E-WMS

E-WMS - Control Centre Replenishment

Introduction

This document describes the generic usage of E-WMS control centre Replenishment, as per release 412.

Description

E-WMS control centre Replenishment is available in Exact Globe Next menu WMS, To be processed, Inventory replenishment, Control centre. You can start simplified versions of this control centre in menu Send to scanner or Read from scanner, when you want to limit the possible options to the user logged on into Exact Globe Next.

This document has following sections:

General - control centre basic selections and columns
Generate - generating replenishment orders
New - creating replenishment orders manually, or edit generated orders
Send to scanner
Reading back
Validating
Handling picking errors
Processing

General - control centre basic selections and columns

Selection fields

Issuing warehouse
The control centre screen shows transactions for one (issuing) warehouse at a time - the issuing warehouse selected here.
The issue picking advice is also based on this warehouse only.
Receiving warehouse
This range selection determines for which warehouses replenishment requirements can be generated. It is possible to select 'all' warehouses.
A side effect of selecting more than one warehouse is that the report shown after generating replenishment orders, shows a status line for each warehouse.
Item code
This is not a selection field but a filter on the displayed replenishment lines, giving you the possibility to show only replenishment orders for a specific item ('search an item').
Button actions are still applied to the order and not only to the selected item.
Transaction date
This is the date that will be assigned as financial and logistical transaction date in Exact Globe Next, when processing replenishment orders.
Status
The status selection determines which replenishment lines are shown in the control centre. Button actions can also depend on the selected status.
From release 409 you are able to see all statuses at once.

Columns

Following columns are shown:

Sequence number: this is the replenishment order number, generated by E-WMS
Issuing warehouse
Receiving warehouse
Lines: shows the number of different picking lines in this replenishment order
Items: shows the total quantity to pick in this replenishment order
Status: only visible when status 'All' is selected; shows the WMS picking state of this replenishment order
Scanner: shows the scanner ID, when known
Order picker: name of the user linked to the scanner ID
Date: creation date of the replenishment order
Reference: this is the reference that was confirmed or entered on the scanner, and is available from status 'Picked'
ReferenceOrder: this is the reference that can be entered while creating a new replenishment order manually, and is also displayed on the scanner. Depending scanner settings, this reference can also be used as default entry reference on the scanner.
Reference2: this is the reference that is filled automatically by E-WMS with the target order number or selection code, when replenishment order are created split per target order or selection code.

Depending on the selected status, following buttons can be used:

Refresh - refreshes the replenishment order lines shown in the control centre
Generate - generate replenishment orders based on preconfigured preferences
New - enter replenishment orders manually: transfer how many of which item to which location. Optionally you can determine the issue location as well, or have WMS generate a picking advice
Delete * - delete currently selected replenishment orders. Only available for status 'new' and 'advice'.
Advice * - generate a picking (issue) advice for the selected orders in status 'New'. This button is also shown when Replenishment setting 'Picking advice' is disabled, but in that case only the item main location can be advised to issue from.
Send to scanner * - send the selected advice lines picking
Roll Back * - roll back the selected lines in status 'advice' or 'picking'. When rolling back from status 'picking' while the order already has been picked (partly or full) than all picking details are lost.
Read from scanner - Read back all replenishment orders which are completed on the scanners.
Validate * - Validates the selected lines in status 'picked'. The result is that the status of selected lines changes to 'validated' or 'picking error'.
Process * - Processes the selected lines in status 'validated'. The result is that the lines are removed from this control centre and processed in Exact Globe Next as stock transactions (type: location transfers).

* = available when one or more lines are selected in the control centre.

Generate - generating replenishment orders

To generate new replenishment orders based on preconfigured preferences, click the Generate button. Different criteria will be displayed depending on whether the replenishment setting 'Requirements only' is disabled or enabled. When the replenishment setting 'Requirements only' is enabled, you will see the screen from release 412.

You can limit generating replenishment orders for specific ranges only. Most of these criteria are available since product update 412.

Receiving location - a specific range of target locations
Item group - range of item groups
Item code - range of item codes
Sales order - replenish for a specific range of sales orders
- None: when enabled, sales orders are excluded as base for replenishment requirement
Route code - replenish for sales orders having a specific route code
Production order: replenish for a specific range of production orders
- None: when enabled, production material lines are excluded as base for replenishment requirement
Operation: range of operation codes as used in the production orders material list
Selection code: range of selection codes, either linked to sales order or to production orders
- in E-WMS you can configure a specific selection code for 'urgent' orders, this way it is possible to replenish for urgent orders separately
Selection: selection on item status, 'Active' to 'Inactive': you can select for example only 'active' items. When leaving all checkmarks unchecked, then the item status is disregarded.
Attributes: selection on item attributes 'Stock', 'Sales' or 'Purchase'. When leaving all checkmarks unchecked, then the item attributes are disregarded.
Split orders: this section is only visible when the setting 'Ask user' is enabled in section 'Generate replenishment orders - split orders'.
By enabling one or more of these checkmarks, separate replenishment orders are generated per enabled option.
Doing so, the column 'Reference2' in the control centre will show the source order number or selection code.
If the warehouse employee should be able to see this reference as well, then it is possible to start replenishment menu Replenishment, By reference 2 on the scanner.

Click 'Start' to generate the replenishment orders.

Depending on the setting 'Immediate advising', the picking advice for the generated replenishment orders is generated as well.

When the advice setting 'Immediate picking' is enabled, then the step of sending the advice lines picking is also started.

You can still view or edit a generating picking advice, before sending it picking. The next chapter 'New' also applies to editing a generated picking advice.

New - creating replenishment orders manually

Instead of generating new replenishment orders based on predefined stock levels, you can also enter replenishment orders manually. These are essentially guided transfers.

For creating manual replenishment orders, it is not necessary to have predefined target locations with minimum and maximum stock levels.

After clicking New, the Entry screen will be displayed.

In a company where E-WMS SKU Management is enabled, the lower panel will display relevant information.

Screen header
- Sequence number: the order number automatically assigned to this replenishment order. This number is visible throughout the replenishment process, also on the scanner
- Issuing warehouse: this warehouse is used as basis for the lines shown in the lower panel
- Receiving warehouse: this warehouse is used as basis for the lines shown in the top panel
- Reference: you can enter an order reference. This reference is shown in the scanner replenishment order list, and depending scanner settings, can also be used as default reference to be changed by the warehouse employee after picking the order lines.
Top panel
In the top item panel, you enter the requirements - the target locations to be replenished.
- Item code - enter an item code or press F5 for a list of item codes
- Description - shows the item description
- Receiving location - enter the target location to be replenished, for the receiving warehouse shown in the top of the screen. Currently this field does not offer a browser. When you are not using warehouse locations, this field is not visible.
- Free stock - shows the total available stock in the receiving warehouse: shelf stock minus E-WMS reservations
- Ordered - enter the quantity (in standard sales units), to be transferred to this location
- Advice - quantity already advised for this order line
- Picked - quantity already picked for this order line
- Unit - the item standard sales unit
- Status - the current E-WMS status of this order line
- Serial item - indicates whether the item is a serial number item
- Batch item - indicates whether the item is a batch item
- DPA advice - this column is only visible when SKU Management is enabled. When checked, then this order line is generated by E-WMS to put the remainder of a SKU away (see 'full SKU replenishment').
Bottom panel
The bottom panel contains the picking list - where to retrieve the stock from, to replenish the locations in the top panel.
By pressing the 'Process' button, E-WMS will generate a picking advice for the order lines entered in the top panel, and put this advice in the lower panel.
You can optionally enter manually the issuing locations or edit the generated picking advice.
- Issuing location - the location to pick the stock from, in the 'issuing warehouse' mentioned in top of the screen
- Stock - shows the current available stock on this location (not including the quantity advised in the same issue line)
- Advice - the quantity (in standard sales units) advised, and to be picked
- Serial number or Batch number (depending item): shows the advised serial/batch number, or empty when the advice setting 'Apply batch advice policy' or 'Apply serial advice policy' is disabled
- Status - the E-WMS status of this advice line. Typically this would be 'Advice', but could also be 'Advice error' - which would have to be solved before sending picking.
  
  The next columns are only visible when E-WMS SKU Management is enabled.
- Outer SKU: the 'outer SKU' number to be picked, or empty when:
  - the item is not a SKU item;
  - the item is a SKU item, but also has sales unit stock besides SKU stock;
  - the item is a SKU item, but the advice setting 'Assign SKU numbers' is not set to 'Always assign'
- Inner SKU: the 'inner SKU' number to be picked. This number will only be filled when:
  - the advice setting 'Assign SKU numbers' is enabled for the current item type; and
  - the inner SKU number is not part of an outer SKU (single 'box' in warehouse), or:
  - the specific inner SKU number has to be picked from an outer SKU (breaking up the outer SKU)
- Scan unit: indicates if the SKU can be scanned with 'one scan', or if the quantity still has to be confirmed after scanning the SKU number.
  This is automatically decided when generating a picking advice, based on the stock to pick.
  - Sales: 'sales unit' - picking 'sales units' stock, or the quantity still has to be confirmed after scanning the SKU number;
  - Outer: one ore more full outer SKUs have to be scanned. After scanning the SKU number, the scan is ready (depending the scanner setting 'Focus to next field').
  - Inner: one or more full inner SKU have to be scanned. After scanning the SKU number, the scan is ready (depending the scanner setting 'Focus to next field').
  The scan unit can also be changed on the scanner. Please see this document for more information on the scan unit.

Send to scanner

Select status 'Advice' and press 'Refresh' in the Control Centre main screen, select the advice line(s) and press the 'Send to.. (scanner)' button. Depending the setting 'Assign specific scanner', you can specify a specific scanner or scanner group. A report will show after sending to scanner (depending report settings).

You can filter the advice lines and send these picking to different scanners using 'filter order lines', on criteria such as warehouse zone, item code, picking classification, or (when using SKU Management): 'scan unit'.

From release 408 you are able to split replenishment orders into separate orders, so these orders can be picked and processed separately. Splitting orders into smaller orders will improve the 'real-time' factor because scanned replenishment orders are processed as soon as each single small order is 'done'. Otherwise the first scanned item will only be processed when the last line of the (larger) replenishment order is scanned.

Filtering, splitting, and generating separate replenishment orders are different methods, and can be combined.

Generating separate replenishment orders (412): the warehouse employee can see for which target order (or selection code) he is replenishing. Is applied during 'Generate replenishment orders'.
Splitting replenishment orders (408): divides already generated replenishment advice into smaller orders (per item, or location). The picked lines can be processed separately because these are different (smaller) replenishment orders.
Filtering: does not create separate replenishment orders, but splits the generated advice lines to be picked into separate scanner transactions. When part of a filtered line is picked, this can still only be processed when the last part of that replenishment order is scanned, read back and validated.

When using Auto queue to automatically send replenishment orders picking, the picking advice can be sent to different scanner groups, using E-WMS 'scanner group filters'.

Reading back

Select status 'picking' (or 'all') and press 'Read from ..(scanner)'. Reading back will:

read back replenishment orders which have status 'ready' from the scanner tables;
delete these (now read back) transactions from the scanner tables;
update the picking status of the replenishment order lines from 'picking' to 'picked'.

A report can be shown after read back, depending replenishment report setting. Replenishment lines in status 'picked can be edited or processed in the Control Centres. When opening and closing the edit screen, the lines will automatically be validated.
When using the Replenishment RF service, reading back is done automatically. Whether these lines are also validated automatically, depends on the Replenishment setting 'Immediate validation'.

Validating

Select status 'picked' (or 'all'), select the replenishment lines and press 'Validate'. During validation, master data and E-WMS available stock are checked. A report may show depending on your settings. Validation will move the picked lines to status 'validated', or to status 'picking error' when validation fails.

When using the Replenishment RF service, the setting 'Immediate processing' determines whether validated lines are also processed immediately. In this case, picking errors have to monitored in the WMS RF Monitor.

Handling picking errors

When validation fails, the replenishment lines will move to status 'picking error'. A picking error can only be solved manually, once a transaction has status 'picking error' it will not be processed automatically even if the problem should be solved in the meantime. When opening a picking error, the problem will be marked red. Move the mouse cursor over the red area and the validation error will show.

In the case of Replenishment and using 'picking advice', an error 'insufficient stock' will be unlikely, since this advice was first calculated before sending to the scanner. But the warehouse employee could deviate from the advice, or other (Exact Globe Next) transactions may have been processed in the meantime. Upon calculation of the picking advice, Route Optimizing will include all stock positions including WMS stock reservations - but this depends on the setting 'Check stock' in the WMS General Settings. The same stock check is applied in WMS validation.

The picked lines in the lower section of the screen can be changed or deleted, or new lines can be added. When pressing F5 on the 'issuing location' field, a pop-up will be activated showing the current WMS 'available' stock positions. When the source of the 'picking error' is solved, the transaction can be processed from this screen by using the 'Process' button, or can just be saved. In that case the transaction will move to status 'validated' and can be processed manually from there. When all picked lines should be deleted and the transaction saved, then the replenishment order will move back to status 'new'.

>Processing

Select status 'validated' (or 'all') and select the replenishment lines to be processed, then press 'Process'. After processing, the replenishment transactions will have become Exact Globe Next stock transactions. A report can be shown depending WMS Replenishment settings.

When using the Replenishment RF service, processing can be done automatically.