Manufacturing

The ERPNext Manufacturing module covers production, from the bill of materials through planning to shop-floor feedback. It uses stock and purchasing to determine and cover material requirements. Every order ends with its actual material and labour cost. The module suits series, make-to-order and variant manufacturing as well as plant and special machinery engineering with project-specific BOMs.

Bills of materials and routings

Multi-level bills of materials describe what a product is made of, including sub-assemblies, scrap and process loss. Routings define operations, workstations and times. Alternative items can be allowed for components. Costs can be rolled up across all BOM levels, so the total cost of a complete machine or plant becomes visible, and selling prices can be derived from it. Assemblies that only structure the BOM and are not stocked can be set up as phantom assemblies.

Release, versions and project BOMs

BOMs can be versioned: a released BOM stays unchanged, changes create a new version, and the valid version is set as default. In plant and special machinery engineering, standard BOMs can be adapted for a project or customer without changing the original. A release process defines when a BOM is valid for purchasing and production.

Planning and material requirements

The production plan collects sales orders or material requests and determines what to make and what to buy across all BOM levels. It creates work orders, material requests and subcontracting orders. Material requirements planning (MRP) takes stock, open purchase orders and delivery dates into account. Work orders for all lines and sub-assemblies of a sales order can be created in one step, and a stock check shows before starting whether there is enough material for the BOM.

Work orders and shop floor

The work order reserves material, controls issues and receives finished goods into stock. Job cards record time, quantity and staff per operation. Workstations show their load in a calendar. Capacity planning can distribute operations across the available workstations, showing when an order can be finished.

Subcontracting and costing

Single operations or whole assemblies can be subcontracted, with supplied material tracked along the way. Customer-provided material can be kept without its own stock value. Costing compares planned and actual cost from material, labour time and workstation rates. Overheads can be distributed via cost centers, and a monthly planned-versus-actual comparison shows deviations in material, energy or utilisation.

How it connects to other modules

1. Selling: Sales orders trigger production.
2. Stock and Buying: Material is taken from stock or purchased.
3. Quality: Inspections during and after production.
4. Accounting: Material and production costs are posted.

Frequently asked questions

Is ERPNext suitable for process manufacturing? Partly. BOMs can include scrap and process loss, and batches ensure traceability. Recipes with several main products or co-products need customisation.

Can a BOM include alternative components? Yes. An alternative item can be allowed for a component and used in the work order instead of the original.

How are many BOMs migrated at once? Via data import from Excel or CSV. For large volumes, BOMs are often generated by script from the legacy system.

How is labour included in costing? Each workstation has an hourly rate. Times from the routing or job cards give the labour cost per order.

How does subcontracting work? A subcontracting order goes to the subcontractor, and supplied material is sent via a stock transfer. On receipt, the consumed material is issued.

Can ERPNext handle multi-level production? Yes. The production plan explodes all BOM levels and creates work orders for sub-assemblies.

How do I see the total cost of a machine with many assemblies? BOM costs can be rolled up across all levels. The cost of each sub-assembly flows into the parent BOM, so the total cost of the machine or plant is shown at the top.

Can BOMs be versioned? Yes. A released BOM is no longer changed. Changes create a new version that is set as default, and older versions remain traceable.

Can BOMs be adapted for individual projects or customers? Yes. A project- or customer-specific variant can be derived from a standard BOM without changing the original. This is typical for plant and special machinery engineering.

Does ERPNext have material requirements planning (MRP)? Yes. The production plan determines across all BOM levels what to make and what to buy, taking stock and open purchase orders into account.

Is there capacity planning? Yes. Operations can be scheduled on workstations according to their working hours, showing how busy a workstation is and when an order can be finished.

Can several work orders be created from one sales order? Yes. Work orders for all lines of a sales order and their sub-assemblies can be created in one step.