Release Notes TransLution Version 2.01 – Release Date 18 September 2006

Release Summary
The focus of this release was around significantly enhancing the functionality of mainly the scanning and sales order processing areas of TransLution.

Scanning

Automatic Processing
There is clearly a need to limit the user intervention required when doing scanning and this release supports the processing of transfers automatically into TransLution. This means that users do not have to go to a TransLution screen to process a transfer and as a result the data will go from the scanner all the way to Syspro without intervention being required.

Enhanced Scanner Validation
Scanner validation has been added on undirected transfers that will validate that the scanned product exists in the scanned location and also that it exists in the quantity that has been selected. This validation is optional. If the validation is in place, then effectively TransLution will not allow bins to go into a negative stock position. If the validation is disabled, then TransLution will allow bins to go negative if required.

The ability to enter a stored procedure name in a scanner prompt sequence to allow for additional custom scanner validation to be done has also been added.

Previously, in an RF environment, TransLution can reject the scanning of duplicate serialised barcodes. This did not work in a batch environment. In V2.01, duplicate barcodes can still be scanned in a batch environment but they will be rejected at the processing stage meaning that no duplicate scans will be processed giving effectively the same result as the validation for RF scanning.

Forced Job Closure
The option has been added to allow the forced closure of a scanner job. Any of the scanner prompts can be configured as the prompt that will force the job to close. This would generally be the target location prompt but depending on the scanner prompt sequence any prompt could be defined as the final prompt of a scan causing the job to close.

Also, in some cases the scanner prompt sequence can be set up such that a job can still be left open for long periods of time even if the close job option has been selected. An example of this is when the scanner prompt sequence is such that users can scan multiple source locations and products before scanning a target location. In this scenario the user could scan 20 or 30 products before scanning the source. If this is not desirable then an additional feature has been added to the scanner where the maximum number of records can be defined. If this field is set to 5 for example, then once 5 products have been scanned, the user will be forced to scan a target location which will then close the job. This option will allow implementers to manage job sizes if required.

Sending Jobs to a Scanner
It will be possible to configure a scanner to receive jobs only allocated to that scanner or user name. If a scanner is configured to receive jobs only allocated to it then no other jobs will be sent to it. The Job Manager screen will be able to override this to force a job to a scanner if required.

Allocating Scanner Jobs
This version of TransLution supports the ability to allocate access rights both to scanners and to scanner users. This means that jobs will only be sent to users that have the appropriate access rights.

User Prompts
In the same way that a user is currently prompted with a message when finishing a job, a scanner user will be prompted when pressing the skip button with the following message - “Are you sure you want to skip?” Users seem to press these buttons by accident and then find themselves in a position that they can’t easily back out of.

Quantity in Barcodes
The software has been enhanced so that a field on the barcode can be defined to be a quantity field. If there is a quantity field in the barcode then there will be two implementation options. The first will be to set up the scanner prompt sequence not to require quantity to be entered in which case the quantity field will be automatically populated when the barcode is scanned. The second option is to have the quantity field on the prompt in which case the quantity will be automatically populated if scanned in a barcode but the user will be able to enter a quantity if the barcode does not have a quantity field. This will be used for mixed
environments where not all barcodes have an embedded quantity.
 


Sales Order Processing

Checking Form
Previously only the product barcode was shown on this form. The form has been changed to show product description and stock code as well.

The Update ERP option has been be added to this form so that orders that aren’t fully picked or checked can be completed from here and the ERP updated. This isn't an additional button on the form, rather, if pick slip checking is completed and the sales order has not been fully picked and checked, the user will see a form telling him that the order has not been fully picked (showing what is short) and allowing him to choose to update the ERP anyway or not.


Stock Take

Scanning Items Twice
There are situations where the same product is scanned twice in the same location in a single stock take session. Some implementations require this second scan to be added to the first as an additional count and others require it to be seen as a second count. In this version of TransLution it is an option that can be defined when the stock take session is created.

Additional Enhancements and Error Corrections

Directed Transfer Prompt Sequences
There is an error in the way prompts are sent to the scanner for directed transfers in version 1.95 and users have to enter a value greater than the last prompt value for the next prompt. This has been fixed

Audit Trail and Archiving
These are two separate but related functions. TransLution V2.01 has an archive facility where users will be able to select the transaction tables to archive and specify how much live data they want to keep.
 

The TransLution audit trail from previous versions was focused on master data only but in  V2.01, the audit trail has been extended to transaction data. This means that for example it will be possible to audit when a pick slip was created, when the picking started, when it was completed, when checking started, when checking completed etc.

 

Release Notes TransLution Version 2.02 – Release Date 08 December 2006

Release Summary
The focus of this release is around introducing the carrier functionality and enhancing automatic processing of scanner transactions.

Carriers
Introducing Carriers TransLution supports the ability to define multiple locations and location types. Locations are however generally pre-existing when the system configuration is done and there are a fixed number of locations. This rather rigid definition does not support the concept of something that contains products (like a location) but in itself moves around (like a product).
This release supports these new structures and calls them carriers. Carriers can contain products e.g. items packed into a box or onto a pallet but can themselves also be moved around between locations.

V2.02 supports carriers for transfers and stock takes. Carrier support for picking will be released in a subsequent version.

Barcode Structures for Carriers
The first area of definition for carriers is in the barcode structure setup. A carrier barcode consists of 2 elements a name and a fixed portion (e.g. BOX). No significant elements are required.


Stock Adjustments
The current discrete stock adjustment functionality in TransLution has been enhanced to allow the stock adjustment also to be passed to Syspro using the stock adjustment business object. This is an option and stock adjustments can still be done as in the past.
When an administrator updates a stock level in TransLution, it is most likely that there will be a discrepancy between TransLution and Syspro, unless Syspro is updated at the same time. To avoid having to do this in a two step manual process, Syspro can be automatically updated from the Discrete Stock Adjustment form by selecting a Configuration Setting as shown in the following diagram:

Another enhancement is the ability to select to display only positive config positions on this screen or both positive and negative.

Finally, the screen performance has been enhanced by allowing only a selected subset of locations to be returned rather than returning all locations.

Decimal Support
TransLution now supports decimals in the quantity fields so for example 2.5 can be entered as the quantity in the product configuration screen and decimals can be entered on the scanner as well.

Transaction Processing Enhancements
Auto Processing of Sales Order Picks
In the same way as V2.01 allowed scanner based transfers to be automatically processed on completion, in this version sales order picks can also be automatically processed.

Auto Printing on Job Completion

This enhancement is very important for businesses using scanners to pick and transfer products. Often, scanner jobs finish and with auto processing enabled, are automatically processed in TransLution. However, this may present a problem – if further additional actions are required, who takes them and what information do they use? This feature will help solve that problem. For example, once a pick slip has been completed, the system will be able to print out a document showing what was picked on the pick slip. This document will print out automatically.

Correction of Transfer Errors
When automatic processing of transfers is enabled, TransLution will process all the lines in a transfer job that it can. There may be lines that can’t be processed for example with an invalid source location. There is now a form where these errors can be corrected or marked as not requiring processing at all.
 


Sales Order Enhancements
Cancelling Sales Orders
If a sales order has not yet been processed then it can be cancelled in TransLution. As long as it still meets the download filter requirements, it can be downloaded at a later stage again.

Scripting Enhancements
When pick slips are created using the multi pick slip screen, the pick slip numbers are passed to vb script that runs behind the create pick slips button. This allows for a far tighter degree of control when printing pick slips.

The Transaction Header ID is passed to the VB script behind the Update ERP button on the main retrieve sales order form.

Additional Enhancements and Bug Fixes
Managing XML files
TransLution creates various XML files for all TransLution ERP Transactions. The number of files grows rapidly and even though each file individually is very small (around 1-2kb) they do accumulate and the amount of disk space used can become a problem. An application has been developed that allows the user to specify how many files they wish to keep and all files older than this are automatically deleted.

XML File Names
Previously, the XML file names have been fairly meaningless and other than the filename identifying the business object used, there was no other useful information contained in them. This made it very difficult to find the right file to examine for debugging purposes. In this release, the file name includes relevant information such as the sales order number for sales order business objects or item code for stock adjustment business objects.

Identifying Scanner Jobs to External Apps
Previously, when a scanner job is created by an external application, the external app is not aware of which job was created so it is not possible to report on what was actually done as opposed to what was requested. If TransLution tells the external app which job was created, this kind of reporting becomes possible.

Identifying Scanner Jobs in TransLution
All forms where scanner jobs are processed will now show the job number on the form along with the other information previously shown. This means that for example on the transfer processing screen, the job number is shown followed by the transfer description. This allows for easy linking of scanner jobs to the TransLution transactions.

Quantity Multiplier
There is a quantity multiplier field in the barcode structure which was not there before. This field is useful if the scanned quantity is a value that is not the same as the value to be stored in the TransLution database. For example, 15 is entered when scanned but it actually represents 1.5. The multiplier in this case would be 0.1.

Improve Performance for Location Mapping
All screens showing lists of locations have been enhanced to improve performance and usability. This includes Discrete Stock Adjustment, Function Area Location mapping and ERP location mapping. These screens no longer simply display a list of all locations; they use filters to allow users to select locations to display and map.

Check for Stock Transfer Process Started
Under certain circumstances it has been possible to request that an Inter Location Transfer job be processed twice. To avoid this happening, a Stock Transfer Process Status table has been added to the database, When a Transfer Job is being processed (using the Process Stock Transfer form) an entry is made in the Stock Transfer Process Status table which is linked to the Stock Transfer Header table. When the processing is started, the started Indicator is set to true, which means that no other requests to process the transfer will be accepted. When the processing of the transfer is complete, the Completed Indicator is set to true. By this time the Process Status of the Stock Transfer header table will have been modified to show that the transfer has been processed.

Stock Transfer Type on Function Area
With the introduction of Carriers to TransLution it is necessary to know what type of Stock Transfer is being done before the Job is created. The Stock Transfer Type table has 6 fixed values which are used to define the type of Transfer Job that is being used. These Transfer Types are stored against the Function Area so that when the User creates a Transfer Job, the type of Transfer is defaulted to that allocated to the Function Area.

Stock Transfer Description
For the purposes of creating a link between the Job on a scanner and the Stock Transfer, the description of the Stock Transfer header is preceded by the Job number. E.g. A Stock Transfer named “Test Serialised” executed on a scanner as Job number 41 will be concatenated as “41:Test Serialised” when the Transfer is processed manually and when the error lines are corrected after an automatically processed Job.
 

Release Notes TransLution Version 2.03 – Release Date 20 April 2007

Release Summary
The focus of this release is around enhancing the scanner usability and adding some improvements to the checking process. There was also a major change to how sales orders are downloaded from Syspro allowing sales orders to be downloaded automatically without requiring any user intervention.
 

Scanning Enhancements
Changes on the Scanner
There were some important changes made to how the scanner displays data. Firstly, there is now an indicator to show the user if the scanner is connected to the RF network or running in batch mode. If the connection is active, then the indicator will show up as a Green block as is shown in the scanner documentation. In the event that the scanner loses communication with the network, the indicator will show up as a Red block.
 

Also, it was found that even though operators are prompted for each scan they have to do, users sometimes are confused about that they last scanned and what they need to scan next. Showing the last valid scan is intended to overcome that problem.

 

Another item to help the users is, when doing picking, the user is not only prompted for the product barcode but rather for the product barcode and the item description.
 

The final change on the scanners is the most important. Previously users could only select one function area for picking and one for stock take from the scanner. If there was more than one function area of these types defined in TransLution then the first one was used. TransLution now allows the user to select any one of the defined function areas from the scanner. This greatly reduces the need for intervention from the TransLution client to create jobs.


Function Area Changes
In order to allow scanning to be done that can be used for any additional purpose, TransLution now supports an additional function area type that unlike picking, transfers or stock take will not be processed. This means that a function area with its related scanner prompt sequence will support all the power of the TransLution scanning engine and the external stored procedure validation without being forced to be TransLution
type job. Scanning can now be done to call external applications or perform any function the user requires. This is achieved by simply defining a new function area type that will not be processed. From this point, function areas and scanner prompt sequences can be defined as normal.


Checking Enhancements
There have been two changes made to the checking process. It is now possible to prompt the operator for a second product scan for selected products only. This is ideal for situations where some record is required of what serial number of an item went to a specific customer when the product has a second serialised barcode. It is also possible to set up some items such that an individual scan is not required for each picked item but rather that the checked quantity can be entered manually by the user. While this is not generally recommended, when there are large volumes of low cost items on an orders (e.g. nuts and bolts) then scanning each item is impractical. TransLution now allows each product config to be configured to support either a second barcode or a quantity prompt. If either of these has been done, then when the item
barcode is scanned at checking, the user will either be prompted to scan a second barcode or he will be allowed to enter a quantity.


Sales Order Download Enhancements
There has been a significant change to how sales orders can be downloaded by TransLution and it is now possible to retrieve sales orders as a background task rather than with user intervention. It is now also possible to select to download non stocked lines and other line types in Syspro sales orders rather than only downloading lines for stocked items as before.
 

Release Notes TransLution Version 2.04 – Release Date 16 May 2007

Release Summary
This is an interim release focusing around offering 2 important benefits, both related to ERP communications.
 

ERP Enhancements
Downloading Large Sales Orders
There were some important changes made to how sales orders are downloaded from Syspro. It was found that downloading large sales orders (in excess of 200 lines) could be very slow, particularly if there were a large number of sales orders to download. This release has changed how the data is manipulated by TransLution and has greatly improved the speed of downloading large sales orders.
Recording ERP Events
If there is an error returned to TransLution from Syspro when using the business objects, these errors are now logged in a database table to allow for easy and flexible reporting of communication errors. This uses the BUSINESS_OBJECT_EVENT table.
Enhanced ERP Bulk Retrieval Service
The ERP bulk retrieval service release with V2.03 has been enhanced to make the time-out configurable rather than having a fixed time-out.


Other Enhancements
Cancelling Stock Transfers
When doing manual processing of transfers, it is now possible to cancel a transfer without processing it. Also, when manually processing a transfer, error lines are now moved to the error correction screen in the same way as for automatically processed transfers.
Completing Pick Slips
Previously, it was possible to complete a pick slip from the waybill form if checking had not yet started. This is now still possible but the user is warned that no checking has been done and is shown what is short checked on the pick slip.
Handling Failed Updates to Syspro

There are times when the TransLution update to Syspro after sales order picking or checking fails. There are many reasons for this failure and the most common ones are due to a comms failure or due to errors returned by Syspro. In this release, if the update to Syspro fails, then the TransLution transaction header is put into a status of 15 and there is a form where users can retry the update to Syspro.

WIP Business Objects

Support was added for the WIPTLP (Labour Posting) and WIPTMI (specific issues) business objects.

 

Error Corrections

Stored Procedure Validation

There was an error on the stored procedure validation for the quantity prompt which has been corrected.

 

Sales Order Retrieval

There was a problem when retrieving sales orders when an item code contained an '&'. The fix included all reserved characters except for " ' ".