Product cross-reference records
The cross-reference file is an accumulation of the information that sales repsrely on to define the relationships between products. Centralizing this information makes it available to sales reps and other employees, making your operations more efficient. The cross-reference file provides a maximum benefit to anyone during Sales Order Entry and communications with your customers.
The cross-reference file is an open-ended file that references all interchangeable products to the products in your inventory or catalog. Open-ended means that an unlimited number of interchangeable products may be listed for one inventory item. During initial installation, this file contains minimal information. Over time, you add additional cross-references until the file develops into one of your greatest selling assets.
In Sales Order Entry, you can search for cross-referenced products in the Product lookup field. The products are displayed in descending order by the amount of surplus. Products without surplus are listed next, followed by products in descending order by the quantity available.
Only the types that are specified in SA Administrator Options-Products-Alternates/UPC can be set up in the cross-reference file.
You should also review your settings for interfaces in SA Administrator Options-Documents-Sales Order-Processing. If the Interface to Warehouse Transfers option is selected, a warehouse transfer can be created automatically when quantity still exists for the superseded products in another warehouse and you choose to deplete that stock before selling the new supersede product in Sales Order Entry. You must also set permissions to allow WT ties to be created in Sales Order Entry. In SA Operator Setup-Entry Options, select Yes in the Allow Entry of WT Ties field or Allow Both PO and WT Ties in the PO/WT Ties field.
Alternative and reference related product cross-references
You can set up cross-references that are related to alternative product information including substitute, supersede, options, and upgrade products, or reference information including interchange, auto pricing, and barcodes.
If you set up a barcode cross-reference, you can use a hand-held radio frequency (RF) unit to create the record.
See the Infor Distribution SX.e Integration Guide for Enterprise Printing Platform.
If you use Total Warehouse Logistics (TWL), the RF automatically interfaces system data to TWL. If you create or modify a cross-reference record, the corresponding TWL record is created or modified.
Customer product cross-references
If you set up customer product cross-references, customers can place orders using their product numbers. Even if you do not enter their customer number in Sales Order Entry, both your product and their product number are printed on pick tickets and invoices.
A customer part number might match one of your product numbers. The hierarchy for product cross-reference records, in which the customer product cross-reference takes precedence over all other cross-references, prevents the customer from receiving the incorrect product.
For example:
- In Product Setup and
Product Warehouse Product Setup, these
product numbers are set up for your products:
- 5045 is a cover plate
- 1014 is an air baffle
- Customer #101's product number for the cover plate is 1014
If you cross-referenced customer #101's cover plate product number with your cover plate record, you can specify 1014 in the Product field when you enter a sales order line item for customer #101. They will receive a cover plate. If you enter 1014 for another customer, they will receive an air baffle.
If you use the Storeroom application, a cross-reference record must exist in Distribution SX.e for each customer product that is created in a Storeroom-managed warehouse with a name that differs from the Distribution SX.e part number. If the part numbers/names are identical, you are not required to set up the cross-reference record in Distribution SX.e. In addition, these steps are not required if you create the customer product record in Storeroom first.
When a customer record is set up in Storeroom with a name that does not exactly match a product name in Distribution SX.e, a Product Extended Product Cross Reference Setup record is automatically created in Distribution SX.e. Conversely, any changes that are made to the cross-reference product automatically updates the Storeroom customer product record.
Vendor product cross-references
Alternate vendor numbers are used to find alternate sources for products. You can include them on the Purchase Recommended Replenishment Action Report so you can order specific products from an alternate vendor instead of the regular vendors.