About Resource Groups

Process Resource Groups

A process resource group is a collection of process resources. Process resource groups come in two varieties - choice groups and combination groups - which you can assign to stages and thus to process steps. A combination group is a process resource group in which one or more process resources are related simultaneously to one process batch. A choice group is a process resource group consisting of two or more equivalent process resources, only one of which will be automatically allocated to each batch. A process resource group stores information applicable to all its constituent process resources, like, for example, the personnel needs of the associated department.

Tank Resource Groups

These are groups of one or more functionally equivalent tanks that form a part of production stages. If a batch is assigned to a tank group, one of its tanks will store the product. Alternative tank groups can be chosen when creating inflow or in the planning board by pressing the Alt-key and dragging the batch to a different tank. Whereas process resource groups can be choice or combination groups, tank groups are always choice groups. You can assign an individual tank to more than one tank group.

Enabling Resource Groups

These are groups of resources that act as choice groups, that is, a group in which you can choose one resource or the other. Batches are allocated to a single resource from the group. Enabling resource groups do not produce on their own. They make it possible for the main resources to perform. Enabling batches are shown on the planning board.

These tabs are displayed in the Resource Group Entry window:

• General: Allows you to identify key properties for the group as well as the resources to be included in the group.
• Resource Claim: Allows you can define the resources that should also be allocated when a resource from the group is allocated to a process or tank batch.
• Utility Claim: Allows you to set claims for utilities. The utility claim cannot exceed the maximum claim or be lower than the minimum claim. It can be zero (0.00) - which is used to indicate that the utility is not required during that batch segment. When the main process or tank batch is created, the actual claim for the utility will be created as well. The pattern of use of utilities can be represented in the planning board by a utility requirement graph.
• Custom fields: Allows you to specify the value for the custom field.

Flow-Based Claim

Flow-based claim extends the utility claim and enabling-resource claim. You can claim utilities and enabling resources on batch segments and if an actual product flow exists. This diagram explains this difference:

The Pipe in the diagram is an enabling resource.

Both the solver and the import and export functions support the flow-based claim

Flow-based claim is a claim that is defined on flow-in and flow-out segments. To import and export the claim for these segments, you can use the claim interfaces.

Flow-based claim requires the same enabling resource or utility for all the flows that are connected to the single-batch segment. In the above diagram, if a Pipe 2 enabling resource is added, you cannot define the first flow on Pipe and the second flow on Pipe 2.