Fabrication
Manufacturing software for fabrication units
The shop drawing written as a bill of materials with an offcut allowance on each section, a work order for each batch, and the real cost of every frame once it is done.
In short
SimpleERP is manufacturing software for fabrication units. A structural shop turns each shop drawing into a BOM with offcut allowance, runs work orders that draw beams, channels and plate from the yard, and gets each item's actual cost.
Illustration of a bill of materials with cost roll-up and a work order moving from planned to in progress to completed.
A production day at Don Valley Fabrications
A typical job at Don Valley Fabrications is a batch of 8 mezzanine platform frames for a pump factory in Barnsley. The draughtsman's shop drawing lists the members: UB 200 main beams, PFC 100 joists, 8 mm base plates, chequered plate for the deck and a handrail of steel pipe.
The plasma cutter operator cuts the plates, the fitters tack the frames, the welders finish them and the painter primes them. Steel leaves the yard all week in pieces, and by Friday nobody can say how much of the 5,200 kg drawn went into the platforms and how much became offcuts.
In SimpleERP the drawing becomes a bill of materials for one frame, with an offcut allowance on each section. A work order for 8 frames plans the steel, checks it against the yard, and on completion takes out what was really used and puts the frames in stock at actual cost, ready to invoice.
What goes into one mezzanine platform frame?
The BOM lists every member and consumable for one frame, a 4% offcut allowance on sections and plate, and the labour, gas and power per frame. Each line is priced at its current average cost from the steel stockholder's bills.
- Offcut allowance per line, so plate can carry more than pipe
- Unit cost shown as you type, before you quote the next platform
| Line | Quantity | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| UB 200 beam | 180 kg @ $1.15 | $207.00 |
| PFC 100 channel | 120 kg @ $1.10 | $132.00 |
| Steel chequered plate 6 mm | 260 kg @ $1.25 | $325.00 |
| Base plates 8 mm | 24 kg @ $1.20 | $28.80 |
| Steel pipe 40 NB handrail | 18 m @ $3.40 | $61.20 |
| Welding rod and MIG wire | 6 kg @ $3.00 | $18.00 |
| Red oxide primer | 4 litres @ $6.50 | $26.00 |
| Offcut allowance | 4% of $692.80 in sections and plate | $27.71 |
| Labour, gas and power | per frame | $120.00 |
| Unit cost | $945.71 |
Does every custom job need its own BOM?
Only if the drawing is new. Repeat items such as a standard cable tray or a 5,000 litre tank keep one BOM and a new version when the design changes. A one-off job gets a product named after the order, with a BOM built from its drawing, so its cost and margin stand on their own.
- Versions for repeat items; finished jobs keep the plan they were built to
- Sub-assemblies one level at a time, such as a staircase made first and used in the platform
What moves when the frames are complete?
Plan freezes the steel list and flags any shortfall in the yard, Start marks the job in progress, and Complete is the only step that touches stock. If the fitters used 2,350 kg of chequered plate instead of the planned 2,163 kg, correct that line: the extra goes into the frames' cost, not into a guess at month end.
- One-page job card for the floor, with the steel to issue and the quantity to make
- Start and Complete from a phone in the shop
- Steel out, frames in, overhead posted in one transaction
Illustration of stock on hand by warehouse at average cost, with a low-stock row highlighted and a movement ledger.
Can the customer's purchase order start the work order?
Yes. Once the purchase order is entered as a confirmed sales order, create the work order from its line with the frame and quantity filled in. The work order list shows the Barnsley factory beside the job, and the sales order shows the job's status when the customer calls.
- Linked both ways, from order to work order and back
- Invoice in lots as frames leave on each truck
One system
What a completed work order touches
Completion moves steel out of the yard and frames into stock, posts the overhead, and sets the cost each lot invoice will carry.
Engineering and fabrication
Quotations to invoices, BOMs and work orders per job, and steel stock in kg and metres.
See howInvoicing & tax
Tax invoices with VAT, GST or sales tax on every line, numbered by fiscal year and posted in one step.
See howInventory for fabricators
Beams, channels, plate and pipe in kg or running metres, consumables in their own store, offcuts in a scrap bay, all at average cost.
See howAccounting for fabricators
Steel bills, stage payments, gas and crane hire in one double-entry ledger, with margin per job and a monthly close for a fabrication unit.
See howPayroll for engineering workshops
Welders, fitters and site teams paid from attendance, with site allowance, agreed overtime and advances on the payslip.
See howManufacturing
Bills of materials with scrap and cost roll-up, and work orders from plan to complete.
See how
Honest limits
What SimpleERP does not do yet
- No production stages or shop-floor tracking; a work order is planned, started and completed
- No piece-rate pay or scrap by-product in the work order
- Work orders are internal; job work sent outside is a purchase, not a work order
- Cutting lists and plate nesting are not produced; plan cuts in your CAD or nesting software
- Galvanising or machining sent outside is a transfer and a purchase bill, not a work order step
Getting started
Start with manufacturing
Sign up with your email
Name, email and a password. No card for the seven-day trial.
Tell us about the business
Pick your country and, if you are registered, type your tax number. Accounts, tax rates, units, roles and numbering are seeded for that country.
Add bills of materials
Turn the drawing of your most repeated item into a BOM, with offcut allowance on sections and plate and labour per piece.
Complete a work order
Components leave stock, finished goods arrive at real cost, and the journal posts in the same step.
FAQ
Questions, answered
Do I need a new BOM for every custom job?
For a new drawing, yes, and it takes a few minutes: list the members in kg or metres, add the offcut allowance and labour, and the unit cost appears. Repeat items keep one BOM and get a new version only when the design changes.
How are offcuts accounted for?
The planned offcut is a scrap percent on each section in the BOM, so it is in the job's cost from the start. If the floor used more, correct the consumption line on completion. Offcuts that pile up in the scrap bay are brought in as steel scrap and sold.
Can I print a job card for the shop floor?
Yes. Each work order prints a one-page job card with the members and consumables to issue and the quantity to make. The fitters work from it, and the supervisor completes the work order on his phone when the frames are done.
What if a job needs more steel than the BOM planned?
Enter what was really used when you complete the work order. Consumption defaults to the plan scaled to the quantity made, and any line can be changed, so the extra plate is issued at average cost and lands in the frames' actual cost.
Related
Keep reading
Engineering and fabrication
Quotations to invoices, BOMs and work orders per job, and steel stock in kg and metres.
Read moreInventory for fabricators
Beams, channels, plate and pipe in kg or running metres, consumables in their own store, offcuts in a scrap bay, all at average cost.
Read moreInvoicing & tax
Tax invoices with VAT, GST or sales tax on every line, numbered by fiscal year and posted in one step.
Read more
See how manufacturing works in SimpleERP for engineering and fabrication
Seven days free. No card. Your first invoice in minutes.