Product configurator – purpose and advantages

A product configuration model is a system that allows manufacturers to manage various product variants in an organized manner. This model ensures products meet customer specifications, streamlines production, and reduces costs associated with carrying unnecessary inventory. The model consists of several key elements:

• Components: These are the building blocks of a product configuration model. Each component represents a portion of the product that can be defined and used multiple times in different product models.
• Attributes: These are properties associated with a component. The chosen attributes during the configuration process will determine the characteristics of the final product. They control inter-component and intra-component relationships and can influence the physical parts that make up the product.
• Expression constraints and table constraints: These constraints control the attribute values that can be chosen when configuring products for various types of orders. Users can build these constraints using either expression or table constraints, depending on their preference.
• User requirements: These represent specific needs or desires for the product configuration from the user’s perspective. They contain all the elements of a subcomponent, but unlike a subcomponent, they’re not bound to a product master. This means that any BOM lines or route operations defined within a user requirement are integrated into the parent component BOM structure or route, much like a phantom BOM.

A Phantom BOM is a type of BOM that represents a group of materials that are processed together but not stored as a single unit. This approach allows manufacturers to create and manage complex products more effectively.

These elements, together, enable a comprehensive and versatile product configuration model, giving manufacturers the ability to create a wide range of product variants without significantly increasing complexity or inventory costs.

Configuring catch weights

Catch weight is a key concept in industries where products vary in their weight or size, yet are packaged similarly. It allows for dual tracking in both an inventory unit and a catch weight unit. Here’s a deeper explanation:

• Inventory unit: This unit of measure is how the product is usually stored or inventoried. For example, this could be by the number of bags, boxes, or packages.
• Catch weight unit: This unit of measure relates to how the product is sold or used. This could be by weight (kilograms, pounds) or volume.

A catch weight item has a specified range of inventory units, meaning each unit can vary in actual weight, but it stays within a set range. This helps accurately price items and allows for fair transactions, considering the inherent weight discrepancies.

Here are some examples in the food industry:

• Fish: Typically counted in inventory by the number of crates or boxes, but when sold, it is priced and weighed by the kilogram or pound.
• Cheese wheels: Stored and inventoried by the number of wheels, but when sold, they are priced and weighed by the kilogram or pound, as each wheel can vary in weight.
• Bulk grains or seeds: Stored as sacks or bags, sold by weight. While the number of sacks is inventoried, the weight of each sack can vary and therefore needs to be recorded.

To manage catch weight items, two methods can be employed:

• Partial visibility
• Full visibility

Let’s take a closer look.

Partial visibility

In this method, the catch weight is known and visible only after the inventory unit is packed and ready for shipment or at the point of sale.

In certain industries, such as those dealing with bulk grains or seeds, the principle of partial visibility within catch weight management is profoundly beneficial. These industries typically employ machines to package containers, each holding a quantity of the product that falls within a specified weight tolerance. The collective weight of these manufactured containers holds significance, while the minute weight differences between individual bags do not warrant separate tracking.

For a catch weight item applying partial visibility, multiple inventory units can be grouped under a common batch or serial number. In this case, only the total value of the inventory unit is recorded, eliminating the need to log individual unit values. Therefore, for every transaction involving the inventory unit, the aggregate weight becomes a necessary input.

Given that individual container weights are not monitored, every inventory transaction, whether it be a transfer or shipment, necessitates recording the number of containers and their cumulative weight in the system for effective weight management.

When employing the partial visibility approach, if the entire catch weight quantity or dimension isn’t earmarked, a portion equivalent to the minimum catch weight inventory will be set aside for that particular dimension. The gap between the physically reserved and the nominal quantity on order will remain on order until actual picking is conducted.

Consider, for instance, a scenario where three bags of bulk grains or seeds, all sharing the same batch number, arrive in the warehouse. During the product receipt process, a single transaction records both the quantity of bags and their combined weight. This total weight is an aggregation of all three bags and does not reflect the individual weights of each bag.

Full visibility

Here, the catch weight is known and tracked through all inventory transactions and stages of the product life cycle, starting from the receiving dock to the point of sale.

Full visibility is crucial in industries where the exact weight of a container must always be known, and this weight doesn’t change once the container has been created – a prime example being wheels of cheese. Each wheel is produced and packaged, its weight precisely measured, and given a unique serial number. This known weight remains constant until the point of shipment, at which time it is invoiced to the customer.

Catch weight items with full visibility necessitate that every inventory unit is assigned a distinct serial number, and the specific weight of that unit is meticulously recorded. Thus, a unique serial number becomes intrinsically linked with the weight of the inventory unit.

The full visibility catch weight truly excels in certain conditions:

• When the weight of individual physical units, or handling units, needs to be tracked
• When finished products leave the factory or warehouse and do not require re-weighing, such as a 10 kg box of frozen chicken drumsticks
• When a variation in weight between individual handling units has implications for the cost and sales price of those units
• When the weight, once entered at a certain stage in the process, is expected to remain the same

Catch weight items serve several purposes:

• They allow for the creation of sales and purchase agreements in catch weight units. This is particularly handy for items priced per box, not by weight, such as boxes of oranges.
• They enable customer orders to be made in terms of boxes/packages, with the payment being based on weight.
• They make it possible to create purchase orders in catch weight units, which is ideal when ordering items priced per container.
• They provide the capability to view net requirements in catch weight units.
• They facilitate the creation of shipment staging in catch weight units.
• They aid in producing picking lists in catch weight units.
• They offer visibility into on-hand inventory in catch weight units.
• They permit the creation of formula lines in catch weight units when a whole container is used in a formula line.

The choice between partial and full visibility largely depends on the industry requirements, the nature of the product, and the information available at different stages of handling the product. Catch weight management helps companies improve inventory control, reduce waste, enhance product pricing, and increase overall operational efficiency.