Use BOM operation sequences to organize manufacturing steps

BOM operation sequences let you divide a Bill of Material into the steps used to make the finished product. For example, a build may move through Cut, Assembly, Seal, Test, and Pack.

Sequences are optional. If your company does not need step-by-step tracking, you can leave the Bill of Material without sequences and report all materials and resources against the whole build.

When you do use sequences, Versa can show the operation steps on work orders, production builds, traveler forms, and the Shop Floor Terminal. Materials, labor, machines, and work centers can be tied to the step where they are used.

How operations and sequences work together

An operation and a sequence are related, but they are not the same thing.

• Operation — the type of work being performed, such as Assembly, Cutting, Welding, Sealing, or Packing. Operations are set up before they are used on a Bill of Material.
• Sequence — the ordered step on a specific Bill of Material. The sequence has a Sequence # and uses one operation.

For example, the same Assembly operation can be used as sequence 10 on one product and sequence 30 on another product.

When to use BOM operation sequences

Use sequences when you want to:

• show shop-floor operators the steps in the order they should be completed;
• report material usage or component scrap by operation;
• assign labor or machine resources to a specific operation;
• route a step to a work center;
• print or review traveler information by operation;
• compare planned and actual work by step.

If your product is simple and the build does not need step-level tracking, sequences are not required.

Before you begin

• Confirm the finished product already has a Bill of Material.
• Confirm the operation you want to use already exists.
• If you plan to route steps to work centers, create the work centers first.
• If you plan to assign labor or machines, confirm the resources are active in the selected entity.

Bills of Material, operations, resources, and work centers are maintained in the entity selected after sign in. If something is missing from a list, confirm you are working in the correct entity.

Create a new operation sequence on a Bill of Material

1. Sign in and select the entity you want to work in.
2. Open Manufacturing or Production.
3. Select Edit BOM.
4. Find and open the Bill of Material you want to edit.
5. Find the BOM Sequences section.
6. Select Add New Sequence.
7. Enter the Sequence #. This controls the order in which the steps appear.
8. Choose the Operation Name.
9. Save the sequence.

The new sequence appears in the BOM Sequences list. You can add as many sequences as your manufacturing process needs.

Choose sequence numbers that leave room to grow

Many companies number steps as 10, 20, 30 instead of 1, 2, 3. This makes it easier to insert a new step later without renumbering every sequence.

Change the order of a sequence

1. Open the Bill of Material.
2. In BOM Sequences, find the sequence.
3. Select the pencil icon beside the Sequence #.
4. Enter the new number.
5. Select Update.

The sequence list and shop-floor operation list use the sequence number to decide the order of steps.

Assign a material item to a sequence

Assigning a component to a sequence tells Versa where that component is normally consumed during the build.

1. Open the Bill of Material.
2. Add a new item or edit an existing BOM item.
3. Choose the component in Item Name.
4. Enter the Quantity and UOM.
5. Choose the applicable Operation Sequence.
6. Select Add to BOM or Update BOM Item.

In the BOM item listing, the component appears under the selected sequence. In the Shop Floor Terminal, the component appears with that operation when materials or component scrap are reported.

Assign a resource to a sequence

Assigning a resource to a sequence helps plan labor or machine time for a specific step on the Bill of Material.

1. Open the Bill of Material.
2. Find Resource Assignments.
3. Select Add Resource.
4. Choose the Resource and Project Role.
5. Optionally enter a Comment.
6. Enter the Default Duration.
7. Choose the applicable Operation Sequence.
8. If shown, choose a Work Center.
9. Select Add.

The resource assignment becomes part of the product's default manufacturing plan. Work orders and production builds can still have their own job-specific resource assignments when the actual plan changes.

Assign a sequence to a work center

Assigning a sequence to a work center creates default routing for that step. For example, sequence 10 Cut can be routed to Cutting, and sequence 20 Assembly can be routed to Assembly Cell 1.

1. Open the Bill of Material.
2. Find the sequence in BOM Sequences.
3. Select Assign Work Center.
4. Choose the work center.
5. Select Assign.

After assignment, the sequence shows Assigned to Work Center followed by the work center name. You can remove the assignment if the routing changes.

Remove a material or resource from a sequence

If a material item, labor resource, or machine resource was assigned to a sequence by mistake, edit that item or resource assignment and set Operation Sequence to blank.

Items with no sequence appear under No Operation Sequence Assigned in the BOM item listing. They still belong to the Bill of Material, but they are not tied to a specific step.

Remove a sequence

A sequence can be removed only when Versa can safely remove it. If materials, resources, work orders, production builds, or other records still depend on the sequence, remove or reassign those records first.

1. Open the Bill of Material.
2. Find the sequence in BOM Sequences.
3. Select Remove.
4. Confirm the removal.

How sequences affect work orders and production builds

When a work order or production build is created from a Bill of Material with sequences, the job can show the same operation structure. This helps operators and supervisors understand what needs to happen next.

• Operation timers can track time by sequence in the Shop Floor Terminal.
• Materials used can be reported for the operation where the component is consumed.
• Component scrap can be reported and reviewed by operation.
• Resource assignments can be connected to one operation instead of the whole job.
• Work-center routing can help operators find related jobs when Shop Floor Job Visibility uses related jobs only.

If a Bill of Material does not have sequences, the job can still be built. Materials and resources are treated as belonging to the whole job instead of a specific operation.

Related features

• Operations define the types of work that can be used in sequences.
• Work Centers route steps to production areas, cells, machines, or departments. See Set up Work Centers for manufacturing resources and operations.
• Shop Floor Terminal uses sequences to show operation timers, operation-level material reporting, and operation-level component scrap. See Use the Shop Floor Terminal to run work orders and production builds.
• Traveler forms can use sequences to organize instructions and required materials by operation.

Troubleshooting

The operation I need is not in the list

Create the operation first, then return to the Bill of Material and add the sequence.

Assign Work Center is missing

Confirm work centers exist in the selected entity and that you have access to edit the Bill of Material.

A work center is not in the list

Confirm the work center is active and belongs to the entity selected after sign in.

The Operation Sequence field is missing when adding a resource

The Bill of Material does not have sequences defined yet. Add the sequences first, then reopen Add Resource.

A material item appears under No Operation Sequence Assigned

The item is still part of the Bill of Material, but it is not assigned to a sequence. Edit the item and choose an Operation Sequence if it should belong to a specific step.

I cannot remove a sequence

The sequence may already be used by materials, resources, work orders, production builds, or other records. Reassign or remove those related records first, then try again.

Tips

• Keep operation names short and familiar to the shop floor.
• Use sequence numbers that match how supervisors already describe the process.
• Leave gaps in the numbering, such as 10, 20, 30, so future steps can be inserted more easily.
• Assign components to the step where they are physically consumed.
• Assign resources to a sequence when labor or machine time should be planned for that step.
• Use work centers only if your company wants routing, capacity, or related-job visibility by production area.

What this guide does not cover

• Creating the operation names used by sequences.
• Creating the finished product or the full Bill of Material.
• Detailed work-center capacity setup.
• Shop Floor Terminal timer, material, and scrap workflows.
• Accounting, costing, or inventory valuation policy.