Moving Items or Materials Between Sites
To perform simple, quick movements of inventory where there is relief of inventory in one site and receipt in another, use the Multi-Site Quantity Move form. A multi-site quantity move does not require paperwork and assumes no transit time. It is frequently used in Focused Factories or close proximity locations. All material and financial transactions occur automatically without user intervention. These moves may be:
- From/To a different location/lot
- From/To a different whse/location/lot
- From/To a different site/whse/location/lot
- From/To a different entity/site/whse/location/lot
Multi-Site Quantity Move Assumptions
- A multi-site and multi-warehouse environment must be configured.
- The Unit of Measure for items or materials to be moved must be identical at all sites.
- The Multi-Site Quantity Move provides for Price Code functionality with the following conditions:
- The move is between sites in two different entities, and
- the entities have the same currency.
If these conditions are not met, the system uses the Unit Cost.
- The Multi-Site Quantity Move does not support Multi-Currency.
- The Multi-Site Quantity Move does not support Landed Costing.
- The Multi-Site Quantity Move does not support Freight costs.
- The Multi-Site Quantity Move does not support EU reporting.
- The Multi-Site Quantity Move does not generate paperwork or supporting documentation. Accounting entries are posted automatically into the IC DIST Journal for both the To Site and From Site.
- The Multi-Site Quantity Move assumes no transit time.
- The Multi-Site Quantity Move does not support movement of items or materials with reserved quantities.
Push/Pull Transactions
Multi-Site Quantity Moves can be either Push or Pull transactions.
Push transactions move material from Site A to Site B.
EXAMPLE: Site A is the originating site and moves material to Site B. Site A is considered the From Site and Site B is considered the To Site. The transaction uses the cost/price of Site A.
Pull transactions move material from Site B to Site A.
EXAMPLE: Site A is the originating site and moves material from Site B. Site A is considered the To Site and Site B is considered the From Site. The transaction uses the cost/price of Site B.
The system provides functionality for any one site to enter a Multi-Site Quantity Move for items to be moved at that site from one other shipping site.
Staging Locations
The Multi-Site Quantity Move form prompts for both From and To Locations. However, frequently you might not know a valid To Location. Therefore, we suggest that you use the location staging in one or both locations.
For example, if you are at Site A and performing a Multi-Site Quantity Move to Site B, when the form prompts for a receiving location, enter Staging. If the Staging location is consistently used, then the user at Site B will always check the Staging location for incoming items or materials as a result of Multi-Site Quantity Moves.
Costing for Multi-Site Quantity Moves
Costing functionality begins by performing validations for proper account numbers set up at both the From and To Sites. The transaction date is checked against the dates for the current accounting period.
When items or materials are moved between two different entities, the transaction can use either the Unit Cost or a price. For many moves the Unit Cost is sufficient, and in that case you are not required to enter the Unit Cost. However, you must enter two Price Codes if you wish to indicate a price:
- A Price Code for the item, and
- The Price Code defined on the Inter-Site Parameters form for the combination of sites.
The Multi-Site Quantity Move checks these two Price Codes, and if a match is found then the Price Matrix is searched and the appropriate Price Formula is used for costing.
Material Transactions records and journal entries are also created. For Multi-Site Quantity Moves there is no timing issue involved for posting journal entries because there is no transit time. Therefore, when a Multi-Site Quantity Move is entered, journal entries are created for both the To and From sites and they are both posted at the same time.
Types of Moves
The following table outlines what types of moves and types of costing and pricing Multi-Site Quantity Move supports.
Cost Type | From Loc to Loc | From Whse to Whse | From Site to Site | From Ent to Ent |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 - Same Cost | yes | yes | yes | yes |
2 - Different Cost | * | * | yes | yes |
3 - Price or Cost | no | no | no | yes |
Key:
* = Specific Costing only
Loc = Location
Whse = Warehouse
Ent = Entity
- Same Cost for From Site and To Site - Moves allowed for all scenarios (e.g., location-to-location, warehouse-to-warehouse, site-to-site, entity-to-entity).
- Different Cost for From Site and To Site - Moves allowed for site-to-site moves and entity-to-entity moves.
- Pricing functionality used between From Site and To Site - Moves allowed for entity-to-entity moves where valid Price Codes have been set up. If pricing has not been set up, then the system uses the Unit Cost instead.
Price Codes
In determining which Unit Price to use on a Multi-Site Quantity Move, several validations take place by the system. The following conditions are assumed:
- The two sites are in different entities.
- Both sites have the same currency.
- Valid Price Codes have been set up.
The system checks for matching Price Codes as defined on the Item Pricing form and for the From Site and To Site combination as defined on the Inter-Site Parameters form.
When a match is made for the Price Codes, then the system searches the Price Matrix for a valid Price Formula and uses it for price calculations. If no valid Price Formula is found, then the Unit Cost is used.
Journal entries are made automatically based on the accounts defined in the Inter Site Receive To Accounts and Inter Site Ship From Accounts.
Incomplete Transactions
In order to perform a Multi-Site Quantity Move, it is necessary for both the From Site and To Site databases to be running and connected to the global database. If these conditions are not met, then error messages display and indicate that this option is not currently available. You are prevented from performing this transaction until the condition is corrected.
If an error condition occurs during a Multi-Site Quantity Move, (for example, one of the databases becomes disconnected), an error message displays and the transaction is not completed. The entire transaction is backed out and you must repeat it later when the necessary conditions have been re-established.
How to Make Corrections/Reversals
You can correct or reverse a Multi-Site Quantity Move by entering a Quantity Adjustment at each site. This corrects the inventory, but not the accounting. The accounting must be manually corrected based on your situation and the type of costing that you use.
Accounting Transactions
Multi-Site Quantity Moves create accounting transactions automatically without user intervention. The following chart summarizes the accounts that are affected based on the type of move (for example, entity-to-entity moves, site-to-site moves, etc.). The cost used is also a variable. For example, the cost can be the same between two sites. When reading the chart, refer to the following key:
Key:
All = These accounts will record transactions for all costing conditions. In the case where the cost is the same for both the From and To Sites, then these are the only accounts that will have transactions.
y = The 'y' indicates that for this type of transaction this account will be affected.
* = Variances are recorded in the Val Var account when using Standard Costing.
Cost Variables:
cost<>cost = From Site and To Site have different costs
price <>cost = From Site charges the To Site a price
Affected Accounts Based on Move Type
Sales | COS | A/R | Profit | Cost | A/R | A/P | Split-WIP | ValVar | InvAdj | CIring | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ent to Ent - All | Y | Y | Y | Y | |||||||
Ent to Ent - cost <>cost | Y | Y | |||||||||
Ent to Ent - price <> cost | Y | Y | |||||||||
Site to Site - All | Y | Y | |||||||||
Site to Site cost <> cost | Y | ||||||||||
Whse to Whse - All | Y | ||||||||||
Whse to Whse - cost <> cost | Y |
Lot Tracking
Lot tracking is independent for each site. This means that each site creates/maintains lot numbers for that site only. There is not a common pool of lot numbers that is shared across all sites.
In order to perform lot tracking, you need:
- Lot Tracking enabled for the system, and
- Item Stockroom Detail authorizations for both sites you specify in the move.
When doing either site-to-site or entity-to-entity moves, enter the lot number when you specify the To Lot. The system carries forward the lot number from the From Site to the To Site. Matltrack records are created automatically by the system, which can then be used to trace these transactions at a later time.
Serial Number Tracking
Serial Number Tracking assumes that serial numbers are corporate-wide and are not independent for each site. This means that each site creates/maintains serial numbers that are used by all sites.
To perform Serial Number Tracking, you need:
- Serial Number Tracking enabled for the system, and
- Item Stockroom Detail authorizations for both sites you specify in the move.
When doing either site-to-site or entity-to-entity moves, enter the serial number when you specify the To Location. The Serial Number tab is enabled. Matltrack records are created automatically by the system which can be used to trace these transactions at a later time.
The following table presents your options for entering serial numbers.
From Site | To Site
Yes-Serial Track Enabled |
To Site
No-Serial Track Not Enabled |
---|---|---|
Yes-Serial Track Enabled | From Site-user selects s/n and processes
To Site- process SAME s/n |
From Site-user selects s/n and processes
To Site- Not Valid Option |
No-Serial Track Not Enabled | To Site-user enters NEW s/n and processes | Not Valid Option |
Matltran Records
The following Matltran records are created for each type of move as indicated in the following table:
Move | Type | Ref |
---|---|---|
loc/loc | M | I |
whse/whse | M | I |
site/site | M | I |
entity/entity | M | I |