The Shop Floor Control System also accepts and allows the processing of a special type of shop order called a "Configuration Order". These are automatically created shop orders which are produced by the Sales Order Entry System Configurator. The configurator allows order entry personnel to call up an existing bill of materials (or start a new one), during the order entry process and create a product that meets the customer's demands. The order entry operator may add comments and instructions to the configuration that are available as the shop order is processed.
The Configurator automatically creates a shop order for insertion into the shop floor control system. The system can be configured to control what modifications, if any, the order entry staff may make to stored bills of materials. This includes the definition of required and mandatory items on the bill of materials. When the shop order is completed the system allocates the quantity built using the shop order to the appropriate sales order line, which remains linked to the shop order. This indicates to the system that the line is ready for shipment and from there the sales order is fulfilled or shipped out using the normal order completion programs.
More: