Getting Started

If you are now using Merlin MRP Factory for the first time, may we welcome you and say we hope your association with this software is a long and happy one.  Keep an eye on our website at www.merlin-mrp-software.co.uk/mrpFactory for product information and updates.

And if you haven't already done so, please start by reading the Basics section by clicking the
[Basics] link at the bottom of this page.

If you need to install WorkStations for a network, please see the information in the Admin section under Set Parameters.

Talking of which, there is one small job you should do before you start work, and that is enter your company details and a few basic parameters that tell Merlin how you would like to work.  Again, see the Set Parameters section by clicking the link to [Admin] at the foot of the page.

This is the Merlin MRP Factory Control Centre, which you will enter when the program first loads.

You will see immediately that all of the work areas are available on individual tabs.
Just click the appropriate tab to see the options available, and click a button to launch an operation or process.

Down the left hand panel are all the controls you regularly need, and you can run jobs from start to finish by progressing through these steps.

Your Merlin MRP Factory system works like an engine, cycling around as you process each job, consuming materials and generating finished products. 
This cycle is outlined below in the Merlin MRP Factory Quick Start.  Gain an understanding of the steps listed and you will be well on the way to mastering the software.

Merlin is very easy to use, and you do not need to be a computer expert to master it, but there is a learning curve associated with the way you use the software strategically to provide the solution to your MRP management.  In other words, you need to use it methodically.  Once you have grasped the steps outlined below, and followed it round for a few cycles, all will fall rapidly into place.

Merlin MRP Factory
Quick Start

In essence, all you need to do to run a production job through Merlin MRP Factory is to create a top level Job Record Card, run the MRP Process, Issue Materials, then close the job.  This is little more than a matter of mouse clicks!

However, in order to create a job you need a Bill of Materials (BoM) for the assembly.  To create a BoM you need a Resource Record Card for each of the materials used, and to create effective Resource Record Cards you need at least one Contact Record Card relating to a supplier for each stock record item.

Once you are up and running, most of these things will already exist and simply need maintaining,
but to get started you have to create them as you go.  So, the eight steps outlined below will set you on this path, by creating and processing a single production job (with or without in-house subassemblies).
You may very well not want to process your jobs one-by-one, and certainly you don't have to,
but this illustration serves as a starting point to introduce you to some of Merlin's armoury
of tools as you progress towards the bigger picture.

For more information about any of the items listed, please see the relevant section of this User Guide identified in the square brackets.

1. Create a Supplier Record Card  for each supplier you need to use to procure materials for your first Merlin job, and another for the customer for this job.
   [The Market / Business Contacts]
   

2. Create a Stock Record Card for each of the materials you need at this point
   [Resources / Resource Record Cards]
   

3. Define the Assembly and Create a BoM for the product you are about to make,
   and one for each of any incorporated in-house subassemblies.
   [Design / Assembly Library]
   

4. Create a Job Record Card for the top level assembly only for this production run
   and click the AUTHORISE button.
   [Admin / Sales Orders & Jobs]
   

5. Run the MRP Process for the job.
   [Manufacturing /Shop Floor Control] **
   

6. Receive materials into stock (if necessary).
   [Buying / Goods In]
   

7. Print Pick List(s) and Issue Materials for any subassembly jobs AutoCreated by the MRP process, and finally for the top-level job you created yourself.
   [Manufacturing /Shop Floor Control]
   

8. Sign-off Finished Assemblies and/or Close the Job(s) as production is completed.
   [Job Tracking / Job Cards]

** Of course, you don't have to Run MRP job by job, and probably wouldn't want to other than in exceptional cases.  Much more efficient to use Buying / Run MRP in a planned manner to launch the MRP Process (buy materials and AutoGenerate Jobs for subassemblies, allocate materials, etc.)  for all of your unprocessed jobs, or, you can link jobs into Job Series, which are buying groups, and then Run MRP in Job Series mode, selecting the series you wish to process at that time.

The Merlin MRP engine should be run in one of its modes at the appropriate time to encompass every top-level job.  Please see Buying / Run MRP for detailed information.

The eight steps outlined above describe the simple procedures for running your plant with
Merlin MRP Factory.  You can achieve all of these steps using the Direct Access buttons down the left side of the screen.

Alternatively, the [Name in Brackets] in each case tells you which tab and activity to select in Departmental Access to perform the described action.

Using the links at the bottom of this page, it would be a good idea to browse around each of these sections before you begin.

Actions 1-3 listed above will become a matter of occasional routine maintenance once you have your data set-up in Merlin MRP Factory.
Thereafter, most jobs will require only actions 4 to 8, and these are achieved substantially with
mouse clicks, and making selections from drop-down lists.  

And of course, you probably would  not wish to perform Actions 5 and 6 on a job-by-job basis.  Perhaps you would wish to do your buying on a weekly basis, or group jobs into Job Series so that you can run the MRP process for the group at the logically correct moment.  But these are things to learn about once you have an understanding of the basic cycle and the rich features of the software.

There are, of course, Stock Control options for items which you do not wish to purchase
on a JiT basis.

You will find all these features documented in the relevant  sections of this User Guide [indicated in the square brackets above].

Remember, if the BoM you create in Item 3 contains items which are in-house subassemblies, then each of these will need a BoM of its own.  And if any of these contain subassemblies, these too will need BoMs, and so on down the tree.

And that really is about as all there is to is to the basic Merlin Cycle.

Of course, Merlin is a very comprehensive software package, crammed with advanced options.  If you start by learning the procedures itemised above you will be up and running with your Merlin software.  You can then take time to explore the immense power of this software, and this User Guide, to find all of the things that Merlin MRP Factory can do to make your life easier.

[User Guide]     [Basics]    [Resources Centre]    [MarketPlace]    [Design Office]    [Job Tracker]    [Shop Floor]
[Buying Office]    [Admin]    [Home Page]