guessing they’d offer some kind of demonstration.
Suggestions are definitely “interesting” sometimes. e.g. when you have a mix of stock/direct supply/demand. It can be even more “fun” if users are manually manipulating demand/supply dates.
With so many variables you probably will need some actual “hands-on” play time in your local environment.
But until you gain access, I’d recommend you review the online help topics (if you haven’t already). Note there is a link to the MRP Tech Ref Guide too, if you need to take a “deep dive” into some specific.
I asked Epicor but they would not provide a temporary license. We are on the cloud.
My post is two part.
MRP: I dont have but am considering so any feedback? Specifically about suggestions. Does it calculate inventory + open jobs/orders - demand?
Out of the box purchasing and job suggestions (not using MRP), My issue is that we don’t stock material and finished goods per se, so most everything is marked direct/ make/ purchase. I keep getting suggestions to make or purchase items I have stock on and/or have open jobs for, so the suggestions are essentially useless. Does everyone else experience the same thing? How do you set up your system? Is it different in MRP?
If you are marking all your parts non-stock and buy to order I would expect similar behavior with MRP suggestions. One difference would be the use of the Auto Consume Stock checkbox on the site/plant > planning tab in part maintenance.
If a mfg part is marked auto consume the next MRP job created that uses that part as a subassembly will populate the Pull From Stock qty on the assembly if there is available inventory.
For purchased parts I would suggest turning off buy to order. As long min on hand and safety stock are set to 0, you’ll only get suggestions for the quantities required for jobs/orders, and any on hand inventory would also be considered.
