How to manufacture complex products and keep track of them?

In the previous article, we reviewed how to start the production of a simple product. This article describes how to start the production of a complex product: from a semi-finished product, a size range, a model range in a color palette. 

Simple product — a product manufactured from purchased ready-made materials. The product has one size and one color. 

Complex product — is 

• a whole model range in a color palette, or a product with different modifications, configurations, and so on,

• a product for which semi-finished products are used, and those also need to be manufactured in the same production,

• a product in the production of which identical interchangeable materials (analogs) are used, for example: fabric of different colors, leather, leather substitute, etc.

As with a simple product, to start the production of complex products, you need to enter all the necessary information about the product into the program by creating a Technological card for it. The Technological card contains materials and production operations. Based on the Technological card, the program calculates the amount of materials required to produce one unit of finished product, the cost of the finished product, and calculates wages for employees for completed operations. 

How to start production and keep records of complex products?

Products from semi-finished goods and analogs

What is a semi-finished product in production and how to work with it?

If the raw material for the final product is manufactured in the same production, then the final product is a product from semi-finished products.

A semi-finished product has its own Technological card. When producing the final product, the program will take into account the materials and operations required not only for manufacturing the product itself, but also for the semi-finished product for it. 

How to create a Technological card for a Semi-finished product?

A semi-finished product Technological card is created while filling in materials in the Technological card of the final product. That is, before starting production, you enter into the program all data about the product you plan to manufacture. You fill out a Technological card for this product. You add “Production operations” and “Materials” to it. When entering material information, also add semi-finished products. To do this, set the “Semi-finished product” category in the “Materials” form. Below the “Quantity” field, the “Technological card” action will appear:

In the Technological card, fill in the operations for producing the semi-finished product and the materials:

Do not forget to click “Save”. This way, specify all production operations. Similarly — materials for the semi-finished product:

Done, this material in the product Technological card will be marked as a semi-finished product:

Now, when producing a product that contains such a material, the need for the materials required for the semi-finished product itself will be taken into account. Also, the program will automatically create a separate Production act for the semi-finished product when creating a Production act for the final product. Such a production act will be marked with the icon  :

Material analogs. What they are, how and when to use them?

There are materials with similar characteristics that can replace each other in production. For example, different polymers can be used for making soles, and fabrics, leather, or leather substitutes can be used for making shoes. Usually, one material is the main one, and when it runs out, a similar available material is used in production. Such a material in the program is called an “Analog”.

Why do analogs appear?

• The manufacturer experiments with different materials or decides to try a new one to compare and choose the best. 

• The supplier did not have enough of the main material and it was necessary to purchase several different ones with similar characteristics. 

• The company purchases the same raw material from different suppliers with different prices, SKUs, or packaging.

• The same raw material is purchased from different manufacturers and recorded in the program as different items.

• The same material is packaged in containers of different volumes and entered in the program as separate items.

In such cases, the Technological card should include the main material and specify its analogs. When the main material runs out in the warehouse, the program will switch to the analog.

How to add a material analog to a product Technological card?

To add an analog to a material in the product Technological card, select the required material and click the “Select analog of the product type if the main product is insufficient”  . The “Product type settings” window will open — specify in it the product type that will be used as an analog if the main material runs out in the warehouse:

You can view analogs for a given product in the “Technological card” by clicking the “Show analogs”  , — the “Warehouse status by analog” window will open with a list of items in the current accounting center that can be used as analogs:

If an analog is no longer needed for the production of a product, it can be removed from the Technological card with the “Delete analog”  .

For convenient work with items, you can use the filter “Availability of analog for the item” and the program will show only those products that are made with an analog, or vice versa only products without an analog:

• Has analog — products with an analog,

• No analog — products without an analog.

For convenient raw material purchase planning, the list of all materials in the “Technological card”, including analogs, can be printed or exported to an Excel table. To do this, click “Report → Data export settings”  → click “Print to printer or create Excel document” → select the desired action and click “Create document”:

 Similarly, the list of operations of the Technological card. The Technological card itself can be printed with the “Print Technological card” button  :

When all operations, materials, semi-finished products, and analogs are added to the Technological card, change its status to "Ready" — with the “Change status” button  . 

Now you can start production, create route sheets, and generate material orders for suppliers. 

It sometimes happens that several different Technological cards were created for the same semi-finished product. This can occur due to different manufacturing methods or accidentally. In this case, how does the program generate the list of materials required for purchase, which specific Technological card does it take into account when generating a supplier order for materials? 

What is a model and how to manufacture it?

In addition to products made from semi-finished goods and analogs, production can manufacture entire product lines that have the same production method but different characteristics: color, size, decoration, configuration, etc. The most classic example is a size range of clothing or footwear. To launch the production of an entire product line in the Torgsoft program, a Product Model is created. 

What is the difference between a model and a simple product?

Simple product contains only one set of parameters: color, size, etc., for example white women’s sneakers size 37.

Model can include several sizes, colors, for example a footwear size range from 36 to 43.

Working with models in the program is more convenient because there is no need to create a separate Technological card for each product. For example, if it is necessary to manufacture a size range 36–43 of women’s and men’s sneakers in at least two colors and treat each size-color-gender as a separate product, then it would require 32 technological cards. However, if a Model is created for the product, then only one Technological card for the Model is sufficient. The program will generate a template based on it for all products included. You only need to add details about the color, material, or other data that differ. 

How to launch production of the entire model range?

Production of model ranges is launched similarly to the production of an individual product, but in a special section for working with models. To create a Technological card for a Model in the Torgsoft program in the “Production order” mode, there is a special section “Production order content”.

General scheme for launching model range production: 5 steps

When working with models that have several colors and sizes, you need to: 

1. Create a Model in the production program. 

2. Add the model to the “Production order content”. In the model, specify the sizes and colors of its products.

3. Create a Technological card for the model. The program will generate a template for the model’s product modifications, which need to be completed and saved.

4. Create a Production act or Route sheet. 

5. Record the fact of production by closing the Production act or Route sheet and transfer the finished product for sale.

Step 1. How to create a Product Model?

How to do this?

Configuring the model name 

It is generated by the program but configured by the user. The model name must be suitable for all its products at once, so it should not include size, color, and other parameters that differ in its products. It is better to uncheck Color, Size, Description in the model name and leave only “Product type”.

You can configure the name generation in the “Model product name generation rule” tab. To do this, go to the menu “Settings → Parameters → Product → Name” → click the “Configure” button — the “Model product name generation rule” tab will open:

Configuring product colors and sizes

A model range is created based on a product that provides for different sizes and colors. For this, such a product type is first added to the program:

Go to “Merchandising” → “Full list of products and services” → “Products” → click “Add”:

Click “Add” product type — in the window that opens, be sure to check the “Size” and “Color” boxes, enter a name suitable for the entire model range, click “Save” — “Select”:

Fill in the country of origin and SKU — click “Save”:

Now a Model with a size range in a color palette can be created for the product “Sneakers Autumn 2025”.

How to create a model?

There are 2 ways to create models in the production program:

Method 1 — go to “Merchandising → Full list of products and services” → “Models” tab → click “Add” — used to create separate models for a specific selected product.

Method 2 — go to the menu “Settings → Parameters → Product → Name” → click the “Create models for all products” button — for bulk creation of models for all products in stock at once.

Let’s take a closer look at both ways of creating models.

Method 1. 

On the “Merchandising — Full list of products and services” tab, go to “Models” → click “Add” → select the product for which you want to create a model → click “Select”:

Specify the country of origin → click “Select” → “Save”:

Method 2. To create models in bulk for all existing products at once, go to the menu “Settings” → “Parameters” → “Product” → “Name” → Click the “Create models for all products” button → “Yes” → “Continue” → “Save”: 

Done. The list of created models can be viewed in “Merchandising — Full list of products and services” in the “Models” tab:

Step 2. Fill in the information about the model range in the “Production order content”

The production order content is located in "Document — Production order". The form is divided into 4 parts: 

• Production order, 

• Production order content, 

• Production order payment, 

• Production order products:

Create a production order for this model in the "Production order" section. To do this, click "Add" — the "Production order" form will open, fill in all the required data: production completion date, accounting center for receiving the manufactured goods, customer — click "Save".

The order has been created. Now you need to select which model will be produced. In the "Production order content" section click "Add"  — the "Production order content" form will open, click the "Models" button and select the model name:

Add sizes, colors, and quantities of each product — click "Save": 

The program will automatically fill in the "Quantity" field by summing up all the products you added to the model — in this example, a total of 7 products. Set the price for the product and click "Save":

The name of the selected model will appear in the "Production order content", and the list of products will appear in the "Production order products":

The list of products of the model can be changed by clicking "Edit" in the "Production order content" tab.

So, the model has been added to the "Production order" and now you can create a Technological card for this model. 

Step 3. Fill in the Technological card for the Model

Activating the order

To fill in the Technological card, you need to change the order status to “Active”  . 

Only an order with a prepayment can be activated: click "Make prepayment" — "Pay".

Now you can activate the order by clicking "Status" → "Active".

Creating and filling in the Technological card

In the "Production order content" window click "Technological card"  → add "Technological operations" and "Materials" → click "Save":

The program will generate a template based on this Technological card for the model’s products — duplicating the production operations and materials. These Technological cards are available in the "Production order products":

For example, we add the Model "Sneakers Autumn 2025" white and black, sizes 36-42, to the Production order content. These sneakers will have the same production operations and all materials, except for white and black leather. Therefore, in the Model Technological card we enter all operations and materials except the leather. Then go to the "Production order products" tab and add the required material to each product’s Technological card. Save the Technological cards: 

Select "White leather" for the white sneakers:

Don’t forget to click "Save" in the Technological card. This way, add the material for each product. Similarly, select "Black leather" for the black sneakers.

How to add analogs to the Model Technological card?

A material analog is added to the Technological card of a model or its product from the "Document" → "Finished product manufacturing" → "Technological cards" → "Materials" tab. Materials with analogs are marked with the icon  .

This is described in more detail above — in the section “Material analogs. What they are, how and when to use them?” 

When the Technological cards for the models are filled in, the model can be sent to production. Launching production in the program is recorded by creating a Production act or a Route sheet.

Step 4. How to create a Production act and Route sheet for the Model range 

When to create a Production act and when a Route sheet?

Production act is created when production does not require recording the execution of each operation by different employees. The program records the completion of all production operations at once, releasing either part of a batch of goods or the entire batch simultaneously. A Production act may include both the main materials for manufacturing the product and their analogs, if such were used for the product and entered into the Technological card. 

Route sheet is created to record the fact of operations performed by employees by scanning the employee’s barcode and the operation in the route sheet. A batch of goods is considered produced only when all Route sheet operations are completed. When creating a Route sheet, only the main materials are used; analogs are not involved in the production process.

If a product is made from main materials, then both a Production act and a Route sheet can be created for it. 

If a product is made using not only main materials but also analogs, then only a Production act can be created. 

How to create a Production act and a Route sheet

Option 1. For the entire model. Only for Production acts

A Production act for the entire model can be created in the "Document — Production order" tab. In the "Production order content" window click "Create production act":

Option 2. For each product separately. For Production acts and Route sheets

In the "Document — Production order" tab, in the "Production order products" window click "Create production act" or "Create route sheet":

You can view created Production acts and Route sheets in the "Production" form, in the "Production acts" tab, where the completed production operations are also displayed. They can be added, deleted, or modified. 

Now the product can be manufactured, the fact of production can be recorded, and the program will post the manufactured goods to the selected Accounting Center.

Step 5. Release of finished products.

Closing the Production act and Route sheet

As with simple products, the fact of manufacturing finished goods is recorded in "Finished product manufacturing" — "Production acts" or "Route sheets" — by the  button — the "Closing production act № ..." window will open. In this window, select the product of the model, its quantity, price, accounting center for posting the manufactured products, click "Save":

The total number of products released is displayed in the "Quantity of manufactured products" column:

Details about which products and in what quantity were released can be viewed in the "Finished product releases" tab:

After closing the production act, the program writes off the Materials and Analogs used to produce this batch of products. More about material write-offs during production can be found in the article "Material and waste write-off in production". 

Materials written off from the warehouse during production are displayed in the "Write-off acts" tab:

Here you can also see when the material was written off, in what quantity, at what price, and from which Accounting Center (column Sender).

Also, immediately after manufacturing the product, you can print the required number of product labels — with the  button.

What to do if you mistakenly closed a production act, but the product is not yet ready?

The closure of a production act can be canceled with the "Cancel finished product release" button  — a confirmation window will open — click "Yes" and the program will delete the incoming invoice for this product, remove it from the corresponding accounting center, cancel the write-off of waste and materials, and return them to the respective warehouses. When you click "Yes", all the above operations will be performed automatically by the program. If you click "No" or "Cancel" — nothing will be deleted, everything will remain unchanged.

How to control the stages of product manufacturing after production launch?

In the production program, it is convenient to control the entire process of manufacturing a product. If no operations have been performed under the Production Act or the Route Sheet, they are not marked with any icons. As soon as at least one operation is performed, the program marks the Production Act with the icon , and the Route Sheet with the icon —  . After all operations of the Route Sheet are completed, its icon also changes to  .

Nuances of launching the production of complex products

Is it possible to launch the production of individual items of the model range?

• An item for which a separate Production Act has been created is marked by the program with the corresponding icon:

• If you create a Production Act for the entire Model, the program will also automatically create Production Acts for all semi-finished products included in the Model’s Technological Card. The Production Act of the Model will include only those items for which individual Production Acts have not been created. The Production Act icon will mark the Model itself, not the items included in its Production Act. It will no longer be possible to manually create separate Production Acts for these items, as they are automatically recorded under the Production Act of the Model.

Printing Production Acts 

There are the following printing options:

• Print Production Act

• Print Production Act with cost price

• Finished products releases — you need to specify the accounting center for which the analysis will be displayed, the period, and the time

• Unclosed Production Acts

• Print Route Sheet — printing will be performed in the order of the technological operation number

• Print list of finished products

How to order raw materials for manufacturing products?

Materials for production can be ordered in the required quantity directly from the Technological Card of the product. The program will calculate the necessary amount itself and fill in information about suppliers if they are already in the database. 

When you automatically generate supplier orders for materials in the program, it adds all the necessary materials for the final product and its semi-finished products, but does not take into account analogs — only basic materials.

Read more here about how to create a supplier order for production materials. 

Waste in production: what to do with it and how to account for it?

As with the production of regular products, the manufacturing of complex products may generate leftovers from the process: fabric scraps after cutting, leftover decorations, paint, glue, rubber, other polymers after a decoration operation, and so on. Such leftovers are considered production waste. Read more here about what to do with waste and how to account for it in production. 

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