Manufacturing Troubleshooting and Common Issues

1. Overview & Business Value#

This comprehensive operational guide details the architecture, business workflows, configuration parameters, and execution steps for Manufacturing Troubleshooting and Common Issues within SmartERP.

Resolving unreserved component locks, negative WIP balances, timer mismatches, and closed-period adjustments.

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2. Prerequisites & Security Access Groups#

• Required Modules: mrp, quality_control, smarterp_manufacturing_costing
• Security Groups:
  • Manufacturing User (Technical ID: mrp.group_mrp_user)
  • Manufacturing Administrator (Technical ID: mrp.group_mrp_manager)
  • Quality Inspector (Technical ID: quality.group_quality_user)
• Master Data Dependencies: Bills of Materials (BoM), routing operations, work centers with machine/labor hourly rates, raw material stock, and inspection checkpoints.

3. Step-by-Step Configuration & Execution#

Step 1: Navigating to the Module Interface#

1. Log into your SmartERP instance at https://smarterp.et/odoo.
2. Open the main App Switcher (grid icon in the top-left corner).
3. Select the Manufacturing app icon.
4. From the top navigation bar, open Manufacturing → Operations → Manufacturing Orders / Work Orders; Quality → Quality Control.

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Step 2: Creating and Parameterizing Records#

1. Click the New button in the top-left control panel.
2. Complete the mandatory fields in the record form:
   • Finished Product (Mandatory): Manufacturable item variant linked to an active Bill of Materials
   • Quantity to Produce (Mandatory): Target production batch volume in standard unit of measure
   • Bill of Materials (BoM) (Mandatory): Active engineering recipe defining component roll-ups and operation steps
   • Scheduled Date (Mandatory): Target production execution date and shift allocation
3. Configure optional operational parameters and localized tags as required:
   • Work Center Routing (Optional): Specific shop floor machine or assembly station sequence
   • Lot / Serial Number (Optional): Assigned traceability lot for finished goods batch tracking
   • Analytic Cost Account (Optional): Cost absorption center for direct labor and utility overhead
4. Click the Save icon in the control bar to commit the record.

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Step 3: Validating and Processing Transactions#

• State Transitions: Execute operational state progression (Draft → Confirmed → In Production → Quality Gate Passed → Done → Cost Closed).
• Ledger & System Impact: Consumes raw materials from inventory (crediting stock valuation), absorbs labor/machine overhead, and debits finished goods inventory at actual cost.
• Audit Verification: Automated recording of author ID, timestamp, and immutable revision history.

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Common Shop Floor Issues and Solutions#

Issue 1: Component Reservation Locked on Cancelled MO#

• Symptom: Raw materials show as 'Reserved' in inventory, but no active production order is running.
• Root Cause: An MO was forcefully cancelled before reserved picking transfers were released.
• Solution: Navigate to Inventory > Operations > Transfers. Filter by Source Document matching the MO. Click Cancel Transfer or Unreserve Stock.

Issue 2: Negative WIP Account Balance at Month End#

• Symptom: General ledger shows negative balance on 103100 Work-in-Progress.
• Root Cause: Finished goods were marked 'Produce All' and validated before raw material Model 20 SIVs were posted.
• Solution: Always validate component issuance SIVs prior to posting finished goods output. Run the WIP Reconciliation Wizard to post corrective absorption entries.

Issue 3: Operator Timer Continues Running Overnight#

• Symptom: A work order records 18 hours of labor instead of 2 hours because an operator forgot to stop the timer.
• Root Cause: Operator logged off without tapping 'Done'.
• Solution: Supervisors open the work order under Manufacturing > Operations > Work Orders, switch to the Time Tracking tab, and manually edit the duration to reflect actual hours worked.

4. Advanced Configuration Points#

• Automated Actions & Scheduled Tasks (Crons):
  • MRP: Recalculate BoM standard costs (mrp.ir_cron_bom_cost_roll): Runs weekly to update standard costing from latest procurement purchase prices
  • Quality: Trigger periodic inspection alerts (quality.ir_cron_inspection_check): Runs daily to flag mandatory quality testing queues
  • Workcenter: Update OEE statistics (mrp.ir_cron_workcenter_oee): Runs hourly to compute Overall Equipment Effectiveness metrics
• Custom Print Templates & Reports:
  • Production Order Traveler & Pick List
  • Shop Floor Work Order Execution Slip
  • Quality Inspection Certificate & Non-Conformance Report
  • Manufacturing Cost Analysis & Variance Ledger
• Multi-Company Rules: Record-level security isolation under Company 1 (Ashewa Technology Solutions S.C.), preventing cross-company ledger leakage across parent and subsidiary legal entities.

5. Comprehensive Troubleshooting Matrix#