Furniture
Furniture manufacturing software for workshops and factories
Write down once what goes into a six-seater white oak dining table, then let every batch tell you what it really took and what each table really cost.
In short
SimpleERP is furniture manufacturing software for furniture workshops. Each design gets a bill of materials with timber in cft, glue, hardware, PU polish and labour, and a work order takes the material out of stock and puts finished pieces in at 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 manufacturing day at Oak and Ash Works
Every Monday the owner of Oak and Ash Works decides what the benches will make that week: two dining tables for stock, eight bedside tables for a Detroit dealer, and a sofa frame for a custom order. The carpenters know the designs by heart, but nobody wrote down how much white oak each one swallows.
Timber is the cost that moves. When sawmill prices rose from $45 to $49 a cft, the owner's price for a dining table stayed where it was for three months, because nobody had the cost per table in front of them.
What does one white oak dining table cost to make?
The BOM lists what a batch of two six-seater tables needs, with 10% scrap on timber for knots and offcuts. SimpleERP prices each line at its current average cost and adds the labour and power per batch.
- Scrap per line, so timber wastage raises the planned quantity and cost honestly.
- Versions when you switch from a solid top to a veneered plywood top; old work orders keep the old recipe.
- A chair is its own BOM, and the table's BOM does not need to carry it.
| Component | Planned quantity | Average cost | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seasoned white oak planks (10% scrap) | 15.4 cft | $47 | $723.80 |
| Wood glue | 1.5 kg | $6 | $9.00 |
| Screws and dowels | 2 sets | $3 | $6.00 |
| PU polish, sealer and thinner | 3 litres | $12 | $36.00 |
| Sandpaper | 20 sheets | $0.40 | $8.00 |
| Labour and power | per batch | $180.00 | |
| Total for 2 tables | $962.80 | ||
| Cost per table | $481.40 |
How does a batch move from the bench into stock?
Plan the work order from the BOM, and SimpleERP shows whether the yard has enough timber. Start it when the carpenters begin cutting. Complete it when the tables come out of the spray room, entering what was really used.
- Plan, start, complete: only completion moves timber out and tables in.
- Shortages are flagged at plan time with a button to raise a purchase order.
- A job card prints on one page for the bench, with the material to issue.
Illustration of a bill of materials with cost roll-up and a work order moving from planned to in progress to completed.
What happens when a batch eats more white oak than planned?
Enter the actual cft on completion. If the batch took 17 cft because of a split plank, the extra timber leaves stock and the tables enter at the higher cost, so the margin on the next invoice is honest.
- Planned against actual cost stays on every work order.
- Labour and overhead post to manufacturing overhead absorbed.
- Made to order: link the work order to the sofa buyer's sales order.
One system
What it connects to
A completed work order moves timber and hardware out of stock, puts the finished piece in, and writes the journal.
Furniture
BOMs per design, work orders, workshop and showroom stock, and counter invoices paid on the spot.
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 furniture makers
Timber in cft, plywood in sheets, hardware in pieces and finished sets per warehouse, valued at weighted average cost.
See howAccounting for furniture makers
Showroom dues, buyer advances, timber depot bills and machinery depreciation in one double-entry ledger.
See howPayroll for furniture factories
Monthly pay for carpenters, polishers and upholsterers from attendance, with advances recovered and deductions on every 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
- No cutting list or nesting plan for plywood sheets; the BOM carries the sheet count you expect to use
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
Build the BOM for your best-selling design first, with timber in cft, glue, hinges, drawer channels, polish and a labour figure per batch.
Complete a work order
Components leave stock, finished goods arrive at real cost, and the journal posts in the same step.
FAQ
Questions, answered
My carpenters build one bed at a time. Is a work order for one piece worth it?
Yes, if you want to know what the bed cost. A work order for one piece takes a minute to plan and complete, and it is the only way the timber used leaves stock in the right amount. For small items like stools, one work order for a batch of ten is easier.
Can I make a table top and legs separately and then assemble them?
Yes, one level at a time. Make the top and the legs on their own work orders, then use them as components in the work order for the finished table. Each step moves stock and costs the piece.
How do I account for the carpenters' wages in the table's cost?
Put a labour figure per batch on the BOM. On completion it is added to the table's cost and posted as overhead absorbed. The wages themselves are paid through payroll, and the two meet in the profit and loss.
We send tables out for polishing to a contractor. How is that recorded?
The contractor's polishing bill is a purchase bill for a service. Add its amount to the labour line of the BOM, or record it against the batch on completion as extra overhead, so the table carries what the polish cost.
Related
Keep reading
Furniture
BOMs per design, work orders, workshop and showroom stock, and counter invoices paid on the spot.
Read moreInventory for furniture makers
Timber in cft, plywood in sheets, hardware in pieces and finished sets per warehouse, valued at weighted average cost.
Read morePayroll for furniture factories
Monthly pay for carpenters, polishers and upholsterers from attendance, with advances recovered and deductions on every payslip.
Read more
See how manufacturing works in SimpleERP for furniture
Seven days free. No card. Your first invoice in minutes.