Manufacturing

Overview

Plans production with bills of materials, manufacturing orders, and work-in-progress tracking.

Key concepts

Key terms, statuses, and records that appear in Manufacturing in XFatora.

Setup & prerequisites

Connect required settings, templates, and defaults for Manufacturing in XFatora.

Roles & permissions

Assign role-based access, approvals, and visibility for Manufacturing in XFatora.

Main workflows

Manufacturing module

supports planning and execution of production processes for companies that build or assemble products. It helps you manage Bills of Materials (BOMs), create Work Orders, track production progress, and control the consumption of raw materials and output of finished goods. With this module, you can streamline production scheduling, ensure you have the necessary parts, and monitor costs and efficiency of manufacturing operations.

Bill of Materials (BOM) Setup

Define BOMs:

A Bill of Materials lists all components and quantities needed to produce one unit of a finished product. In

Manufacturing > BOMs

, create a new BOM for each product you manufacture. Select the end item (finished good) and specify the quantity that this BOM yields (usually 1 unit, but could be, say, a batch of 100 if you always produce in batches). Then add all parts/ingredients: for each component, list the item code and the quantity required. For example, a BOM for Widget might include 2 of Part A, 4 of Part B, 0.5 kg of Material C, etc. If any sub-assembly has its own BOM, you can either nest BOMs (some systems allow hierarchical BOMs where a component line references another BOM) or flatten it into one BOM. Modular systems often support multi-level BOMs.

Work Centers & Operations (optional):

If your production process has distinct steps or uses certain machines, define

Work Centers

(like

Cutting Machine

,

Assembly Line 1

,

Painting Booth

). Then you can outline

Operations

in the BOM or routing: e.g.,

Cutting 5 minutes at Cutting Machine

,

Assembly 10 minutes

,

Painting 2 minutes plus 1 hour drying

. Associating time and work centers helps schedule and cost production. If the module has a separate section for Routings or Task lists, fill that out for complex processes. If not, you might just note a single operation. Including operation times and labor needed helps with capacity planning (so you know machine loads and can allocate workforce) and cost roll-up (so you know total labor/machine cost per unit).

BOM Versions:

If you occasionally change a products BOM (due to design changes or alternative parts), the module might support multiple BOM versions (active/inactive, effective dates). Use that if needed: e.g., BOM v1 is valid until stock of old Part X runs out, then BOM v2 uses new Part Y. Manage carefully to avoid confusion ensure the correct BOM is selected when launching a work order. Some modules let you mark one BOM as default for new orders.

Costing Info:

The BOM often calculates a

Standard Cost

of the product by summing component costs (and possibly adding labor/overhead). The module likely pulls each components cost from Inventory (like latest or average cost), multiplies by qty, and sums up. If labor or machine time costs are entered (you may input a cost per hour for a work center or operation), it can add those. Review the BOM cost sheet if available, to ensure you have a baseline cost per product. This is useful for pricing and for evaluating manufacturing profitability. If something looks off (cost too high/low), double check component prices or BOM quantities.

Production Planning and Work Orders

Master Production Schedule (MPS):

If you manufacture to stock or to forecast, you may create a production plan. In a planning view (maybe Calendar or Gantt), list how many of each product you want to produce and when. Some modules allow setting a production plan or reorder rules that automatically create manufacturing orders when finished goods stock is below a threshold or when sales orders demand them. If using make-to-stock, set those triggers: e.g., product Minimum Stock = 50, if current + in-progress < 50, prompt a new manufacturing order for the difference. Or you might manually plan each months production.

Generating Work Orders:

When you decide to produce a batch, create a

Work Order / Manufacturing Order

in the module. Choose the product to make and quantity. The system will link its BOM (if multiple BOMs exist, pick which one), and generate the list of required materials and operations. It will allocate (or at least list) the needed components and possibly check availability. Some modules will immediately reserve those materials in inventory (so they cant be used elsewhere). Others might just give a pick list and not deduct until actual production. Check how yours works: If theres a Reserve materials or Issue materials step, typically you reserve at work order creation and issue (deduct) when production starts or completes.

Scheduling:

Assign a start date (and possibly the system calculates end date based on operation durations and work center capacity). If you specified work centers and times in BOM, the module can put this order in the schedule, highlighting if any work center is double-booked. Use this to adjust start times such that operations flow sequentially without overlap if the same station is used for multiple orders. You might see a calendar or timeline of each work centers tasks. Aim to optimize: minimize downtime, ensure critical orders are prioritized, and consider changeover times if any (like machine setup overheads). Some modules allow operation overlaps (like can start assembly while cutting still finishing last piece if parallel possible); manage that if needed.

Material Availability:

Before launching production, ensure all required materials are on hand. The work order will list required component quantities. The module may have a

Material Availability Check

button which will compare needed vs available. If short, it might show in red which components are lacking and by how much. At that point, decide: delay the work order until procurement obtains more, or proceed if maybe partial (though partial production can be tricky if missing parts - usually you wait). If available, you can proceed to issue them to production.

Issuing Materials:

When starting production, do a

Material Issue

transaction: this deducts the raw materials from inventory and marks them as consumed by this work order. In the system, often theres a step like

Start Production

or

Consume Materials

. Click that when ready, and the system will create a stock movement (from main stock to a WIP or production floor location). After that, inventory shows those parts as used (so theyre no longer in free stock). In some simpler flows, you may not explicitly issue at start you might directly complete the order and the system will deduct materials then. But its more controlled to issue at start (or as you use them) and then confirm output at end. If your process sees scrap or wastage beyond BOM (like 5% extra material usage typically), adjust the quantities consumed accordingly so inventory reflects the true usage. The work order might allow logging scrap: e.g., used 105 units for planned 100 output, scrap 5 due to defects. Enter that to keep cost and stock correct (the 5 scrapped could be accounted as waste).

Production Execution:

As production goes on, update the work order status. Maybe mark when each operation is completed, or at least track percentages or any notes (like encountered downtime or quality issues). Some modules allow logging time taken per operation vs standard (this helps analyze efficiency: e.g., planned 60 min, took 80 min). If you track these, it can highlight training needs or inaccurate estimates. Not mandatory, but beneficial if you want continuous improvement data.

Completing Work Order:

When the product is finished, record completion. Click

Finish Production

or similar. The system will then create a

Stock Receipt

for the finished goods into inventory. For example, produce 50 units of Product X, so now 50 of X are added to Finished Goods stock (likely to a specific warehouse or location for finished products). At the same time (if not already done), it will deduct any remaining materials that werent issued yet. Often, finishing an order triggers the final accounting of materials vs output. Check that the intended output quantity is correct and mark any production loss if output is less than planned (maybe some units failed QC and you scrapped them; you could either mark them as output but scrap them immediately or simply reduce output quantity but better to show scrap explicitly to not artificially inflate yields). If scrap is tracked, the module may ask what happened to scrapped units (like scrapped finished goods or waste pieces). Document that for cost calculations (scrap typically still consumes materials and time but yields nothing, so it's a loss to record).

Costing and Variance:

After completion, the module can compute actual vs expected cost. It knows what materials were supposed to be used (and at what cost) and how much labor/machine time was planned, versus what was actually used if you logged differences. This can produce a

Production Variance Report

: e.g., you planned $1000 cost but actual was $1080 due to extra materials or overtime labor. Investigate significant variances: maybe BOM needs update (if consistently, more materials are needed than BOM states, correct the BOM) or process improvements to reduce waste. The module might automatically adjust inventory costs or show a manufacturing expense if theres a variance (like writing off scrap). From an accounting perspective, if integrated, upon completion it might credit raw materials inventory and debit WIP and then finished goods inventory, with any difference hitting COGS or a variance account. Check with finance that these flows are properly mapped e.g., set up a WIP inventory account if needed. If it's simpler, it may directly credit raw inv and debit finished goods at standard cost, and any difference remains in an expense or stays in WIP that is cleared periodically. It's a bit technical, but the key is tracking if production inefficiencies are costing money outside of expected; the module can highlight that.

Work Order Closure:

Mark the work order as

Completed

or

Closed

after finalizing output. Ensure all components are either consumed or returned (if you allocated more materials than used, some may be left; record a return to stock for unused parts). The module might prompt all components consumed? or let you adjust. E.g., if BOM called for 100 screws but you only needed 95, you could reduce the consumed quantity, effectively returning 5 to stock (if you had already issued 100). Do that before closing so inventory isnt understated. Then close the work order. A closed MO indicates production finished and it drops off the active schedule.

Capacity and Resource Management

Work Center Capacity:

If you provided each work centers capacity (like 8 hours/day available), the module can show load vs capacity. For instance, Work Center Lathe: available 40 hours a week, scheduled 45 hours currently which is overload. Use capacity reports to smooth out production or justify adding another shift or machine. Ideally, schedule such that no center exceeds ~80-90% utilization to allow for breakdowns or urgent reworks. The module might color code loads or have a capacity utilization chart. Keep an eye on it especially if delays or bottlenecks keep recurring at a particular station.

Labor Management:

If you need to assign workers to jobs, the module might allow assigning responsible persons to a work order or operation. Even if not, maintain a rough idea of labor availability. If there's a direct integration with HR/time tracking, some advanced systems let workers log time on work orders (like scanning a work order as they begin and end). This precisely captures actual labor. If available and feasible, use it, as it gives data on efficiency and costing. If not, consider periodic time studies to update BOM operation times to reflect reality.

Outsourcing/Subcontracting:

If some operations are done externally (e.g., you send parts out for plating), the module might handle subcontracting: sending materials to vendor and receiving them back processed. If supported, mark an operation as outsourced and link a vendor. The system may then generate a Purchase Order or at least allow you to track that X units sent out on this date. Inventory wise, those pieces might move to a special location (like with vendor). When the vendor returns them (maybe as finished subassembly or fully finished good), record receipt. Manage these flows so that inventory counts are accurate (items at vendor are not physically in main stock but still your asset, so the module may have a transit location). Also, consider the vendors costs in your product cost (the PO cost for that process will be part of production cost). The module might incorporate that from procurement integration.

Quality Control:

Ensure quality checks are embedded. The module might not have full QC forms, but you can add steps in operations like Inspection with time, or simply record yield vs input (which is indirectly quality measure). If many defects, address cause (maybe raw material issues or machine calibration). If you have a separate Quality module, integrate by raising quality inspections linked to work orders. E.g., after production, a QC form is filled. If fails, mark product as rejected and either scrap or rework. You might then trigger a rework order (some modules allow rework type orders to fix defects using additional time/material). Keeping records of quality issues helps pinpoint problems (e.g., every batch from machine 2 has more defects maybe an alignment issue on that machine).

Inventory and Accounting Integration Recap

Material Inventory:

As mentioned, the manufacturing module is tightly integrated with inventory. Raw materials and WIP usage are inventory transactions. Ensure your inventory numbers reflect production usage so purchasing knows when to restock. For example, if production used up 50 units of Part A, inventory should show that reduction so the procurement module might reorder Part A if low. Thus, timely logging of material consumption is key. If you wait to update after finishing, theres a lag where inventory shows items that are actually already being used could mislead someone. It's ideal to issue materials when they physically leave the stock room for production to keep inventory accurate in real time.

Finished Goods Inventory:

Completed products added to stock become available for sale. Sales should ideally only promise or ship finished goods that have been completed (unless you do pre-sales). If sales tries to ship a product that's still in production, the system stock would show none available until manufacturing is finished. Plan production so that it finishes by the promised delivery date to customer orders. If the modules integrate, sometimes a sales order for a manufactured product can auto-generate a production order requirement. Check if theres a Make to Order setting: if yes, confirm that a manufacturing order is created when sales orders come in (especially for non-stock or custom items). That ensures you won't forget to produce something that was sold.

Costing and Accounting:

The manufacturing module ideally feeds into cost of goods sold. The cost for a manufactured item should include its material + labor + overhead. If using standard costing, you set an expected cost per item (maybe from BOM) and you expense that on sale, with variances captured separately. If using average cost, after each production, the average cost of that finished product should update (based on actual cost of that batchs materials/labor). The module likely posts entries like: Debit Finished Goods Inventory with actual production cost, credit Raw Material Inventory with materials cost, credit maybe a WIP consumption or labor contra account for applied costs. If everything is integrated well, at the end of the day your inventory value has shifted from raw to finished goods. If theres scrap/waste, that portion might directly hit an expense (so that finished goods only carry the cost of good units). E.g., if you put in $1000 materials but only $900 worth became good output and $100 was scrapped, you might see $900 go to finished goods, $100 to a scrap expense. Work with accounting to ensure the ledger does reflect these flows properly. The module likely needs initial setup for accounts: Raw Material Inventory account, Finished Goods Inventory account, WIP account, Scrap Expense, etc. Make sure those are set and tested.

Reporting:

Use production reports for continuous improvement:

Production Summary

(units made per period),

Downtime report

,

Waste report

,

Actual vs Standard cost per product

, etc. They provide insight to decision-makers. For example, if one product consistently over-budget, perhaps raise its price or find cheaper method. If capacity is maxed out, maybe it's time to invest in new equipment. The module's data should drive such strategic decisions.

By effectively utilizing the Manufacturing module, you can

plan production efficiently, minimize material waste, and meet customer demand

. It ties together resources (materials, machines, labor) and processes (BOMs, work orders, quality steps) to deliver finished goods on schedule and at controlled cost. This reduces firefighting instead of reacting to missing parts or last-minute rush, you have a smoother schedule and clear visibility. Integration with inventory and procurement ensures you have materials when needed and know the true cost of your products, contributing to healthier margins and satisfied customers with on-time deliveries and consistent product quality.

Screens & fields reference

Use these screens and fields to complete tasks inside Manufacturing in XFatora.

Automations & notifications

Review automation rules and notifications available in Manufacturing in XFatora.

Reports & dashboards

Track KPIs and dashboards powered by Manufacturing in XFatora.

Common mistakes

• Skipping required configuration before the first workflow.
• Not assigning the correct permissions for team roles.
• Forgetting to review automation or notification settings.

FAQs

Troubleshooting

Related modules