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Work Orders

Work Orders in Racko are detailed production instructions that guide the manufacturing process from raw materials to finished goods. They combine bills of materials (BOMs) with routing information to create a complete manufacturing blueprint.

Overview​

  • Work Orders document the entire manufacturing process for a specific product.
  • They specify what materials to use, quantities required, and the sequence of operations.
  • Each Work Order tracks progress, time, and costs throughout the production process.
  • Work Orders integrate with inventory management to allocate materials and update stock levels.

Creating a Work Order​

To create a new Work Order:

  1. Navigate to Manufacturing > Work Orders in the main menu.
  2. Click the New Work Order button.
  3. Fill in the required information:
    • Date/Time: When the Work Order was created
    • Built Item: The finished product to be manufactured
    • Quantity: How many units to produce
    • Work Order Number: Automatically generated or manually assigned
    • Location: Where the manufacturing will take place
    • BOM: The Bill of Materials to use (components required)
    • Routing: The sequence of operations to follow

Work Order Components​

A comprehensive Work Order consists of two main sections:

1. Routing Operations​

The Routing section includes:

  • Operation: The specific manufacturing step to be performed
  • Work Center: Where the operation will be performed
  • Setup Time: Time required to prepare for the operation
  • Run Time: Time required to complete the operation
  • Scheduled Start/End: Planned timeline for the operation
  • Status: Current state of the operation (Pending, In Progress, Completed)
  • Actual Start/End: When the operation actually began and finished
  • Actual Cost: The calculated cost of the completed operation

Operations are performed sequentially according to their order in the routing.

2. Components​

The Components section lists:

  • Item: Raw materials or components required
  • Description: Details about the component
  • On Hand: Current inventory level
  • Used per: Quantity required per unit of the finished product
  • Total Used: Total quantity required for the entire Work Order
  • UOM: Unit of Measure for the component

Work Order Status​

Work Orders progress through various statuses:

  • Pending: Initial creation, still being defined
  • Issued: Fully defined but not yet started
  • In Progress: Production has begun
  • Completed: All operations finished successfully
  • Cancelled: Production stopped before completion

Managing Work Order Operations​

Each operation in a Work Order follows this workflow:

  1. Pending: Operation is scheduled but not yet started
  2. In Progress: Operation has begun (click Start Now)
  3. Complete: Operation is finished (click End Now)

As each operation is completed:

  • The system records actual start and end times
  • Calculates the actual duration and cost
  • Updates the Work Order status

Material Allocation​

There are two approaches to allocating materials for Work Orders:

  1. Auto Allocate Stock: Automatically assigns available inventory to the Work Order
  2. Manual Allocation: Manually select specific inventory items or lots to use

When a Work Order is completed, the system:

  • Reduces inventory levels of consumed components
  • Increases inventory of the finished product
  • Records all transactions in the inventory ledger

Tracking Production Costs​

Work Orders calculate and track three types of costs:

  1. Material Costs: The value of components consumed
  2. Operation Costs: Labor, machine, and setup costs from Work Centers are added to Overheads
  3. Additional Costs: Any overhead or extra costs associated with production

These costs are used to determine the actual cost of the manufactured item.

Best Practices​

  1. Create Work Orders with sufficient lead time for proper planning.
  2. Ensure all materials are available before starting production.
  3. Update operation statuses in real-time to maintain accurate production tracking.
  4. Review completed Work Orders to identify efficiency improvements.
  5. Use the information from past Work Orders to refine BOMs and routings.

For more detailed information on advanced Work Order techniques and optimization, please refer to the specific sections in this documentation.