MAKE/BUY OPTION

Create a sub-assm part in inventory that is flagged as a Make/Buy.  (Make/Buy means that you can only purchase this item)  but you will be allow to create a BOM for this Make/Buy item to document the components that go on it.

Then you will add this Make/Buy as a sub-assm to the main product.

When needed you will then create a purchase order for this Make/Buy part.  When you print the purchase order for the supplier (company providing the service) you will then select to include the BOM Addendum.  It will then include the Make/Buy BOM so the supplier and the person sending this out for the service can see what components to send with the item.   (at this point in time I believe that the person sending the parts out will have to Inventory Handle the individual parts/components that are being sent, out of the system)

The Supplier then returns the Make/Buy part to you.  You would then process the PO Receiving and accept them into inventory as the Make/Buy part. 

Then Pull the finished Make/Buy part to the kit.

The Product itself needs to go out for Spray coating, etc. . .

If the item you are building needs to go out itself as one of the final stages for spray coating, etc. . .  and it is actually just part of the Process to build the Final Assm.  I would suggest the below

When the product gets to the outsourcing work center in the routing within Shop Floor Tracking. 

There will need to be a purchase order created within the system for MRO item for the Spray Coating.

When the product is returned back to you, the user will process a PO Receipt through the system.

This will close the purchase order out and also create the needed record for accounting to pay against when the supplier send in the invoice to you.  (note that since it is MRO it will not have any affect on your inventory values )

Once they have been accepted back into the system the users can then finish processing them through the routing via Shop Floor Tracking.   

Is a link to an article that also covers what I mentioned above and some additional information.  Below are a couple comments from some of our other users as to how they are accounting for the Outsourcing within Mane.

ManEx Solution - 34 - Outsource Management

Outsourcing Control 

"[They should]:

• Structure the bills so that the thing going outside is a sub assembly. This provides a stocking point for the part preprocessed and another for it post process.
• Inventory will show at the finished stage. If there is not enough stock available, and exception notice will exist and planning for the parts used in the sub-assembly will have already been planned via PWO's.
• Issue an order for the finished version of this assembly to the supplier and shipped the unfinished units to them. When finished, they will be received back in stock against the subject purchase order.

"In this approach, everything is done within the system and the is inventory and purchasing records on all material."

-Wayne, OR   

"[We] made sub-assy boms [and] tagged the BUY items that need to go out for outsourcing as Inspection items so that when they are received...the initial person [is alerted]...the parts need to go back out for additional prep work. [We also changed] the item master description to say 'see I.M. notes', then...that entire notes tab to detail all the transactions that need to be done to get us usable raw material... I had to set the production offsets on the BOM so we got the raw material a little earlier than everything else.

"I believe my way works...however it's not exactly a 'clean' approach."

-Jay, MA  

One method for reducing the transactions required for tracking inventory on large production runs is to follow these steps:

1. Create a warehouse location called floor-stock (if this is the only warehouse you will use for auto-kitting, then disable auto-kitting for all other warehouses).
2. Load all needed material into that location.
3. Establish a safety stock if needed.
4. Create WOs as needed and auto-kit from the floor-stock location.

NOTES: 

• Autokitting will not pull from WO-WIP until all other inventory locations are consumed.  However, auto-kitting will not create WO-WIP locations either.  So large runs should not have excess invetory on the floor.
• MRP will keep up with material requirements for the work orders if they are established ahead of time.  Otherwise, the floor-stock location can be replenished by visually inspecting the inventory location and purchasing more as required.