Transferring Master Data from Sales Orders to Production Orders

If you use the production module in Business Central, you can transfer master data directly from a sales order to a production order. You add the master data on the sales order line, mark which fields should be transferred, and create the production order. The relevant information follows the line into production.

The transfer is not automatic after the production order is created. If you change the sales order afterwards, you use the “update master data information from the sales order” function on the production order line to pull the updated values across.

You control which fields transfer by default through a setup you define yourself. A salesperson can then manually adjust that setup on the individual sales line.

Transferring master data from a sales order to a production order

Business Central already lets you move master data between documents. You can transfer master data from open documents to posted documents, or from open sales orders to purchase orders. The same principle works for production: you can transfer master data from a sales order to a production order, as long as you use the production module.

In practice this means you create a sales order and add an item line with a quantity. On that line you can adjust the master data, for example specifying a different size or telling production which color the item should be. You can also add other information to the document, such as marking the order as urgent so the message reaches the production area.

Choosing which fields to transfer

On the sales line you mark the “transfer to production order line information” fields for the lines you want to transfer. There is a default setup that you determine yourself, and as a salesperson you can change that setup manually on the individual sales line. Once the fields are marked, the line is ready to create a production order.

Creating the production order

With the standard functionality you go into the planning and create a production order, for example a firm planned order. When the order is created, the marked information transfers from the sales order line to the production order line.

The transfer happens per line. If you work with a family order or a bundle order containing several lines, each line carries its own master data across. On the production order you can then see the transferred details, for example that the order is urgent and that it uses a special color.

Updating the production order when the sales order changes

Changing the sales order does not automatically update the production order. If you change the master data on the sales order, for example setting it to very urgent, or if you add or remove lines, the production order stays as it was.

To bring the production order up to date, you fetch the changes from the production order line itself. You use the “update master data information from the sales order” function, and the production order line is updated to match the sales order line. From there you can print the order again if you still work with paper.

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