Configure and use lean manufacturing in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management

The life cycle of production begins with the creation of the production order, batch order, or kanban. It ends with a finished, manufactured item that is ready for either a customer or another phase of production. Each step in the life cycle requires different kinds of information to complete the process. As each step is completed, the production order, batch order, or kanban shows a change in the production status. Different types of products require different manufacturing processes.

In striving for perfection, lean manufacturing is a journey of continuous improvement. The goal is to produce exactly what the customer wants, when the customer wants it, and in an economical manner. For lean manufacturing, perfection is an aspiration. You can use lean manufacturing in a unified (mixed-mode) manufacturing environment that combines various supply, production, and sourcing strategies. These strategies include production orders, batch orders for process industries, purchase orders, and transfer orders. The lean manufacturing architecture in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management consists of production flows, activities, and Kanban rules.

The lean manufacturing architecture in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management consists of production flows, activities, and kanban rules. You can use lean manufacturing in a unified manufacturing environment that combines various supply, production, and sourcing strategies.

The Kanban schedule board lets the production planner control and optimize the production plan for kanban jobs. It makes the flow of kanban jobs transparent and gives the production planner a tool that optimizes and adjusts the production plan for the lean manufacturing work cell. Kanban rules in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management are tied to production flows as the foundation that defines the activities of a kanban. Kanban rules can be set up to support a variety of make-to-stock and make-to-order scenarios. This module explains how to work with Kanban schedule boards and describes kanban types, kanban replenishment strategies, and fixed quantity kanban rules.

You use event kanban rules to trigger and create related issues of raw materials when you create sales lines, estimate production orders, create kanbans from event kanban rules, or run the pegging event processing where inventory has hit a minimum quantity. This module explains how to create and process event kanbans in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management.

Scheduled kanbans are used for items that aren't typically suited for fixed quantity kanban rules. These products aren't used frequently, and you base the production of these items on a schedule. The schedule is analyzed and updated weekly based on customer forecasts.

The subcontracting functionality in Dynamics 365 Supply Chain Management offers visibility of the components that are provided to the subcontractor and also, if necessary, capacity visibility at the subcontractor. Additionally, working with kanban planning and process boards allows companies to make quick, informed decisions to effectively manage demand variations, especially when they are analyzing the production flow costing in lean manufacturing.