You can use the functions on the Subcontract Shipping Menu (18.22.5) to record shipments to subcontractors. These programs create shippers in the same way as the container and shipper maintenance programs associated with sales orders and customer schedules. The major difference is in the Contents (Items) frame. Work Order ID, Operation, and Item replace Item, PO, Order, and Line. The Work Order ID and Operation fields identify a subcontract operation record on a cumulative order. The Item field identifies any component items used at the operation. If Item is blank, it represents the WIP material input at that operation.

For more information on shippers and containers, see User Guide: Distribution.

Use Sub Container Maintenance (18.22.5.4) to create containers for shipping the items to the subcontract supplier. The logic for creating subcontract containers is similar to the logic in customer and supplier schedules. The items placed into the container include the WIP item and any other components required at the subcontract operation.

You can delete containers one at a time in Sub Container Maintenance. To remove all unused container records by range of site and container number, use Container Delete/Archive (7.7.23).

Container maintenance is optional and is used only if you need to containerize your data.

See User Guide: Distribution.

Use Sub Shipper Maintenance (18.22.5.5) to create shippers for shipping the items to the subcontract supplier. The shipper consists of either container items or WIP items and the components used at this operation that are also being shipped to the supplier. If WIP items are not being used, leave the item number blank to indicate that the item being shipped is the parent assembly.

Use Sub Shipper/Container Inquiry (18.22.5.6) to view shipper information. This program is virtually the same as the shipper and container inquiries in Customer Schedules, except that Work Order ID, Operation, and Item replace Item, PO, Order, and Line.

If there is no WIP item number entered on the routing, the system displays the finished material item number.

Confirm the shipper using Sub Shipper Issue (18.22.5.11). For the quantities identified in the subcontract shipper, the equivalent of a move transaction is performed from the output queue of the operation preceding the subcontract operation. If the preceding operation is a non‑milestone, then non‑milestone backflushing takes place for that operation and any other preceding non‑milestone until the quantity requirement is either satisfied or another milestone operation is encountered.

For component material requirements of the subcontract operation, the system performs the equivalent of an inventory location transfer. Inventory is transferred from the site and location entered in the shipper to the cumulative order site and operation work center location, if there is a corresponding record in the location master. Otherwise, the inventory is transferred to the item default location.

Component materials are backflushed when you receive shipments back from the subcontractor using Purchase Order Receipts (5.13.1) or PO Shipper Receipt (5.13.20). If containerization is used, an unplanned issue of the container inventory is performed for container items.