Defining Materials for the Configurable Item

Note:

Install NetSuite CPQ Manufacturing to use materials from configured items in work orders. For more information, see Installing NetSuite CPQ SuiteApps. Without NetSuite CPQ Manufacturing, you can still use materials to set up components for item groups and kit/packages.

Configurable items can be made of materials or components. For example, if your configurable item is a desk, you may have the top surface and side panels as materials. With NetSuite CPQ Configurator, you can specify a material using one of these options:

• an existing item in NetSuite

• a resolve expression

• an item creation record

If you use a resolve expression, the item number or number is obtained from answers users select on the interface. With a resolve expression, you can retrieve different items based on users' choices using a single material record. For more information, see Obtaining Answer Data with Resolve Expressions.

If, on the other hand, you use an item creation record, the material will be automatically created when users submit the configuration. For more information, see Creating Items Required by the Configuration.

You can use pricing information from the item associated with the material using the Source Price from Material field on the pricing record. For more information, see Calculating the Final Pricing for the Configurable Item.

A material is added to configurations—and later to work orders—if its rule matches the answers users select on the product interface. For more information, see Activating or Hiding Building Blocks with Rules. You can view active materials under the Materials option on the Audit menu on the product interface.

When users click the Convert WO button on the sales order or the configured item line, NetSuite CPQ Manufacturing adds each material as a line item on the work order under the Items subtab. For more information, see Creating Work Orders for Configured Items.

When adding a material as a component to the work order, you can set line fields by selecting mapping records in the Line Field Mapping Records field during the setup. In the Common Line Field Mapping Records field, you can view the mapping records automatically applied to all materials. These mapping records have the Apply to all materials box checked. For more information about mapping records, see Setting Transaction Body and Line Fields Based on Configuration Data.

Note:

Before mapping records were introduced, you could set work order line fields using the WO Column Mapping field. If you want to switch to mapping records, move the field information to mapping records and clear the WO Column Mapping field. After clearing the field, it will become hidden.

To create a material:

1. In NetSuite, go to CPQ > Configurator > Product Maintenance.

2. Click Edit next to the product you want to modify.

3. On the Materials subtab, click New CPQC Material.

4. Enter a descriptive name for the material.

   This name is displayed under Materials in the Audit menu on the product interface.

5. Assign a routing step to specify the task in which this material will be used.

6. (Optional) To define a date range in which the material is active and added to configurations and later to work orders:

   • In the Effective Start Date field, select a start date.

     Before this date, the material is inactive.

   • (Optional) In the Effective End Date field, select an end date.

     After this date, the material is inactive.

   Note:

   If you define a date range, the material must meet both the date range and the conditions in its rule to be active.

7. To specify the material, three options are available:

   • In the Item Creation Record field, select the item creation record that stores the information to create the material.

     Note:

     The material is created if the rules of both the item creation record and the material match the answers users select on the product interface. For more information, see Creating Items Required by the Configuration.

   • In the Item field, select an item from NetSuite.

     When you select this option, a series of fields is automatically completed (if the information is available on the selected item record): Item Display Image, Description, Primary Sale Unit, Average Cost, and Purchase Price.

   • In the Resolve Item Name/Number, enter a resolve expression to obtain the item name or number from answers on the product interface.

     To write a resolve expression, use question and answer codes separated by a forward slash and enclosed in curly braces. For example, {A/1}. Question and answer codes are used to retrieve the corresponding answer value. For more information, see Obtaining Answer Data with Resolve Expressions.

   Note:

   If you fill in multiple fields to specify the material, only one field will be used. Priority goes to the field for the item creation record, then the existing NetSuite item, and finally, the resolve expression.

8. In the Quantity field, enter a number or a resolve expression to define how many units of this material are required by the configuration.

   The quantity value is multiplied by the multiplier. On the work order, you can view the result in the BOM Quantity column on the Items subtab. The BOM Quantity field indicates the component quantity used to build an item, assuming no loss. For more information, see Setting the Use Component Yield Preference.

9. For more flexibility in defining the quantity, enter a number or a resolve expression in the Quantity Multiplier field.

   If you leave this field blank, the assumed value is 1.

10. (Optional) In the Component Yield field, enter the percentage of the material or component that survives the manufacturing process. Leave out the percentage symbol.

    This value is displayed under the corresponding column in the work order. For more information, see Component Yield Examples.

11. (Optional) In the Primary Units Type field, enter the internal ID of the unit type you use to purchase, stock, and sell this material. Examples of unit types are length, volume, and time.

    This value is displayed in the Units column on the work order.

    To use this field, enable the multiple units of measure feature. For more information about using multiple units of measure, see Multiple Units of Measure.

12. If the material is a phantom assembly item to be built by assembling components in the account, check the Phantom Material box. If you check this box, the Mark sub-assemblies phantom box on the work order becomes checked. Use this option when building subassemblies of the main assembly item. For more information about phantom assemblies, see Phantom Assemblies.

13. (Optional) In the Line Field Mapping Records field, select the mapping records you want to use to set line fields for the material when it's added as a component to the work order. For more information about mapping records, see Setting Transaction Body and Line Fields Based on Configuration Data.

14. In the Rule field, provide the condition that determines whether the material is added to the configuration and later to the work order.

    Enter question and answer codes separated by a forward slash, for example, A/1. Use operators to combine multiple conditions, for example, A/1&B/2. For more information, see Activating or Hiding Building Blocks with Rules.

15. (Optional) To include an additional rule in the material rule, select a rule category. If both the material and the category rules match the answers users select on the interface, the material is added to the configuration and later to the work order. For more information, see Working with Rule Categories.

16. Click Save.

To copy or delete materials, see Working with Product Building Blocks.

Related Topics

• Creating Work Orders for Configured Items
• Defining Routing Steps to Build the Configurable Item
• Creating Work Orders for Configured Items Using Scripts
• Testing and Debugging Work Orders for Configured Items

General Notices