M3: Introducing the Solution in Cloud

Edition Training Workbook

Infor M3

August 26, 2020

Course code: 01_9111904_IEN0012_M3O

Legal Notice
Copyright © 2020 Infor. All rights reserved.

Important Notices
The material contained in this publication (including any supplementary information) constitutes and
contains confidential and proprietary information of Infor.
By gaining access to the attached, you acknowledge and agree that the material (including any
modification, translation or adaptation of the material) and all copyright, trade secrets and all other right,
title and interest therein, are the sole property of Infor and that you shall not gain right, title or interest in
the material (including any modification, translation or adaptation of the material) by virtue of your review
thereof other than the non-exclusive right to use the material solely in connection with and the furtherance
of your license and use of software made available to your company from Infor pursuant to a separate
agreement, the terms of which separate agreement shall govern your use of this material and all
supplemental related materials ("Purpose").
In addition, by accessing the enclosed material, you acknowledge and agree that you are required to
maintain such material in strict confidence and that your use of such material is limited to the Purpose
described above. Although Infor has taken due care to ensure that the material included in this publication
is accurate and complete, Infor cannot warrant that the information contained in this publication is
complete, does not contain typographical or other errors, or will meet your specific requirements. As such,
Infor does not assume and hereby disclaims all liability, consequential or otherwise, for any loss or
damage to any person or entity which is caused by or relates to errors or omissions in this publication
(including any supplementary information), whether such errors or omissions result from negligence,
accident or any other cause.
Without limitation, U.S. export control laws and other applicable export and import laws govern your use
of this material and you will neither export or re-export, directly or indirectly, this material nor any related
materials or supplemental information in violation of such laws, or use such materials for any purpose
prohibited by such laws.

Trademark Acknowledgements
The word and design marks set forth herein are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Infor and/or
related affiliates and subsidiaries. All rights reserved. All other company, product, trade, or service names
referenced may be registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective owners.
Table of contents
Table of contents..................................................................................................................................... 3

About this workbook................................................................................................................................ 7

Course overview........................................................................................................................................ 9

Course description and agenda............................................................................................................. 10

Lesson 1: Infor the company.................................................................................................................. 13

Enterprise resource planning................................................................................................................. 14

Introducing Infor..................................................................................................................................... 16

Infor at a glance................................................................................................................................. 16

Video: Designed for progress............................................................................................................ 16

Infor solutions architecture................................................................................................................. 16

Infor CloudSuite................................................................................................................................. 17

Video: Infor CloudSuites.................................................................................................................... 18

Infor OS............................................................................................................................................. 18

Video: Infor OS.................................................................................................................................. 18

Infor OS vs. Ming.le........................................................................................................................... 20

Video: Infor Document Management (IDM).......................................................................................20

H&L Digital......................................................................................................................................... 20

Video: Hook & Loop........................................................................................................................... 21

Infor strategy.......................................................................................................................................... 22

Industry.............................................................................................................................................. 22

Cloud................................................................................................................................................. 22

Network............................................................................................................................................. 23

Video: Infor Nexus............................................................................................................................. 24

Analytics............................................................................................................................................ 24

Video: Birst........................................................................................................................................ 24

Artificial intelligence (A.I.).................................................................................................................. 24

Video: Coleman AI............................................................................................................................. 25

3 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Responsive design................................................................................................................................ 26

Infor ION............................................................................................................................................ 26

Business object documents (BODs).................................................................................................. 27

Video: Infor ION................................................................................................................................. 27

Extensibility........................................................................................................................................ 27

Video: Mongoose............................................................................................................................... 29

Introducing Infor M3............................................................................................................................... 30

Infor M3 at a glance........................................................................................................................... 30

Video: Infor M3.................................................................................................................................. 30

Built-in industry-specific experience................................................................................................... 30

Infor M3 solution................................................................................................................................ 30

History of Infor M3 and the user experience......................................................................................32

Managing complexity......................................................................................................................... 33

Discovering the power of extensibility................................................................................................ 34

Infor M3 Cloud................................................................................................................................... 35

Security in the cloud.......................................................................................................................... 37

Video: Security in the cloud............................................................................................................... 37

Introducing Infor’s deployment method.................................................................................................. 38

Key benefits....................................................................................................................................... 38

Introducing Implementation Accelerators............................................................................................... 40

IA benefits.......................................................................................................................................... 40

Video: Infor CloudSuite and IA solutions........................................................................................... 41

Video: Navigation tour in IA for Equipment........................................................................................41

Mavim................................................................................................................................................ 41

Check your understanding..................................................................................................................... 42

Lesson 2: Infor OS................................................................................................................................... 46

Infor OS homepages.............................................................................................................................. 47

Video: Homepages overview............................................................................................................. 47

Publishing widgets and homepages.................................................................................................. 47

4 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Navigation.......................................................................................................................................... 48

Exercise 2.1: Log in to Infor OS and launch Infor M3........................................................................48

Exercise 2.2: Import Infor OS homepages......................................................................................... 49

Exercise 2.3: Create an Infor OS homepage.....................................................................................53

Infor Ming.le........................................................................................................................................... 57

Video: Infor Ming.le in CloudSuite Distribution...................................................................................58

Exercise 2.4: Create a group............................................................................................................. 58

Simulated activity 2.5: Connect to a user and a group via Infor Ming.le............................................59

Exercise 2.6: Share Infor M3 information........................................................................................... 60

Infor ION................................................................................................................................................ 62

Video: EAM to Infor M3...................................................................................................................... 62

Workflows.......................................................................................................................................... 62

Exercise 2.7: Process the workflow for a new customer record.........................................................64

Event-based alerts............................................................................................................................. 66

Simulated activity 2.8: Work with event-based alerts.........................................................................67

M3 Information Monitors.................................................................................................................... 68

Infor Document Management (IDM).................................................................................................. 68

Exercise 2.9: Receive information via M3 Information Monitors........................................................69

Exercise 2.10: Connect an image to your customer record...............................................................74

Infor UX................................................................................................................................................. 77

Personalizations................................................................................................................................ 77

Administering personalizations.......................................................................................................... 78

Exercise 2.11: Work with personalizations in Infor H5.......................................................................79

Searches........................................................................................................................................... 85

Exercise 2.12: Work with functional searches....................................................................................87

Scripts................................................................................................................................................ 91

Exercise 2.13: Engage with the Additional Field Information script....................................................92

Simulated activity 2.14: Add a new field using the generic extension table.......................................95

Exercise 2.15: Connect values and review the generic extension table............................................95

5 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Web applications (Mashup SDK)....................................................................................................... 97

Exercise 2.16: Review the Warehouse Overview web applications (created with Mashup SDK)......98

Coleman Digital Assistant................................................................................................................ 100

Exercise 2.17: Interact with Coleman DA........................................................................................100

Check your understanding................................................................................................................... 103

Lesson 3: Infor M3 business processes.............................................................................................. 107

Process overview................................................................................................................................. 108

Push approach (Forecast and MRP/DRP).......................................................................................111

Pull approach (Supply chain order).................................................................................................. 112

Demand to plan................................................................................................................................... 113

Requirement calculations................................................................................................................ 115

Master planning............................................................................................................................... 116

Exercise 3.1: Enter a forecast and trigger replenishment orders.....................................................117

Procure to pay..................................................................................................................................... 123

Planned orders to purchase orders.................................................................................................. 123

Goods receipt to put-away............................................................................................................... 123

Invoicing and payment..................................................................................................................... 124

Exercise 3.2: Process a purchase order..........................................................................................125

Production to inventory........................................................................................................................ 131

Prepare to produce.......................................................................................................................... 131

Process control and reporting.......................................................................................................... 132

Receipt to approval.......................................................................................................................... 132

Consumption to statistics................................................................................................................. 132

Exercise 3.3: Process a manufacturing order..................................................................................133

Distribution to internal invoicing........................................................................................................... 139

Planned order to internal invoice creation........................................................................................ 139

Delivery numbers............................................................................................................................. 140

Dispatch policies.............................................................................................................................. 140

Multiple unit coordination (MUC)...................................................................................................... 141

6 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Exercise 3.4: Process a distribution order.......................................................................................142

Order to cash....................................................................................................................................... 151

Customer order entry....................................................................................................................... 151

Order monitoring to order management...........................................................................................152

Shipment planning to pick list release.............................................................................................. 152

Picking to delivery note.................................................................................................................... 152

Invoice to cash................................................................................................................................. 153

Simplified process............................................................................................................................ 153

Exercise 3.5: Process a customer order.......................................................................................... 153

Supply chain orders............................................................................................................................. 159

SCOs vs. MRP................................................................................................................................. 160

SCOs vs. APS................................................................................................................................. 160

SCOs vs. Lean manufacturing......................................................................................................... 161

SCO advantages............................................................................................................................. 161

Exercise 3.6: Create a supply chain order.......................................................................................162

Financial plan to report........................................................................................................................ 167

Exercise 3.7: Display the general ledger balance file......................................................................169

Check your understanding................................................................................................................... 173

Course summary................................................................................................................................... 176

Appendices............................................................................................................................................ 177

Appendix A: User accounts.................................................................................................................. 178

Appendix B: Check your understanding answers................................................................................180

Lesson 1: Infor the company........................................................................................................... 180

Lesson 2: Infor Operating Service (Infor OS)...................................................................................183

Lesson 3: Infor M3 business processes...........................................................................................187

Appendix C: IDEF0 diagrams.............................................................................................................. 190

Appendix D: Infor M3 navigation.......................................................................................................... 195

Accessing Infor M3 (Infor H5).......................................................................................................... 195

Program ID, company, and division................................................................................................. 195

7 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Sorting orders and views................................................................................................................. 196

Actions............................................................................................................................................. 196

Options............................................................................................................................................ 197

Related options................................................................................................................................ 197

Shortcuts menu................................................................................................................................ 197

Context Apps................................................................................................................................... 198

Coleman/Chat.................................................................................................................................. 198

Activity feed..................................................................................................................................... 198

Panels.............................................................................................................................................. 198

Panel sequence............................................................................................................................... 199

User settings.................................................................................................................................... 200

Help................................................................................................................................................. 203

Quick Note....................................................................................................................................... 203

8 Lesson 2: Infor OS
About this workbook
Welcome to this Infor Education course! We hope you will find this learning experience enjoyable and
instructive. This Training Workbook is designed to support the following forms of learning:
 Classroom instructor-led training with an Infor certified instructor
 Virtual classroom instructor-led training with an Infor certified instructor
 Self-directed learning through Infor Campus
This Training Workbook is not intended for use as a product user guide.

Workbook design
This Training Workbook contains both conceptual information to introduce topics and step-by-step
procedural instructions for practical application of those concepts.
Symbols and notes are provided throughout this Training Workbook for ease of reference. Refer to the
Symbols used in this workbook section below to familiarize yourself with these symbols.

Course training environment and demos/exercises

Instructor-led training (ILT)

If you are taking this course as ILT, your instructor will provide details on accessing the Infor Education
Training Environment needed to complete the student exercises. Your instructor will also assign you and
other students an account login and password from Appendix A of this Training Workbook.

Instructors will perform the demos outlined in this Training Workbook. If you are taking this
course as ILT, do not attempt to complete any steps within any demos; otherwise, it could
adversely affect the training environment, the intended flow of the course, and the success
and quality of the course for all students in the class.

Self-directed learning (SDL)

If you are taking this course via Infor Campus as SDL, refer to the Lab on Demand screen in the self-
directed learning course for course environment information. The Lab on Demand screen includes
instructions and logins to launch and access the corresponding Infor Education Training Environment as
well as logins and passwords required for completion of course exercises and demos.

The exercises and demos in this course build upon each other as they prepare the system for
subsequent exercises and demos. If you are taking this course as SDL, you must complete
all of the exercises and demos in the order they are presented in the Training Workbook. This
ensures you will achieve the expected results and a successful course outcome.

9 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Instructor-recorded presentations and simulations (SDL only)
If you are taking this course as SDL, there may be instructor-recorded presentations and/or simulations
available to assist you.
If instructor-recorded presentations are available, a hyperlink to the recording will be included on the first
page of each corresponding lesson of the interactive workbook on the Training Workbook tab of the self-
directed learning course.
If simulations are available, the demos and exercises throughout the interactive Training Workbook will
include hyperlinks to simulations that allow you to view and/or practice the execution of the demo or
exercise. These same simulations are also accessible via the Demonstrations tab of the self-directed
learning course.

Learning Libraries
Learning Libraries in Infor Campus include learning materials that are available to you online, anytime,
anywhere. These materials can supplement instructor-led training, providing you with additional learning
resources to support your day-to-day business tasks and activities.
Please note that if you accessed this Training Workbook directly via a Learning Library, you will not have
access to the Infor Education Training Environment that is provided with all instructor-led and most self-
directed learning course versions, as referenced above. Therefore, you will not be able to practice the
exercises in the specific Training Environment for which the exercises in this Training Workbook were
written.

Symbols used in this workbook

Exercise Your notes Question

Demo Important note Answer

Scenario or Discussion Critical note Task simulation

For your reference Simulated activity

10 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Course overview
Estimated time
0.25 hours

Learning objectives
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:
 Describe Infor as a company and Infor M3 as a business solution.
 Explain the main Infor OS components and how to use them.
 Explain the Infor M3 key features and process flows.

Topics
 Course description and agenda

11 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Course description and agenda
This course allows users to gain an understanding of Infor as a company and how Infor M3 can support
your company’s business processes management and integration. The course covers an overview of
Infor’s operating service foundation, Infor OS, including its cloud solution. The course also covers a
demonstration of the operational activities necessary to run the core functions of the company as an
integrated business solution. This training is for cloud edition.

Course duration
16 hours

Audience
 Customer User
 Pre-Sales Consultant
 Business Consultant
 Technical Consultant
 Support
 System Administrator

System requirements
Infor M3 CE Training Environment

Reference materials
Infor M3 reference materials are available from the following locations:
 Infor M3 Help menu
 Infor Support Portal®
 Infor Infocenter

Course agenda
The agenda below details the contents of this course, including lesson-level learning objectives and
supporting objectives.

Lesson Lesson title Learning objectives Estimated

time
(hours)

Course overview Review course expectations. 0.5

1 Infor the company Describe Infor as a company and Infor M3 3.0

as a business solution.
 Identify Infor as a company.
 Explain Infor's strategic approach for

12 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Lesson Lesson title Learning objectives Estimated
time
(hours)

business applications.
 Explain Infor's extensibility solution.
 Explain how Infor M3 fits into Infor’s
strategic approach to business
applications.
 Describe Infor's deployment method.
 Explain how Infor's Implementation
Accelerators support the Infor M3
implementation process.

2 Infor Operating Service Explain the main Infor OS components and 6.0
(Infor OS) how to use them.
 Describe how to use Infor OS
homepages.
 Describe how to use Infor Ming.le™.
 Describe how to retrieve information via
Infor ION and homepage widgets.
 Describe how to connect images and
view documents using Infor Document
Management.
 Describe how to extend your user
experience.

3 Infor M3 business Explain the Infor M3 key features and 6.0

processes process flows.
 Identify the main Infor M3 business
processes.
 Describe the demand-to-plan process in
Infor M3.
 Describe the supply chain process in
Infor M3.
 Describe the procure-to-pay process in
Infor M3.
 Describe the production-to-inventory
process in Infor M3.
 Describe the distribution-to-internal
invoice process in Infor M3.
 Describe the order-to-cash process in
Infor M3.
 Describe the financial plan-to-report

13 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Lesson Lesson title Learning objectives Estimated
time
(hours)

process in Infor M3.

Course summary Debrief course. 0.5

Appendices
This section contains information that is not part of the instructional content of this course, but it provides
additional related reference information.

Appendix Appendix title Content description

Appendix A User accounts This appendix provides a reference for student and instructor
login credentials.

Appendix B Check your This appendix provides answers to the Check your
understanding understanding questions found at the end of each Lesson.
answers

Appendix C IDEF0 diagrams This appendix provides IDEF0 diagrams for the covered
business processes (lesson 3).

Appendix D Infor M3 This appendix provides a guide how to navigate when

navigation working with Infor M3.

14 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Lesson 1: Infor the company
Estimated time
1.5 hour

Learning objectives
After completing this lesson, you will be able to describe Infor as a company and Infor M3 as a business
solution. In this lesson, you will:
 Identify Infor as a company.
 Explain Infor's strategic approach for business applications.
 Explain Infor's extensibility solution.
 Explain how Infor M3 fits into Infor’s strategic approach to business applications.
 Describe Infor's deployment method.
 Explain how Infor's Implementation Accelerators support the Infor M3 implementation process.

Topics
 Enterprise resource planning
 Introducing Infor
 Infor strategy
 Responsive design
 Introducing Infor M3
 Introducing Infor’s deployment method
 Introducing Implementation Accelerators (IAs)

15 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Enterprise resource planning
Enterprise represents the company itself and all that goes with it. Your company as a legal entity.
Resource represents what makes your company functional. The term “resource” is a container concept to
capture everything: personnel (human resources), machines, real estate (buildings), tools, inventory,
company cars, intellectual property (patents), etc. Planning is self-explanatory. You want to plan your
resources in the most efficient way, hereby saving both time and money. Your company wants to avoid
capital tie-up. All enterprises want to turn over (convert) inventory into cash, hence the word “turn over.”
ERP is all about closing the loop between the past and the future. In other words, you learn from your
past to predict the future. This is a continuous process of fine-tuning the knowhow to become ever so
much better over time. You may call this continuous insight/understanding.
Plan for the future using supply chain planning (SCP). Trying to predict the market and spend company
resources wisely and efficiently. Getting the most bang for your buck. A common technique is forecasting,
but there is so much more available in Infor’s portfolio.
Capture the present using supply chain execution (SCE). End-to-end business processes such as order-
to-cash, production-to-inventory or distribution-to-internal invoice lead to inventory movements to and
from the warehouses. All logistical movements in the warehouse are reported (captured) in real time, via
barcode reader solutions. Movements can be inbound, in-house or outbound.
Learn from the past using financials. Captured transactions are booked in the general ledger. This is
where logistics and financials meet. Also referred to as financial control. The system knows exactly what it
costs to receive or deliver inventory. This total cost will be offset with the total revenue from the order-to-
cash business process to find out whether your company makes profit or runs at a loss. The transactional
bookings from the general ledger can be aggregated into business intelligence.
You will then loop back to SCP and consider the lessons from the past to improve the overall efficiency,
continuous insight/understanding.

Closed-loop

The American Production and Inventory Control Society (APICS) defines the following terminology:

16 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Material requirements planning (MRP)
“A set of techniques that uses bill of material data, inventory data, and the master production
schedule to calculate requirements for materials. It makes recommendations to release
replenishment orders for material. Further, because it is time-phased, it makes
recommendations to reschedule open orders when due dates and need dates are not in
phase. Time-phased MRP begins with the items listed on the MPS and determines (1) the
quantity of all components and materials required to fabricate those items and (2) the date
that the components and materials are required. Time-phased MRP is accomplished by
exploding the bill of material, adjusting for inventory quantities on hand or on order, and
offsetting the net requirements by the appropriate lead times.” – APICS Dictionary
Note: MPS is the acronym for master production schedule.

Manufacturing resource planning (MRP II)

“A method for the effective planning of all resources of a manufacturing company. Ideally, it
addresses operational planning in units, financial planning in dollars, and has simulation
capability to answer “what-if” questions. It is made up of a variety of functions, each linked
together: business planning, sales and operations planning, production planning, master
production scheduling, material requirements planning, capacity requirements planning, and
the execution support system for capacity and material. Output from these systems is
integrated with financial reports such as the business plan, purchase commitment report,
shipping budget, and inventory projections in dollars. Manufacturing resource planning is a
direct outgrowth and extension of closed-loop MRP.” – APICS Dictionary

Enterprise resource planning (ERP)

“An accounting-oriented information system for identifying and planning the enterprise wide
resources needed to take, make, ship, and account for customer orders. An ERP system
differs from the typical MRP II system in technical requirements such as graphical user
interface, relational database, use of fourth-generation language, and computer-assisted
software engineering tools in development, client/server architecture, and open-system
portability.” – APICS Dictionary

Supply chain
“The process from the initial raw materials to the ultimate consumption of the finished product
linking across supplier-user companies.”
“The function inside and outside a company that enable the value chain to make products and
provide services to the customer.” – APICS Dictionary

17 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Introducing Infor
Infor is an enterprise software provider and strategic technology partner for more than 90,000
organizations worldwide. Our software is purpose-built for specific industries, providing complete suites
that are designed to support progress – for individuals, businesses, and the world. We believe in the
beauty of work, the importance of relationships, and the power of ideas to drive significant positive
change. Our commitment to providing complete, industry-specific solutions, plus our global presence and
breadth of offerings, make us uniquely positioned to help our customers achieve their goals.

Infor at a glance
 90,000 Infor customers  Over 71 million cloud users
 16,000+ employees  176 new products in the last 12 months
 61 offices around the world  Global headquarters – New York City
 Customers in 170 countries

Customers and innovation at the core

Video: Designed for progress

This is a link for a 1:22 minute introduction of Infor.

Designed for progress – With Infor, you get a partner that has the tools and technology to get
you where you want to go but also the foresight, vision, and expertise to help you map out the
destination. We believe in the power of ideas—ours and yours—to drive significant positive
change for businesses, industries, and the world. Here’s how we define progress: helping
your company succeed. And we’re ready to get started now.

Infor solutions architecture

The depth and breadth of Infor’s product portfolio gives you end-to-end capabilities for managing every
aspect of your business. These solutions help power our industry-focused, cloud-based business
platforms and can also be deployed standalone.

18 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 End-to-end capabilities for growing your business

Infor CloudSuite
Infor combines the benefits of cloud technology with deep industry specialization to deliver cost-effective,
flexible solutions that free customers from the burden of system maintenance and security. Securely
deployed on global cloud infrastructure provider Amazon® Web Services (AWS) for unparalleled
protection and reliability, Infor CloudSuite is built to deliver greater agility, long-term sustainability, lower
costs, and lasting return on investment.

Infor CloudSuite

19 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Video: Infor CloudSuites
Below are links to introductions for some of the Infor CloudSuites:
o CloudSuite Equipment (2:03 minutes)
o CloudSuite Food and Beverage (2:03 minutes)
o CloudSuite Distribution (1:49 minutes)
o CloudSuite Fashion (2:03 minutes)

Infor OS
Infor Operating Service (OS) serves as the underlying foundation for your entire enterprise ecosystem,
ensuring that systems work seamlessly together, deliver business insights automatically, and have the
flexibility to support changing business and industry needs. Designed to maximize the potential of both
your technology and your people, it provides a conversational user experience (UX) that makes systems
intelligent, intuitive, and exponentially more valuable.

Infor OS

Video: Infor OS
Click this link for a 2:51 minute introduction of Infor OS.

Infor OS is your cloud operating platform for the future, designed to bring productivity, business processes
and artificial intelligence together, and offer operational insights that were never accessible to a business
before. The platform delivers technology that goes beyond enabling business—it drives it, putting the user
at the center of every experience, and serving as a unifying foundation for your entire business
ecosystem. The result is a connected, intelligent network that automates, anticipates, predicts, and
informs your stakeholders, unifying your business. The platform (Infor OS) is referred to as the first layer
in the Infor “wedding cake.”
 User experience (UX) - Infor SoHo is the HTML5 user experience interface developed by Infor
Hook & Loop studio. Soho is named after the hip fashion district of NYC, which stands for “south
of Houston.”
 Collaboration - Solve old problems in new ways with Infor Ming.le™, a comprehensive platform
for social collaboration, business process improvement, and contextual analytics. From
collaborating alongside core systems like ERP or financials to “following” people and objects,
Infor Ming.le lets you get work done in ways you never thought possible. The result? You’ll be
equipped to capture vital corporate knowledge, speed response times, and stop reinventing the
wheel.
 Extensibility - Development doesn’t have to be an expensive headache. With Infor Mongoose,
you can quickly build and deploy an app for your business that’s optimized for use via desktop,

20 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 tablet, or smartphone. Rapidly develop robust enterprise capabilities based on your needs.
Whether you need an intuitive consumer-grade web interface or a high-productivity form,
Mongoose can help create the right experience with minimal coding. Producing feature-rich
applications that are automatically upgradeable and deployable on premise or in the cloud,
Mongoose is a low-cost, unified development platform.
 Application Programming Interface (API)/process integration - Easily integrate Infor and third-
party enterprise systems, while eliminating information silos with Infor Intelligent Open Network
(ION), Infor’s advanced middleware cloud platform. Infor ION provides the flexibility you need to
make an often-complex web of enterprise systems work together. It provides the long-term
sustainability to optimize return on technology investments. With ION, one application can be
upgraded, replaced, or even fail without taking the entire network down. Information is accessible
in real time, and system maintenance is less costly and complex.
 Artificial intelligence (AI) - AI + machine learning is here to help you work smarter. Infor Coleman
is a powerful artificial intelligence robot designed specifically for business users—built upon a
foundation of industry-specific data. At any given moment, it can help with executing tasks,
recommending NEXT-best sales offers, and even predicting maintenance issues and adjusting
production schedules accordingly. Named after the inspiring physicist and mathematician
Katherine Coleman Johnson, who together with her colleagues Dorothy Vaughan and Mary
Jackson, whose trail-blazing work helped NASA land on the moon, Coleman represents a giant
leap for artificial intelligence at scale. This story is covered in the film, Hidden Figures from 2016.
 Data management - Solving today’s enterprise and industry challenges requires big data. The
ability to capture data from across your enterprise—whether generated by disparate applications,
people, or IoT infrastructure–offers tremendous potential. Infor Data Lake deliver schema-on-
read intelligence along with a fast, flexible data consumption framework to enable new ways of
making key decisions. With leveraged access to your entire Infor ecosystem, you can start
capturing and delivering big data to power your NEXT generation analytics and machine learning
strategies.
 Business/people/asset graph - Graphs are back in vogue because they can model the real world
well. Infor has built the Infor Graph on top of the database, allowing users to understand the key
connections between people, assets, places and more. Coleman leverages Infor Graph heavily to
bring people and content intelligently together.
 Device readings - Infor IoT (internet of things) provides IoT sensor data ingestion, securely and at
scale, from anywhere. The IoT sensor data is synchronized with Infor M3 information, bringing
deeper context via blending of IoT data and asset transactional data, and delivering better
exception detection, workflows, reporting, data analytics and artificial intelligence. Infor IoT is
integrated with Amazon Web Services (AWS) IoT, which enables customers to take advantage of
AWS’s scalability, stability, and security.
 Security - Infor Federation Services (IFS) provides a central authentication and authorization for
multiple applications. The IFS application provides the feature to assign security roles and
accounting entities to users. IFS incorporates Active Directory Federation Services (ADFS), a
service which can be configured in Windows Server®.
 Documents - Infor Document Management (IDM) is an integration platform that enables you to
take advantage of document solutions already in use within your organization. IDM is used to
integrate your documents with your business processes and to provide a central repository for
them. Soft links are used, based on document metadata, to provide integration between your
documents and your Infor ERP solution. You can view a document from within the context of your
application or click a document link to retrieve the document from the central repository. IDM
supports the entire lifecycle of your business documents, from input through storage, retrieval,
and sharing.
 Digital compliancy – Infor Local.ly offers a set of services that run on a single platform with Infor
OS. These services extend the footprint of the core ERP, so that it can offer a global localization

21 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 platform that is updated in response to change. For example: banking, eAuditing, eInvoicing,
regulatory and statutory reporting, tax reporting, and trade statistics reporting.
 Search - Infor has improved its Enterprise Search capability, which is important for users to find
information. Adding content from Infor Nexus is key here and serves as both a formidable
challenge and benefit.

Infor OS vs. Ming.le

The platform was until 2013 referred to as Infor Ming.le. The platform was then rebuilt and extended and
called Infor Xi, including the multiple components covered above, where Infor Ming.le represents the
social collaboration component. From 2016 and forward the platform changed name to Infor OS.
Platform as a Service (PaaS) or Application Platform as a Service (aPaaS) or platform-based service is a
category of cloud computing services that provides a platform allowing customers to develop, run, and
manage applications without the complexity of building and maintaining the infrastructure typically
associated with developing and launching an app.
One marketing buzzword is Integration Platform as a Service (iPaaS) for a suite of cloud services
enabling customers to develop, execute and govern integration flows between disparate applications.
Under the cloud-based iPaaS integration model, customers drive the development and deployment of
integrations without installing or managing any hardware or middleware.

Video: Infor Document Management (IDM)

Click this link for a 4:14 minute introduction of IDM.

H&L Digital
Hook & Loop (H&L) Digital, Infor’s team of digital transformation experts, creates end-to-end solutions
that help enterprises outpace digital disruption and unlock growth opportunities.
At Infor, digital means the following:
 Automation - Digitizing a process or experience to make it more effective and impactful for the
connected-business age
 Differentiation - Rethinking business and creating new data-driven ways to deliver an elevated
experience, service, or product
Infor has taken an enterprise-out approach to digital transformation services that improves operations and
provides new experiences for both customers and employees. The three layers of this approach are:
 Software and platforms – At the core of any transformation program are the cloud applications
that power a business, for example the enterprise resource planning (ERP), and the standards-
based middleware in Infor Intelligent Open Network (Infor ION®).
 Data and analytics – Layered on top of the core applications are API management, insights from
Infor Dynamic Science Labs, and the elastic supercomputing power of Amazon Web Services
(AWS).
 H&L Digital – Rethinking the way a business works to make it more effective and impactful for the
connected age and create new data-driven ways to deliver an elevated experience, service, or
product.

22 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Infor H&L Digital approach
H&L Digital as a service includes:
 Strategize – building on insights from interactive workshops, H&L Digital creates a digital strategy
for the business and the brand. The process starts by defining a digital ecosystem and identifying
"quick wins" to prototype first. The development team collaborates with customer IT teams to
identify gaps in current architecture and create implementation roadmaps.
 Design – design-first thinking helps H&L Digital focus on the experience companies seek to
create for end users. By creating beautiful, intuitive experiences for users to reach their end goals
and work seamlessly in any environment, H&L Digital helps change the way employees engage
and collaborate and the way customers interact with the organization.
 Assemble – H&L Digital leverages disparate products and services, as well as existing
technologies, to power elements of the digital ecosystem, and performs a gap analysis to
understand the components required for integration and potential development to accelerate the
project.
 Run – H&L Digital manages SaaS services with company-specific technology solutions, and
provides services for continued evolution, support and maintenance.

CloudSuite Digital is a complete digital transformation solution provisioned in the cloud that includes
proven digital platform back-end capabilities, API tools, and an industrial strength application
development framework. By combining technologies that can transform your business with the expertise,
creativity, and outside-the-box thinking of our dedicated team of digital experts, it provides the foundation
for your digital transformation roadmap.

Video: Hook & Loop

Click this link for a 1:01 minute introduction of Hook & Loop.

23 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Infor strategy
Infor has a modern foundation for driving transformation and progress in enterprises across every
industry. It’s based on three main strategic directions:
 Multi-tenant cloud suites – Complete industry suites with integrations
 Cloud-proven technologies (Infor OS, IFS, thin client, security, Birst® business intelligence (BI),
extensibility, Mongoose)
 Single version of the software (incremental development, test automation, continuous delivery of
new features)
On top of the platform (Infor OS) there are five additional layers in Infor’s “wedding cake” (strategy):
Industry, Cloud, Network, Analytics, and Artificial Intelligence.

Industry
 Deep industry-specific functionality without complex, expensive customizations
 Industry best practices based on decades of experience and thousands of implementations
 Faster and simpler deployments with pre-packaged workflows, content, integrations, and
analytics
At Infor, we understand that one size fits all software doesn’t deliver the capabilities your business
requires. Infor software provides deep industry functionality without complex and expensive
customizations. Industry best practices are built in, along with pre-packaged workflows, content,
integrations, and analytics that make deployments simpler and faster, users more productive, and your
business more efficient from stem to stern. We power entire industries in the cloud. We are proud to count
among our customers:

Unique industry needs, purpose-built solutions

Cloud
 Highly secure, redundant availability zones via global cloud leader AWS
 Best-practice cloud operations for provisioning, self-service, monitoring, scalability, and business
continuity
 Lower cost of ownership, elastic computing power, hyper-scale, automatic upgrades, and
unlimited data lake

24 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Infor CloudSuite provides a cloud hosting environment that is agile, secure, highly flexible, and proven.
Currently serving over 71 million users, it meets the highest standards of security and reliability. With Infor
CloudSuite, you can:
 Support growth – The solution provides real-time data that is accessible anytime, anywhere,
making it easier to take advantage of new opportunities and grow your business.
 Ensure security and reliability – With data managed by global, cloud-hosting leaders, you benefit
from best-practice protocols in application, network, physical, and operations security, as well as
comprehensive monitoring on a highly secure infrastructure.
 Increase value – With preconfigured yet flexible, industry-leading business processes, you get the
deep functionality you need without complex customizations, making systems more adaptable
and providing a long-term platform for growth.
 Reduce total cost of ownership – Because data is no longer stored onsite, you can say goodbye
to expensive servers and hardware.
 Take advantage of continuous innovation – With cloud deployment, Infor handles on-going
upgrades for you so your systems always stay up to date. You’ll be able to fully benefit from
Infor’s deep commitment to and on-going investment in innovation.
Adoption of Infor CloudSuite continues to grow. Cloud is the way forward for customers who want access
to continuous innovation and systems that are secure, agile, adaptable, and cost-effective.

On-premise vs. cloud-based

The biggest difference between these two systems is how they are deployed. On-premise software is
installed locally, on a company's own computers and servers. Cloud-based software is hosted on the
vendor's servers and accessed through a web browser.

Single tenant (ST) vs. multi-tenant (MT) cloud

 Single tenant – A single instance of the software and supporting infrastructure serves a single
customer. With single tenancy, each customer has his or her own independent database and
instance of the software. There is no sharing happening with this option.
 Multi-tenant – A single instance of the software and its supporting infrastructure serves multiple
customers. Each customer shares the software application and a single database. Each tenant’s
data is isolated and remains invisible to other tenants.

Network
 Global commerce for 50,000 trading partners, including carriers, shippers, freight forwarders,
suppliers, and brand owners
 Real-time visibility of orders and inventory in transit or at rest for global omni-channel fulfillment
 Collaboration with trading partners for real-time orchestration of USD 1 trillion in annual trade
Businesses today compete on the strength of their business networks. With 80 percent of relevant data
now residing outside the typical company’s four walls, visibility is both a challenge and an imperative.
That’s why Infor runs the world’s largest cloud commerce platform, connecting 50,000 trading partners
and supporting USD 1 trillion in annual trade. Providing real-time visibility of orders and inventory in transit
or at rest for global omni-channel fulfillment, the Infor Nexus Commerce Network gives customers the
ability to effectively and consistently meet demanding customers’ expectations.
You can easily book and track shipments via the logistics network. You can improve vendor compliance
and assure supply via the supplier network. Invoices from enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems
are made available in the cloud to request supply chain finance. The network platform leverages the
power of the network platform for integration, collaboration and global insights.

25 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Video: Infor Nexus
Click this link for a 1:06 minute introduction of Infor Nexus.

Analytics
 Common analytics platform and data lake for Infor and third-party applications with automated
data refinement and common semantics
 Self-service analytics for end users with consumer grade visualization, data blending, and data
discovery tools
 Pre-packaged industry and role-based content, data surfaced automatically to users in context
Businesses have access to more information than ever before, but making it actionable is a challenge.
Infor helps you turn information into action with a common analytics platform and data lake for Infor and
third-party applications, including automated data refinement and common semantics. Self-service
analytics for end users is delivered via consumer-grade visualization, data blending, and data discovery
tools, while pre-packaged industry and role-based content increases productivity and adherence to best-
practice standards. Data surfaced automatically to users also supports immediate and proactive decision
making across the enterprise. Birst is a cloud business intelligence (BI) tool and business analytics
software platform that helps organizations understand and optimize complex processes in less time than
traditional solutions. Built with patented automation and machine learning technologies, Birst’s “networked
BI” approach connects teams and applications across the enterprise via a trusted network of analytics
and insights. You get a comprehensive view of your business to make smarter decisions. This unique
approach helps leading global companies improve profitability, reduce costs, increase revenues, and
transform the way they do business—often in 90 days or less.

End-to-end automation drives agility

Video: Birst
Click this link for a 2:00 minute introduction of Birst.

Artificial intelligence (A.I.)

 Infor Coleman – a science-driven, industry-aware digital assistant
 Automates repetitive tasks and provides instant access to information via voice or chat

26 Lesson 2: Infor OS
  An intelligent advisor that anticipates, advises, and derives insights from business data to allow
people to work smarter

Infor is using the power of artificial intelligence to re-imagine what the experience of using business
software can be. Beyond simply augmenting or automating your day-to-day work, Infor’s A.I., known as
Coleman, serves as a science-driven, industry-aware, intelligent assistant that anticipates, advises, and
derives insights from business data. By providing instant access to information via voice or chat and
relieving workers of repetitive tasks, Infor Coleman acts as a true business advisor and helps
stakeholders make the best, most informed decisions every time.

A.I. that maximizes human potential

Video: Coleman AI
Click this link for a 1:39 minute introduction of Coleman.

27 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Responsive design
Infor draws on decades of experience in many different industries to solve the problems that matter most
to your business. You face constant demands for greater speed, the need to cope with larger data
volumes, and the challenge of overcoming escalating complexity—all while containing costs.

Infor ION
Infor ION replaces traditional middleware solutions with a speedy, lightweight connective structure that
adds new levels of intelligence and sophistication to existing business technology. It’s faster to implement,
easier to use, and more economical to operate than any middleware-only solution. It also acts as an
engine that powers a unified combination of contextual business intelligence, common reporting and
analysis, streamlined workflow, and business monitoring—all delivered within a single, consistent
architecture.
With Infor ION, you can easily integrate your Infor and non-Infor enterprise systems, whether they’re on
premise, in the cloud, or both. A true integration platform as a service (iPaaS) platform, Infor ION is a
cloud-native application, built using HTML5 and open-source technologies. With everything in the
browser, no plug-ins are required to use Infor ION. Infor ION gives you an unparalleled breadth of unified,
powerful functions that all run simultaneously, along with integration services that combine with contextual
intelligence to deliver an intelligent, intuitive user interface.

Rich user experience

With Infor ION, you can:
 Easily integrate both Infor and third-party software applications.
 Create workflows and alerts that dramatically improve exception management.
 Design, standardize, monitor, and change business processes without IT involvement.
 Connect applications to the events in your business process.
28 Lesson 2: Infor OS
  Easily monitor your entire business and make better decisions, faster.
Infor ION drives the business process integration and event management capabilities of Infor OS, your
operating service for the future. Infor OS serves as the underlying foundation for your entire enterprise
ecosystem, ensuring that systems work seamlessly together, deliver business insights automatically, and
have the flexibility to support changing business and industry needs. The result is a connected, intelligent
network that automates, anticipates, predicts, and informs your stakeholders in everything they do.
Infor ION makes it easy to create whole new levels of functionality drawn on information from multiple
systems, so the value of your network is vastly greater than the sum of its parts. Infor ION comes pre-
packaged with a suite of technology connectors that drive and support the most popular business
software solutions on the market. At this point, Infor ION supports the following connection types:
 Infor Application Connector  Database Connector
 ION Messaging Service Connector  Message Queue Connector
 Infor Enterprise Connector  Web Service Connector
 Infor Cloud Connector  AnySQL Connector
 ION APIs  ION API Connector
 File Connector

Business object documents (BODs)

Business object documents (BODs) use an industry-wide message standard based on Open Applications
Group Integration Specification (OAGIS). They provide a common message architecture. The system of
record (SOR) can only be one master of certain data, in our case Infor M3. All BODs have pre-defined
structure, which includes a verb and a noun. For example, SyncCustomerPartyMaster.
There’s almost no integration challenge you can’t address with the lightweight, agile technologies in Infor
ION. It gives you the power to unify your business software environment and serves as the lingua franca
of your enterprise network. With BODs you will, without hard coding, avoid the monolithic blocks that were
common for ERP systems not so long ago.

Video: Infor ION

This is a link for a 2:12 minute introduction of Infor ION.

Extensibility
Extensibility can be made in four ways. The system is:
 Configurable, i.e. you can set the base parameters in the standard software. Examples of
configurations are: common settings, industry settings, homepages, toolboxes, enterprise search,
configurable lists and reports etc.
 Personalizable, i.e. you can tailor the solution to your individual needs. Examples of
personalizations are: menus, fields, composite screens, scripts, mashups, information viewers,
monitor widgets, contextual apps, document layouts, IDM links etc.
 Extensible, i.e. you may alter the existing business logic, build new modules. Examples of
extensions are: customer-defined fields, event-based alerts, ION workflows, event-driven custom
logic, Mongoose applications, etc.
 Interoperable, i.e. you can deploy the solution into existing infrastructure and processes.
Examples of integrations are: APIs, web services, file transfers, BOD extensions, electronic data
interchange (EDI) messages, etc.

29 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Design options are used to modify the look, feel, and flow of an application. The design can be made on
three main levels:
 End-user level
 Business analyst level
 Developer level

Extensibility levels

Homepages (end-user level)

Quickly develop enterprise capabilities tailored to your needs with the extensibility provided by Infor OS.
Whether you seek an intuitive consumer-grade web interface or a high-productivity form, Infor OS can
help create the right experience with minimal coding via desktop, tablet, or smartphone.

App Builder (business analyst level)

App Builder (built on ION APIs) is an application design tool to build basic apps using an intuitive
WYSIWYG (what-you-see-is-what-you-get) user interface. As part of the Infor Technology Suite, it can
also run within Infor OS and in the cloud as part of a multi-tenant offering. It is incorporated in and can be
run from within Infor Mongoose. App Builder apps are now actually Mongoose forms, so that if you want
to move beyond the capabilities of the apps you have in App Builder, you can open them in Mongoose
Design Mode and continue to develop them as Mongoose forms. App Builder offers drag and drop of user
interface (UI) components, a data service layer to connect with APIs, and an interaction wizard to set up
how the components of your app interact with each other. The App Hub is a repository where all
published and activated App Builder apps are stored and can be viewed/used.

Mongoose (developer level)

Infor Mongoose is a software development framework. It provides for rapid development of applications
that use relational databases. It allows users and customers to extend and adapt the application to a

30 Lesson 2: Infor OS
virtually unlimited degree to fit their business needs. Because of the architecture, development is done
with minimal coding. User and customer extensions are done with no or minimal programming, and these
changes can be upgraded. This, together with other factors such as the simplicity of installation and
configuration, support for a wide range of integrations, rich user interface for end-user productivity, an
automatic browser UI, multi-device dynamic layout capability, and cloud or on-premise deployment
options, make for unparalleled value. Mongoose is a core Infor technology, providing built-in support for
other Infor core technologies within Infor OS, like ION and Infor Ming.le.

Video: Mongoose
This is a link for a 1:47 minute introduction of Mongoose.

31 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Introducing Infor M3
Infor M3 is a complete ERP system and it delivers industry-leading functionality for the chemicals,
distribution, equipment, fashion, and food and beverage industries, as well as for a broad range of
process and discrete industrial manufacturing industries. Infor M3 offers ultimate flexibility in operations,
technology, and scale. Infor M3 supports single and multi-company organizations, multi-site, multi-
currency and empowers your organization to adapt to changing business needs. It is available in 24
languages and supports local regulatory and statutory requirements for 49 countries as standard.

Infor M3 at a glance
 1,200+ customers  6 focused industries
 In use in over 50 countries  Available in the cloud or on premise
 Over 300,000 users  70+ partners globally

Video: Infor M3
This is a link for a 2:10 minute introduction of Infor M3.

Built-in industry-specific experience

Infor M3 (and Infor M3 Cloud) offer multi-functional capabilities—combined with highly productive new
technologies to support mobility and team collaboration—developed over years of working with some of
the best companies in the world. Designed for medium to large national and global manufacturers,
distributors, and aftersales service providers, Infor M3 provides industry-specific process support and
functionality built on good practices, and an industry-leading user experience. Flexible deployment
options and Implementation Accelerators yield low total cost of ownership and short time to value.

Infor M3 industry focus

Infor M3 solution
For companies in the business to make, move, and maintain products, Infor M3 provides the tools they
need to manage their operations. With the full system, they can monitor transactions throughout their
organization, including manufacturing operations, supply chain activities, customer and supplier
relationships, warehouse and distribution processes and, financial management. Infor M3 consolidates all
these into one coherent view of operations.

32 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Infor M3 running on an Infor OS homepage

Infor M3 solution

The Infor M3 solutions runs on the Infor OS architecture (see Infor OS). The complete Infor M3 solution is
made up of several different software components, where some are unique for just a certain industry or
micro vertical. Some of these are additional (considered optional, others strategical), while others are
mandatory and will be common for all Infor M3 installations no matter for what industry. These
components are gathered under the product family named Infor M3 Core.
33 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Infor M3 Core contains the following components:
 Infor M3 Business Engine  Infor H5 Enterprise
 Infor M3 Financial Business Messages  M3 Foundation
 LifeCycle Manager  M3 Core Information Center
 ION Grid  Web Service Runtime
 Session Providers  Infor Enterprise Collaborator
 Grid Database Connectivity  BOD Processor
 Event Hub  Workflow Executor
 Event Analytics  M3 Adaptation Kit
 M3 UI Adapter  M3 Metadata Publisher

History of Infor M3 and the user experience

To better understand Infor M3, it’s somewhat of interest to know the history of the product and the
companies behind it:
 1985: The company Intentia was founded.
 1985-1999: The product was called Movex and the interface was referred to as “green screens”
or “5250 emulations.” The interface was based on RPG programming standards. All ERP
systems looked similar during this era: source code, display definitions, printer file definitions, etc.
It was all stored on one single server, AS/400, which later became the iSeries.
 1998: The IBM OS/2 graphic user interface (GUI) was developed. It had its very own icons, using
the corporate image of a pyramid. There was a Windows 3.1 version as well, but it never really
took off.
 1999: Movex Explorer, a screen scraper, was introduced. It took the 5250 emulation and applied
a nice-looking layer on top of it. This was a fat client, i.e. every single panel for every program
had to be installed on the client (PC). It was prone to dumping and it was relatively slow. But it
looked the part at the time. A java version (NextGen) of Movex was introduced parallel to the
RPG version (ThisGen).
 2001: Workplace, including NetExtension to display Movex (version 12), was introduced (Java).
This was the first thin client, i.e. no installation on the client was needed. It was robust and fast,
but pale and white. Up to version 12, the business engine (BE) and version numbering were
synchronized.
 2005: Lawson acquires Intentia. Movex was rebranded Lawson M3. For marketing reasons, the
version standard was changed to [year.version]. So, in 2005, version 5.1 was (re)released,
followed by 5.2 a bit later. Underneath, the BE was still 12.
 2007: Smart Client brings back color to the canvas and personalizations are introduced. A fat/thin
client, about 21 megabytes of software needed to be installed on the client. It was also the joint
user interface for Lawson product lines M3 (Make-Move-Maintain) and S3 (Source-Staff-Serve).
A little tidbit is that Lawson beat Microsoft® with the concept of widgets. At the time, Microsoft
was launching Vista®, and we all know how that went. The product version is 7.1 (BE 13).
 2008: Lawson Smart Office (LSO) was introduced. It’s the same type of interface as Smart Client,
but with a better and deeper integration with Microsoft products such as Outlook®.
 2011: Infor acquires Lawson. The product version is 10.1 (BE 14).
 2013: Infor Smart Office SoHo (ISO). Infor’s thinking was to emulate the simplicity of the Google®
homepage. Yet behind all that white, a lot of complex algorithms were hiding. This was done with
the help of Hook & Loop. The product version is 13.1 (BE 15.1.1). The Infor Ming.le foundation
was introduced, a new platform for all Infor’s ERP systems. Introducing proper social
collaboration, but also alerts and tasks. BODs or business object documents come into the
picture, making it possible to have loosely connected software. Infor introduces a new HTML
interface, H5, a thin client that enabled the ERP system to run on a smart phone (iOS or Android)
34 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 or a tablet. It can be run stand-alone or within Infor Ming.le. It becomes the common interface for
the ERP systems.
 2015: Xi platform, a bundling of previously separate products into one single solution. It is also
referred to a PaaS. The cloud (single tenant) solution is introduced. The product version is 13.2
(BE 15.1.2) and 13.3 (BE 15.1.3).
 2016: Infor OS is introduced, a revamp of the Xi platform.
 2017: Multi-tenant cloud (BE 16). For multi-tenant cloud edition (MT CE) customers, there is a
continuous update cycle (M3 CE Release Notes). Parallel, the last product version was 13.4 (BE
15.1.4.

Year Version BE Interfaces

1994 Movex 8 8 5250, GUI

1997 Movex 9 9 5250, GUI, Movex Explorer
1998 Movex 10 10 5250, Movex Explorer
1999 Movex 11 11 5250, Movex Explorer, Workplace
2000 MIA 11 11 5250, Movex Explorer, Workplace
2001 Movex 12 12 5250, Workplace
2005 M3 5.2 12 Workplace, Smart Client, Smart Office
2007 M3 7.1 13 Smart Office
2010 M3 10.1 14 Smart Office
2013 M3 13.x 15 Smart Office, Infor Ming.le, Infor H5 (thin client)
2015 M3 13.x 15 Xi platform, Infor H5
2017 M3 13.4 15 Infor OS (Core, Infor H5 etc. incorporated)
2017 M3 Cloud Edition (MT) 16 Infor OS (thin client)
Version versus business engine (BE)

Managing complexity
Complexity is an inescapable part of today’s highly competitive business environment. When effectively
using Infor M3 in business management, you can gain a powerful competitive edge. Infor M3 helps you
manage your network of people, technology, activities, information, and resources efficiently and
economically. You’ll be able to make better decisions, boost operational excellence, and deliver
exceptional levels of customer fulfillment.
 Global financial visibility - Get a real-time, integrated view of financials across your global
business, so you can predict, manage, and report results confidently with Infor M3. Streamline
your closing process with access to consistent, accurate information derived from a single,
integrated system. You’ll also have the necessary tools to comply with evolving international
accounting standards such as US Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) and
International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), and the ability to create financial reports and
management reports to make better, more confident business decisions.
 Game-changing analytics - Combined advanced analytics technology and pre-packaged,
industry-specific content makes Infor M3 a powerful tool in developing actionable insight and
minimizing risk. You can enhance that power by adding Infor M3 Analytics, a solution that offers
industry-specific, prebuilt reports and dashboards for immediate access to users, allowing
managers to get the necessary detailed information and analysis to effectively plan and decide.
 Agile supply chains - Infor M3’s advanced supply chain practices help you create and control
demand-driven supply networks that are resilient to disruptions. Take advantage of Infor M3's
global, multi-site enterprise planning capabilities to synchronize supply processes—lowering
inventory, optimizing resource utilization, and improving customer service. You also have the
option to integrate your supplier network beyond the four walls of your enterprise by leveraging

35 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Infor Nexus. Additionally, you can access Infor M3's supply chain execution capabilities—
including warehousing, transport management, value-added services, and cross-docking—to
optimize distribution, improve delivery performance, and lower fulfillment costs.
 Fast, secure deployment - Infor Implementation Accelerators (IAs) are a set of preconfigured
industry solutions allowing you to implement Infor M3 quickly, with highly focused, pre-built
content based on industry good practices and expertise, delivering faster results for a quicker
return on your investments. As your business changes and grows, it’s easy to adapt the scope
and scale of your Infor M3 solution and integrate it more fully with other applications.
 Service-centric business model - Many companies are making the transition from product-
centric to service-centric business models; now you can provide quality sales and aftersales
support using Infor M3’s capabilities, including service contracts, mobile field service, equipment
service and rental management, and depot-based repair functionality.

Discovering the power of extensibility

Infor M3 utilizes the Infor OS technology platform, which enables M3 to address your business needs
beyond a traditional ERP system. With Infor M3, you get:
 Consumer-grade user experience - Your employees will appreciate how Infor M3 balances
simplicity, speed, security, reliability, and performance to give them a smart, intuitive, flexible, and
easy-to-use experience. Every aspect of the solution - from design to use in production - has
been improved, modernized, and simplified.
 Web-based homepages - OS homepages enable you to create role-based views across your
applications and put business intelligence at the center of how users work. With customizable
role-based homepages, your employees can easily find the information they need on a single
screen with objects such as key performance indicators, alerts, posts, tasks, and documents.
Homepages allow for quicker and easier decision-making across the entire solution and provide
fast access to the relevant data.
 Social business - The Infor OS user experience takes collaboration to new heights for Infor M3
users with social business technologies, via Infor Ming.le. You can create a centralized space for
communications, ensuring that information is accessible and auditable. Infor OS embeds in-
context business intelligence into the user experience that supports contextually aware event-
driven operations. You can automatically see relevant information in real time, when you need it,
to help you make better decisions and complete tasks.
 Mobile access - No matter whether you’re working in the office, at your home office, or from the
road, you can always securely and reliably access your systems, information, and processes via
Infor’s mobile applications. This is true example of responsive design.
 Integration and workflow - Infor OS includes Infor ION®, which enables you to seamlessly
integrate Infor M3 with other Infor and non-Infor-based systems. You can integrate and manage
data and information workflow, no matter where the data resides or what application created it.
Your users can receive tasks, and alerts on changes and events across the enterprise—and
wherever they are - through support for mobile devices.
 Document management - Infor OS also includes Infor Document Management (IDM) which is a
central repository for important business documents and images. You can add and edit
documents from any source; capture text from paper documents—whether machine or hand-
printed - into digital formats; you can also create business processes around your documentation.
By aligning your content within your core ERP system, you can bring context to the information
your people use, without the need to integrate or customize a third-party solution.
 Business intelligence - With Birst BI, you get a fully integrated, state-of-the art BI platform for all
types of financial and operational analytics and performance management. Infor Birst is in use by
customers around the world. Together with Infor M3 Analytics, the Birst BI solution provides key
strategic and tactical information to senior executives and users at all levels on key performance

36 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 indicators (KPIs) to enable them to steer your business. It goes beyond traditional BI to provide
predictive analytics.
 Flexible deployment - You can deploy Infor M3 in the cloud as a service for a subscription, or on
premise with a traditional perpetual license model.

Infor M3 Cloud
Infor M3 Cloud delivers software as a service, offering complete flexibility in operations, technology, and
scale. As a multi-site, multi-country, and multi-company ERP solution, Infor M3 Cloud empowers your
organization to easily adapt to changing business needs. Based on Infor M3 Cloud, Infor’s industry-
specific, Infor CloudSuite solutions provides robust capabilities in managing complex mixed-mode
manufacturing and distribution-intensive environments, with the agility to make quick adjustments at any
time. Infor M3 Cloud is deployed and provisioned on Amazon Web Services (AWS), providing you with a
secure environment and a low total cost of ownership (TCO).
Transform your business with Infor M3 Cloud:
 A secure path for the future - Future-proof your organization with proven industry functionality and
continual development that focuses on evolving industry needs.
 Low TCO - A shared infrastructure lowers your TCO by drastically reducing operating expenses,
significantly cutting implementation time and costs, and eliminating the need for costly on-premise
maintenance.
 No more upgrades - A single version of the software, maintained by Infor in the cloud, means you
don’t need to deal with major upgrades. We inject new functionality into the business engine
monthly as documented in the release notes.
 Fast access to new innovations - Major new functionality is delivered on a regular basis, but not
forced on customers. You can test the new functionality in the safety of your test environment and
toggle it on in your production environment once you’re satisfied with the new capabilities.
 Flexibility and scalability - Easily and effectively meet the evolving needs of your business with a
high degree of scalability for resources and computing processing power.
 Security - Security is a major concern that increases both costs and risks for many businesses.
Many companies recognize that it’s more secure to run in the cloud, leveraging the investments
and expertise of organizations that have significant web services security experience, such as
Infor and AWS.
 Best-in-class resilience - You’ll get peace of mind at an affordable cost with Infor M3 Cloud’s
highly fault-tolerant infrastructure that couples with backup regimes to allow for a very low
recovery point objective (RPO).
 Openness to support your needs - Take advantage of support for third-party integrations with
Infor M3 Cloud’s modern and secure tooling, such as standard and custom BODs and APIs.

37 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 On-premise vs. cloud/SaaS

Innovative new business models are disrupting many markets, and as a direct result, companies are
looking to technology to support these new ways of doing business. The cloud offers a flexible platform
from which you can engage in a continual digital transformation to help support business growth,
differentiation, and the agility to transform business models and processes. A cloud platform also
simplifies the task of integrating new businesses and onboarding users. You’ll have the flexibility and
scalability to meet your changing needs, whether you’re adding additional users or increasing processing
capacity to meet peaks in demand for computing power. Ever-changing regulatory and statutory reporting
requirements can create increased risks of penalty fines and even prison in many countries for non-
compliance. As a result, it’s critical your company stay up to date with all compliance requirements. New
functionality in Infor M3 Cloud is made available monthly, making it much easier to ensure you’re on the
latest version of country localizations, so you can remain compliant.
By switching to Infor M3 Cloud’s software as a service (SaaS) distribution model, you’re moving from a
capital expenditure-based model to an operating expense-based model, which offers several advantages:
 You’ll avoid having to make capital investment decisions every few years for major upgrades.
 Freed-up capital can be used for other investments for growing your business, such as for
acquisitions or for new warehouses, equipment, stores, and more.
 SaaS’s predictable operating expenses make annual IT budgeting easier, while also simplifying
IT planning and budgeting for acquisitions.
 You pay only for what you use—you’re not paying for infrastructure and capacity that you don’t
need—so, IT expenses are tied closer to sales revenue.
 Pay as you go allows you to smooth out the cash flow while taking advantage of the latest
technology and functionality.
 No more expensive IT infrastructure upgrades can help reduce risk and disturbance to the
business.
With Infor M3 Cloud, you’ll be able to free up resources for other tasks, allowing your IT department to
deliver more value to your management team and end users. You can focus on your core competence
and let Infor and AWS manage your system. Infor M3 Cloud can also easily and dynamically scale
processing capacity up and down for peaks and troughs in computing demand. So, whether your
business responds to seasonal fluctuations or unpredictable changes, you don’t need to worry about
scrambling for additional resources or having to figure out what to do with surplus resources.

38 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Additionally, AWS and Infor have the resources, skills, and experience to manage security better than you
could afford to do in-house. Each customer has their own database in the cloud, so your data is
completely segregated from other cloud tenants.
Whether your company is running a legacy ERP solution and you have yet to engage in digital
transformation, or just getting started, you’re likely struggling to find skilled resources to support your
aging, in-house systems. It can be a challenge to ensure technical expertise is always on-site or nearby in
case there’s an issue with your mission-critical, on-premise applications and systems. Moving to Infor M3
Cloud means you don’t need this level of expertise on call 24x7 within your organization, as Infor takes
over responsibility for ensuring your solution is available.

Security in the cloud

The importance and urgency of data security and privacy can’t be overstated. In 2017 some of the largest
data breaches in history took place, while the direct cost of resolving a data breach averaged $3.62
million. But the direct costs are a trifle compared to the incalculable, lasting brand, reputation, and
business damage that a data security incident can cause. How well are you managing your risks? Is
moving to the cloud safer than keeping your data on premise?

Video: Security in the cloud

This is a link for a 3:23 minute introduction of Infor CloudSuite security.

39 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Introducing Infor’s deployment method
Infor’s deployment method is a single, unified implementation methodology used for all cloud, hosted, and
on-premise Infor implementation projects. This methodology, which fully embraces all Infor solutions,
represents the accumulated knowledge of more than 5,000 implementations and ten years of ongoing
research and development. Infor deployment method has two major components: the project
management process and the implementation process.

Infor deployment method

The project management process prescribes the processes, practices, and rigor for consistent execution
of project management on all Infor projects. This process includes three stages: initiation and planning;
execution, monitoring, and control; and closure.
The implementation process has five phases:
 Inception
 Elaboration
 Construction
 Transition
 Optimize
Implementation disciplines span the five phases and include guidance, activity, tasks, and work products
to support the deployment. The final phase, optimize, is finite, contractually agreed upon, post go-live
work where the ownership and responsibility for the system is transitioned to the customer.

Key benefits
Infor’s deployment method uses a solution-based approach to implementations, rather than a product-
based approach. This delivers six key benefits:

40 Lesson 2: Infor OS
1. World-class project management
Infor deployment method is tightly aligned with the Project Management Institute’s (PMI’s) project
management body of knowledge. As a result, it follows globally recognized best practices for project
management, reducing implementation risk and increasing the probability of success.

2. Milestone-driven
Each project phase ends with a milestone; a project phase cannot end until very specific exit criteria are
met. This provides clear visibility into the overall project and milestones for achievement.

3. Vertical-specific content
Infor deployment method is based on a vertical industry-specific principle, rather than a “one-size-fits-all”
approach. Infor provides industry/vertical-specific solutions, along with vertical-specific methodology
guidance referenced by Implementation Accelerator views, to deliver pre-configured industry solutions
and industry-specific business requirements, business flows, and test scripts.

4. Process modeling and “action labs”

Infor has adopted the concept of “action labs,” which allows us to de-couple the pure business process
defining work from the more tactical tasks—for example, determining what data values with which to
populate a system. This means we will run a series of business process modeling workshops, i.e., order
to cash, and then will separately conduct a highly focused customer master action lab to rapidly define the
values for customer codes, status, reporting, etc. With this approach, a client’s future state business
processes can be defined quickly and efficiently.

5. Value realization
Infor deployment method delivers initial support for value realization, which means that specific value
targets that are identified during the presales process are carried forward into the actual implementation.
This results in implementation projects that deliver rapid, real, and quantifiable value to the customer.

6. Iterative and incremental prototyping

By breaking phases up into more manageable four-to-six-week iterations, or sprints, we can get working
software in front of the customer faster than with traditional implementation approaches.

41 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Introducing Implementation Accelerators
Implementation Accelerators (IAs) are a set of preconfigured, yet flexible, industry solutions based on the
latest version of the Infor application suites, sometimes referred to as the “last-mile features.” IAs are
designed to deliver leading industry application processes in a cloud-based technology, or on premise, for
Infor M3 specific industries. IAs provide an implementation solution that:
 Brings leading industry practices
 Reduces total cost of ownership (TCO)
 Lowers project risks
 Delivers a predictable outcome

IA vs. a traditional implementation approach

The objective of an IA solution is to speed up the implementation by deploying, among other things,
industry content, process flows, detailed process description/test scripts and a pre-configured application
database as a foundation; these deliverables provide a more advanced start point to kick-start the
implementation and support all members of the project team throughout and beyond the implementation
phases. The IA is tightly aligned with our Infor deployment method which in turn provides best practices
and guidance for successful project management and implementation services.
IAs are an integral part of Infor’s value proposition, particularly for the Infor CloudSuites, as these
solutions are designed to help speed the time to value. The IA is intended as the first step, or the final
step in an on-going process of continuous improvement. By offering a diverse array of industry and
product-based options, you will be able to fast-track your return on investment.

IA benefits
Many customers over the years have asked the question: “How do other customers in our industry do
this?” Infor IAs package best practices in a repeatable, directive implementation approach to get you up
and running on a core solution quickly with predictable costs and defined scope.
 Don’t re-invent the wheel – Pre-configured best practices allow you to leverage proven best
practices to standardize processes using industry best practices.

42 Lesson 2: Infor OS
  What you see is what you get – Clearly together with the customer chosen and defined
implementation scope with predictable project duration and costs.
 Get empowered, not constrained – Full flexibility to reconfigure and adapt the solution to meet
your unique business requirements where it delivers a competitive advantage.
 Change the way your organization works – Infor Ming.le, ION and Infor Reporting enable your
entire organization with NEXT generation user experiences that push relevant information to the
end user and deliver actionable insights and collaboration.
 Leverage and extend – By providing a modern ERP solution complete with Infor ION, you can
easily optimize and extend your investment by extending your ERP investment with integrated
complementary applications from our portfolio of best-in-class applications.
In short, the IAs are designed to jump start your ERP modernization project by delivering a best practice
solution at a lower cost to deliver rapid time to value and mitigate risks. The IA solution contains the
essential building blocks for a successful cloud or on-premise implementation project.

Video: Infor CloudSuite and IA solutions

This is a link for a 4:15 minute introduction of the IA solution.

Video: Navigation tour in IA for Equipment

This is a link for a 9:06 minute navigation tour within IA for Equipment.

Mavim
Mavim is partnered with Infor to produce Implementation Accelerators - preconfigured application suites
that are designed to speed time to value for customers across sixteen different industry verticals.
Implementation Accelerators are pre-fabricated solutions designed to significantly reduce the time, risk
and cost of core industry application implementations, both in the cloud or on premise. Each
Implementation Accelerator employs a proprietary methodology, known as the Infor Deployment Method,
which provides a unified approach to the delivery of products and services by utilizing a prescriptive,
continuous process that drives predictable results while reducing overall risk and cost. The tool used is
internally referred to as Infor Business Process Modeler (IBPM).

43 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Check your understanding
Infor OS is your cloud operating platform for the future, designed to bring productivity,
business processes and artificial intelligence together, and offer operational insights that
were never accessible to a business before. Match each of the following Infor OS areas
with its component. The possible components are: Infor Coleman, Infor Data Lake, Infor
Document Management, Infor ION Enterprise Search, Infor Federation Services, Infor
Graph, Infor ION, Infor IoT, Infor Local.ly, Infor Ming.le, Infor SoHo, and Mongoose.

Area Component

A.I. 
 Infor Coleman

API/Process integration 
 Infor Data Lake

Business/people/asset graph 
 Infor Document Management

Collaboration 
 Infor ION Enterprise Search

Data management 
 Infor Federation Services

Device readings 
 Infor Graph

Digital compliancy 
 Infor ION

Documents 
 Infor IoT

Extensibility 
 Infor local.ly

Search 
 Infor Ming.le

Security 
 Infor SoHo

User experience (UX) 

 Mongoose

44 Lesson 2: Infor OS
45 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Infor has taken an enterprise-out approach to digital transformation services that improves
operations and provides new experiences for both customers and employees. Which are
the three layers of this approach? Select all that apply.
a) Artificial intelligence

b) Data and analytics

c) Digital compliancy

d) Hook & Loop digital

e) Process integration

f) Software and platforms

Name the five Infor strategy layers on top of the platform (Infor OS), and describe each
layer’s three key messages.

1: ______________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

2: ______________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

3: _______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

4: _______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

5: _______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

46 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 _________________________________________________________________________

In which four ways can extensibility be made within the system (Infor M3)? Describe each
option and give examples.

1: _______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

2: _______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

3: _______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

4: _______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

47 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 The Infor M3 solution runs on the Infor OS architecture (Infor OS). The complete Infor M3
solution is made up of several different software components, where some are unique for
just a certain industry or micro vertical, while others are mandatory and will be common for
all Infor M3 installations no matter for what industry. Under which product family name are
these components gathered in Infor M3?

a) ION Grid

b) Infor M3 Business Engine

c) Infor M3 Core

d) Infor M3 Foundation

e) Infor Xi H5 Enterprise

f) LifeCycle Manager

Which statement is true regarding Infor M3 Cloud?

a) No TCO

b) No new innovations

c) No more upgrades

d) No security needs

The final phase in Infor’s deployment method is finite, contractually agreed upon, post go-
live work where the ownership and responsibility for the system is transitioned to the
customer. Which is the final phase in Infor’s deployment method?

a) Construction

b) Elaboration

c) Inception

d) Optimize

e) Transition

48 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 “The objective is to speed up the implementation by deploying, among other things,
industry content, process flows, detailed process description/test scripts and a pre-
configured application database as a foundation; these deliverables provide a more
advanced start-point to kick-start the implementation and support all members of the
project team throughout and beyond the implementation phases.”
What are we referring to?

a) Built-in industry experience

b) Hook & Loop digital

c) Infor’s deployment method

d) Implementation Accelerators

e) Mongoose software development framework

f) Responsive design

Refer to Appendix B for answers to the Check your understanding questions.

49 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Lesson 2: Infor OS
Estimated time
3 hours

Learning objectives
After completing this lesson, you will be able to explain the main Infor OS components and how to use
them. In this lesson, you will:
 Describe how to use Infor OS homepages.
 Describe how to use Infor Ming.le.
 Describe how to retrieve information via Infor ION and homepage widgets.
 Describe how to connect images and view documents using Infor Document Management.
 Describe how to extend your user experience.

Topics
 Infor OS homepages
 Infor Ming.le
 Infor ION
 Infor UX

50 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Infor OS homepages
Homepages provide you with a high-level view of critical areas of concern. Homepages are designed to
give you insights, call exceptions to your attention, and provide direct links to the areas within applications
where you do your daily work. Homepages provide role-based pages with widgets containing information
from multiple enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems in one place and they enable you to work by
exception, via intelligent alerts and monitors. Homepages are highly configurable, so that you can set up
a page that is tailored to your needs.
A widget is a small, single-purpose application that provides quick, at-a-glance information or quick
access to simple interactive functions. Widgets are simpler and faster to access than full applications that
may provide more functionality. You can configure, tag and share widgets and pages with other users
through the Widget Catalog and the Page Catalog.

Infor OS homepages

Video: Homepages overview

This is a link for a 3:33 minute homepages overview.

Publishing widgets and homepages

If you have administration authority, you can publish widgets and homepages to be available to others.
You can also edit a published configuration and make any necessary update. Note: You can attach tags
to your widgets and homepages once they are published so you can find them more easily in the Widget
Catalog or the Page Catalog.

51 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Navigation
Refer to Appendix D for support in navigating within Infor M3.

Exercise 2.1: Log in to Infor OS and launch Infor M3

In this exercise, you will log in to Infor OS, review the Infor M3 Training homepage, and
launch Infor M3 from the course homepage.

Before you begin: Your instructor will assign user account logins and passwords from
Appendix A of this Training Workbook.

Exercise steps

Verify you are logged in to the Training Desktop. If not, log in following instructions provided
by your course instructor.
Note: If you are taking this course as self-directed learning, follow the instructions on the
course Lab On Demand screen.

Part 1: Log in to Infor OS

1. Double-click the Infor OS shortcut on your training desktop. The Infor Sign On window opens.
2. Type [your assigned user ID] in the User Name field.
3. Type [your assigned password] in the Password field.
4. Click the Sign On button. The Infor M3 Training homepage displays. Note: The homepage
provides the following widgets:
 M3 Menu
 M3 Environment
 Education blog

For best results during this course, you will need to expand both your training
desktop and the window in which Infor applications display. This ensures the
content displays properly.
 Click the Fit to Window icon (resembles a monitor with a diagonal arrow) in the
Skytap toolbar. This expands the Skytap training desktop to a full-screen
display.
 Click the arrow tab at the bottom of the Skytap toolbar to hide the Skytap
toolbar.
 Click once on the Infor M3 Training homepage banner.
 Press F11. This expands the window to a full-screen display.

52 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Part 2: Start an Infor M3 program from the Infor M3 Training homepage
1. Click the Toggle Search icon (magnifying glass) in the M3 Menu widget. The Search field
displays.
2. Type Customer Order in the Search field. A list of programs displays below the Search field.
Notes:
 In this step you typed a partial program name in the Search field. If you type the exact
program name it will open the program directly.
 You can also type the program code (OIS100) in the Search field to open the program
directly.
3. Click Customer Order. Open from the list. Panel A displays.

4. Click the Menu button in the Infor M3 header to collapse the menu.

5. Click the Context Apps button in the Infor M3 header to collapse the Context Apps.

Part 3: Start an Infor M3 program from an open program

Note: These steps only apply when an Infor M3 program is open.
1. Press Ctrl+R. The Search and Start dialog box opens.
2. Type MMS001 in the Search and Start field.
3. Click the OK button. The Item. Open (MMS001) program opens. Panel B displays.

Part 4: Access the Infor M3 Training homepage

1. Click the Infor icon any time to return to the Infor M3 Training homepage. Your programs
remain open.
Notes: There are two additional ways to access the Infor M3 Training homepage:

 Click the App Menu icon and click the Homepages icon . Your programs remain open.
 Click the Close (X) button to close each open program. The Infor M3 Training homepage
automatically displays.

Exercise 2.2: Import Infor OS homepages

In this exercise, you will import and review the homepages prebuilt for this course.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Import homepages via the Page Catalog

2. Click the ellipsis button on the homepage banner. A menu displays.

53 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 3. Click the Page Catalog menu item. The Page Catalog window opens.
4. Click the Tags drop-down arrow in the Refine by menu to the left. A search field displays.
5. Type ITS in the Search field.
6. Press Enter. Two prepared homepages display for this course:
 Example (ITS)
 Introducing the Solution (ITS)
7. Click the plus sign (+) button for the Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage.
8. Click the plus sign (+) button for the Example (ITS) homepage.
9. Click the X Close button. The Example (ITS) homepage displays.

Part 2: Establish an IDM connection

1. Click the App menu icon. A menu displays.
2. Click the Document Management menu item. Infor Document Management (IDM) opens.
3. Click the Infor logo button in the top left corner of the screen. The homepages display again.
4. Click the ellipsis button on the homepage banner. A menu displays.
5. Hover with the mouse over Advanced. A sub-menu displays.
6. Click Refresh. The homepage is refreshed and IDM information now displays. Note: If images
are saved in IDM (not on a web server) you need to establish a connection to IDM each time you
sign in for the images to display.
7. Click the drop-down arrow to the right of the homepage title on the left side of the homepage
banner. A menu displays showing all three homepages connected to your user. Additionally, each
connected homepage is represented in the homepage banner as a circle in the center of the
homepage banner. This is the page navigator. You can rearrange the order of pages using the
My Pages window which is accessed from the ellipsis button in the page taskbar.

Part 3: Remove a homepage

1. Click the Introducing the Solution (ITS) circle in the page navigator. The Introducing the
Solution (ITS) homepage displays.
2. Click the ellipsis button in the homepage banner. A menu displays.
3. Click the Remove Page menu item. The message, “Are you sure that you want to remove the
page ‘Introducing the Solution (ITS)’? This page will still be available in the Page Catalog”.
4. Click the Yes button. The Example (ITS) homepage displays.

Part 4: Review the Example (ITS) homepage

1. Review the Example (ITS) homepage. Six widgets are configured for this homepage:
 Posts: These are comparable to Twitter. This is where your Infor Ming.le posts will end
up. You follow people and other people follow you. Infor Ming.le is the social collaborator
embedded in Infor OS.
 M3 Environment: This tells you which company and division you have signed in to.
 M3 Application Messages: This is the system talking back via standard, pre-defined
messages.

54 Lesson 2: Infor OS
  Tracing Planned Purchase Orders: This is the system talking back via user-defined
monitors. Compare this to an alert widget in the previous interface Infor Smart Office.
 Action Messages Warehouse 210: This is a user-defined online report to track action
messages generated by the material requirements planning (MRP). Use the search icon
to filter on specific messages, for example A1 (release and reschedule in).
 Zero Cost Items: This is the system talking back via user-defined monitors. In this case,
tracing new items that have no unit cost (yet) in facility B01.
2. Click the ellipsis button in the Tracing Planned Purchase Orders widget. A menu displays.
3. Click the About menu item. An About information dialog box opens. Note: This is an M3
Information Monitor widget.
4. Click the Close button. The Example (ITS) homepage displays again.
5. Click Any problem(s) with planned purchase orders in the Tracing Planned Purchase
Orders widget. The Planned Purchase Order. Open (PPS170/B) program opens in the Infor M3
thin client, Infor H5.
6. Review the information displayed. Note: The monitor uses an Infor ION Enterprise Search drill-
back, only revealing the planned purchase orders that have an error message code. The default
Infor H5 color (task bar and menu bar) is grey.
7. Click TOOLS > User Settings in the program menu bar. The User Settings window opens.
8. Click to select the following check boxes:
 Display label tooltips
 Display help tooltips
Note: Activating these tooltips displays additional information when hovering with the mouse over
a label or a field.
9. Verify that the Auto-switch to Homepages check box is selected.
10. Click the Theme field drop-down arrow. A list displays.
11. Click the Amber list item.
12. Click the SAVE button. The Planned Purchase Order. Open (PPS170/B) program displays
again, and now the header is amber.
13. Review the information displayed in the Context Apps. In default mode, is organized by two
expandable areas:
 Context Viewer
 Related Information
Note: The right side of the page is a collapsible section that hosts several context and utility
applications. Context apps are lightweight applications that communicate with the application
frame to present contextual information to the user. These applications subscribe to information
that is published by the application frame and display relevant content only when it is available.
Images and process documents display in the Related Information app.
14. Click the Context Apps icon to collapse it.
15. Click the Close (X) button in the program menu bar. The Example (ITS) homepage displays
again.
Note: You can close an Infor M3 program three ways:
 Clicking the Close (X) button

55 Lesson 2: Infor OS
  Pressing F3 (Exit)
 Pressing F12 (Previous) from the entry screen
16. Click App menu icon. A menu displays.
17. Click the Infor M3 menu item. Infor H5 start pages display. Start pages in this training
environment have been disabled, and you see a default page. Note: The first application
indicates the entry point when launching Infor OS, in our case Homepages. You may overrule this
if you primarily work with another application. You can reach the ERP system from a homepage
several ways. You can for example use:
 The Infor M3 app in the App menu
 A saved bookmark in the M3 Menu widget
 A task in the M3 Information Monitor widget
 A notification in the M3 Application Messages widget
 A task in the Tasks widget (ION Workflow)
 A task in the Alerts widget (ION Monitors)
 A document in the IDM Documents widget
 A mashup (Mashup SDK)
 A Mongoose extension.
 A bookmark available via Shared content (Infor Ming.le)
 A hit via Infor ION Enterprise Search (#hashtags)
 A link via Business intelligence (Birst)
 A link via Paparazzi (Infor Ming.le)
 A link via Streams (Infor Ming.le)
18. Click the Menu button in the Infor H5 page banner. The Infor H5 menu displays on the left side
of the screen.
19. Click PUR – Procurement > POP – Purchase Order Processing > Planned Purchase Order.
Open. The Planned Purchase Order. Open (PPS170/B) program opens.
20. Click the Menu button in the Infor H5 banner. The menu collapses.
21. Press CTRL+R (or CTRL+S). A Search and Start dialog box opens.
22. Type planned purchase in the Search and Start field. Note: You can also search for a program
using the program identification, for example PPS170.
23. Click the OK button. A list of results display.
24. Click the Planned Purchase Order. Open list item. The Planned Purchase Order. Open
(PPS170/B) program opens in a new tab.
25. Click the Close (X) button in the program menu bar until the default Infor H5 start page displays
again.
26. Click the App menu icon. A menu displays.
27. Click the Homepages menu item. The Example (ITS) homepage displays again.

56 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Exercise 2.3: Create an Infor OS homepage
In this exercise, you will create a new homepage and add widgets to it.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Create a new homepage

1. Click the ellipsis icon on the homepage banner. A menu displays.
2. Click the New Page menu item. The New Page window opens. Note: The current configuration
allows you to have up to five homepages.
3. Type [your assigned user ID] Homepage in the Title field.
4. Type Homepage created in exercise 2.3. in the Description field.
5. Click the Page color drop-down arrow. A list displays.
6. Click the Amethyst08 list item.
7. Click the Create button. Your new homepage displays.

Part 2: Add widgets to the homepage

1. Click the Add Widget link in the Editing [your assigned user ID] Homepage banner. The
Widget Catalog window opens.
2. Click Categories > Business Process from the menu on the left. All business process-related
widgets display on the right.
3. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the Task List widget. A confirmation pop-up informs you that the
widget has been added.
4. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the Workflow Viewer widget. A confirmation pop-up informs
you that the widget has been added.
5. Click Categories > Social from the menu on the left. All social-related widgets display on the
right.
6. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the Posts widget. A confirmation pop-up informs you that the
widget has been added.
7. Click Categories > Application from the menu on the left. All application-related widgets display.
8. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the IDM Documents widget. A confirmation pop-up informs you
that the widget has been added.
9. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the M3 Application Messages widget. A confirmation pop-up
informs you that the widget has been added.
10. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the M3 Information Monitor widget with the description, “A
widget that lets you create monitors for M3 information you use frequently”. A confirmation pop-up
informs you that the widget has been added.

57 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 11. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the M3 Information Viewer widget. A confirmation pop-up
informs you that the widget has been added.
12. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the Menu widget. A confirmation pop-up informs you that the
widget has been added.
13. Click Categories > All from the menu on the left.
14. Click the magnifying glass icon in the title bar. A search field displays.
15. Type image in the search field.
16. Press Enter. The Image widget displays.
17. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the Image widget. A confirmation pop-up informs you that the
widget has been added.
18. Click the image X button.
19. Click the magnifying glass icon. A search field displays.
20. Type its in the search field.
21. Press Enter. The widgets created for this course display.
22. Click Add Widget (plus sign) for the Course Files (ITS) widget. A confirmation pop-up informs
you that the widget has been added.
23. Click the X Close button. Your homepage displays again, with all your added widgets.
24. Drag-and-drop the Image widget in front of the first widget area (top-left corner).

Part 3: Resize a widget

1. Resize the Menu widget following these steps:
a. Hover with the mouse over the Menu widget. The widget borders turn blue.
b. Drag-and-drop the blue circle at the bottom of the widget to cover the widget area below.
Note: If you don’t drag far enough, it returns to its original square shape. You may need to
scroll down to allow the widget to be longer.
Note: Homepages use the responsive design strategy. If you were to drag and drop the size of
the homepage to fit a smart phone, then the widgets automatically will align vertically above one
another. Also, space-consuming icons will be replaced with more efficient text-based objects for
each widget, making that widget smaller in size.
2. Click the Save button. Your homepage displays, no longer in edit mode. Several widgets display
“No data available,” “The widget is not configured,” or “You have no messages.”

Part 4: Configure the Image widget

1. Collect the image URL path by following these steps:
a. Click the App menu icon. A menu displays.
b. Click the Documents Management menu item. IDM opens.
c. Type inforlogo in the Search Document Management field.
d. Press Enter.
e. Right-click the inforlogo image that is the document type File. A menu displays.
f. Click the Copy image address menu item.
g. Click Infor icon. [Your homepage] displays again.
2. Click the ellipsis icon in the Image widget. A menu displays.

58 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 3. Click the Configure menu item.
4. Click the lock icon. The Title field opens for editing.
5. Type Introducing the Solution [your three letter initials] in the Title field.
6. Click the Alignment drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
7. Click the Cover menu item.
8. Right-click the Image URL field. A menu displays.
9. Click the Paste menu item. The copied URL is pasted in the field.
10. Type http://www.infor.com in the Launch URL field.
11. Click the Save button. Your homepage displays again. The Infor logo displays in the image field.
12. Click the Launch icon in the Image widget. The Infor homepage opens in a new browser tab.
13. Click the Close (X) button on the www.infor.com browser tab. [Your homepage] displays again.

Part 5: Configure a Menu widget using a collected and saved menu configuration
1. Collect a saved (exported) menu configuration following these steps:
a. Click the Menu_url graphic in the Course Files widget. IDM opens.
b. Click [the text document]. The document displays in a new window.
c. Click and drag to highlight the entire text block.
d. Press CTRL+C. The text block is copied.
e. Click the X button. IDM displays again.
f. Click the Infor icon. You return to your homepage.
2. Click the ellipsis icon in the Menu widget. A menu displays.
3. Click the Import menu item. The Import window opens.
4. Press CTRL + V. The copied text displays in the field.
5. Click [anywhere within the Import dialog box outside the text field]. The Import option is
activated.
6. Click the Import button. Your Menu widget is populated.

Part 6: Update the division in the menu widget

1. Right-click the Sweden division AAA – TO BE CORRECTED link in the Menu widget. Note:
You may need to scroll down. A menu displays.
2. Click the Edit menu item. The Edit Link window opens.
3. Locate 7** in the URL field.
4. Replace the 7** with [the three first digits in your assigned user ID]. For example, user
444S01 will replace 7** with 444.
5. Remove – TO BE CORRECTED at the end of the Name field.
6. Click the Save button.
7. Repeat steps 1-6 for the USA division BBB – TO BE CORRECTED link.

Part 7: Configure the M3 Information Viewer widget

1. Click the ellipsis icon in the M3 Information Viewer widget. A menu displays.

59 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Note: If you are not familiar with application program interfaces (APIs), the next few instructions
may be abstract. This widget will be used later in this course.
2. Click the Configure menu item. The Configure Widget window opens.
3. Click the lock icon in connection to the Title field. The Title field opens for editing.
4. Type Clear MI Cache ([your assigned user ID]) in the Title field.
Note: Leave the Automatic refresh rate as defaulted (Do not refresh). The task will be
triggered manually.
5. Add a program following these steps:
a. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Program field. The Select Program window opens.
b. Type mrs in the Name field. MRS001MI displays.
c. Click to highlight MRS001MI.
d. Click the Select button. You return to the Configure Widget window.
6. Add a transaction following these steps:
a. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Transaction field. The Select Transaction window
opens.
b. Type clear in the Name field. ClearCache displays in the list.
c. Click to highlight ClearCache.
d. Click the Select button. You return to the Configure Widget window.
7. Add an input following these steps:
a. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Input field. An Input/Output Parameter window
opens.
b. Click the Value field. The field becomes open for editing.
c. Type CMS100MI (upper case) in the Value field.
8. Click to select the User input check box. Note: This enables you to interactively change the input
values later.
9. Click the OK button. The input field has been updated.
10. Verify that List displays in the Display content as field.
11. Click the Save button. The widget is now configured. The widget itself is empty (shows nothing).
You will return to this widget later in this course. CMS100MI is a user-defined application program
interface (API) that you very easily build yourself. To make a newly defined API work, the MI (M3
Integration) cache files need to be cleared. This widget will help you do that.

60 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Infor Ming.le
Infor Ming.le, embedded in Infor OS, is a comprehensive platform for social collaboration, business
process improvement, and contextual analytics. It gives you the most innovative social media concepts
translated into a business environment; the solution marries communications with business processes to
help you work smarter and faster. Unlike information-sharing technologies that are disconnected from
your core applications, Infor Ming.le is fully embedded with organizational systems like ERP and
financials. All employees, regardless of their roles, can communicate, collaborate, and share information,
such as documents, plans, photos, and videos, from a centralized location, with all activity captured and
easily searchable.

Social collaboration via Infor Ming.le

You can put information at employees’ fingertips with contextual intelligence, increase response times
and prevent problems with tasks and alerts, get the full picture of any issue or question with drill-back
capabilities, and change the way work is done with the use of social objects. Once you have Infor Ming.le,
you won’t be able to imagine living without it.

Infor Ming.le components

61 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Infor Ming.le components, continued

Video: Infor Ming.le in CloudSuite Distribution

This is a link for a 16:27 minute example of social collaboration within Infor M3.

Exercise 2.4: Create a group

In this exercise, you will create a group and send out an invitation to other users.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Create a Group

1. Click App Menu icon. A menu displays.
2. Click the Infor Ming.le™ menu item. Infor Ming.le opens with the Activity Feed tab.
3. Click the + CREATE A GROUP link under the Connections + heading.
4. Type Group_[your three letter initials] in the Name field.
5. Verify that Public displays in the Privacy Level field.
6. Type Introducing the Solution in Cloud Edition interest group in the Description field.
7. Click the SAVE button. The group is created.
8. Type Welcome to this Introducing the Solution in Cloud Edition interest group. #[your three letter
initials] in the Post something field. Note: Hashtags (#) should be entered in lower case.

62 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 9. Click the POST button. Note: You have enabled others to connect to this group (passive
invitation). Alternatively, you can click the INVITE MEMBERS button to connect members (active
invitation).

Part 2: Connect to other users

1. Click the Connections + link.
2. Verify that the directory related to People displays.
3. Click the Filter by Not Connected button in the Filter by options.
4. Hover with the mouse over the Connection icon connected to [any user] The message, “You
are not connected with the user” displays.
5. Click the Connect link. The message, “Are you sure that you want to perform this action?”
displays.
6. Click to select the Do not show this message again check box.
7. Click the YES button. The connection is now pending and is indicated by a yellow clock icon.
8. Repeat steps 5-8 for [another user].
9. Click the Activity Feed tab in the top-left corner.
10. Type Welcome to this Introducing the Solution in Cloud Edition course. #[your three letter initials]
in the Post something field.
11. Click the POST button. The message is triggered and displays at the top of My Feed.

Simulated activity 2.5: Connect to a user and a group via Infor Ming.le
This activity simulates how to create a social collaboration connection between two users. It’s
possible to connect (two-way communication) or follow (one-way communication) any known
user in the Infor Ming.le database. You will also join a group.
Click the link below to view a demonstration of this activity and to practice performing this
activity in a simulated environment.

Before you begin:

 To obtain information that supports subsequent content, exercises, and demos, this
simulated activity should be completed.
 When reviewing this activity in the simulated environment, student login [simulation-
specific user ID; e.g. ST02] is used for the simulation. Note: You will continue to use your
assigned student login for exercises and demos performed in the live training
environment.

Click here to view a demo and/or practice this task in a simulated

training environment

Do not attempt to perform this simulated activity in the live training environment at any time.
Any attempts to do so will result in irreparable damage to the training environment.

63 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Exercise 2.6: Share Infor M3 information
In this exercise, you will create a new customer record and share the Infor M3-related data to
your Infor Ming.le activity feed, like a bookmark in Infor Smart Office. The posting offers an
option to drill back to the shared object. Infor H5 can share programs and detail panels.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Copy a customer record in Infor M3

Note: Begin at [your assigned user ID] Homepage.
1. Click the Infor app menu icon. A menu displays.
2. Click the Homepages menu item.
3. Verify [your assigned user ID] homepage displays.
4. Click the Customer Master link in the Menu widget. The Customer. Open (CRS610/B) program
opens.
5. Type 3 in the Customer filter field.
6. Press Enter. The list view displays all customer records that start with 3.
7. Adjust the panel sequence following these steps:
a. Click the Panel Navigator button in the program menu bar. The Edit panel navigator
window opens.
b. Click the Direct Change link. An editable field displays.
c. Type FEG in the Direct Change field.
d. Press Enter.
e. Click the SAVE button.
8. Click to highlight the row related to customer 30001.
9. Click OPTIONS > Copy. Panel C displays.
10. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Copy To Customer field.
11. Click the NEXT button until panel E displays.
12. Type [your name] in the Name field.
13. Click the Status drop-down arrow. A list displays.
14. Click the 10-Preliminary list option. Note: The creation of a preliminary customer record will
trigger a workflow.
15. Click the NEXT button. Panel F displays.
16. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Responsible field.
64 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 17. Click the NEXT button until panel B displays. You have created a new customer record.

Part 2: Share your new customer record with a group

1. Click the Share icon in the Infor OS title bar. The Quick Share to Feed window opens.
2. Click the Connection (Connected Users) drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
3. Click the Tagged Users and Groups menu item.
Note: Hashtags are populated automatically, one identifying the customer and other identifying
the address. Typically, you can just delete these since those are not easily searchable.
You also have two drill-back buttons. These contains the same information as the hashtags
(customer and address) and enables you to directly retrieve the Infor M3 information shared.
4. Clear [the text] in the Post field.
5. Type Please review this customer record. #[your three letter initials] @in the Post field. A list
displays with connected users and groups.
6. Click the Group_[your three letter initials] list option. The group is added in brackets.
7. Click the Share link. You return to the Customer. Open (CRS610/B) program.
8. Click the Close (X) button. [Your homepage] displays again.

Part 3: Review the shared records

1. Click the Inbox icon in the Infor OS title bar. A menu displays.
2. Click the Posts menu item. Infor Ming.le opens filtering on the Posts feed (open posts). Note:
You can hover with the mouse over a [Sending user] to locate records you have triggered. Your
shared information display at the top. It includes two drill-back links (purple). Other connected
users to the group will have direct access to the same drill-back links.
3. Click the drill-back icon (purple). A menu displays the available drill-backs.
4. Click the Customer:30001 menu item. The program Customer. Open (CRS610/E) opens.
5. Click the Close (X) button. Your homepage displays again.

65 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Infor ION
Infor draws on decades of experience in many different industries to solve the problems that matter most
to your business. You face constant demands for greater speed, the need to cope with larger data
volumes, and the challenge of overcoming escalating complexity—all while containing costs.
That’s why Infor has developed a whole new approach to business software. Infor ION represents a new
concept for business software that replaces traditional middleware solutions with a speedy, lightweight
connective structure that adds new levels of intelligence and sophistication to existing business
technology. It’s faster to implement, easier to use, and more economical to operate than any middleware-
only solution. It also acts as an engine that powers a unified combination of contextual business
intelligence, common reporting and analysis, streamlined workflow, and business monitoring—all
delivered within a single, consistent architecture. By integrating a set of sophisticated technologies to
work independently, but operate as a unified whole, Infor ION delivers new possibilities for streamlining
and accelerating every aspect of your business. You’ll get the information you need sooner, act faster,
and see everything happening within your business as it happens with Infor ION.

EAM to Infor M3

Video: EAM to Infor M3

This is a link for a 4:37 minute example of integration between EAM and Infor M3.

Workflows
Work flows are visualized processes. They are the holy grail of ERP. The system telling you what
activities to do and in which order. Color coding will also reveal which activities were done and by whom
and which have not been done. Workflows can be seen as a relay race: the baton is passed from one

66 Lesson 2: Infor OS
user to another once an individual task is flagged as “Done.” Workflows are perfect to pass on a process
from one department to another department. You won’t skip a beat or drop the ball.

An ION integration example:

 At the bottom, you see Infor M3: those are your order types, your parameters. Processes defined
in code. Set up once, use infinitely many times. Activities are parameterized, but are stand-alone
and users must click their way from A to Z. This is old-school ERP, if you want. Set up by super
users and consultants. Run daily by end users.
 In the middle, you see ION. This allows you to automize the A to Z that was previously detached.
Workflows enable you to tie-up a process into a visual number of steps. Tasks and workflow
locator widgets help you see what has been done and what still is to be done.
 At the top, you have the least amount of organization: social collaboration via Infor Ming.le. That
is us humans chatting with each other in unstructured conversations. At best, we will hashtag the
conversation to make it a (searchable) tread. Widgets such as Posts will guide you. There is also
a pre-defined conversation, which we refer to as a stream. An example is a checklist for new
employees. It is not a workflow, but a step-by-step conversation between those involved in the
stream.

Infor ION integration example

67 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Exercise 2.7: Process the workflow for a new customer record
In the previous exercise, a new customer (prospect) record was added to the database. In
this exercise, you will work with ION Workflow to make sure the company does not drop the
ball, given there are different departments (finance, sales, and so on). Three tasks need to
be performed:
 Review and correct the address for the prospect (logistics).
 Enter credit limit 3 for the new prospect (financials).
 Approve and convert the prospect (status 10) to a customer (status 20).
 When the customer record has been approved, an additional ION Monitor will send an
alert to indicate the approved record.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

This workflow is triggered via the activation policy connected to this workflow. There are three
conditions:
 [AccountingEntityID]: The company and division must be 330 and BBB.
 [Code]: The status of the customer must be 10 (“Preliminary” in Infor M3, but
“Pending” in BOD).
 [SalesPersonRole]: The responsible must be an (internal) user identity.
There are other ways to trigger a workflow as well:
 Manually via Infor Ming.le and the Workflow tab.
 Via Alert or Task widgets.
 Automatically via document flow. This is relevant when documents are sent from one
(ERP) system to another (ERP) system.
 Automatic via another workflow (a workflow within a workflow). This is modular
thinking to minimize the maintenance.
 Automatic via workflow BODs (business object documents). An example is an
activity-based alert or an ad hoc report.
 Programmatically via API calls, also referred to as web services.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Display the workflow in the workflow activity widget

1. Click the homepage banner ellipsis > Advanced > Refresh. Note: Repeat this until two tasks
display in the Task List. When you copied the new customer, you selected status 10
(preliminary/prospect) and your user as responsible for this customer. These two conditions
triggered a new ION workflow called EDU_M3_NewCustomer_wf_nav. Two of the workflow tasks
will show in the Tasks widget. The third task will show after the first two have been flagged as
done.

68 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 2. Click A new customer [your assigned user ID] with name… (not the hyperlink) in the Task
List widget. The Workflow Viewer widget updates and displays the workflow visually.
Note: You see four boxes total, one notification (information that a record has been created) and
three tasks. Focus on the three tasks: Validate Address, Set Credit Limit, and Final Approve
customer. Each task is connected to a pre-defined group of users who will get the same task
presented. As your user is set as customer responsible (RESP), you will get all tasks.
Task User group Users
Validate address EDU_NewCustomer_Logistics cccS99 (Instructor), [RESP]
Set credit limit EDU_NewCustomer_Finance cccS99 (Instructor), [RESP]
Approve customer EDU_NewCustomer_Approval cccS99 (Instructor), [RESP]

The first two tasks are blue-colored (in progress). Once they are marked as “done,” they will
become green-colored. The workflow has full traceability of who did what. Your workflow displays
in the workflow activity widget.

Part 2: Validate the address

1. Click the A new customer [your assigned user ID] with name … hyperlink in the Task List
widget. A Task window opens. Each task has two unique numbers: The Task ID number and the
Workflow ID number; these are displayed in the bottom left margin of the window.
2. Click the Assign to me button. You have assigned the task to yourself (the button changes to
Unassign). Note: Alternatively, click Assign to assign this task to another member of the
assigned user group. When the record was assigned to you some of the fields in the task window
were opened for editing.
3. Review the rest of the information in the Task window.
4. Review the customer record in Infor M3 following these steps:
f. Click the drill-back icon (purple). A menu displays the available drill-backs.
g. Click Customer. The program Customer. Open (CRS610/J) opens.
h. Click the Close (X) button. You return to the Task window.
i. Scroll down (or up).
5. Type 4[##] Avenue in the Address Line 1 field. Note: The [##] in any exercise represents the
last two digits of the user ID you used to log in to the Infor M3 training environment.
6. Click the Done button. The message, “Please enter correct credit limit 3 for customer 315S04
with [your name]” displays.
7. Click the X button. [Your homepage] displays again.

Part 3: Set Credit Limit

1. Click Please enter correct credit limit (not the hyperlink) in the Task List widget. The
Workflow Viewer widget updates and displays the workflow visually. Note: The first task has
been marked green (done). The second (selected) task is blue marked (in progress).
2. Click Please enter correct credit limit (the hyperlink) in the Task List widget. A Task window
opens. The task is assigned to you and the credit limit field is open for editing. You can use the
drill-back to review the record as needed.
3. Type 777777 in the Credit Limit Value field.

69 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 4. Click the Done button. You confirmed the task and [your homepage] displays again. The
completed task disappears from the Tasks widget and a new task appears, Customer [your
assigned user ID] with [your name]. Note: You may need to refresh the homepage.

Part 4: Conduct a final approve of the customer

1. Click Customer [your assigned user ID] with [your name] (not the hyperlink) in the Task List
widget. The Workflow Viewer widget is updated and displays the workflow visually. Note: The
second task has been marked green (done) as well. The third (selected) task is blue marked (in
progress).
2. Click Customer [your assigned user ID] with [your name] (the hyperlink) in the Task List
widget. A Task window opens.
3. Click the Assign to me button. You have assigned the task to yourself (the button changes to
Unassign). Note: Two buttons have been added; one to approve the record (Set status to Open)
and one to reject the record (Not Approved). You can use the drill-back to review the record if
required. These buttons are defined in ION Desk. The Set status to open button changes the
status of the customer record from 10-Preliminary to 20-Definite and set the task to Done.
4. Click the Set status to Open button. The task is confirmed and [your homepage] displays
again. Note: Repeat step 1 to refresh the homepage (if required). The task disappears from the
Task List widget. This ends the workflow, there are no more tasks. If you click Not approve, the
complete workflow will repeat itself with the 3 tasks showing once more.

Part 5: Review the task history

1. Click App Menu icon. A menu displays.
2. Click the Infor Ming.le™ menu item. Infor Ming.le displays.
3. Click the Activity Feed tab. Your three reported tasks display.
4. Click the Show Details link for the latest task (Customer [your assigned user ID] with [your
name]. Note: The task window opens with all reported parameter values.
5. Review the Workflow Progress Indicator section. The Workflow Progress Indicator section
highlights that the tasks have been reported done, by whom, and when. The task you are
currently viewing displays last in the image. Details about all activities connected to the task (as
shown earlier) displays under the Notes section.
6. Click the X button. The Infor Ming.le Activity Feed displays again.
7. Click the Infor icon. [Your homepage] displays again.
8. Verify the status change in the customer master following these steps:
a. Click Customer Master in the Menu widget. The Customer. Open (CRS610/B) program
opens.
b. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Customer filter field.
c. Click Apply. Your customer record displays at the top of the list and is approved (status 20).

Event-based alerts
Event-based alerts safeguard your data, often master data. It is comparable to the old technique of
journaling. The details of the project determine which data must be guarded, an example being the group
a customer belongs to. Changing it can both divert the revenue bookings and upset the financial

70 Lesson 2: Infor OS
reporting. Changing the customer group is a primary candidate for an event-based alert. When a user
who is not the responsible for this customer changes the customer group, the responsible will be alerted
regarding:

 Who made the change

 What the new value of the customer group is
 What the old value of the customer is
These rules must be set up and do not come “out of the box.” This is subject to workshop discussions. It
is the event hub that traces this, in cooperation with an auto start job. Note: There are pre-packaged
event-based alerts, known as Infor M3 Content Packs. Contact your Infor account manager for more
information.

Event-based alerts

71 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Simulated activity 2.8: Work with event-based alerts
This activity simulates how to change the customer name, made by another user, that will
trigger an event-based alert. You will also review the configuration that makes this happen.
Click the link below to view a demonstration of this activity and to practice performing this
activity in a simulated environment.

Before you begin:

 To obtain information that supports subsequent content, exercises, and demos, this
simulated activity should be completed.
 When reviewing this activity in the simulated environment, student login [simulation-
specific user ID; e.g. ST02] is used for the simulation. Note: You will continue to use your
assigned student login for exercises and demos performed in the live training
environment.

Click here to view a demo and/or practice this task in a simulated

training environment

Do not attempt to perform this simulated activity in the live training environment at any time.
Any attempts to do so will result in irreparable damage to the training environment.

M3 Information Monitors
You want to be informed, right up front, by the Infor OS homepage that “something” needs your attention.
What that “something” is, is completely up to you. A good rule of thumb is that you define what you think
is a problem and by consequence, needs to be monitored. If you were a financial manager, you certainly
would want to be informed by the system if new items were added that need a unit cost. This is Infor M3
being proactive. You become reactive once you have received the monitor feedback. This is the system
talking back. No need to find the needle in the haystack. You want to work by exception and use drill-
backs. M3 Information Monitor is a widget for the Infor OS homepage. It will use a user-defined API to
show the data the customer wants to see. The beauty is that the user decides which data to be shown
and you can fetch information from different tables, given that the database structure allows it. Because
APIs are used, the business logic from the Infor M3 java source code is adhered to, removing the risk of
database pollution or corruption.

This is also a candidate for an ION Workflow. Normally, the creation of new items is a shared
responsibility among different departments: marketing, engineering, finance, sales etc. An
ION Workflow could send information about the new item creation to the correct department
via user-defined tasks.

72 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Infor Document Management (IDM)
Finding the right document should be the least of your concerns. When you've aligned your documents
with your business systems, you'll always have all the information you need—securely stored in a
searchable database. With Infor Document Management (IDM), you can work with the most accurate and
up-to-date information, while ensuring that everyone in your organization is working together. IDM is a
central repository where you can maintain your common business rules for creating documents, as well
as all your documents.

Exercise 2.9: Receive information via M3 Information Monitors

In this exercise, you will create a new item record in the item master that triggers an
information monitor due to no connected unit cost. Infor ION Enterprise Search (IES) will pick
up on this (self-defined) change and an M3 Information Monitor will show the result. As
always, a drill-back enables immediate action. This corresponds to an alert widget on your
canvas in Infor Smart Office. You will also review the configuration for the M3 Information
Monitor used to solve this including engagement with the allocation master table MITFAC,
shown via MMS003. Other tables (such as MITALO, OSBSTD or OSRAST) have no formal
display program in standard Infor M3, but with this widget, it’s possible to query the table
nonetheless without the risks of direct database access tools such as SQL. The following
steps are needed to trigger the monitor:
 Bring together the information you are interested in (information browser category).
 Convert this information browser category into a user defined API.
 Clear the API MI Cache for program CMS100MI.
 Configure the M3 Information Monitor widget, using the newly created custom MI.
A preparation step was already taken in this database. View definition STD01-01 in Item.
Connect to Facility (MMS003) displays the unit cost (UCOS) and the average cost (APPR).
This enables a drill-back using Infor ION Enterprise Search, showing exactly the wanted
information.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Copy an item

1. Click Item Master in the Menu widget. The Item. Open (MMS001/B) program opens.
2. Adjust the panel sequence following these steps:
a. Click the Panel Navigator icon. The Edit panel navigator window opens.
b. Click the Direct Change link. An editable field displays.
c. Type E in the field.
d. Press Enter.
e. Click the SAVE button. Panel B displays again.
3. Type 0020 in the Item number filter field.
73 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 4. Click Apply.
5. Click to highlight the row related to item number 002042.
6. Click OPTIONS > Copy. Panel C displays.
7. Type ITS[##] in the Copy To Item Number field.
8. Click the NEXT button. Panel E displays.
9. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Name field.
10. Type [your name] in the Description field.
11. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Item resp field.
12. Click the NEXT button until panel B displays again.
13. Type ITS[##] in the Item number filter field.
14. Click the Apply button. Your item record displays at the top of the list.
15. Click the Close (X) button. [Your homepage] displays again.

Part 2: View the result in a monitor

1. Click Example (ITS) in the Page Navigator. The Example (ITS) homepage displays. Note: A
Zero Cost Items widget has been created that highlights items with no unit cost. The number of
items with no cost displays in the red circle.
2. Click the Zero Unit Cost in Facility B01 link in the Zero Cost Items widget. The Item. Connect
Facility (MMS003/B) program opens. Note: The search is set up to show items without cost
(UCOS:0), in facility B01, and show the last modified records first (SortBy:!LMDT), i.e. your record
should display without scrolling. This monitor is very valuable for accounting personnel. They are
immediately informed that new items need to have their unit cost generated.
3. Click the Close (X) button. The Example (ITS) homepage displays again.
4. Click [your assigned user ID] Homepage in the Page Navigator. [Your homepage] displays
again.

Part 3: Create an information browser category

1. Click Information Browser Categories in the Menu widget. The Information Browser
Category. Open (CMS010/B) program opens.
2. Type [current YYMMDD][##] in the Info brows cat filter field.
3. Click OPTIONS > Create. Panel E displays.
4. Type [your assigned user ID]’s costing view in the Description field.
5. Type MITFAC in the Master table field. Note: MITFAC represents the item facility balance table
in Infor M3.
6. Verify that CMS100-Information browser displays in the Used by program field.
7. Click the NEXT button. The Related Tables. Connect (CMS011/B1) program opens. Note: The
item master (MITMAS) table is connected by default.
8. Click the Close (X) button. The Information Browser Category. Open (CMS010) program
displays again. Note: A record has been created and the status of your new category is 20
(active). The field group number (fldgr) starting with an ampersand (&) makes your information
category unique.

74 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 9. Click to highlight the row related to [your information browser category].
10. Click RELATED > Simulate list. The Custom list designer panel opens. The defaulted view is
normally STD01-00 (if one user). What you see right now is the primary key in the MITFAC table:
Facility, representing database column M9FACI, and Item number, representing database column
M9ITNO). Now it is just a matter of adding additional columns to the view.
11. Click the pencil icon in the end of the list view header. The Edit view panel opens.
12. Click the drop-down arrow in the margin of the Preview table header. The available fields are
listed.
13. Add a new column following these steps:
a. Type name in the Input field. The item description name (MMITDS/MITMAS) displays.
b. Click to select the name (MMITDS/MITMAS) check box. The item description (Name) is
added as column.
14. Repeat step 13 for:
 Cost price (M9UCOS/MITFAC)
 Average cost (M9APPR/MITFAC)
15. Click the SAVE button. The added column data is now compiled from two tables (MITFAC and
MITMAS) into one single view. These columns will (can) be shown in the M3 Information Monitor.
This feature allows you decide which columns to combine, increasing overall visibility.
16. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. [Your homepage] displays again.

Part 4: Create a custom API

1. Click Custom API in the Menu widget. The Custom List MI. Open (CMS015/B) program opens.
Note: MI stands for M3 Interface and represents the connection between Infor M3 and an
external system. The communication can, for example, be done via APIs. All available MIs are
stored in the MI repository (MRS001).
2. Type LstYYMMDD[##] in the Transaction ID filter field. Note: This field is case sensitive, and
the first three characters are crucial: Lst (list transaction). You also keep the syntax of your
information browser category in the syntax of your custom-defined application program interface
(API).
3. Click OPTIONS > Create. Panel E displays.
4. Type [your assigned user ID]’s costing API via CMS100MI in the Description field.
5. Type [current YYMMDD][##] in the Info brows cat field.
6. Click the NEXT button. The panel is updated, and additional fields display.
7. Verify that 1-Facility, Item number displays in the Sorting order field.
8. Verify that STD01-00-Standard view for sorting order 1 displays in the View field.
9. Click to select the Search check box. Note: This will enable Infor ION Enterprise Search in the
M3 Information Monitor widget.
10. Click the NEXT button. The message, “WARNING – Search will be performed on main table only.
Search on related tables are not supported through API transactions” displays.
11. Click the OK button. You return to panel E.
12. Click the NEXT button until panel B displays again. Your API status is 10 (not active).

75 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 13. Click to highlight the row related to LstYYMMDD[##].
14. Click RELATED > Update MI repository. Your record status changes to 20 (active), and your MI
transaction has been added to the MI transaction repository.
15. Click RELATED > Display MI repository. The MI Transaction. Open (MRS002/B1) program
opens. Note: Your generated MI transaction displays.
16. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. [Your homepage] displays again.

Part 5: Clear the cache for CMS100MI

1. Click the ellipsis icon in the Clear MI cache (CMS100MI) widget. A menu displays.
2. Click Change Input. A Change Input dialog opens.
3. Verify that CMS100MI displays in the MI Program name field.
4. Click the OK button. Note: This ensures that the new metadata is updated. You clear the cache
to prevent error caused by mismatched metadata. For example, program/field does not exist.
Unfortunately, there is no output or feedback from the ClearCache transaction. It will just return
an empty white state. If you instead get an error message, sign out and sign back in again. Then
repeat this part.

Part 6: Configure an M3 Information Monitor widget

1. Collect a saved query text following these steps:
a. Click Query in the Course Files widget. IDM opens.
b. Click [the text document]. The document displays in a new window.
c. Drag to highlight [the search query text].
d. Press CTRL+C.
e. Click the X button. IDM displays again.
f. Click the Infor icon. [Your homepage] displays again.
2. Click the ellipsis icon for the M3 Information Monitor widget. A menu displays.
3. Click the Configure menu item. The Configure Widget window opens.
4. Click the + Add Monitor link. An Add Monitor window opens.
5. Type Zero Cost in B01 ([your assigned user ID]) in the Monitor name field.
6. Click the Primary action drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
7. Click the Open menu item.
8. Add a bookmark option following these steps:
a. Click the pencil icon following Get Ming.le Bookmark. A Bookmark Options window
opens.
b. Type MMS003 in the Program field.
9. Click the Get button associated with the Program field. MITFAC displays in the Table field.
10. Type 1 in the Sort Order field.
11. Type STD01-01 (in upper case) in the View field.
12. Right-click the Query field. A menu displays.
13. Click the Paste menu item. The query string is pasted to the field.
14. Click the OK button.

76 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 15. Add a program following these steps:
a. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Program field. A Select Program window opens.
b. Type cms1 in the Name field. The list of programs is updated.
16. Click to highlight the row related to CMS100MI. Note: MMS003MI does not have the right Search
transaction, so CMS100MI is used instead with MI transaction LstYYMMDD[##].
17. Click the Select button. The program field has been updated.
18. Add a transaction following these steps:
a. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Transaction field. A Select Transaction window
opens.
b. Type lstYYMMDD in the Name field. The list of transactions is updated.
c. Click to highlight the row related to LstYYMMDD[##].
d. Click Select. The program field has been updated.
19. Add an input and output following these steps:
a. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Input field. An Input/Output Parameters window
opens with the Input tab defaulted.
b. Click to select the Input check box.
c. Click to select the User input check box. Note: This enables you to interactively change the
input values later.
d. Click the Value field to activate the field.
e. Press CTRL+V. The query string is pasted to the field. Note: The field is case sensitive. You
monitor the unit cost equal to zero AND the facility must be B01. The LMDT syntax is optional
and fine-tunes the search to list the records in descending order based on the last
modification.
f. Click the Output tab.
g. Click to select all check boxes. Note: These represents the columns added earlier in this
exercise.
h. Click the Max record count drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
i. Click the 100 menu item.
j. Click the OK button. The input and output fields have been updated.
20. Click the Display content as drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
21. Click the List menu item.
22. Click OK. You return to the Configure Widget window and the new monitor is created.
23. Click the Save button. Your monitor is added to the widget. Note: The monitor activates
immediately.
24. Click Zero Cost in B01 ([your assigned user ID]) in the M3 Information Monitor widget. The
program Item. Connect Facility (MMS003/B) opens.
25. Click the Close (X) button. [Your homepage] displays again.

77 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Exercise 2.10: Connect an image to your customer record
IDM stores all documents, including pictures. In this exercise, you will drop a picture into IDM
and permanently save it. In IDM, this is flagged as document type Customer Document. The
document types are already pre-configured. The picture is then shown as a contextual widget
in the customer master (CRS610). When the customer record is selected, the image is
shown dynamically. It’s also possible to upload pictures taken with your smart phone or
tablet, but that possibility is not configured in this environment.
Normally, IDM is updated automatically from Infor M3 with newly generated documents such
as invoices, order confirmations, picking lists, etc. Once stored in IDM, it is easy to see these
documents (often PDF) as thumbnails in the relevant program using a Context app. You are
just one click away to see the actual document. This will be covered in the next lesson (Infor
M3 business processes).

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Find your customer in the customer master

1. Click Customer Master in the Menu widget. The Customer. Open (CRS610/B) program opens.
2. Type [the first four characters of your assigned user ID] in the Customer number filter field.
3. Click the Apply button. Note: Your customer record displays at the top of the list.
4. Click to highlight the row related to [your assigned user ID].
5. Expand the Context Apps.
6. Verify that the Related Information app section is expanded. The Related Information app is
currently empty.

Part 2: Download an image

1. Click New tab in the web browser. A new browser tab opens, Google is the default page.
2. Click the Images link (in the top-right corner). The Google images search window opens.
3. Type [an item that represents you] in the Search Google or type URL field.
4. Press Enter.
5. Right-click [the image you selected]. A menu displays.
6. Click the Save image as menu item. A Save As window opens.
7. Verify that JPEG Image displays in the Save as type field.
8. Click Downloads in the Save As menu.
9. Type [your assigned user ID] in the File name field.
10. Click the Save button. [Your image] displays in the download taskbar.

78 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 11. Click the X button on the image browser tab. The Customer. Open (CRS610/B) program
displays again.

Part 3: Connect the image to your customer

1. Verify the Context Apps tool is expanded.
2. Verify the Related Information tool is expanded.
3. Click the Sorting Order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
4. Click the 6-Name, Customer menu item.
5. Type [your first and last name] in the Name filter field.
6. Press Enter. [Your first and last name] item displays at the top of the list.
7. Click to highlight [your item].
8. Click the [your assigned user ID].jpg drop-down arrow in the download taskbar. A menu
displays.
9. Click the Show in folder menu item.
10. Drag the [your assigned user ID].jpg image to the Related Information app on top the text No
result found. The Add File dialog box opens.
11. Verify that InforCustomerPartyMaster displays in the Context field.
12. Click the Select a document type drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
13. Click the Temporary Customer Image menu item.
14. Click the UPLOAD button. Your image displays in the Related Information app.
15. Click to highlight the row related to [any other name] in the list of items.
16. Click to highlight the row related to [your first and last name]. Your image displays again. This
image is now connected to your customer record.
17. Click Close (X). [Your homepage] displays again.
18. Click X in the download taskbar at the bottom of the screen.

Part 4: Review the document in IDM

1. Click App menu icon. A menu displays.
2. Click the Document Management icon. IDM opens.
3. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Search Document Management field.
4. Press Enter. Your image displays.
5. Click the Infor logo. [Your homepage] displays again.

Part 5: Configure the IDM Documents widget (optional)

1. Click the ellipsis icon in the IDM Documents widget. A menu displays.
2. Click the Configure Widget menu item. The Configure Widget window opens.
3. Click the + Create new link. A Create document view window opens.
4. Type [your assigned user ID] IDM in the Name field.

79 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 5. Type Customer images in the Description field.
6. Click the Select document type drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
7. Click the Temporary Customer Image menu item. By default, the images will be listed in
ascending order as they were created.
8. Update the sorting order following these steps:
a. Click the Advanced link. A Query field displays.
b. Click the IDM client link. Infor Document Manager opens.
c. Clear the Search Document Management field.
d. Click the Search Document Management drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
e. Click the Temporary Customer Image menu item.
f. Click the Search button. All temporary customer images display.
g. Click the Sort Results drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
h. Click the Created Date menu item. The sorting is adjusted.
9. Click [the upward] (ascending) arrow to the left of the Sort Results field. Note: The arrow
becomes downward (descending) when clicked in the ascending position.
10. Click the Search Document Management drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
11. Click to select the Enter Query Manually radio button. The query string displays.
12. Drag to highlight the query string.
13. Press CTRL+C.
14. Click the Infor icon. You return to the Create document view window.
15. Drag to highlight [the Query string] in the Query field.
16. Press CTRL+V. The copied query string replaces the text in the Query field.
17. Click the OK button. The Configure Widget window displays again.
18. Click the Save button. [Your homepage] displays again, and the IDM Document widget now
shows all images. The images are listed in descending creation order (the latest added image
shown first).

80 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Infor UX
UX (user experience) represents the overall experience of a person using a product such as a website or
computer application, especially in terms of how easy or pleasing it is to use. The user experience
includes all end-user interaction with the company, the provided service, and its product.
Infor’s user interface (UI) architecture provides a process-based and responsive design with a full lifecycle
configurability. Infor Ming.le and ION bring social collaboration, workflow, analytics, integration and
business process management into one single platform.
Within Infor M3 you can use different tools to extend your user experience, so it fulfills your specific
needs. As described earlier, the design can be made on three main levels. We will now exemplify some of
the design options and tools used on the end-user level.

Infor UX

Personalizations
Personalization aims to increase your productivity and help you react when actions are needed, so you
can stay on top of your daily business challenges. Personalization allows you to become much more
efficient, to save time and money while working with Infor M3. The personalization tools are available
directly within the user interface without any technical add-on. It's so simple that any user can customize
screens. The personalization can be global for all users, generated for a specific role, or unique for a
single user. Personalization is a way to make an ERP system more user-friendly. For Infor M3, the
following possibilities are embedded in the Infor H5 thin client:
 Tab order: minimize the number of keystrokes on individual screens.
 Hyperlinks: avoid right-clicking and selecting (the wrong) related option.
 Conditional styles: coloration to emphasize what you think is important and more understandable
texts (self-explaining)
81 Lesson 2: Infor OS
  Shortcuts: avoid right-clicking and selecting (the wrong) related option.
 Field label overrides: make the ERP system more understandable.
 Hide/show fields: remove fields that are not used.
 Scripts: anything goes.
 Custom fields (CUGEX1): add additional customer generic extra data.
Personalization is something that should be done in workshops. Manage expectations and be consistent
and consequent. If not, you get unwanted flavor differences between programs and/or processes.

Applying personalizations

Administering personalizations
The administration and the ability to share (import/export, copy, merge) personalizations require H5
Administration authority. Personalizations can be applied globally (everyone), for a role (group), or for a
user (individual). There is an option to view all personalizations for a specific program (all levels). The
image illustrates how both role and user-defined personalizations exist for a program. The user
personalizations, if approved, could be applied for the role as well.

Program personalizations

82 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Exercise 2.11: Work with personalizations in Infor H5
A hyperlink is used to navigate directly from a value in a table to a specified location. Instead
of using the traditional ways of accessing sub programs, for example selecting an item from
the menu, you can use a hyperlink. Hyperlinks work like shortcuts or macros in the sense
that they save you keystrokes when moving between programs.
In this exercise, you will use some pre-configured personalizations in connection to a
customer order entry. You will also show practice how to configure two variants of conditional
hyperlinks: one static hyperlink (always valid) and one dynamic hyperlink (dependent on the
outbound logistic process).

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: View the current personalizations

1. Click the ellipsis in the homepage banner. A menu displays.
2. Click the Page Catalog menu item. The Page Catalog window opens.
3. Click the magnifying glass icon. A search field displays.
4. Type Introducing the Solution (ITS) in the search field.
5. Press Enter. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays.
6. Click + to add Introducing the Solution (ITS).
7. Click the X Close button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays.
8. Click Order to Cash in the Business processes widget. A submenu displays.
9. Click the CO line workbench submenu item. The Customer Order. Open Line Workbench
(OIS302/B) program opens.
10. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
11. Click the 71-customer menu item.
12. Verify that the Shortcuts menu up to the right is expanded. Two shortcuts (Display CO invoice
and Supply Chain) display.
13. Click TOOLS > Personalize > View Personalizations. The View Personalizations window
opens. You have shortcut personalizations connected via the role you belong to.
14. Click the X button. Customer Order. Open Line Workbench (OIS302/B) displays again.

Part 2: Create a static hyperlink

1. Add a hyperlink to the customer order program from the order number following these steps:
a. Click TOOLS > Personalize > Hyperlinks. The Hyperlinks window opens.
b. Click the Link To Field drop-down arrow. A list displays.
c. Click the CO no(ORNO) list item.

83 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 d. Click the Related Options drop-down arrow. A list displays.
e. Click the CO(31) list item.
f. Click the Add button.
2. Click the SAVE button. The Customer Order. Open Line Workbench (OIS302/B) program
displays again. The order number has become a hyperlink.
3. Test the hyperlinks following these steps:
a. Click [any customer order number] (CO no) link. The associated Customer Order. Open
(OIS100/A) program opens.
b. Click the Close (X) button. The Customer Order. Open Line Workbench (OIS302/B)
program displays again.

Part 3: View the personalizations after adding the hyperlinks

1. Click TOOLS > Personalize > View Personalizations. The View Personalizations window
opens. You have both hyperlink and shortcut personalizations. The hyperlink personalizations are
connected to your user only.
2. Click the X button. The Customer Order. Open Line Workbench (OIS302/B) program displays
again.
3. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 4: Create a customer order and review conditional styles

1. Create a customer order following these steps:
a. Click CO toolbox in the Business processes widget. The Customer Order. Open Toolbox
(OIS300/B) program opens.
b. Click the New Order button. The Customer Order. Open (OIS100/A) program opens.
c. Type 30001 in the Customer field.
d. Click the NEXT button. The message, “Confirm” displays.
e. Click the OK button.
f. Verify that 010 displays in the CO Type field.
g. Type 5 in the Panel Sequence field.
h. Click the calendar icon in the Req delivery dt field. A calendar displays with the current
month and year visible.
i. Click the [tomorrow’s date] option.
j. Verify that B01 displays in the Facility field.
k. Click the NEXT button. The message, “Confirm” displays.
l. Click the OK button.
m. Click the NEXT button. The Customer Order. Open Line (OIS101/B1) program opens.
n. Type STD in the Item field. A list displays.
o. Click the 000100 list item.
p. Type 1 in the Order qty field.
q. Click the Add button. A new order line is created.
r. Click the Close (X) button to close open programs until the Customer Order. Open Toolbox
(OIS300/B) program displays.
2. Click the Refresh button in the program menu bar until the lowest status displays 44-Pick list
(Picking list printed) for the order number associated with [your assigned user ID].
3. Right-click [the CO number associated with your assigned user ID]. A menu displays.
4. Click the Add Text to Quick Note menu item. The Quick Note tool displays with [your CO
number].
84 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 5. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.
6. Test the conditional styles following these steps:
a. Click Delivery toolbox (outbound) in the Business processes widget. The Delivery. Open
Toolbox (MWS410/B) program opens.
a. Verify that 11-One-Stop displays in the Sorting Order field.
b. Verify that 210 displays in the Whs field.
c. Type [today’s date] (YYMMDD) in the Dep dt filter field.
d. Click the Apply button. Your customer order displays. Your user displays in the Changed by
column.
e. Click the 10-Start Packing link associated with [your customer order number]. The
Picking List. Report (MWS420/B1) program opens.
7. Verify that GENERAL3 displays in the View field.
8. Hover with the mouse over the packing status (10-Start packing). The packing status (10)
together with the hyperlink reference, automatic packing (22), displays as a tooltip.
9. Click the 10-Start packing link. The status changes to 30-Confirm dispatch. Behind the scenes
the packing rules for this item (MMS053) are used. The dispatch policy involved allows automatic
packing.
10. Hover with the mouse over the packing status (30-Confirm dispatch). The associated tooltip
displays.
11. Click the 30-Confirm dispatch link. The status changes to 30-Completed.
12. Hover with the mouse over the packing status (30-Completed). The associated tooltip displays.
13. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

Part 5: Create dynamic hyperlinks with conditional styling (optional)

1. Click Delivery toolbox (outbound) in the Business processes widget. The Delivery. Open
Toolbox (MWS410/B) program opens.
2. Verify that 11-One-Stop displays in the Sorting order field.
3. Verify that 210 displays in the Whs field.
4. Click the 10-Start Packing link associated with delivery number 1230. The Picking List. Report
(MWS420/B1) program opens.
5. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
6. Click the 1-By sts/delivery menu item. Note: We change the sorting order to display more than
one delivery (different conditions).
7. Click the View drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
8. Click the GENERAL3 menu item. Note: Several delivery number lines now display. Pre-defined
role-based personalizations are already active in this environment. To the right you have shortcut
personalizations. In the list view, the pack statuses are clarified in plain text (and an icon) via
Conditional styles. For example, pack status 10-Start packing. You will now delete these
personalizations, only to build them up again.
9. Export the current personalizations (as a back up) following these steps:
a. Click TOOLS > Personalize > Export. MWS420.xml downloads to the download folder on
your virtual machine.
85 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 b. Click the X button in the Download taskbar at the bottom of the screen.
10. Review and delete the current conditional styles following these steps:
a. Click TOOLS > Personalize > Conditional Styles. The Conditional Styles window opens,
and six different conditions display.
b. Click to highlight the row related to [the last conditional style in the list].
c. Click the Delete button. The message, “Delete conditional style” displays.
d. Click the Yes button. The condition is removed.
e. Repeat steps d-f for the other conditions.
f. Click the X button. The Picking List. Report (MWS420/B) program displays again, and the
conditional styles (status texts for the packing column) are gone.
11. Right-click the Pack column header. A menu displays.
12. Click the Add Conditional Style menu item. The Conditional Styles window opens, and the
target field is prepopulated with the packing status field, Pack (OQPIST).
13. Add the first conditional style (10-Start packing) following these steps:
a. Click the Select condition type drop-down arrow. A list displays.
b. Click the Numeric list item.
c. Verify that Pack (OQPIST) displays in the first Variable field.
d. Verify that Equals (=) displays in the second Variable field.
e. Click the third Variable drop-down arrow. A list displays.
f. Click the Specific Value list item.
g. Type 10 in the fourth Variable field.
h. Click the NEXT button. The formatting options display with the Color tab active. Note: You
will set blue to indicate that something is not started, yellow that something is in progress,
green that dispatch is required, and no color that it is completed.
i. Click the Color picker in the Field color field. A menu displays.
j. Click the Blue menu item.
k. Click the Color picker for the Text color field. A menu displays.
l. Click the Black menu item. Note: If no text color is chosen, the hyperlink will be hard to read
if a field color is used.
m. Click the Text tab.
n. Type 10-Start packing in the Text field.
o. Click to select the Show original value as a tooltip check box.
p. Click the Icon tab.
q. Click the empty rectangle icon.
r. Click the Hyperlinks tab.
s. Click to select the Make field a hyperlink check box.
t. Click the Related Option radio button.
u. Click the Related option drop-down arrow. A list displays.
v. Click the 22 Automatic Packing list item. Note: The configurations made displays in the
Preview section.
w. Click the NEXT button. The review window opens.
x. Type Pa=10 in the Name field.
y. Type Hyperlink to related option 22 in the Description field.
z. Verify that the Activate check box is selected.
aa. Click the Finish button. The Conditional Styles window displays again, and your first
condition has been created.
14. Add the second conditional style (20-Continue packing) following these steps:

86 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 a. Verify that the row related to 10-Start Packing is highlighted. When the packing status is 20,
you will slightly adjust the previous style with another field color, icon, and text.
b. Click the Copy button. The Conditional Styles window opens.
c. Type 20 in the fourth Variable field.
d. Click the NEXT button. The formatting display with the Color tab defaulted.
e. Click the Color picker in the Field color field. A menu displays.
f. Click the Yellow menu item.
g. Click the Text tab.
h. Type 20-Continue packing in the Text field.
i. Click the Icon tab.
j. Click the half full rectangle icon.
k. Click the NEXT button. The review window opens.
l. Type Pa=20 in the Name field.
m. Click the Finish button. You return to the Conditional Styles window and your second
condition has been created.
15. Add the third conditional style (00-Confirm dispatch) following these steps:
a. Verify that the row related to 20-Continue packing is highlighted. When no packing is used
(status 00), you will add a packing status text, “00-Confirm dispatch,” add a color and an icon,
and add a hyperlink to the confirm issue program.
b. Click the Copy button. The Conditional Styles window opens.
c. Type 00 in the fourth Variable field.
d. Click the NEXT button. The formatting display with the Color tab defaulted.
e. Click the Color picker for the Field color field. A menu displays.
f. Click the Green menu item.
g. Click the Text tab.
h. Type 00-Confirm dispatch in the Text field.
i. Click the Icon tab.
j. Click the full rectangle icon.
k. Click the Hyperlinks tab.
l. Click the Related option drop-down arrow. A list displays.
m. Click the 16 Confirm Issues list item.
n. Click the NEXT button. The review window opens.
o. Type Pa=00 in the Name field.
p. Type Hyperlink to related option 16 in the Description field.
q. Click the Finish button. The Conditional Styles window displays again. Your third condition
has been created.
16. Add the fourth conditional style (30-Confirm dispatch) following these steps:
a. Verify that the row related to 00-Confirm dispatch is highlighted. When the packing status is
30 and the picking status is less than 90, you will slightly adjust the previous style with
another field text and icon.
b. Click the Copy button. The Conditional Styles window opens.
c. Type 30 in the fourth Variable field.
d. Click the + button. An additional condition is added with an AND relation.
e. Click the Select condition type drop-down arrow (second Condition). A list displays.
f. Click the Numeric list item.
g. Click the first Variable drop-down arrow (second Condition). A list displays.
h. Click the Pick (PIPISS) list item.
i. Click the second Variable drop-down arrow (second Condition). A list displays.
j. Click the Less than (<) list item.
k. Click the third Variable drop-down arrow (second Condition). A list displays.

87 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 l. Click the Specific Value list item.
m. Type 90 in the fourth Variable field (second Condition).
n. Click the NEXT button. The formatting display with the Color tab defaulted.
o. Click the Text tab.
p. Type 30-Confirm dispatch in the Text field.
q. Click the NEXT button. The review window opens.
r. Type Pa=30 (Pi<90) in the Name field.
s. Click the Finish button. You return to the Conditional Styles window. Note: Your fourth
condition has been created.
17. Add the fifth conditional style (30-Completed) following these steps:
a. Verify that the row related to 30-Confirm dispatch is highlighted. When the packing status is
30 and the picking status is 90, you will add a packing status text, “30-Completed.”
b. Click the Copy button. The Conditional Styles window opens.
c. Click the second Variable drop-down arrow (second Condition). A list displays.
d. Click the Equals (=) list item.
e. Type 90 in the fourth Variable field (second Condition).
f. Click the NEXT button. The formatting display with the Color tab defaulted.
g. Click the Color picker for the Field color field. A menu displays.
h. Click the No color menu item.
i. Click the Text tab.
j. Type 30-Completed in the Text field.
k. Click the Hyperlinks tab.
l. Click to clear the Make field a hyperlink check box.
m. Click the NEXT button. The review window opens.
n. Type Pa=30 (Pi=90) in the Name field.
o. Type No hyperlink in the Description field.
p. Click the Finish button. The Conditional Styles window displays again, and your fifth
condition has been created.
18. Add the sixth conditional style (30-In transit (DO)) following these steps:
a. Verify that the row related to 30-Completed is highlighted. Note: This condition is required for
distribution orders. When the packing status is 30 and the picking status is 70, you will add a
packing status text, “30-In transit (DO).”
b. Click the Copy button. The Conditional Styles window opens.
c. Type 70 in the fourth Condition field (second Condition).
d. Click the NEXT button. The formatting display with the Color tab defaulted.
e. Click the Text tab.
f. Type 30-In transit (DO) in the Text field.
g. Click the NEXT button. The review window opens.
h. Type Pa=30 (Pi=70) in the Name field.
i. Type No hyperlink (DO only) in the Description field.
j. Click the Finish button. The Conditional Styles window displays again and your sixth
condition has been created.
19. Click to highlight the conditional style for Pa=00. Note: The order of the lines decides the priority
(top-down) in case of conflicting conditions.
20. Click the Move Up button twice.
21. Click to highlight the conditional style for Pa=30 (Pi=70).
22. Click the Move Up button twice.

88 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 23. Click the X button. The Picking List. Report (MWS420/B) program displays again.
24. Hover with the mouse over the [conditional style for the packing status] (10-Start packing).
The packing status (10) together with the hyperlink reference, automatic packing (22), displays as
a tooltip. As you have combined the packing and picking status as one reference, you could as
well remove the picking status column.
25. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

Searches
A narrow-down search represents a filtered search also referred to as functional searching. By
launching the search directly within Infor M3 list views you will trigger advanced filtering of the records you
see displayed in the list. For example, you might want to find all items with "yellow" in the item
descriptions. Narrow-down searches combine the power of toolboxes (views and sorting orders) with
additional fine-tuning possibilities.
 A narrow-down search runs within an Infor M3 function/program.
 It searches within relevant context. Infor ION Enterprise Search (IES) enhances Infor M3
programs by providing flexible search capabilities within the program itself. Infor M3 has been
extended with embedded search capabilities within the Infor M3 functions as well. This means
that a user can perform functional searches that are automatically limited to the context of the
function.
 It requires no knowledge of system-specific names yet provides targeted results. With a functional
search, the user does not need to know or enter the Infor M3 file names to limit the search.
Instead, the user initiates the search within a function. IES then searches only the tables and
fields that are used by that function, thereby presenting better targeted results.
 A narrow-down search shows hits within context. When a user performs a search within an Infor
M3 function, the hits are automatically limited to the fields displayed on the current view. In this
way, the results are simplified for the user because the hits are shown directly on the appropriate
screen and within the appropriate fields. The search is also limited to the tables defined in the
function’s Standard Search. Open (CMS021/B) and Related Search. Open (CMS022/B). For
example, the main table of Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS301/B) is OOHEAD but the
customer name (CUNM) is stored in the customer table, OCUSMA. By binding these tables, with
the customer number (CUNO) as key, you can search for the customer name within the toolbox.
 This allows for additional time-saving tools.

Key searches
Key searches are an enhancement to filtered searches, i.e. searches in Infor M3 programs (list views)
used to filter the data presented by the program. Key searches are set up in Key Search. Open
(CMS030/B). With key searches:
 You do not need to know the Infor M3 table and/or field names to refine their searches.
 You are presented with a drop-down list of the fields available for searching.
 You can enter search criteria for one or multiple fields and select “any of these values” (OR) or
“all of these values” (AND) to be used when the search is performed.
 There is no need to use Related Search. Open (CMS022/B) to define related-table searches.
 A search can be defined to appear in only one Infor M3 program, or all Infor M3 programs that
use the defined table.
 The selection criteria can be specified as part of a key search to limit the search.
89 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Search syntaxes
The syntaxes are taken from Lucene, an open source information retrieval software library. Lucene is
used by Wikipedia, among many others.
 Case sensitive
o What you search for (the search string) is case insensitive.
o Infor M3 table names must be in upper case, for example MITMAS.
o Program shortcuts are recommended in upper case, for example CRS610.
o Column names in the Infor M3 database must be in upper case, for example ITNO.
o Macros must be in upper case, for example WEEK(0).
 Wildcards
o A question mark (?) performs a single character wildcard search, for example m?x represents
mix, max, m3x etc.
o An asterisk (*) performs a multiple character wildcard search, for example M* represents
anything beginning with M (Millennium, M3, Money).
 Booleans (always in upper case)
o AND; also represented by the plus sign (+)
o OR
o NOT; also represented by the minus sign (-). NOT cannot be the first argument in a search. A
practical workaround is to precede the NOT search with an argument you are certain of: your
company number, for example: CONO:330 NOT SUNO:*?. This syntax is used to find items
(per company) that do not have a supplier connected.
 Parenthesis (examples)
o (chair OR sun) AND shine – Either chair or sun must exist in connection to shine.
o ITDS:(shine OR sun) – Either sun or shine must exist as item name.
 Intervals
o [xx TO yy]; Square brackets denote a range including the start and end values. For example
[a TO h] represents a, b, c, d, e, f, g, and h.
o {xx TO yy}; Curly brackets denote a range excluding the start and end values. For example {a
TO h} represents b, c, d, e, f, and g.
 Overrides for special (designated) characters
o Special characters: + - && || ! ( ) { } [ ] ^ " ~ * ? : \
o You precede the special character with a back slash. For example, the search for value
(1+1):2 becomes \(1\+1\)\:2.
o An Infor M3 property (app.pgm.prohibitRestrictedCharacters) stops the user from entering
restricted characters and leading blanks. This property is by default set to true and hence
stops the user from entering any restricted characters and leading blanks in primary key
parameters. This check is done when creating new records.
 Table names
o Add in the syntax the short command, for example: MMS001. This will narrow down the
search to only MITMAS (MMS001).
o Type tableName:MITMAS instead for the same effect.
 Sorting
o Define the value to sort by, for example: WHLO:210 AND SUNO:*? SortBy:SUNO.
o Add an exclamation mark for descending order, for example: WHLO:210 AND SUNO:*?
SortBy:!SUNO.

90 Lesson 2: Infor OS
  Macros
o DATE(x); for example RGDT:DATE(0) represents registration date today. RGDT:DATE(-1)
represents registration date yesterday.
o WEEK(x)
o MONTH(x)
o YEAR(x)
 Reserved keywords
o <USID> represents the user ID currently used, for example RESP:<USID> will search for
records where the currently logged on user (you) are the responsible.
o <CONO> represents the current company number, see the Profile information widget.
o <DIVI> represents the current division, see the Profile information widget.
o <FACI> represents the facility connected to the user master, see User. Open (MNS150/151).
o <WHLO> represents the warehouse connected to the user master.
o <CUNO> represents the customer connected to the user master.
o <DEPT> represents the department connected to the user master.
o <LNCD> represents the language code connected to the user master.
o <TIZO> represents the time zone connected to the user master.
o <MNVR> represents the menu version connected to the user master.
o <DFMN> represents the menu name connected to the user master.

This is a link to the Apache Lucene Query Parser Syntax document.

The Apache Software Foundation, 2006

Top-down searches, sometimes referred to as “global” searching, is currently

not available in the Cloud Edition.

91 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Exercise 2.12: Work with functional searches
In this exercise, you will perform different kinds of context-related narrow-down (functional)
searches. Searches can also be defined as key searches. It’s possible to use the CTRL+F
keyboard combination or click the magnifying glass icon to be guided with the search,
avoiding (typing) mistakes.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Work with functional searches (narrow-down) in the customer order workbench
1. Click CO line workbench in the Business processes (Order to Cash) widget. The Customer
Order. Open Line Workbench (OIS302/B) program opens.
2. Verify that 2-By user displays in the Sorting order field.
3. Verify the programs with standard search functionality following these steps:
a. Press CTRL+R. The Search and Start window opens.
b. Type search in the Search and Start field.
c. Click the OK button. A list displays.
d. Click the Standard Search. Open list item. The Standard Search. Open (CMS021/B)
program opens.
e. Type OIS302 in the Program filter field.
f. Press Enter.
g. Click the Close (X) button. The Customer Order. Open Line Workbench (OIS302/B1)
program displays again.
4. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Search field.
5. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The customer order number processed in
the previous exercise displays with a Filter Options menu in the table header.
6. Click the X button at the end of the search filter tab. The search filter is removed.
7. Right-click the Cfdldt column header. A menu displays.
8. Click the Add To Search menu item. CODT: displays in the Search field.
9. Type WEEK(0) after CODT: (without space) in the Search field. Note: Macros must be entered in
upper case.
10. Click the magnifying glass icon in the Search field. Customer orders with a confirmed delivery
date this week display. In the number of filtered hits, you see the dynamically populated date
interval. You may return to the search field and fine tune your search.
11. Click the drop-down arrow in front of the search filter at the top of the table. A save option
displays.
12. Click Save Search Query. A Save Search Query window opens.
13. Click to clear the Add to Favorites check box.

92 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 14. Click to select the Save as Shortcut in the Toolbox Area check box.
15. Type This week orders in the Query Name field.
16. Click the Save button. Your saved search is added to the Shortcuts menu.
17. Click the X button (at the end of the search filter). The search filter is removed.
18. Verify that the Shortcuts menu is expanded.
19. Click the This week orders link. Your filtered search displays again.
20. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 2: Work with key searches in the item master program

1. Click the Home link in the Business processes (Order to Cash) widget.
2. Click Warehouse Management in the Business processes widget.
3. Click Item master in the menu. The Item. Open (MMS001/B) program opens.
4. Verify that 1-Item number displays in the Sorting order field.
5. Type RESP:<USID> in the Search field.
6. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. Your item record (ITS[##]) displays together
with two other items (ITS[##]M and ITS[##]P).
7. Click the X button (at the end of the search filter). The search filter is removed.
8. Click the Advanced Search icon (to the right of the search field). A search dialog opens. A key
search is a narrow-down search geared towards end users. With key searches, pre-configured,
the end user does not have to type database syntaxes. The only thing to be added is the search
data. Alternatively, you can trigger the key search with CTRL+F.
9. Type 9999 in the Item group field.
10. Click the Search button. The filtered hits show 19 hits due to item group 9999.
11. Click the X button (at the end of the search filter). The search filter is removed and the search
field (Item group) is cleared.
12. Press CTRL+F. The search dialog opens again.
13. Verify that the Item group field is empty.
14. Type [your first name] in the Look for user field.
15. Click the Search button. Note: Your item records display again. This key search works in two
layers. First the search finds your user based on your name. Then the search finds the item
record based on your user as responsible.
16. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 3: Work with functional searches in the Item Warehouse Balance program
1. Click Connect warehouse in the Business processes (Warehouse Management) widget. The
Item. Connect Warehouse (MMS002/B) program opens.
2. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
3. Click the 65-Warehouse, Item (no filter) IES menu item.
4. Type KIT in the Search field.

93 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 5. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. 59 filtered hits display for this condition.
6. Type KIT 1001 in the Search field. Note: A space represents an AND command.
Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. 40 filtered hits display for the dual condition
KIT and 1001. In this case, 1001 represents an item group.
7. Type L001 in the Search field.
8. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. Note: 11 filtered hits display for this condition.
9. Type L001 OR (KIT 1001) in the Search field.
10. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The condition between brackets is
executed first. This gave 40 hits as shown previously. The other condition gave 11 hits. With the
OR command this total to 51 hits. Both 1001 and L001 represent item groups in this database.
11. Type *20L in the Search field.
12. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits show all records with
values ending with 20L (8 hits), in our case found in the item name and the item description (Paint
Blue 20L).
13. Type ?004 in the Search field.
Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits (55) show all records with a
four-character string ending with 004. In our case this can be found in the item number (0004,
1004, 7004, 9004 etc.) and in the item group (L004, U004, 6004, 7004 and R004).
14. Type SUNO:*? in the Search field.
15. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits show all records were a
supplier has been connected (not blank). You reach the default maximum number of hits (100).
16. Type NOT SUNO:*? in the Search field.
17. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. You get no (0) hits, not because there are
no records without a supplier connected but because it’s not allowed to start the search string
with a NOT command. To overcome this problem, you can add a generic command, for example
CONO:330, in front of the syntax (as we are in company 330 this is valid for all records).
18. Type CONO:ccc NOT SUNO:*? in the Search field.
19. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits show all records without a
supplier connected (blank). However, you reach the maximum number of hits (100) again. You
ought to narrow the search further.
20. Type WHLO:210 NOT SUNO:*? in the Search field.
21. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits (66) show all records
without a supplier connected (blank) in warehouse 210. All these records will have an acquisition
code other that 2-Purchased (the supplier record is mandatory for purchased items).
22. Type WHLO:210 SUNO:*? NOT PUIT:2 in the Search field.
23. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits (7) show all records with a
supplier connected in warehouse 210 and where the acquisition code is not purchased. This
could be a useful search since it makes no sense to connect a supplier for manufactured items
(subcontracting excluded) or distributed item.
24. Type WHLO:210 STQT:0 in the Search field.

94 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits show all records in
warehouse 210 without stock (on-hand balance zero). You reach the maximum number of hits
(100) again. You ought to narrow the search further.
25. Type WHLO:210 STQT:0 NOT RESP:MOVEX in the Search field.
26. Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits (62) has excluded MOVEX
as responsible.
27. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 4: Work with functional searches in the stock transaction program

1. Click Stock transactions in the Business processes (Warehouse Management) widget. The
Stock Transaction. Display History (MWS070/B) program opens.
2. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
3. Click the 65-IES menu item.
4. Right-click the Whs column header. A menu displays.
5. Click Add To Search.
6. Type 210 after WHLO: (without space) in the Search field.
7. Right-click the Trans qty bU/M column header. A menu displays.
8. Click Add To Search.
9. Type [* TO 0} after WHLO:210 TRQT: (without space) in the Search field.
Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits show all records with a
negative transaction quantity. The number of hits depends on the number of participants.
10. Type WHLO:210 TRQT:[-999999 TO 0} in the Search field.
Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. You get the same result.
11. Click Cancel (at the end of the search filter). The search filter is removed.
12. Right-click the Trs dt column header. A menu displays.
13. Click the Add To Search menu item.
14. Type WEEK(0) after TRDT: (without space) in the Search field.
Click the magnifying glass icon for the Search field. The filtered hits show all transactions made
this week. A transaction should exist in connection to your customer order (an issue of item
000100).
15. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Scripts
You can use scripts to extend the functionality of Infor H5 (extensibility). The area that can have its
content modified by scripts is located between the menu bar and the status bar. Because Infor H5 is a
web-based application, script developers can utilize the default events of the browser for the elements.
For Button Elements, the commonly used event is the Click Event, which can be used to perform
additional validation and to properly handle the data to be submitted or passed.
The scripts have access to the contents of the form and can modify existing content or add new content to
the form. Scripts are developed using the JavaScript language, utilizing jQuery which is a fast, small, and

95 Lesson 2: Infor OS
feature-rich JavaScript library that makes tasks, such as HTML (HyperText Markup Language) document
traversal and manipulation, event handling, animation, and AJAX (Asynchronous JavaScript and XML),
much simpler with an easy-to-use API that works across a multitude of browsers. The scripts will have
access to public classes exposed by the Infor H5 framework.
You can use an external text editor to create a script, because the scripts to be created are only client-
side scripts. The script file must follow certain rules to be used by the Infor H5 framework. If the script
does not follow these rules, it will not be executed:
 The script class name must match the script file name, excluding the file extension.
 The script must have a public function called Init with a specific signature.
There are many public classes, methods, and properties in Infor H5, but only a limited number of these
can be used in scripts. This ensures that scripts will not fail when updated versions of Infor H5 are
installed. When a script has been developed and tested, it must be deployed to be available to other
users. The scripts folder for Infor H5 should contain all the customized scripts. After deployment, the
script must be added to forms through personalization before it can be activated or executed for any user.

Administering scripts
The administration of scripts requires H5 Administration authority. The script file is imported (or exported)
via the Data files.
When used, the script is treated like a personalization. With that said, it can be applied globally
(everyone), for a role (group), or for a user (individual). There is an option to view all personalizations
(scripts) for a specific program (all levels). The personalization record contains all information about the
script and its arguments.

Exercise 2.13: Engage with the Additional Field Information script

In this exercise, you will engage with a script. This script allows you to add free (additional)
text to any field. The text entered will be saved in the customer generic extension table
(CUGEX1).

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Connect a script

1. Collect a saved script following these steps:
a. Click Script in the Course File widget. IDM opens.
b. Click [the text document]. The document displays in a new window.
c. Drag to highlight [the script ID] (the first row) in the document.
d. Press CTRL+C. Keep the document window open.
e. Click the Infor icon. [Your homepage] displays again.
2. Click the Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage in the Page Navigator.
3. Click Warehouse Management in the Business processes widget. A menu displays.

96 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 4. Click the Item master menu item. The program Item. Open (MMS001/B) opens.
5. Verify that 1-Item number displays in the Sorting order field.
6. Type ITS[##] in the Item number filter field.
7. Click the Apply button.
8. Double-click the row related to item number ITS[##]. Panel E displays.
9. Verify the fields to be used in the argument using these steps:
a. Right-click the Item number field. A menu displays.
b. Click the Advanced menu item. A sub-menu displays.
c. Click the Show Field Information sub-menu item. A Field Information window opens. The
field name is WEITNO.
d. Click Close (Field information).
10. Repeat step 9 for the Item resp field. The field name is MMRESP.
11. Double-click the Item resp field. Nothing happens.
12. Click TOOLS > Personalize > Scripts. A Scripts window open and the Scripts field is activated.
13. Press CTRL+V. The script ID (AddAdditionalFieldInformation_H5_V1) is pasted in the field. Note:
The script and argument inputs are case sensitive.
14. Collect the script arguments following these steps:
a. Click App menu icon. A menu displays.
b. Click the Documents Management menu item. IDM opens with the Script_url window open.
c. Drag to highlight [the arguments] (the second row) in the document.
d. Press CTRL+C.
e. Click Close (Document window). You return to the Scripts window.
f. Click Infor icon. [Your homepage] displays again.
15. Click Item master in the Business processes (Warehouse Management) widget.
16. Click the Argument field.
17. Press CTRL+V. The arguments are added. The first argument specifies the field to hold the script
(MMRESP), the second argument specifies the program it runs within (MMS001), and the
remaining argument(s) the primary key(s) for the saved data in CUGEX1 (WEITNO).
18. Click the Add button. The script is added to the Created Scripts panel.
19. Click the SAVE button. The Item. Open (MMS001/E) program displays again.
20. Click the Refresh button. The script can now be used.
21. Double-click the Item resp field. An Add Additional Information dialog box opens.
22. Type Additional information about the item responsible in the Text field.
23. Click the Save button. The responsible field gets an orange outline, indicating that additional
information exists.
24. Hover with the mouse over the Item resp field. A dialog box opens with the additional
information.
25. Double-click the Item resp field again. The Add Additional Information dialog box opens again.
26. Type Second text block in the Text field.

97 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 27. Click the Save button. This text is saved as a second text block in CUGEX1. If you use the
Remove option, all added text blocks will be removed (additional information cleared). From now
on, you can hover with the mouse over the responsible field and read the additional field
information. Other users may contribute with input as well, but then the script must be activated
for those users as well.
28. Click the Previous button. You return to panel B. Another example of this script is Purchase
Order. Confirm (PPS250/E). When the supplier confirms a date, you can add additional
information text on the confirmed delivery date. In that case, the arguments would be
WBCODT,PPS250,IBPUNO,WBPNLI.
29. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 2: Review the text files in the extension table

1. Click [your homepage] in the Page Navigator. [Your homepage] displays.
2. Click Information Browser Categories in the Menu widget. The Information Browser
Category. Open (CMS010/B) program opens.
3. Type CU in the Info brows cat filter field.
4. Press Enter.
5. Click to highlight the row related to CUGEX1.
6. Click Simulate List in the Shortcuts menu. The Custom list designer opens.
7. Type MMS001 in the Table filter field.
8. Type ITS[##] in the Primary key 1 filter field.
9. Press Enter. You are now looking “behind the scenes” in the customer generic extension table.
Pay attention to the lines related to MMS001. In the Primary key 1 column you find your item
number. In the 120-character text field (AI120) you recognize your entered text blocks. It is the
script source code that decides in which CUGEX1 column your text will be saved. In case you
have several text blocks, these are separated using an additional key, in our case Primary key 2.
10. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. [Your homepage] displays again.

Customized fields
Text ERP systems tend to be square, difficult to change and inflexible. A common request is to store
additional data, most often connected to master data such as items, customers or suppliers. Infor’s
answer is extensibility: make changes without changing the system’s java code. Implement the
extensibility on the surface, so that upgrading to a higher version becomes easy as there is no need to
upgrade the extensibility.
 Customer generic extension table (CUGEX), there is CUGEX1-3
 Partner generic extension table (CPGEX), there is CPGEX1-3 (these are reserved for Infor
partners.)
You have already engaged with CUGEX1 when working with the AddAdditionalFieldInformation script
(Exercise 2.13). The big advantage is that no (programming) code is needed. No scripts are needed
either, which was the case in earlier versions of Infor M3. Now, it is a matter of dragging and dropping.
Programs Customer-Defined Fields. Open (CMS080) and Customer-Defined Fields Value Map. Open
(CMS081) enable you to interactively add new data. In previous versions of Infor M3, you had to insert the

98 Lesson 2: Infor OS
data MI Test and the CUSEXTMI application program interface (API) and different transactions—among
them AddAlphaKPI—were needed to configure the value map. This was not at all user-friendly.
Note that there is also Mongoose, enabling you to create not only new data (columns), but also create
new tables altogether. These new tables will seamlessly connect to ERP system Infor M3. But Mongoose
lies outside the scope of this course.

Simulated activity 2.14: Add a new field using the generic extension
table
This activity simulates how to add a new field to the customer master using the generic
extension table (CUGEX1).
Click the link below to view a demonstration of this activity and to practice performing this
activity in a simulated environment.

Before you begin:

 To obtain information that supports subsequent content, exercises, and demos, this
simulated activity should be completed.
 When reviewing this activity in the simulated environment, student login [simulation-
specific user ID; e.g. ST02] is used for the simulation. Note: You will continue to use your
assigned student login for exercises and demos performed in the live training
environment.

Click here to view a demo and/or practice this task in a simulated

training environment

Do not attempt to perform this simulated activity in the live training environment at any time.
Any attempts to do so will result in irreparable damage to the training environment.

99 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Exercise 2.15: Connect values and review the generic extension table
In this exercise, you will add a new value for the customized field and review the field data in
the CUGEX1 table.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Review a customer-defined field and add a value

1. Click Customer-defined fields in the Menu widget. The Customer-Defined Fields. Open
(CMS080/B1) program opens. You see the connection with item master table (MITMAS) and the
customer master table (OCUSMA). Do not change this setup, all participants share this.
2. Double-click the row related to OCUSMA. Panel E displays. The name (Xtra Custom Fld) will be
used in the list view and the description (Extra Field Customer Master) is what will be visible
when you drag and drop the field. The category is kept simple here (Alphanumeric). There are
additional and more clever options readily available such as: Numeric, Boolean, Identifier, Email
address, etc. The field length is 30 characters. To make the data look better, only upper case is
allowed.
3. Click the Previous button. You return to panel B1. OCUSMA is still highlighted.
4. Click the Value Map link in the Shortcuts menu. The Customer-Defined Fields Value Map.
Open (CMS081/B1) program opens. The predefined values in this case are FIRST, SECOND,
THIRD, and NA.
5. Verify that OCUSMA displays in the Table filter field.
6. Verify that F1A130 displays in the Field filter field.
7. Type FOURTH ([##]) in the Value filter field.
8. Type [50+[##]] in the Seqno filter field. For example, if your user number is 04, type 54 in the
field. Note: The sequence number defines the order they will display in the menu.
9. Click OPTIONS > Create. Panel E displays.
10. Type Fourth option ([##]) in the Description field.
11. Type Fourth ([##]) in the Name field.
12. Click the NEXT button. You return to panel B1. The new option displays.
13. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. [Your homepage] displays again.

Part 2: Connect a value to your customer

1. Update the background data table (clear all cache files) following these steps:
a. Click the User Menu icon in the Infor OS title bar (the person icon). A menu displays.
b. Click the Sign out menu item. The browser window is updated, and you are informed that
you have signed out successfully. Note: Wait until the browser confirms a successful sign-
out.

100 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 c. Click the Close (X) button (Browser tab). You return to the training desktop (Skytap).
d. Sign in to Infor OS (Exercise 2.1, part 1) with [your assigned user ID].
e. Click [Your homepage] in the Page Navigator. [Your homepage] displays.
2. Click Customer master in the Menu widget. The Customer. Open (CRS610/B) program opens.
3. Type [the first four characters of your assigned user ID] in the Customer filter field.
4. Click the Apply button.
5. Double-click the row related to [your assigned user ID]. Panel E displays. The customized field
(Extra Field Customer Master) displays between the SPLC code and the Search key fields.
6. Click the Extra Field Customer Master drop-down arrow. A list displays.
7. Click the Fourth option ([##]) list item.
8. Click the NEXT button to confirm the added value. Panel F displays.
9. Click the Previous button until panel B displays.
10. Click the View drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
11. Click the CUGEX1-Adding data from CUGEX1 menu item. The fourth column shows the user-
defined value you selected. This view was created beforehand via List and Printer Programs.
Configure (CMS005), where OCUSMA (CRS610) was linked to related table CUGEX1. CUGEX1
is not indexed in this environment, so unfortunately, you cannot use the narrow-down search to
look for your newly created data. You can add fields to other panels as well, but that requires you
define extra customer-defined field in Customer-Defined Fields. Open (CMS080), with a value
map attached.
12. Click the Close (X) button. [Your homepage] displays again.

Part 3: Review the file in the extension table

1. Click Information Browser Categories in the Menu widget. The Information Browser
Category. Open (CMS010/B) program opens.
2. Type CU in the Info brows cat filter field.
3. Press Enter.
4. Click to highlight the row related to CUGEX1.
5. Click the Simulate list link in the Shortcuts menu. The Custom List Designer opens. You are
now looking “behind the scenes” in the customer generic extension table. Pay attention to the
lines related to OCUSMA. In the Primary key 1 column you find your customer number. In the 30-
character text field (AIp30) you recognize your entered value.
6. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. [Your homepage] displays again.

Web applications (Mashup SDK)

With mashups you create informative and operational views by gathering needed information and
functionality on one screen. Historically, Infor M3 web mashups were built in Mashup Designer. You need
Infor Smart Office (on premise/single tenant only) to use this tool. Once built, you deploy the result as a
web mashup (.webmashup). The web mashup file must be installed via the Infor M3 Mashup
Administration Client application, accessed in Infor OS. You need the necessary authorization to do this.
Infor IAs come with some pre-defined web mashups. For example, the food and beverage solution
includes mashups for Customer Service, Manufacturing Controller, Purchase Planner, Product Overview,
and Item Overview. The pre-built mashups are designed to add business value for different roles and
101 Lesson 2: Infor OS
business processes. They provide a great improvement in user-friendliness in comparison to what you
have today.
A newer (better) way to manage mashups is to create and install Web applications. These applications
are built using the Mashup SDK (Software Development Kit). These are programmed via a development
framework, which enable you to build larger Infor M3 web applications. They also allow you to add
business logic, unlike web mashups. Web applications are installed via the Infor H5 Administration Tools.
To make them work properly, the underlying setup must be pre-configured:
 Information browser categories (CMS010) - Information from different tables is merged together
and optimized for maximum visibility.
 Custom APIs (CMS015) - List transactions (Lst) are defined.

Exercise 2.16: Review the Warehouse Overview web applications

(created with Mashup SDK)
In this exercise, you will engage with a web application (Warehouse Overview).

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Open the web application and retrieve an overview

1. Click Warehouse Overview Mashup SDK in the Menu widget. The Warehouse Overview
application opens.
2. Click the Warehouse drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
3. Click the 210-CHICAGO, Production (FAC B01) menu item.
4. Click the calendar icon in the From date field. A calendar displays with the current month and
year visible.
5. Click the back arrow until January 2018 displays.
6. Click January 1st 2018.
7. Click the calendar icon in the To date field. A calendar displays with the current month and year
visible.
8. Click [today’s date] (marked with a blue circle). Data loads in the top half of the application. The
Overview tab is defaulted, and it shows all inbound deliveries, outbound deliveries, shipments,
and picking lists. Because the outbound deliveries are linked to the picking lists, the picking (list)
section is already populated. If required, you can isolate open or closed deliveries only.
9. Verify that the All (Deliveries / Shipments / Picks to view) radio button is selected.
10. Click to select the Outbound radio button under the Graphs section (bottom half of the screen).
Some outbound-specific key performance indicators (KPIs) are loaded. These KPIs shows the
top five for delivery dates by volume (volume has not been used in this training environment),
deliveries per date, top five for delivery dates by weight, and deliveries by status.
102 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Part 2: Review the inbound deliveries
1. Click the Inbound Deliveries tab. On the left side of the screen, you see the inbound distribution
orders and on the right side, you see the purchase orders.
2. Click to highlight [any delivery number] in the Deliveries section. The delivery number details
and the delivery lines sections are populated.
3. Click to highlight [any purchase order number] in the Purchase Orders section. The purchase
order number details and the purchase order lines sections are populated.

Part 3: Review the outbound deliveries

1. Click the Outbound Deliveries tab. All delivery numbers, regardless of status, are listed up to the
left (ascending order).
2. Locate the delivery associated with [your customer order number].
3. Copy [your delivery number] to Quick Note.
4. Click to highlight the row related to [your customer order number]. Data loads in the other
sections. This is information from tables such as MHDISH, MHDISL, DCONSI, MFTRNS,
MHPICH, MITALO, MPHEAD, MPLINE and MPTRNS, depending on the selected tab.
5. Click the MAP button in the Address section. Google Maps opens in a new browser tab showing
the customer address.
6. Click the X button to close the Google Maps browser tab. The Warehouse Overview application
displays again.

Part 4: Review the shipments

1. Click the Shipments tab. All shipments are listed.
2. Click to highlight [any shipment number] in the Shipments section. The shipment details
section is populated.
3. Click the Connected Deliveries tab. All delivery numbers connected to the shipment are listed.

Part 5: Review the picking lists

1. Click the Picking Lists tab. Five sections display:
 Deliveries Planned for picking (picking status 30) – picking resource planning
 Deliveries ready for Picking (picking status 40)
 Deliveries ready for Packing (picking status 50)
 Deliveries ready for Docking (picking status 60)
 Finished deliveries (packing status 90)
2. Click to highlight [any delivery number] in the Picking section. The Picking list Lines section is
populated. If packages are used, the Packages section is populated as well. The delivery number
connected to your customer order should be in the Finished section because you have delivered
the customer order.
3. Locate [your delivery number] in the Finished list.
4. Click to highlight the row related to [your delivery number]. The left-hand side (Picking list
Lines) will be empty. This is normal, because this section checks allocation master MITALO.
Since you order is delivered, there is no trace of your order (line) anymore in MITALO. The right-
hand side (Packages) includes the information from the MPTRNS table. Your ordered item
(000100) displays.
103 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 By now, you have realized that this web application is not designed to search for data. It is
designed to bring information from no less than nine tables to one single screen. Other web
applications, such as the Buyers Portal, have logic embedded, allowing you to act and update
the database, for example release planned purchase orders. Moreover, this web application looks
like an Infor H5 screen, with shortcuts on the right-hand side and personalization-like coloration.
But make no mistake, all of this was programmed in the Mashup SDK.
5. Click the Close (X) button. [Your homepage] displays again.

Coleman Digital Assistant

The Infor Coleman Digital Assistant (DA) is the first in a series of new products rolled out under the
Coleman AI umbrella and provides a conversational interface to the Infor OS platform, the underlying
foundation of Infor CloudSuite. It offers custom skill building, a voice user experience and navigation, and
natural language processing (NLP) extensibility. As a digital assistant, Coleman uses a conversational UX
and natural language processing – with deep domain and industry knowledge – to chat, hear and talk to
help people work more efficiently. The Infor Coleman DA can help maximize human work potential by:
 Advising: It can provide intelligent insights designed to help users make decisions.
 Augmenting: It can serve as a partner to help amplify one’s work and provide key information at
critical decision points.
 Automating: It can complete low-value, repetitive tasks to enable users to focus on more valuable
work.
 Conversing: It can offer a better user experience with more efficient interactions.
Coleman DA is comparable to Apple’s Siri, Amazon’s Alexa, or Google’s Google Assistant.

Administering skills
If you have administering authority you can create new skills from scratch, but also import existing ones
(via a zip file). Skills that are work-in-progress (available to test) can be tested via the built-in Try it
feature. This starts a conversation very similar to chat approach.
When creating a new skill, you will go through the following process activities step-by-step:
 Basic information
 Fulfillment
 Requirements
 Utterances and Confirmation
 Response
 Summary

104 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Exercise 2.17: Interact with Coleman DA
In this exercise, you will use a simple Coleman skill to start the purchase order program
(PPS200). An utterance such as “Go to purchase orders” will be used to trigger Coleman.
Coleman will confirm that instruction with “Taking you there.” At the same time, Coleman
opens the wanted program.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Chat with Coleman

1. Click the Coleman Digital Assistant button in the Infor OS title bar (the small square to the left
of the Search field). The Coleman chat window opens.
2. Type go to purchase orders in the Start typing field (at the bottom of the screen).
3. Click the Send button (an icon that looks like a paper airplane). Coleman automatically responds:
“Taking you there now” and the Purchase Order. Open (PPS200/B) program opens.
4. Click the Close (X) button to close the Coleman window.
5. Click the Close (X) button. [Your homepage] displays again.
6. Click the Coleman Digital Assistant button. The Coleman chat window opens again and the
previous conversation displays in the time line. If you click the drill-back, the purchase order
program (PPS200) will open again. There are four utterances available in this environment:
 Go to purchase orders – takes you to Purchase Order. Open (PPS200/B).
 Go to sales orders– takes you to Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300/B).
 Go to manufacturing orders – takes you to Manufacturing Order. Open (PMS100/B).
 Go to distribution orders – takes you to Req/Distr Order. Open Toolbox (MWS300/B).
7. Type yada yada in the Start typing field.
8. Click the Send button. When you ask Coleman something she does not recognize, she will reply
“Sorry, can you repeat that?” When it comes to answering questions Coleman does understand,
you have full freedom in the response section of the Coleman skill. This can be very useful when
Coleman asks for additional input that cannot be interpreted (see part 2). Note: The microphone
icon to the left of the Type a Message field allows you to interact with Coleman verbally when
your device is enabled for the feature. If your device is enabled, click the microphone icon, speak
your command, and then click the square icon. Coleman will take a moment to translate your
message, and will respond with voice and action in accordance with your command.

Part 2: Work with Coleman skills

1. Click the User Menu icon. A menu displays.
2. Click the Coleman Skills menu item. Infor Coleman opens with the Coleman Digital Assistant.
Your user has the authority to display the available skills, not to create any new skills. Four skills
are available:

105 Lesson 2: Infor OS

  Go to Sales Orders
 Go to Purchase Orders
 Go to Manufacturing Orders
 Go to Distribution Orders
3. Hover with the mouse over the Go to Sales Orders box. The box turns grey and the text QUICK
VIEW displays.
4. Click the QUICK VIEW link. The Go to Sales Orders window opens with an overview of the skill
including who created it and when.
5. Click the View Details button. The Skill Details window opens in text view. The information is
provided in sections that match the process steps when creating the skill:
 Basic information
 Fulfillment
 Requirements
 Utterances (and Confirmation)
 Response
6. Click the FLOW VIEW link. The skill process displays as a process chart with clickable activities.
7. Click the Utterances process block. The Utterance window opens. This is what you used when
communicating with Coleman.
8. Click the X CLOSE button. The skill process displays again.
9. Click the Skill process block. The basic information such as skill ID, name, description and
language displays.
10. Click the X CLOSE button. The skill process displays again.
11. Click the Prompts process block. The Utterance window opens again.
12. Click the X CLOSE button. The skill process displays again.
13. Click the Requirements process block. For this skill, there are no (additional) requirements.
14. Click the X CLOSE button. The skill process displays again.
15. Click Fulfillment Requirements. The fulfillment type displays. The fulfillment type can be: Basic,
API, or Drill back.
16. Click the X CLOSE button. The skill process displays again.
17. Click the Fulfillment Request process block. Same as the fulfillment requirements.
18. Click the X CLOSE button. The skill process displays again.
19. Click the Response process block. The Response window opens.
20. Click the X CLOSE button. The skill process displays again.
21. Click the Response Conditions process block. The Response window opens again.
22. Click the X CLOSE button. The skill process displays again.
23. Click the Cancel link. The Coleman Digital Assistant page displays again.
24. Click the Infor icon. [Your homepage] displays again.

106 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Check your understanding
What is the image illustrating?

a) Infor OS homepage

b) Infor H5 script

c) Infor H5 startpage

d) IDM page

e) Web application

f) Web mashup

Infor Ming.le, embedded in Infor OS, is a comprehensive platform for social collaboration,
business process improvement, and contextual analytics. It gives you the most innovative
social media concepts translated into a business environment; the solution marries
communications with business processes to help you work smarter and faster.
Match each of the following Infor Ming.le components with its description. The possible
components are: Contextual intelligence, Drill-backs, Infor communities, Infor Ming.le
Mobile, Paparazzi, Streams, and Tasks and alerts.

Description Component

Infor Ming.le combines real-time information from ERP,

SCM, EAM, and financial systems, as well as any other  Contextual
transactional information, on a single screen.  intelligence

Infor Ming.le enables you to organize recurring

conversations around a business topic, defined by the users, 
 Drill-backs
with the ability to involve internal and external participants.

Infor Ming.le enables you to see the information supporting

the data on your screen. You can immediately trace data  Infor
and transactions behind the scene.  communities

Infor Ming.le lets you “follow” social objects and people,

delivering automatic notices based on parameters that you  Infor Ming.le
define.  Mobile

Infor Ming.le lets you work smarter and faster anytime, and
 Paparazzi
anywhere. You can head off problems and keep business 
moving with critical information and alerts accessible on your

107 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 mobile device.

Infor Ming.le transmits transactional information in real time,


so you can keep up with the progress of important activities.  Streams

You can extend your Infor Ming.le platform to external

participants, facilitating structured communication and  Task and
business process tracking with your customers, suppliers, or  alerts
citizens.

“These are visualized processes. The system telling you what activities to do and in which
order. Color coding will reveal which activities were done and by whom and which have not
been done.” What are we referring to in Infor OS?
a) APIs

b) Event-based alerts

c) Information monitors

d) ION integrations

e) Metadata publisher

f) Workflows

“Some customers belong to the same customer group. Changing it can both divert the
revenue bookings and upset the financial reporting. When a user, who is not the
responsible for this customer, changes the customer group the responsible will be notified.”
What are we referring to in Infor OS?
a) APIs

b) Event-based alerts

c) Information monitors

d) ION integrations

e) Metadata publisher

f) Workflows

108 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 “This widget informs you that something needs your
attention, for example a customer order has been
stopped or a new customer record has been
created.” What are we referring to in Infor OS?
a) APIs

b) Event-based alerts

c) Information monitors

d) ION integrations

e) Metadata publisher

f) Workflows

Personalization aims to increase your productivity and help you react when actions are
needed, so you can stay on top of your daily business challenges. The process to apply
personalizations includes the following four activities. Arrange them in the correct order.

Infor Document Management (IDM) enables you

to display images and documents within Infor a) d)
H5. For example, when selecting an item in the
item master, an image of the item will display.
Or, when selecting an invoice record, the invoice
document will display. Which icon should be b) e)
pressed up to the right in Infor H5 to open the
Context Apps area where the image/document
displays?
c) f)

109 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 The Infor ION Enterprise Search syntaxes are taken from Lucene, an open source
information retrieval software library. Match each of the following syntax rules with its
example. The possible components are: Booleans, Intervals, Macros, Overrides (for
special characters), Reserved keywords, and Wildcards.

Example Syntax rule

 Booleans

 Intervals

 Macros

 Overrides (for special characters)

 Reserved keywords

 Wildcards


g)
What UX functionality is the image illustrating?

a) Customized fields

b) Metadata publisher

c) Scripts

d) Web applications

e) Web mashups

f) Workflows

110 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Which table is used to store data for customized fields (customer generic extension
tables)?

a) CMSFLD

b) CUGEX1

c) CUSEXT

d) MITMAS

e) OCUSMA

f) STDDTA

What is the image illustrating?

g)

a) Infor OS homepage

b) Infor H5 script

c) Infor H5 startpage

d) IDM page

e) Web application

f) Web mashup

111 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 What Infor OS tool/functionality is shown in the image? “Infor Coleman DA offers custom
skill building, a voice user experience and navigation, and natural language processing
(NLP) extensibility. It uses a conversational UX and natural language processing – with
deep domain and industry knowledge – to chat, hear, and talk to help people work more
efficiently.”
What does DA stand for in Coleman DA?
g)

a) Dashboard Analytics

b) Data Analyzer

c) Dedicated Audio

d) Digital Assistant

e) Direct Automation

f) Document Archiver

Refer to Appendix B for answers to the Check your understanding questions.

112 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Lesson 3: Infor M3 business processes
Estimated time
2.5 hours

Learning objectives
After completing this lesson, you will be able to explain the Infor M3 key features and process flows. In
this lesson, you will:
 Identify the main Infor M3 business processes.
 Describe the demand-to-plan process in Infor M3.
 Describe the supply chain process in Infor M3.
 Describe the procure-to-pay process in Infor M3.
 Describe the production-to-inventory process in Infor M3.
 Describe the distribution-to-internal invoice process in Infor M3.
 Describe the order-to-cash process in Infor M3.
 Describe the financial plan-to-report process in Infor M3.

Topics
 Process overview
 Demand to plan
 Procure to pay
 Production to inventory
 Distribution to internal invoicing
 Order to cash
 Supply chain orders
 Financial plan to report

113 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Process overview

Infor M3 business processes

The Infor M3 business processes will be demonstrated using a case called Ecoseat. The
Ecoseat company is a furniture manufacturer with divisions in the United States and Sweden.
There are more divisions, but only the US and Sweden will be considered in this course.
Company Division Country Currency Main facility Main warehouse City

330 AAA Sweden EUR A01 130 Stockholm

330 BBB US USD B01 210 Chicago

A new item, a seventies-style table (ITS[##]M), is being launched on the global market. It is made in the
US division (BBB) and sold in all other divisions, for example Sweden (AAA). The bill of materials and
routing, referred to as the product structure in Infor M3, looks as follows:

Bill of materials and routing

We will focus on two items in this course (marked in blue), the manufactured end item (ITS[##]M) and the
purchase component (ITS[##]P). These have been configured for your user only (ITS=course prefix;
[##]=the last two digits in your username, M/P=manufactured/purchased). So if you have signed in as
user 700S09, your unique items will be ITS09M and ITS09P.

114 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Your purchased item (ITS[##]P) represents a glass pane that goes on top of the table itself. This item will
engage with the procure-to-pay process. There are two levels (blue and orange). On the top level, you will
use picking list to issue your purchased glass pane.
The other two components (001101 and 002042) will be issued automatically (backflushed) when you
report the labor time for the operation done in work center WC200 (Assembly). We assume that both
components 001101 and 002042 are already available in the production warehouse (210). This can be
done via several planning techniques such as safety stock and/or reorder point, but also forecast
combined with material requirements planning.
All items have already been costed in US facility B01. This represents the production cost to manufacture
one end item (ITS[##]M). It is the rolled-up cost of all its components (bill of materials) and all the
operations (routing). The unit cost in the US is obviously expressed in USD.
The end item (ITS[##]M) is also costed in the Swedish facility A01. This cost represents the distribution
cost to ship (on a boat over the Atlantic Ocean) the tables from the US factory in Chicago to the Swedish
central warehouse in Stockholm. That unit cost is expressed in EUR. Yes, we are fully aware that Sweden
uses Swedish Crowns (SEK). This database uses the pan-European currency euro (EUR).
The method of delivery between both divisions is of course “By sea.” It takes 10 days to transport a boat
between Chicago (210) and Stockholm (130). That is the transportation lead time.
You will practice two main strategies in this mini case study:
25. PUSH using distribution requirements planning (DRP) to trigger distribution orders and material
requirements planning (MRP) to trigger manufacturing and purchase orders. The forecast will
drive the DRP/MRP and the production will be based on a pure forecast or a mix of forecast and
real customer orders (forecast consumption). When producing against forecast it’s a risk that the
produced end items will not sell, and then you are stuck with unsaleable stock that have tied-up
capital.
26. PULL using a supply chain order. Here, the Swedish customer will create an order that will drive
the supply chain. The order will trigger the other processes and pre-allocate stock on the lower
levels. In this case, you will not produce any end items until the customer orders come in.
In practice, you may use a mix between these. Some low-cost components can even be safety stock or
re-order point planned instead. A supply chain order does not necessarily have to go through all
processes from A to Z.

Order categories

Logistical transactions are (hard) coded in the Infor M3 ERP system and are called order categories. The
valid order categories for this course are:
 01: Forecast

115 Lesson 2: Infor OS

  31: Outbound delivery towards the customer in the context of a sales order. This will decrease the
value of the general ledger account “Finished goods.” The accounting event is OI10. This results into
the internal cost of goods sold (COGS). The COGS need to be checked against the revenue on the
customer invoice. If all goes to plan, the revenue exceeds the cost of goods sold (profit).
 50: Inbound receipt from a distribution (receiving warehouse). This will lead to an increased value on
general ledger account “Swedish End Items Stock.” This is a debit transaction. Each logistical
movement has an accounting event connected. In this case it is MM50.
 51: Outbound delivery/dispatch from a distribution (sending warehouse). This will lead to a decreased
value on general ledger account “US End Items Stock.” This is a credit transaction. Each logistical
movement has an accounting event connected. In this case it is MM50 as well. This is because both
aforementioned transaction codes are each other’s mirror transaction.
 10: Inbound receipt of manufacturing. This is in warehouse 210. This corresponds to a debit,
increasing the value of the general ledger account “Finished goods.” The accounting event is PM30:
the work in progress is removed/relieved.
 11: Outbound (consumption) of components. Raw material is taken from general ledger account
“Raw materials inventory” into account “Work in progress (WIP).” This corresponds to a credit,
decreasing the value of the general ledger. The accounting event is PM10. WIP is also known as
capital tie-up and most companies want to have these accounts zeroed out, as capital tie-up is self-
explanatory.
 25: Inbound receipt of a purchase. Raw material is received into stock and it will increase the value
on the general ledger “Raw materials inventory.” This corresponds to a debit and accounting event
PP10.
These order category codes get a third digit at the end that specifies if it is a planned order (0) or a
released order (1). In the material plan, you can for example see these order categories for distribution
orders:
 500: Planned distribution order, inbound reception (receiving warehouse)
 510: Planned distribution order, outbound delivery (sending warehouse)
 501: Released distribution order, inbound reception (receiving warehouse)
 511: Released distribution order, outbound delivery (sending warehouse)

116 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Push approach (Forecast and MRP/DRP)

Push approach flow

Demand to plan:
1. We start with the manual entry of a forecast (010) for end item (ITS[##]M) in Swedish warehouse
130 (division AAA). Normally, Ecoseat would use the sales statistics to figure out what to forecast
for this year. But our end item is a new item, so there is no history. You can use the demand
planner (DMP), but that is not covered in this course.
2. To trigger supply (replenishment), you run a distribution requirements planning (DRP) for your
end item in the Stockholm warehouse (130). The result is planned distribution order receipts
(500) in the receiving warehouse (130) and planned distribution order issues (510) in the sending
warehouse (210). At this point, you know you must dispatch the end item from warehouse 210 to
warehouse 130. The problem is that you don’t have any end items in stock in warehouse 210.
3. You need to trigger supply (replenishment) once again, this time you run a material requirements
planning (MRP) within the production warehouse (210). The MRP will consider the underlying
components (bill of material) and it will calculate the net required quantities. The need to dispatch
the end item requires us to manufacture the end item, i.e. planned manufacturing receipts (100)
are created for our end item. Parallel, for our purchased component (ITS[##]P), planned
manufacturing issues are triggered (101) together with planned purchase orders (250).
Procure to pay:
4. Now it’s time to start the execution. You release your planned purchase orders when the system
recommends it. Once released (251), the order is processed via the procure-to-pay process. In
the end, you will have the necessary purchased components (for example ITS[##]P) in stock.
Production to inventory:
5. Similarly, you release your planned manufacturing orders when the system recommends it. Once
released (101), the order is processed via the production-to-inventory process. In this process
you will consume your purchased component.
6. In the end of the production-to-inventory process, you will have the manufactured end item in
stock in warehouse 210.
Distribution to internal invoicing:
117 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 7. It’s now possible to distribute the end item over the Atlantic Ocean. You release your planned
distribution orders when the system recommends it. Once released (501), the order is processed
via the distribution-to-internal invoice process. In the end, you will have the manufactured end
item in stock in warehouse 130. You will also generate internal accounting entries, so-called
multi-unit coordination (MUC), since warehouse 210 and 130 belongs to different divisions.
Order to cash:
8. Finally, you can create a customer order (311) that consumes the end item in warehouse 130
following the order-to-cash process.

Pull approach (Supply chain order)

This approach reverses the logic. Nothing will happen until the customer requests the end item (ITS[##]M)
via a customer order (order-to-cash process). You can use a technique called order initiation, but the
downside is that the orders will be hard-linked to each other, making it less flexible.
We will instead be using a supply chain order, which does the same as order-initiated orders, but the links
are “soft,” or “dynamic.” Behind the scenes, there is the technique of pre-allocation. All the different
business processes (order-to-cash, distribute-to-internal-invoice, production-to-inventory, and procure-to-
pay) are pre-allocated to each other. Moreover, these business processes listen to each other in a way
that MRP cannot accomplish. For instance, when the supplier confirms a delayed delivery date, there will
be an M3 Application Message sent to the responsible of the first upstream process, telling how many
days the NEXT tier must be rescheduled. In this example, the planned purchase order (order category
250) was delayed with two days and this is the message pointed towards planned manufacturing order
(order category 110). Remember that the perspective here is the purchased item (ITS[##]P), and that item
is consumed by the manufacturing order.
The trigger for the supply chain order is the supply chain policy that you (optionally) connect to the item
per warehouse (MMS002/E) in the master data. In this case study, you will get a four-tier supply chain
order. The customer order (311) in warehouse 130 will trigger a string of planned orders: a planned
distribution order (500) for item ITS[##]M in warehouse 130, a planned manufacturing order (100) for item
ITS[##]M in warehouse 210, and a planned purchase order (250) for item ITS[##]P in warehouse 210.
It is good to mention that you do not have to trigger all four business processes in this example. You can
stop in the middle with the planned distribution order if you so want. In that case, you must plan to have
on-hand stock available for your end item in warehouse 210, or use other planning techniques such as
reorder point planning, MRP etc. A huge selling point is that you can:
 Reschedule the planned/released orders from the supply chain display (MWS150).
 Release the planned orders from the supply chain display (MWS150).

118 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Demand to plan

The demand-to-plan process

The demand planning process links the demand for items taken from forecasts and customer orders to
the supply represented by manufacturing, distribution, and purchase orders. The process starts with
establishing demand through the calculation of sales forecasts based on recent invoice statistics or
through the entry of sales budgets. These expected demand figures are transferred to a planning forecast
used to drive the material/distribution requirements planning (MRP/DRP) calculation. A series of planned
manufacturing, purchase, and in the case of a multi-warehouse configuration, distribution orders is
generated by the planning routine and action messages are assigned to the detailed planning records to
assist the planner in identifying when orders need to be rescheduled or planned orders released. The
purpose of this process is to: utilize sales budgets and import historical sales statistics as input to the
generation of forecasts, transfer sales forecast information to a planning forecast as input to the material
requirements planning routines, monitor the actual demand against forecasts, establish a detailed plan for
manufacturing and purchasing, and monitor the execution of the plan.

119 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Manufacturing resource planning
The picture shows the manufacturing resource planning (MRP II) concept which manages resource and
material planning during the whole planning process.
On the top level, the strategic planning is the responsibility of the CEO of the company. The planning
horizon is on the long term for several years, and the frame is usually a year. The focus will be on
determining the strategy of the company, including developing new families of products, acquiring
companies, etc.
The tactical planning is the responsibility of the board of directors of the company. The planning horizon is
usually for six to eighteen months, and the frame is usually the month. The focus will be on determining a
sales budget, which will generate a production plan. This production plan is usually based on family
products. Later, the production plan will be transformed to forecasts. Forecasts are based on quantities
for a certain period, usually the week or the month, for finished products.
The operational planning is the responsibility of the planners of the company. The planning horizon is
usually for six to eighteen months, and the frame is usually the week or the month. The focus will be on
generating distribution and requirements plans, which will generate planned distribution, manufacturing,
and purchasing orders with action messages. The action messages will help the planner to plan the order
release, rescheduling, and deletion.
Execution is the responsibility of the department managers. The planning horizon is usually for one
month, and the frame is usually the week or the day. The focus will be on handling manufacturing and
purchasing orders. This is no longer a planning step, but execution.
On every level of this MRP II concept, it is necessary to perform capacity controls, so that the planning
system will be realistic. Feedback is also very important to make sure that deviation is under control.

Demand capture to forecast

The purpose of this sub-process is to generate a reliable demand that can be used as input to production
planning and material purchasing. Although the demand can be entered directly using manual functions,
we anticipate that extensive use of the sales budget functionality and the calculation of sales forecasts
from historical statistics based on metrics such as mean absolute deviation (MAD), followed by
subsequent transfer to forecasts will be required in this industry. The departmental function sales and
marketing has been assigned the responsibility for the generation of sales budgets particularly for new
items or where recent sales history is either insufficient or unreliable. This may vary between different
food and beverage companies, nevertheless sales and marketing should be involved in the process for
deciding upon the forecast.

120 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Capture demand to forecast (parts in blue are covered in this course)

Requirement calculations
The requirement calculations can take place in four ways:
 Regenerative calculations are performed through separate jobs to potentially delete all material
planning entries within the selected ranges and build them up from scratch.
 Batch net changes are carried out automatically as part of the night-run.
 Single item recalculations can manually be requested from the material plan.
 Continuous net changes take place whenever any transaction takes place on an item flagged as
with Continuous net change. Please note that the IA solution has no items configured in this way.

Requirement calculations (part in blue is covered in this course)

What in Infor M3 is referred to as an MRP calculation actually manages all forms of

requirement calculations. For example, it covers the creation of the MPS (if master
scheduled), DRP (distributed items), MRP (manufactured items), as well as stock build-ups
121 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 via reorder points or safety stocks and capacity planning. The Acquisition code, the Planning
method, and the Master scheduled setting control how the item is treated during the (MRP)
calculation.

Master planning
Infor M3 refers to a master planning process. In practice, this is normally processed in two separate
cycles: long to mid-term (production planning) and mid to short-term (master production scheduling). The
production plan is normally conducted on product families and validated towards rough-cut capacity
(grouped) resources. The production planning may result in capacity increases (or decreases) solved via
new machines and/or hires. The production plan also considers seasonal changes and production
levelling. To manage the long to mid-term demand, the production plan will also consider marketing
activities. The master production schedule is conducted on items specified as master scheduled (end
items or critical components).
The master production schedule is traditionally validated using rough-cut capacity planning (grouped
resources), but today’s systems can manage bigger amounts of data so the validation is done for each
resource (work center), so-called capacity requirements planning. The master production schedule will
also manage capacity constraints, but these are rather solved using over-time or alternative routings.

Master planning (parts in blue are covered in this course)

122 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Exercise 3.1: Enter a forecast and trigger replenishment orders
In this exercise, you will enter a forecast manually. The forecast is entered in the Swedish
sales office for a manufactured item. The requirements planning is then run to trigger
distribution orders, manufacturing orders, and purchase orders.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Connect your user to your dedicated course items

1. Click the Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage in the Page Navigator. The Introducing
the Solution (ITS) homepage displays.
2. Click Warehouse Management in the Business processes widget. A sub-menu displays.
3. Click the Item master sub-menu item. The Item. Open (MMS001/B) program opens.
4. Click the View drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
5. Click the OPEN-13.1 NCR menu item.
6. Type ITS[##]* in the Search field in the program menu bar.
7. Press Enter. Your dedicated items display. The Resp (responsible) field is open for editing.
8. Click to highlight the row connected to item number ITS[##]M.
9. Click the Item/Warehouse link in the Shortcuts menu. The Item. Connect Warehouse
(MMS002/B) program opens.
10. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
11. Click the 65-Warehouse, Item (no filter) IES menu item.
12. Type ITS[##]* in the Search field.
13. Press Enter. Your dedicated items display. There are two records for item ITS[##]M, one in
warehouse 210 and one in warehouse 130. The responsible and the buyer fields are open for
editing.
14. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Resp field or the ITS[##]P item (warehouse 210).
15. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Buyer field or the ITS[##]P item (warehouse 210).
16. Repeat step 19-20 for the ITS[##]M item in warehouse 130 and 210.
17. Press Enter to confirm the changes.
18. Click the Refresh button to confirm that the changes went through.
19. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.
20. Click the Home link in the Business processes (Warehouse Management) widget.

123 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Part 2: Enter a forecast manually
1. Click Demand to Plan in the Business processes widget. The menu tasks for the Demand to
plan process display. Business processes are managed by many different roles. This activity can,
for example, be conducted by the planner. We have added some icons in the material to indicate
when the responsibility for an activity addresses another role.
2. Click Forecast entry (manually) in the menu. The Manual Forecast/MDS. Open (FCS350/B)
program opens.
3. Type ITS[##]M in the Item number field.
4. Type 130 in the Warehouse field. Note: This represent the Swedish warehouse.
5. Clear the Period frame fields. Note: The default period frame will be taken from the item
warehouse record (MMS002). This field enable you to overrule this setting if needed.
6. Click the Apply button. The period frame defines the time buckets for the forecast, based on the
item constraints. For example: If you set up periods in months, Infor M3 will display and calculate
the forecast in months. If you set up the period frame in weeks, Infor M3 will display and calculate
the forecast in weeks. In this example, we will manage the forecast monthly (4).
7. Type 100 in the F/C qty field for [the second row (month) in the list].
8. Repeat step 7 for [rows three through six].
9. Click the NEXT button to confirm the entries.
10. Click the Close (X) button The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 3: Review the forecast in the material plan

1. Click Material plan in the (Demand to plan) menu. The message, “WARNING – The item is due
for replanning” displays.
2. Click the OK button. The Material Plan. Open (MMS080/B) program opens.
3. Type 130 in the Warehouse field.
4. Verify that ITS[##]M displays in the Item no field.
5. Click Apply. The message, “WARNING – The item is due for replanning” displays.
6. Click the OK button. The material plan for the end item in the sales warehouse (130) displays.
The header informs you that you have nothing in stock (on-hand approved), no defined safety
stock, no set order quantity (you will use lot for lot), a (distribution) lead time of 10 days, and a
planning time fence of 15 days (within the planning lead time the system is not allowed to do any
changes).
Your added forecast records display (negative quantities), one per month. The order category
(010) indicates that the records come from a forecast. The forecast for the first record might be
less than 100 if you entered the demand at the end of the month (the forecast is consumed inside
the demand time fence).
7. Hover with the mouse over 010 in the Oct (order category) column. A conditional style will explain
what the code stands for. The forecast logic is set so the demand appears at the end of each
bucket (month). The plus sign in the beginning informs you that the demand is within the forecast
consumption fence (inside this fence the system will take customer orders in consideration and
the customer orders will consume the forecast according to the set logic). In Infor M3, the material
plan is used to display the demand/supply for all levels. Different sorting orders are used for
different purposes.

124 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 8. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
9. Click the 21-Forecast consmp sorting order. The message, “WARNING – The item is due for
replanning” displays.
10. Click the OK button. The material plan displays the forecast (and the forecast consumption) in a
bucket view. The buckets are displayed four per line. The forecast for the second bucket might be
less than 100 if you entered the demand at the end of the month (the forecast is consumed inside
the demand time fence).
11. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
12. Click the 13-Totaled hrzn 1 sorting order. The message, “WARNING - The item is due for
replanning” displays.
13. Click the OK button. The material plan displays in a traditional bucket format (master production
schedule). Next, trigger a requirements calculation to generate replenishment orders to supply
the demand. This calculation can be done continuously, or be triggered, for example, by a night
run.

Part 4: Run the requirements calculation

1. Click the Requirement calculation link in the Shortcuts menu. The message, “Requirements
calculation performed" displays.
2. Click the OK button. The action states MRP (material requirements planning), but this will trigger
any form of replenishment (MRP, DRP, reorder point, safety stock etc.). In this specific case it will
execute the DRP (distribution requirements planning), i.e. trigger planned distribution orders from
the production warehouse (210) to the sales warehouse (130).
3. Click the Refresh icon. The net requirement is gone and is replaced with planned receipts and
planned releases. We have used a fixed order quantity (FOQ) to always generate a planned
receipt of 100 pieces. If you have a forecast less than 100 for the second bucket, you will get a
projected on-hand that equals the deviation between the forecast and the planned receipt.
4. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
5. Click the 2-Details 2 menu item. Each demand record (forecast) has been accomplished with a
supply record (FOQ=100).
6. Hover with the mouse over 500 in the Oct (order category) column. The order category tells us
that it’s a planned distribution order goods receipt and the reference text that it’s a distribution
between warehouse 210 to 130. If the expand list is activated (User Settings), the reference
displays by clicking the expand arrow.
7. Type 210 in the Warehouse field.
8. Click the Apply button. The message, “WARNING – The item is due for replanning” displays.
9. Click the OK button. The material plan for the end item in the production warehouse (210)
displays. The header informs you that you have nothing in stock (on-hand approved), no defined
safety stock, an order quantity of 100 pieces, a (production) lead time of 1 day, and a planning
time fence of 10 days. Instead of a forecast (independent demand) you have six planned order
issues (dependent demand).
10. Hover with the mouse over 510 in the Oct (order category) column. The order category tells us
that it’s a planned distribution order issue and the reference text that it’s a distribution between
warehouse 210 to 130.
11. Click the Settings link in the Shortcuts menu. Panel P displays.

125 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 12. Click to select the Explosion check box.
13. Type 99 in the Lowest level field. In our case it would have been enough to enter 2 since our
product structure only contains two levels.
14. Click the NEXT button. The message, “WARNING – The item is due for replanning” displays.
15. Click the OK button. You return to panel B1.
16. Click the Requirement calculation link in the Shortcuts menu. A window opens and provides
an option to overrule the number of calculation levels.
17. Click the OK button. The message, “Requirements calculation performed” displays. Note: This
may take several moments.
18. Click the OK button. In this case, the system executes the requirements calculation (MRP) on all
levels (99).
19. Click the Refresh icon. Each demand record (planned distribution order) has been accomplished
with a supply record.
20. Hover with the mouse over 100 in the Oct (order category) column. The order category tells us
that it is planned manufacturing order (inbound – goods receipt). The bill of materials for the end
item (ITP[##]M) contains a purchased component (ITS[##]P).
21. Type ITS[##]P in the Item no field.
22. Click the Apply button. The material plan for the purchased component in the production
warehouse (210) displays. The header informs you that you have nothing in stock (on-hand
approved), no defined safety stock, no set order quantity (you will use lot for lot), a (purchase)
lead time of 5 days. The planned manufacturing orders have created the same amount of
planned material issues (dependent demand) and the requirements calculation (MRP) has
already been run on this level as well.
23. Hover with the mouse over 110 in the Oct (order category) column. The order category tells us
that planned manufacturing orders (material issues) has been created. The Reference text
provides a reference to the end item (ITS[##]M).
24. Hover with the mouse over 250 in the Oct (order category) column. The order category tells us
that planned purchase orders (goods receipts) has been created. The Reference text provides a
reference to the supplier (300001).

Part 5: Reschedule an order and review action message

1. Verify that 210 displays in the Warehouse field.
2. Type ITS[##]M in the Item no field.
3. Click the Apply button.
4. Click to highlight the row related to [your first planned manufacturing order receipt] (order
category 100).
5. Click the Rescheduling link in the Shortcuts menu. The Material Plan. Rescheduling
(RPS102/H) program opens.
6. Type [today’s date + 7 days] in the Pl dt field for [the first record]. Note: This is done to trigger
an action message.
7. Type 20 in the Sts field for [the first record]. Note: This is done to firm the planned order (so the
system cannot change it).

126 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 8. Press Enter to confirm the change.
9. Click the Close (X) button. The Material Plan. Open (MMS080/B1) program displays again.
10. Click Refresh. The planning date has been changed.
11. Click the Requirement calculation link in the Shortcuts menu. A window opens with several
editable fields.
12. Click the OK button. The message, “Requirements calculation performed” displays.
13. Click the OK button. The Material Plan. Open (MMS080/B1) program displays again.
14. Click the Refresh icon. The message, “WARNING – The item is due for replanning” displays.
15. Click the Sorting Order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
16. Click the 1-Details 1 menu item.
17. Click the OK button. If this order is released, it will just add stock. As the order was firmed up
(status 20) and within the planning time fence, the system is not allowed to do any changes
automatically, instead it provides a suggested action via an action message (B4, reschedule out).
18. Type ITS[##]P in the Item no field.
19. Click the Apply button. The message, “WARNING – The item is due for replanning” displays.
20. Click the OK button. Similarly, the purchase order has been rescheduled downstream and given
an action message as well (A2, release).
21. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 6: Review the action message

1. Click Example (ITS) in the Page Navigator. The Example (ITS) homepage displays.
2. Update the Action Messages Warehouse 210 information viewer widget following these steps:
a. Click the ellipsis icon in the widget. A menu displays.
b. Click the Refresh menu item.
3. Click Introducing the Solution (ITS) in the Page Navigator. The Introducing the Solution
(ITS) homepage displays.
4. Click Action messages in the Business processes (Demand to Plan) widget. The Action
Message. Change (RPS001/B1) program opens.
5. Verify that B01 displays in the Facility field.
6. Verify that [your assigned user ID] displays in the Planner field.
7. Click Apply, if required. Your action messages display. This view just tells you that you have
certain messages, not how many.
8. Double-click the row related to ITS[##]M (and action message B4). The Action Message. Open
per Item (RPS002/E) program opens.
9. Type 10 in the Sts field for the first record. This will unfirm the planned order (this will allow the
system to change it if needed).
10. Press Enter to confirm the change.
11. Click the Requirements calculation link in the Shortcuts menu. The message, “Requirements
calculation performed” displays.

127 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 12. Click the OK button. The Action Message. Open per Item (RPS002/E) program displays again.
13. Click the Refresh button. The action message is gone.
Click Material plan in the Shortcuts menu. The program Material Plan. Open (MMS080/B1)
opens. Note: When you unfirmed the planned order, the system could adjust the date. The
planned manufacturing order matches the date for the planned distribution order issue again.
14. Click Close (X) to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage
displays again.

128 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Procure to pay

The procure-to-pay process

This process is a core process at the top level starting with the need to acquire materials for production.
The process is triggered by the planned purchase orders automatically generated by the requirements
calculation (MRP). The first step in the process is then to group and adjust the planned orders and
generate relevant purchase orders based on those planned orders. The final step in the process is to
make sure that the supplier gets paid for the delivered goods. It can be useful to understand the
difference between procurement and purchasing. Procurement includes everything from planning and
establishing long-term agreements with suppliers, to manage the received goods from the supplier.
Purchasing, on the other hand, is a part of procurement that covers the execution, i.e. ordering the goods
to paying the supplier.

Planned orders to invoicing and payment (parts in blue are covered in this course)

Planned orders to purchase orders

This process covers the release of the planned purchase order to a purchase order. It also includes three
types of notifications: order confirmation (the supplier confirms the order), shipment advice (the supplier
confirms that the goods have been sent), and transport notification (carrier notifications during the
shipment). The management of the (planned) purchase orders may include authorizations, order
consolidations, and order printing among other things.

Goods receipt to put-away

This process also covers the receipt of the purchase goods. The process contains activities from
unloading the goods, putting them away, and inspecting them. Activities such as quality control, claiming,
or invoice control are linked with this process and may be triggered by other activities in the process. This

129 Lesson 2: Infor OS

process will cut across organizational boundaries such as the supplier itself, the purchasing service,
logistics, warehousing, (warehouse goods receipt and warehouse storage) and laboratory inspection.
The tasks in the warehouse (receive, put-away and inspect the goods) may be reported either using Infor
M3 screens, or using Factory Track and mobile devices.
The first receipt activity is always the goods receipt reporting (mandatory). The following steps, and their
order, are controlled by the goods receiving method in connection to different quality inspection routines.
These steps can be set as mandatory, optional, or be based on the inspection outcome. The inspection
can be done in many ways. There is a built-in process that covers quality inspection tasks and plans.

Invoicing and payment

To maintain control over the necessary cost of procured goods, it is important that purchase orders are
raised, goods received and that these details are then matched to the supplier invoice. There may be
times when purchase orders raised do not match the supplier invoice received, for example if the
purchase price has not been updated, if goods delivered have subsequently been rejected, or if there is
simply a mistake on the documentation. Tolerance levels can be used to automate the process. All
invoices processed, that are within the tolerance levels, can be quickly processed and only the “problem”
invoices will require further processing time.
A payment proposal can be created for all supplier invoices that are due for payment at a specified date.
The payment proposal can be reviewed and the invoiced held or released as appropriate. When the
proposal is confirmed the ledgers are updated (the bank account is credited against the accounts payable
account) and a payment document is produced which relates to the payment method selected within the
proposal.
Accounts payable within Infor M3 is a complete solution for processing invoices and making payments
efficiently and intelligently. The solution handles complex transactions quickly and automatically,
minimizing the need for manual processing allowing efficient invoice matching and supplier invoice
approval, enabling the Infor M3 user to administer, monitor, and control purchasing expenditure via
supplier invoices, adjustments, and payments. Accounts payable integrates with purchasing,
warehousing, and the general ledger, so that when supplier invoices are received they may be checked
against the goods received details and the purchase order details to assist with the invoice approval
process. All supplier invoices processed create journal vouchers (one for the invoice and one for the
payment) and update the general ledger along with updating the supplier account. A voucher is a unique
trace (number) in accounts payable and the general ledger.

130 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Exercise 3.2: Process a purchase order
In this exercise, you will release a planned purchase order and then process this order. All
activities until the payment of the supplier invoice (your debt) will be carried out. Direct put-
away will be used. No quality inspection and/or separate put-away is involved to keep this
process as short (light) as possible.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Release the planned purchase order

1. Update the M3 Information Monitor widget following these steps:
a. Click the ellipsis icon in the M3 Information Monitor widget. A menu displays.
b. Click the Refresh menu item. Note: Your widget should indicate six hits for your planned
purchase orders.
2. Click PUR-My planned purchase orders in the M3 Information Monitor widget. The program
Planned Purchase Order. Open (PPS170/B) opens.
Note: The drill-back for this monitor takes you to the program for planned purchase orders. An
Infor ION Enterprise Search has been added to show the transactions where the logged-in user is
the buyer. The action messages make the buyer (planner) aware of suggested actions. A
personalization has been added to show the action message in plain text. In this case, the system
recommends you release (and reschedule in if needed) your first planned purchase order.
3. Click to highlight the row related to [your first planned purchase order number].
4. Click Shortcuts menu up to the right to expand the Shortcuts menu, if required.
5. Follow these steps if you have an A2 (release) action message:
a. Click the Release Line link in the Shortcuts menu. The order line status becomes 60-
Released.
b. Click the Close (X) button. The program Purchase Order. Create from Planned
(PPS913/E) opens.
c. Click the NEXT button. You return to the Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage.
6. Follow these steps if you instead have an A1 (release and reschedule in) action message:
a. Click Manage action messages in the Shortcuts menu. The program Action Message.
Open per Item (RPS002/B) opens and your planned purchase order is listed. Note: A
script has been added that brings you to the action message view where you can adjust
the planning date, firm up the planned order, and adjust the quantity.
b. Drag the date in the Altpld field to the Pl dt field.
c. Press Enter to confirm the change. The line is still highlighted.
d. Click Release Order in the Shortcuts menu. Note: The status is changed to 60-
Released.
e. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Planned Purchase Order. Open (PPS170/B).

131 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 f. Click the Refresh button. The planned purchase order is gone (converted to a purchase
order).
g. Click the Close (X) button. You return to the Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage.

Part 2: Review the purchase order and print the order document
1. Update the M3 Information Monitor widget following these steps:
a. Click the ellipsis icon in the M3 Information Monitor widget. A menu displays.
b. Click the Refresh menu item.
c. Repeat steps a-b until the widget indicates one hit for your purchase orders.
2. Click PUR - My purchase orders in the M3 Information Monitor widget. The Purchase Order.
Open (PPS200/B) program opens. The drill-back for this monitor takes you to the program for
purchase orders.
3. Copy [your purchase order number] to Quick Note.
4. Copy [the net order value] to Quick Note.
5. Click the Purchase Order Documents link in the Shortcuts menu. The program Purchase
Order. Print Document (PPS600/E) opens. Note: The order type manages if the order
document is automatically printed or not.
6. Verify that [your assigned user ID] displays in the Buyer (From and To) fields.
7. Clear the PO number (From and To) fields.
8. Verify that 15 displays in the Lowest status (From and To) fields.
9. Verify that 15 displays in the Highest status (From and To) fields.
10. Click the NEXT button until Output. Select Media (MNS212/B1) opens.
11. Click the Confirm output button until the message, “Job PPS601CL has been submitted”
displays.
12. Click the OK button.
13. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Purchase Order. Open (PPS200/B).
14. Click the Refresh button. The order status becomes 20-Printed (Sent).
15. Click to highlight the row related to [your purchase order number].
16. Click to expand the Context Apps (top right). The Context apps menu is expanded.
17. Scroll down to the Related Information app.
18. Click [your purchase order document] in the Related Information app. The purchase order
document opens in a new browser tab (stream). Note: You may need to click the right arrow to
go to the second page to see the purchase order.
19. Review the purchase order details.
20. Click the Close (X) button on the purchase order browser tab.
21. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 3: Report the supplier confirmation

1. Verify that the Infor logo displays in the Business processes widget. If not, click Home.

132 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 2. Click Procure to pay in the Business processes widget. The menu tasks for the Procure to
pay process display.
3. Click Supplier confirmation in the menu. The Purchase Order. Confirm (PPS250/B1) program
opens.
4. Type [your purchase order number] in the PO number field.
5. Click the Apply button. Your purchase order line displays.
6. Double-click the row related to [your purchase order number]. Panel E displays.
7. Verify that 100 displays in the Confirmed qty field. Note: You can report the confirmation of the
date, the price, and the quantity. Accept the defaulted values.
8. Click the NEXT button. You return to panel B1. The order status updates to 35-Confirmed.
9. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 4: Report the goods receipt

1. Click Goods receipt (inbound) in the Business processes (Procure to pay) widget. The
program Purchase Order. Receive Goods (PPS300/B1) opens.
2. Verify that [your purchase order number] displays in the PO number field.
3. Click Apply, if required. Your purchase order line displays. Now we will assume that the ordered
goods have been delivered to your warehouse via truck transportation. The truck has been
unloaded to your dock and you want to report this receipt in Infor M3.
4. Double-click the row related to [your purchase order number]. Panel E displays.
5. Type 100 in the Received qty field. Note: The goods will be reported with direct put-away to a
location for approved goods.
6. Click the NEXT button. You return to panel B1. The order line is reported and therefore no longer
displays.

Part 5: Review the line transactions and the available quantity

1. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
2. Click the 2-Closed lines menu item.
3. Click to highlight the row related to [your purchase order line].
4. Click Display Purchase Order Transactions in the Shortcuts menu. The Purchase Order.
Display Line Trans (PPS330/B1) program opens. The transactions for the performed tasks
(confirmation and goods receipt) are listed.
5. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Purchase Order. Receive Goods (PPS300/B1).
6. Click On-hand balances in the Shortcuts menu. The Balance Identity. Open Toolbox
(MWS060/B) program opens.
7. Verify that 1-Whs/Item/Loc/Lo displays in the Sorting order field.
8. Verify that 210 displays in the Warehouse (selection) field.
9. Verify that 210 displays in the Whs filter field.
10. Type ITS[##]P in the Item number filter field.
11. Click the Apply button. Note: 100 units are available in stock (ready to use) in warehouse 210.

133 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 12. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Purchase Order. Receive Goods (PPS300/B1). Now
we will reset the sorting order before closing.
13. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
14. Click the 1-Open lines menu item.
15. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

Part 6: Record the supplier invoice

1. Click Invoice matching in the Business processes (Procure to pay) widget. The Supplier
Invoice. Record (APS100/B) program opens.
2. Double-click the row related to function 500. Panel E displays. Note: 1-Select has been defined
as the Program option for this program.
3. Type [your purchase order number] in the PO number field. Note: You saved these values to
Quick Note.
4. Type [your net order value] in the Inv amount field.
5. Click the NEXT button. The supplier number and the currency are retrieved from the order.
6. Type ITS32[##] in the Supplier inv no field.
7. Click the NEXT button until the Supplier Invoice. Match GR Line (APS360/B1) program opens.
Note: We are performing a three-way match between the purchase order, the invoice, and the
reception in warehouse 210. This is normally done via automatic document capture (ADC), and
the invoice document will be saved in IDM directly.
8. Click Approve all in the Shortcuts menu. You have approved the invoiced quantities and the
amounts displayed on the panel. The invoice net amount now matches the amount to distribute.
9. Click Create accounting entries in the Shortcuts menu. The message, “All created accounting
entries have been created without any errors” displays.
10. Click the OK button. The amount to distribute updates to zero.
11. Click the Close (X) button. The message, “Do you want to approve the invoice for payment”
message displays.
12. Click the Yes button. The message, “Voucher created. The invoice is approved for payment”
displays.
13. Click the OK button. The program Supplier Invoice. Record (APS100/E) opens.
14. Copy [your voucher number] to Quick Note. Note: You can now process the next invoice. As
we only have one, we will leave this program.
15. Click the Close (X) button. The Output. Select Media (MNS212/B1) program displays. Note: You
must close this program. If not, the accounts payable ledger is not updated because the system
waits for you to enter the next supplier invoice.
16. Click the Confirm Output button until the Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays
again.

Part 7: Review the accounts payable

1. Click Accounts payable in the Business processes (Procure to pay) widget. The Acc
Payable. Display (APS200/B1) program opens.

134 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 2. Type 300001 in the Payee field.
3. Verify that 1-Open invoices displays in the Select field.
4. Type ITS32[##] in the Supplier invoice no filter field.
5. Click the Apply button. Your outstanding invoice record (not yet paid) displays.
6. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 8: Record your supplier payment

1. Click Invoice payment (proposal) in the Business processes (Procure to pay) widget. The
program Suppl Payment Proposal. Open (APS130/B1) opens.

The creation of the supplier payment proposal should be done by one user only.

2. Click OPTIONS > Create. The program Suppl Payment Proposal. Create (APS131/E) opens.
3. Type CH1 in the first Payment method field.
4. Click the calendar icon in the Due date (To) field.
5. Click the [the last day of next month].
6. Type USD in the Currency fields (From and To).
7. Click the Bank account ID drop-down arrow. The M3 Browse window opens.
8. Click to highlight the row related to the account USBNK.
9. Click the Select button.
10. Type T in the Pmt prop date field. Today’s date displays in the field.
11. Type Exercise 3.2 [your three letter initials] in the Report text field.
12. Click the NEXT button. The Output. Select Media (MNS212/B1) program opens.
13. Click the Confirm output button until the message, “Job has been submitted” displays.
14. Click the OK button. The Suppl Payment Proposal. Open (APS130/B1) program displays again
and your new payment proposal is ready for processing. Note: You may need to click the
Refresh button.
15. Double-click the row related to [your payment proposal number]. The Suppl Payment
Proposal. Update Details (APS137/B1) program opens. All invoices connected to the payment
proposal are listed (multiple invoices if running this course in a classroom). From here you may
decide to hold (not pay) specific invoices if needed.
16. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Suppl Payment Proposal. Open (APS130/B1).
17. Click to highlight your payment proposal line.
18. Click the Confirm link in the Shortcuts menu. The message, “Confirm start of check payment”
displays.
19. Click the OK button. The Check. Print (APS140/E) program opens.
20. Type PO payment [your assigned user ID] in the Voucher text field.
21. Type 320[##] in the First check no field.

135 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 22. Click the Sorting drop-down arrow. A list displays.
23. Click the 1-By supplier list item.
24. Click the NEXT button. The Output. Select Media (MNS212/B1) program opens.
25. Click the Confirm output button until the Suppl Payment Proposal. Open (APS130/B1)
program displays again. The status of the proposal updates to 9-Confirmed (and printed), the
payment of the invoice has been recorded in the system.
26. Click the Refresh icon. Your payment proposal line disappears.
27. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

Part 9: Review the accounts payable

1. Click Accounts payable in the Business processes (Procure to pay) widget. The program Acc
Payable. Display (APS200/B1) opens.
2. Verify that 300001 displays in the Payee field.
3. Click the Select drop-down arrow.
4. Click 2-Paid invoices.
5. Type ITS32[##] in the Supplier invoice no filter field.
6. Click the Apply button. [Your invoice record] displays as paid (no outstanding amount).
7. Click to highlight the row related to [your supplier invoice number].
Click the Display invoices link in the Shortcuts menu. The Supplier Invoice. Display Separate
(APS215/B) program opens and two vouchers have been created, one against the invoice (AP10)
and one for the payment (AP30).
8. Click to highlight the row related to [your invoice voucher] (AP10500).
9. Click the Display voucher link in the Shortcuts menu. The Voucher. Display (GLS200/B1)
program opens.
10. Click to highlight the row related to sequence number 1.
11. Click the Details link in the Shortcuts menu. The General Ledger. Display Transactions
(GLS211/E) program opens and the voucher transaction details display including your invoice
voucher number.
12. Click the Close (X) button until the Acc Payable. Display (APS200/B1) program displays again.
The row related to your supplier invoice number is still highlighted.
13. Click the Purchase orders link in the Shortcuts menu. The Purchase Order. Open (PPS200/B)
program opens.
14. Type [your purchase order number] in the PO no filter field.
15. Click the Apply button. Your purchase order line displays. The order status has updated to 85-
Invoicing completed.
16. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

136 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Production to inventory

The production-to-inventory process

Production to inventory (manufacturing execution) is a core operational process at the top level starting
with the production department receiving firmed planned manufacturing orders or released manufacturing
orders (MOs). The process contains activities from preparing the actual launch of production against an
MO until finalizing and closing the same MO. Thereby this process will cut across organizational
boundaries such as production, logistics, warehousing, planning, laboratory/quality and finance.

Planned order to finalizing/closing (parts in blue are covered in this course)

Prepare to produce
The order preparation includes the following activities: secure material availability, initiate execution
(documents and tasks), move materials from the warehouse to the production area, prepare materials
and equipment, produce, process control and reporting, and process analysis. The securing of materials
is an optional step. The objective is to make a final check for material availability before any activities
related to the actual production process takes place. In some cases, it may also involve the actual
allocation of specific lots of raw material and packaging. Persons and departments involved in the
executing activities related to the manufacturing order need to be initiated. Warehouse personnel may be
involved in bringing forward materials needed in production. Production personnel may be involved in
setting up the equipment etc. Then the warehouse personnel move the goods to the right location in the
production area. The same person usually reports the goods as moved. Picking lists are normally used for
materials that need to be moved from the warehouse to the production area for a specific order or a group

137 Lesson 2: Infor OS

of orders. A delivery released for picking is a signal to the warehouse personnel that material such as raw
materials or packaging needs to be moved to the production area.

Process control and reporting

For all orders, the actual progress is monitored closely by the production personnel. But for many
companies results during the production run are only captured in the ERP system when exceptions occur.
For other companies the progress is reported in the system to provide real-time status or time-based
statistics. What is described here is what needs to be performed when reporting progress continuously
during the production run. The progress is reported in Infor M3 in an interactive mode.

Receipt to approval
The receipt to approval includes receipt and put-away activities, as well as quality inspection including
approval, rejection, or reclassification of the end-product. The receipt and put-away from production are
performed by several persons in the organization. There are two main variants with different levels of
automation and controls: Direct put-away is used for intermediate products that will be stored in the
production area. It may also cover products to be stored in the warehouse but where a single step when
reporting the receipt and the put-away of a product is enough. Two-step put-away involves an additional
step that makes the handover between the production department and the warehouse clear. The first step
involves the production personnel reporting the goods as received and at the same time selecting the final
locations for put-away. The second step involves the warehouse personnel picking up the goods and
assuming the responsibility of the goods while confirming the put-away.
The selected method for put-away applies to all the end products belonging to the manufacturing order,
i.e. the same method applies to the main end-product, co-products, by-products and when applying
multiple end products through process planning items.

Consumption to statistics
This part of the process includes the reporting of resource consumption, the return reporting of unused
material to warehouse, the finalizing and closing of the manufacturing order, and the post calculation and
statistics. Before closing an order, you need to verify that all reporting has been performed. The post
calculation and statistics includes two main tasks: manufacturing order costing and production statistics
generation. These may be performed in any order, but Infor recommends performing the costing first to
avoid creating statistics for orders where the reporting will be completed or changed.

138 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Exercise 3.3: Process a manufacturing order
In this exercise, you will release a planned manufacturing order and then report the
processing of the created manufacturing order.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Check material availability and capacity

1. Click MFG - My planned manufacturing orders in the M3 Information Monitor widget. The
Planned MO. Open (PMS170/B) program opens. The drill-back for this monitor takes you to the
program for planned manufacturing orders. Normally, you will act based on action messages, like
in the procure-to-pay process. The first demand appears the next month. We will process this
order nevertheless.
2. Double-click the row related to [your first planned manufacturing order number]. Panel E
displays.
3. Click the Calendar icon in the Finish date field. A calendar displays with the current month and
year visible.
4. Click [the next working day after today]. Note: This action is done to avoid any allocation
issues in the steps that follow. Allocations will be discussed later in this course.
5. Click the Status drop-down arrow. A list displays.
6. Click the 20-Firmed pl MO list item. This firms the planned order.
7. Click the NEXT button. You return to panel B. The row related to your order is still highlighted.
You now have an action message to release the order.
8. Click Shortcuts menu up to the right to expand the Shortcuts menu, if required.
9. Click Update Material Check in the Shortcuts menu. A material check is triggered, and a
column (MSPM but looks like PI) has been added that provides material shortage information
(last column in the image). You are informed if you have material shortages of purchased
components (first digit) and if you have material shortages for semi-finished products (second
digit). If you only have one digit, that refer to semi-finished products.
10. Click Check Materials in the Shortcuts menu. The program Component Availability. Check
(RPS010/B) opens.
11. Verify that 1-Current on-hand displays in the Availability tp field. This panel tells the planner
whether enough stock exists for the included components and if the planner can release the order
for manufacturing. If there is not enough stock, the planner has an issue that needs to be
managed before releasing the order. Components with a shortage are highlighted (bold font and
blue background). In this case, don’t bother if you have shortages for components 001101 and
002042. Both will be backflushed later in the process and the system is deliberately configured to
allow negative stock levels (abnormal) for these components.

139 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 12. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Planned MO. Open (PMS170/B). The row related to
your order is still highlighted.
13. Click Create Load in the Shortcuts menu. The program Load. Create for Planned Orders
(CPS050/B) opens.
14. Type B01 in the Facility From and To fields.
15. Click the NEXT button. The message, “Job has been submitted” displays.
16. Click the OK button.
17. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Planned MO. Open (PMS170/B) that was kept open.
Click Check Capacity in the Shortcuts menu. The program Load. Display per Product
(CPS110/B1) opens. This panel tells the planner whether enough capacity exists for the
operations, and if the planner can release the order for manufacturing. If there is not enough
capacity, the planner has an issue that needs to be managed before releasing the order. In this
case, each order will require 1 + (1/20) x 100 = 6 hours in work center WC200, that has a weekly
capacity of 120 hours (8 hours x 3 persons x 100 percent utilization x 5 days). As all participants
uses the same work center, it’s a risk that this display will show a lack of capacity.
The first line shows the available capacity per bucket, the second line the total load (including
your order), and the third line your order only. The work center is set to infinite planning, i.e. an
overload is accepted.
18. Click to highlight the row related to WC200.
19. Click Detailed load in the Shortcuts menu. The program Load. Display Detailed (CPS105/B1)
opens. The first time you open the detailed load you need to define the default facility.
20. Update the detailed load settings following these steps:
a. Click Settings in the Shortcuts menu. Panel P displays.
b. Type B01 in the Facility field.
c. Click the NEXT button. You return to panel B and all orders generating load for this work
center display. Most likely, you will have one record only connected to your order (your order
require 6 hours and the work center has a daily capacity of 24 hours). In case your order
needs to be run over multiple days, you will have several lines. Load factor (Lof) 1 indicates
that the order is started, Lof 3 that it is finished, and Lof 0 that it’s in process (or
started/finished the same day).
21. Click the Close (X) button until the Planned MO. Open (PMS170/B) program displays again.
Note: If you manage tools within the manufacturing flow, the availability of these can be checked
as well. Tool shortages are shown in the T column.

Part 2: Release the planned manufacturing order

1. Verify that the row related to [your first planned manufacturing order number] is still
highlighted.
Click Release Order in the Shortcuts menu. The status updates to 60-Released.
2. Click the Refresh button. The planned manufacturing order is gone (converted to a
manufacturing order).
3. Click the Close (X) button. You return to the Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage.

Part 3: Review and stage the manufacturing order

1. Update the M3 Information Monitor widget following these steps:
140 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 a. Click the ellipsis icon in the monitor widget. A menu displays.
b. Click the Refresh button.
c. Repeat steps a-b until the widget indicates one hit for your manufacturing orders.
Click MFG - My manufacturing orders in the M3 Information Monitor widget. The program
Manufacturing Order. Open (PMS100/B) opens. The drill-back for this monitor takes you to the
manufacturing order program. A filtering has been added to show the transactions where the
logged-in user is responsible.
The first shown status represents the order status (20-Definite), the second status the lowest
material status (33-Allocated), and the third status the operation status (40-Ready).
2. Copy [your manufacturing order number] to Quick Note.
3. Click to highlight the row related to [your manufacturing order number].
4. Click Materials and Operations in the Shortcuts menu. The Manufacturing Order. Open
Lines (PMS101/B3) program opens. The combined bill of materials (red lines) and routing (black
line) displays. For example, you can see that the picking list for the purchase component
(ITS[##]P) has been printed (status 44) and you can see the operation (WC200) is ready to start
(status 40). The setup time (1 hour) and the run time (1 hour per 20 pieces) requires a total time
of 6 hours for 100 pieces.
5. Click the Close (X) button. The Manufacturing Order. Open (PMS100/B) program displays
again. The row related to your order is still highlighted.
6. Click Material Plan in the Shortcuts menu. The message, “WARNING – The item is due for
replanning” displays.
7. Click the OK button. The Material Plan. Open (MMS080/B1) program opens.
8. Verify that 210 displays in the Warehouse field.
9. Verify that ITS[##]M displays in the Item no field.
10. Click Apply, if required. The material plan displays for your manufactured item. Your order
displays at the top and the order category (101) tells you it’s a manufacturing order receipt.
11. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Manufacturing Order. Open (PMS100/B) that was kept
open. The row related to your order is still highlighted.
12. Click Check Component Availability in the Shortcuts menu. The Manufact Order. Check
Comp Availability (PMS040/B1) program opens.
13. Verify that 1-Current OHB (on-hand) displays in the Availability tp field. The component
availability displays as it did for the planned manufacturing order. As responsible you need to take
the necessary actions and when it’s ok to proceed, stage the order.
14. Click Stage All in the Shortcuts menu.
15. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Manufacturing Order. Open (PMS100/B). The order
status updates to 40-Ready.

Part 4: Print the manufacturing order

1. Click the 0-Print now link (in the Printed column) related to [your manufacturing order
number]. The Manufact Order. Print Separate Documents (PMS250/E) program opens. The
print options, for example the number of copies to print for each document, are defaulted from the
product structure. The shop traveler is the most important document to print; it will accompany the
order all along the manufacturing process.

141 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 2. Click the NEXT button. The Output. Select Media (MNS212/B1) session opens.
3. Click the Confirm output button. The message, “Job has been submitted” displays.
4. Click the OK button.
5. Click the Refresh button until the status updates to 1-Printed.
6. Click to highlight the row related to [your manufacturing order number].
7. Click to expand the Context Apps icon. Several manufacturing order documents are available in
the Related Information app (put-away card, labor ticket, shop traveler, routing card).
8. Click to review [your manufacturing order documents] in the Related Information app. They
open in new browser tabs.
9. Click the Close (X) button on the manufacturing order related browser tab. The Manufacturing
Order. Open (PMS100/B) program displays again.
10. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

Part 5: Review the work center schedule

1. Verify that the Infor logo displays in the Business processes widget. If not, click the Home link.
2. Click Production to inventory in the Business processes widget. The menu tasks for the
Production to inventory process display.
3. Click Work center schedule in the Business processes (Production to inventory) widget. The
Work Center Schedule. Open (PMS230/P) program opens. The first time you open the work
center schedule the P panel opens automatically.
4. Update the work center schedule settings following these steps:
a. Click the Opening panel drop-down arrow. A list displays.
b. Click the B-Browse list item.
c. Type M3 in the View field.
d. Verify that B01 displays in the Facility field.
e. Click the NEXT button. Panel B displays.
5. Type WC200 in the Work center field.
6. Click the Calendar icon in the From date field. A calendar displays with the current month and
year visible.
7. Click the [Monday of the current week] option.
8. Click Apply.
Note: Your manufacturing order for the product ITS[##]M is part of the list. The lowest material
status is 33-Allocated.
9. Click to highlight the row related to [your manufacturing order number].
10. Click Check Materials in the Shortcuts menu. The Manufact Order. Check Comp Availability
(PMS040/B1) program opens.
11. Verify that 1-Current OHB displays in the Availability tp field. Note: You reviewed this earlier.
The first material line is reported via a picking list, which has been printed (status 44-Printed).
The other two material lines will be backflushed.
12. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Work Center Schedule. Open (PMS230/B1).

142 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Part 6: Report the picking list
1. Click Delivery toolbox in the Shortcuts menu. The Delivery. Open Toolbox (MWS410/B)
program opens. There is a related option to access the delivery toolbox, but if you use that path
you will narrow the hit for your order number only. A delivery might include multiple order
numbers.
2. Verify that 11-One-Stop displays in the Sorting order field.
3. Verify that 210 displays in the Whs field.
4. Type [Monday of the current week] (in YYMMDD format) in the Dep dt filter field.
5. Click Apply. Your manufacturing number has been connected to a delivery number. In this
training environment we have defined a one-to-one relation to avoid that all users’ orders end up
at the same delivery. The first time you open the delivery toolbox you need to define some
settings.
6. Click the 00-Packing Not Allowed link related to [your manufacturing order number]. The
status of the deliver becomes 90-Dispatched. The purchased item has been reported issued
from stock to WIP (accounting event PM10). Alternatively, click Report All Picking Lists in the
Shortcuts menu.
7. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Work Center Schedule. Open (PMS230/B) that was
kept open.

Part 7: Report the operation

1. Click the 40-Ready link associated with [your manufacturing order number]. The program MO
Operation. Report (PMS070/A) opens. Your order details are defaulted.
Note: Alternatively, highlight your order line and click Report Operation in the Shortcuts menu.
2. Verify that 0-Run & setup displays in the Reporting type field.
3. Click the NEXT button. Panel E displays. Note: This operation’s used labor run time is defaulted
to 5 hours (100 x 1 / 20) and the used labor setup time is defaulted to 1 hours.
4. Type 6 in the Used lab run tm field.
5. Type 0 in the Used lab setup field. The work center is defined as person-oriented, i.e. only the
labor time will impact the load. However, you may have costs triggered by reported machine time.
We report all time used as run time to simplify the costing. For the same reason we will skip any
scrap reporting and assume all manufactured quantity ok. The auto reporting check box is
activated, this means that you will automatically trigger the receipt when completing the operation
reporting.
6. Click the NEXT button. The program Manufact Order. Report Receipt (PMS050/E) opens due
to the auto receipt setting (speeds up the reporting).
Verify that 100 displays in the Manuf quantity field. Note: The manufactured quantity is reported
to location T01[##].
7. Click the NEXT button. You return to MO Operation. Report (PMS070/A).
Click the Close (X) button. You return to Work Center Schedule. Open (PMS230/B1). The
operation status has become 90-Completed, and the MO status 80-Partly reported.
Click the Refresh button. The manufacturing order clears (the operation is reported). The
operation was set to be automatically closed. Labor time has been reported (accounting event

143 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 PM20). The end item has been removed from WIP to stock (accounting event PM30). The
additional components (001101 and 002042) have been backflushed.
8. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 8: Review the processed manufacturing order

1. Click MFG - My manufacturing order in the M3 Information Monitor widget. The program
Manufacturing Order. Open (PMS100/B) opens.
Note: The manufacturing order details tab provides the overall information regarding your order.
The order status is 90-Completed (order ready for cost follow-up), the material status is 99-
Issued, and the operation status is 90-Completed.
2. Adjust the panel sequence following these steps:
a. Press CTRL+D. The Edit panel navigator window opens.
b. Type 1 in the Direct Change field.
c. Press Enter. You return to panel B.
3. Click to highlight the row related to [your manufacturing order number].
Click OPTIONS > Display. The program Manufacturing Order. Open Lines (PMS101/B3)
opens. All bill of materials (red lines) status is 99 (the other material lines were backflushed when
the operation was reported. The operation in the routing status is 90 (finish marked). You might
need to scroll right to view the statuses.
4. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.
5. Click Stock transactions in the Business processes (Production to inventory) widget. The
Stock Transaction. Display History (MWS070/B) program opens.
6. Verify that 60-By Order Number displays in the Sorting order field.
7. Type [your manufacturing order number] in the Order no filter field.
8. Click Apply. You will have one inbound (positive) transaction for your end item. This increases
the value on your balance sheet. You will also have at least three outbound (negative) transaction
representing the consumption of your components (raw material).
Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again. Note:
In an actual work setting you would next perform the post calculations (financials), but that is
skipped in this exercise.

144 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Distribution to internal invoicing

The distribution-to-internal invoicing process

The distribution-to-internal invoicing process is used when transferring stock from one warehouse, often
referred to as the central warehouse, to another warehouse, often referred to as a distribution center
(DC). The typical case is a stock transfer between a main warehouse, where the goods have been either
produced or received from a supplier, and a regional warehouse, where small quantities are kept in stock
to serve the customers faster and more efficiently. Nevertheless, the process applies to all kinds of
warehouse transfers, which may occur for different reasons.

Planned order to internal invoice creation

The process starts from the creation of a planned distribution order, triggered by the requirements
calculation (DRP), and ends with the internal invoice between the divisions, in case the receiving
warehouses belong to different divisions in the company (if the warehouses belong to the same division,
the process is simpler). An alternative to this main process is when an item, which is normally stored in
the main warehouse but not in the regional warehouse, must be delivered to a customer from the regional
warehouse. In this case, a distribution order is created from a customer order and the orders are linked.

Planned order to internal invoice creation (parts in blue are covered in this course)

The shipment and dispatch part of the process is very similar to the customer orders dispatch
management process. The package management area deals with all processes where container-
managed items may be used and shows how the process is changed and/or what are the consequences

145 Lesson 2: Infor OS

in the stock identities display and tracking. Distribution orders (outbound and inbound) are part of these
processes.

Delivery numbers
In Infor M3, deliveries are managed via delivery numbers. The delivery number is the delivery note
number, which is linked to the order line during order entry. When the following data is identical:
consignor (sending warehouse), consignee (receiving warehouse), departure date and additional setup
such as delivery method, then an accumulation will take place on the same delivery number. If the order
lines are rescheduled, or the item is not available in stock during the dispatch, then Infor M3 will
automatically and dynamically link the order line to another delivery number.

Delivery number creation

Dispatch policies
The outbound logistics flows in Infor M3 are handled via a dispatch policy, which is linked to the
distribution order type. The dispatch policy is the program where you find all the settings which determine
the rules that are applied for managing the logistics. Dispatch policies are centralized in Infor M3. The
same processes and functions are used to manage outbound logistics for distribution, manufacturing, and
sales, which leverages the setup and reduces risks of mistakes.

146 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Centralized dispatch policies

Multiple unit coordination (MUC)

To meet the demand, goods may be delivered from another warehouse, belonging to another facility and
division to the one where the demand occurred. The consumption of the goods needs to be accounted for
in both the receiving and the supplying division. The inter-divisional supply creates an inter-divisional
debt, accounted for by raising an internal invoice. This may also be the case for labor that may be
provided by a work center belonging to another facility and division. Again, the use of the labor would
need to be accounted for in both the receiving and the supplying division and the inter-divisional supply
creates an inter-divisional debt, accounted for by raising an internal invoice.
Running Internal Account Entry. Create (CAS950) creates the internal accounting transactions associated
with the use of the goods and/or labor belonging to a different division from where the order has been
raised. This functionality is also referred to as multiple unit coordination (MUC) in Infor M3.

The internal accounting entries must be created both for the sending warehouse’s (BBB in
our case) division and the receiving warehouse’s division (AAA in our case).

147 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Exercise 3.4: Process a distribution order
In this exercise, you will release
a planned distribution order and
then report the distribution of the
manufactured end item from the
production unit in US (210) to the
Swedish sales warehouse (130).
Sea transport is used to cross
the Atlantic Ocean. The transport
time between Chicago, Illinois and Stockholm, Sweden is 10 days. This is an inter-divisional
transaction between the USA and Sweden that will end up on an internal invoice.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Review and update a planned distribution order

1. Click DIS - My planned distribution orders in the M3 Information Monitor widget. The Planned
Distribution Order. Open (DPS170/B) program opens. Note: The drill-back for this monitor
takes you to the program for planned distribution orders. Normally, you will act based on action
messages, like in the procure-to-pay process. The first demand appears the next month. We will
process this order nevertheless.
2. Double-click the row related to [your first planned distribution order number]. Panel E
displays.
3. Click the calendar icon in the Planned dely dt field. A calendar displays with the current month
and year visible.
4. Click the [today’s date + 7 days] option. This action is done to avoid any allocation issues in the
steps that follow.
5. Click the Status drop-down arrow. A list displays.
6. Click the 20-Pur/Plan man list item. This firms the planned order.
7. Click the NEXT button. You return to panel B. The row related to your order is still highlighted and
the release date has been passed, so the system has generated an action message to release
(and reschedule in) the order.

Part 2: Release the planned distribution order

1. Verify that the row related to [your first planned distribution order number] is still highlighted.
2. Click to expand the Shortcuts menu.
Click the Release Order link in the Shortcuts menu. The status updates to 60-Released.
3. Click Refresh. The planned distribution order clears (it is converted to a manufacturing order).
4. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

148 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Part 3: Review the distribution order
1. Update the M3 Information Monitor widget following these steps:
a. Click the ellipsis icon in the M3 Information Monitor widget. A menu displays.
b. Click the Refresh menu item.
c. Repeat steps a-b until the widget indicates one hit for your distribution orders.
2. Click DIS - My distribution orders in the M3 Information Monitor widget. The Req/Distr Order.
Open Toolbox (MWS300/B) program opens. The drill-back for this monitor takes you to the
program for distribution orders. A filtering has been added to show the transactions where the
logged-in user is the responsible. The shown statuses represent the lowest and the highest order
status, in our case 44-Printed (allocated and picking list printed). As this order only contains one
order line, these will always be the same for this order (no value will show in the highest status
column). In our case, the allocation was triggered automatically, which means that the stock
balances are automatically selected and allocated. The dispatch policy connected to your delivery
number will also generate the picking list automatically.
3. Copy [your distribution order number] to Quick Note. Note: Follow these steps if the order
line remains in status 22-Reserved (not allocated):
a. Click [your distribution order number] (hyperlink in the Order number column). The
Req/Distr Order. Open Lines program (MMS101/B) opens.
b. Click to highlight the row related to [your distribution order line].
c. Click the Allocate link in the Shortcuts menu. The Allocation. Perform Detailed
(MMS121/B) program opens.
d. Type 100 in the Alloc qty field for location T01[##].
e. Click the NEXT button. The quantity is allocated.
f. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Req/Distr Order. Open Lines (MMS101/B).
g. Click the Refresh button.
h. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Req/Distr Order. Open Toolbox (MWS300/B).
4. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 4: Report the picking list (outbound from Chicago)

1. Verify that the Infor logo displays in the Business processes menu widget. If not, click Home.
2. Click Distribution to internal invoice in the Business processes widget. The menu tasks for
the Distribution to Int Invoicing process display, and the distribution to internal invoice activities
are listed. All tasks done so far could traditionally have been triggered from this menu as well.
3. Click Delivery toolbox (whs210) in the menu. The Delivery. Open Toolbox (MWS410/B)
program opens.
4. Verify that 11-One-Stop displays in the Sorting order field.
5. Verify that 210 displays in the Whs field.
6. Type [your distribution order number] in the Search field.
7. Press Enter. Your distribution order displays. The reference column (R) indicates that it is a
distribution order (5). The packing status is 30-Dispatch (packing completed). That means that
the goods were packed automatically by the system, per the packing rules set up in Item.
Connect Packaging (MMS053). Normally, you manage and print the transportation documents
such as the delivery note and the pro-forma invoice. This is skipped here to keep the process
light/short.
8. Copy [your delivery number] (dely no) to Quick Note.

149 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Click the 30-Dispatch link. The delivery status becomes 90-Dispatched. The goods have been
dispatched (accounting event MM50/credit). This is a very simplified process, normally
transportation planning would be used with multiple delivery numbers connected to the same
shipment. Alternatively, highlight the line and click Report All Picking Lists in the Shortcuts
menu.
9. Click to highlight the row related to [your delivery number].
10. Click to expand the Context Apps.
11. Follow these steps in case the delivery note doesn’t display:
a. Click Delivery Documents in the Shortcuts menu. The program Delivery. Connect
Delivery documents (MWS260/B1) opens.
b. Click to highlight the row related to document 900.
c. Click Generate and print document in the Shortcuts menu. The Output. Select Media
(MNS212/B1) program opens.
d. Click the Confirm output button until the message, “Job MMS480CL has been
submitted” displays.
e. Click the OK button.
f. Click the Close (X) button. You return to Delivery. Open Toolbox (MWS410/B).
12. Click [your delivery note document] in the Related Information app. The delivery note
document opens in a new browser tab (stream).
13. Click the Close (X) button on the delivery note document browser tab.
14. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 5: Display the stock in transit (transport over the Atlantic Ocean)
1. Click On-hand balances in the Business processes (Distribution to int invoice) widget. The
program Balance Identity. Open Toolbox (MWS060/B) opens.
2. Verify that 1-Whs/Itm/Loc/Lo displays in the Sorting order field.
3. Clear the Warehouse field.
4. Verify that 210 displays in the Whs filter field.
5. Type ITS[##]M in the Item number filter field.
6. Click Apply. Note: The value in the location field represents a virtual location that identifies that
the stock is in transit between the US production warehouse (210) and the Swedish sales
warehouse (130).
7. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 6: Report the receipt and the put-away of the goods (inbound to Stockholm)
1. Click Goods receipt (whs130) in the Business processes (Distribution to internal invoice)
widget. The Goods Receipt DO/RO. Open Toolbox (MWS442/B) program opens.
2. Verify that 1-Inbound Deliver displays in the Sorting order field.
3. Type 130 in the Warehouse field. Note: This is normally done from the AAA division and then the
correct warehouse would be defaulted.
4. Click the Apply button. Note: Your delivery record displays.
5. Click [your delivery number] link (in the Delivery number column). The Goods Receipt DO/RO.
Report Details (MWS445/B) program opens. Your delivery number displays [your user ID] the
150 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 Changed by column. Note: A line, related to your order and your end item (ITS[##]M), displays.
The quantity (100) and the put-away location (U01[##]) are defaulted.
6. Click the Confirm All link in the Shortcuts menu. The line disappears. The goods have been
reported received (accounting event MM50/debit).
7. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

Part 7: Review the order, the on-hand balances and stock transactions
1. Click DIS - My distribution orders in the M3 Information Monitor widget. The Req/Distr Order.
Open Toolbox (MWS300/B) program opens. Your distribution order displays in the list view with
status 99 - Completed.
2. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.
3. Click On-hand balances in the Business processes (Distribution to internal invoice) menu
widget. The Balance Identity. Open Toolbox (MWS060/B) program opens.
4. Verify that 1-Whs/Itm/Loc/Lo displays in the Sorting order field.
5. Clear the Warehouse (selection) field.
6. Verify that 210 displays in the Whs filter field.
7. Type ITS[##]M in the Item number filter field.
8. Click the Apply button. Your end item (ITS[##]M) in warehouse 210 (production plant) no longer
displays.
9. Type 130 in the Whs filter field.
10. Click the Apply button. Stock displays for your end item in warehouse 130 (the sales
warehouse).
11. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.
12. Click Stock transactions in the Business processes (Distribution to internal invoice) widget.
The Stock Transaction. Display History (MWS070/B) program opens.
13. Verify that 60-By Order Number displays in the Sorting order field.
14. Type [your distribution order number] in the Order no filter field.
15. Click the Apply button. You have four transactions in connection to your order: One issue from
location T01[##] (warehouse 210), one receipt to “in transit,” one issue from “in transit,” and one
receipt to location U01[##] (warehouse 130).
16. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 8: Create accounting entries

1. Click Internal invoices (display) in the Business processes (Distribution to internal invoice)
widget. The Internal Transfer. Display btw Divisions (MFS200/B1) program opens.

The creation of the accounting entries should be done by one user only.

2. Verify that 1-Pln del dt, Ref ord ct, Ord no displays in the Sorting order field.

151 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 3. Click the calendar icon in the Pl del filter field. A calendar displays with the current month and
year.
4. Click the [three business days before today] option.
5. Click the Apply button. Note: No accounting information exists yet in connection to your
distribution order.
6. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.
7. Click Acc transactions (create) in the Business processes (Distribution to internal invoice)
widget. The Internal Account Entry. Create (CAS950/E) program opens. Note: This action will
consider the credit (outbound) transactions from the sending warehouse (210) in the US. This is
expressed in US dollars. The system will also recognize an internal revenue from the US towards
the Swedish division, also expressed in US dollars.
8. Click the calendar icon in the Trans date (From) field. A calendar displays with the current
month and year visible.
9. Click [three business days before today].
10. Type T in the Trans date (To) field. Today’s date is retrieved.
11. Click to select the following selection check boxes.
 Stock transactions
 Operation transactions for MOs
 Other transactions
 Operation transactions for WOs
 Order costing
12. Click to select the following update options check boxes.
 Update (order costing) balance file
 Transfer (cost accounting transactions) to FIM (the financial system)
13. Click the NEXT button. Two additional fields display.
14. Type T in the Accounting date field. Today’s date is retrieved.
15. Type [today’s date] CAS950 BBB in the Voucher text field.
16. Click the NEXT button. The Output. Select Media (MNS212/B1) program opens.
17. Click the Confirm Output button until the message, “Job CAS950CL has been submitted”
displays.
18. Click the OK button.
19. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.
20. Change to division AAA following these steps:
a. Click [your assigned user ID] homepage in the Page Navigator. [Your homepage]
displays.
b. Click Sweden division AAA in the Menu widget. The message, “You have changed to
[current company] and division AAA” displays.
c. Click the OK button.
d. Click App Menu icon. A menu displays.
e. Click the Infor M3 menu item. Infor H5 opens, and at the bottom-right corner of the screen
AAA displays for the division.

152 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 f. Click the Infor icon. [Your homepage] displays again.
g. Click the Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage in the Page Navigator. The Introducing
the Solution (ITS) homepage displays. Note: If a message displays informing you that all
functions must be closed before changing language or company, clear the browser cache
(see Appendix A).
21. Click Acc transactions (create) in the Business processes (Distribution to internal invoice)
widget. The Internal Account Entry. Create (CAS950/E) program opens. Note: This will
consider the debit (inbound) transactions for the receiving warehouse (130) in Sweden. This is
expressed in euros. The system will also recognize an internal debt to the US division, expressed
in US dollars.
22. Verify that you are in division AAA. Note: The current company and division displays in the
taskbar (bottom-right corner).
23. Click the calendar icon in the Trans date (From) field. A calendar displays with the current
month and year visible.
24. Click [three business days before today].
25. Type T in the Trans date (To) field. Today’s date is retrieved.
26. Click to select the following selection check boxes.
 Stock transactions
 Operation transactions for MOs
 Other transactions
 Operation transactions for WOs
 Order costing
27. Click to select the following update options check boxes.
 Update (order costing) balance file
 Transfer (cost accounting transactions) to FIM (the financial system)
28. Click the NEXT button. Two additional fields display.
29. Type T in the Accounting date field. Today’s date is retrieved.
30. Type [today’s date] CAS950 AAA in the Voucher text field.
31. Click the NEXT button. The message, “Job CAS950CL has been submitted” displays.
32. Click the OK button.
33. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.
34. Change back to division BBB following these steps:
a. Click [your assigned user ID] Homepage in the Page Navigator. [Your homepage]
displays.
b. Click US division BBB in the Menu widget. The message, “You have changed to [current
company] and division BBB” displays.
c. Click the OK button.
d. Click App Menu icon. A menu displays.
e. Click the Infor M3 menu item. Infor H5 opens and displays BBB for the division in the
bottom-right corner.
f. Click the Infor icon. [Your homepage] displays again.
g. Click the Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage in the Page Navigator. The
Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays.

153 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Part 9: Review the internal transfer entries
1. Click Internal invoices (display) in the Business processes (Distribution to internal invoice)
widget. The Internal Transfer. Display btw Divisions (MFS200/B) program opens.
2. Verify that you are in division BBB.
3. Verify that [Monday this week] displays in the Pl del filter field.
4. Click Apply, if required. Keep this program open.
Note: A record has been created in connection to your distribution order (status 1 – Ready for
invoicing). You will see the records for the other participants as well. The internal transfer price
is the unit cost for your end item expressed in USD (250). This is then multiplied with the
delivered cost quantity from warehouse 210 (100 pieces) to become the foreign currency amount
(USD 25000). Markups (if any) are defined in Internal Transfer Price. Open (MFS001).
5. Click the Infor icon. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 10: Create an internal invoice proposal

1. Click MUC (trigger) in the Business processes (Distribution to internal invoice) widget. The
Internal Invoice. Create (MFS100/B) program opens.
Click OPTIONS > Create. The Internal Invoice. Print (MFS101/E) program opens. Note: The
first time you enter this program you will reach the E panel directly.
2. Type T in the To date field. Today’s date is retrieved.
3. Click the calendar icon in the To acc dt - ext field. A calendar displays with the current month
and year visible.
4. Click the [last day of the current month] option.
5. Click the Ref order cat drop-down arrow. A list displays
6. Click the 5-Distribution order list item.
7. Type [your distribution order number] in the Order number fields (From and To).
8. Type [your assigned user ID] in the Name field.
9. Click the NEXT button. The Output. Select Media (MNS212/B1) program opens.
10. Click the Confirm output button until the message, “Job MFS102CL has been submitted”
displays.
11. Click the OK button. You return to panel B.
12. Click Refresh. An internal invoice proposal record has been created with a status 0 – Open for
invoicing.

Part 11: Review your internal invoice proposal

1. Double-click the row related to [your invoice proposal]. The Change. Open for Division
(MFS105/B) program opens and the invoice connection towards division AAA displays.
2. Double-click the row related to division AAA. Panel E displays.
3. Click the NEXT button. The Change. Open for Transaction (MFS106/B) program opens. Note:
The distribution order for your end item (ITS[##]M) is part of the invoice proposal.
4. Click Close (X) button until the Internal Invoice. Create (MFS100/B) program displays again.

154 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Part 12: Create an internal invoice
1. Verify that the row related to [your invoice proposal] is highlighted.
2. Click the 0-Open for invoicing link (in the Sts column) associated with your invoice proposal.
Panel F displays. Note: Today’s date is defaulted as the accounting and invoice date.
Alternatively, click Print and update in the Shortcuts menu.
3. Type [today’s date] [your assigned user ID] in the Report text field.
4. Click the NEXT button. The Output. Select Media (MNS212/B1) program opens.
5. Click the Confirm Output button until the message, “Job MFS109CL has been submitted”
displays.
6. Click the OK button. You return to panel B. Note: Your invoice proposal is being updated (status
6-Blocked).
7. Click the Refresh button until the status is 9-Invoices printed.
8. Click the Close (X) button. The Internal Transfer. Display btw Divisions (MFS200/B) program
displays again.
9. Click the Refresh button. Note: Your order has been internally invoiced (status 9-Invoiced).
10. Copy [your internal invoice number] to Quick Note.
11. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 13: Review the accounts receivable

1. Click Accounts receivable (BBB) in the Business processes (Distribution to internal
invoice) widget. The Acc Receivable. Display (ARS200/B1) program opens.
2. Type 90091 in the Payer field.
3. Verify that 1-Open invoices displays in the Select field.
4. Type [your invoice number] in the Invoice no filter field.
5. Click Apply. Note: 90091 is defined as the internal Swedish division AAA customer. The
outstanding claim displays in US dollars (25000). Normally, you follow through with the payment
of this internal invoice, but we will skip this.
6. Click to highlight the row related to [your invoice number].
7. Click the Context Apps icon to expand the context apps.
Click [your internal invoice document] in the Related Information app. The internal invoice
document opens in a new browser tab (stream).
8. Click the Close (X) button to close the invoice browser tab.
9. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 14: Review the accounts payable

1. Change to division AAA following these steps:
a. Click [your assigned user ID] Homepage in the Page Navigator. [Your homepage]
displays.
b. Click Sweden division AAA in the Menu widget.
c. Click App Menu icon. A menu displays.
d. Click the Infor M3 menu item. Infor H5 opens and shows division AAA.

155 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 e. Click the Infor icon. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.
f. Click Introducing the Solution (ITS) in the Page Navigator. The Introducing the Solution
(ITS) homepage displays.
2. Click Accounts payable (AAA) in the Business processes (Distribution to internal invoice)
widget. The Accounts Payable. Display (APS200/B) program opens.
3. Type 900092 in the Payee field.
4. Verify that 1-Open invoices displays in the Select field.
5. Type [your invoice number] in the Supplier Invoice no filter field.
6. Click the Apply button. 900092 is defined as the internal US division BBB supplier. The
outstanding debt displays in USD (25000). Normally, you follow through with the payment of this
internal invoice, but we will skip this.
7. Click to highlight the row related to [your invoice number].
Click the Display invoices link in the Shortcuts menu. The Supplier Invoice. Display Separate
(APS215/B1) program opens. The invoice amount displays in USD (25000) together with the
exchange rate to euro. The amount in euros would be 25000/1,3=19230.77.
8. Click to highlight the row related to [your invoice transaction].
9. Click the Display voucher link in the Shortcuts menu. The Voucher. Display (GLS200/B)
program opens. The amount (19230.77) displays in the recorded currency (EUR).
10. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again. Remain in division AAA since you will proceed with the order-to-cash
process that takes place in the Swedish division.

156 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Order to cash

The order-to-cash process

The order-to-cash process is a core process at the top level starting with the company receiving an actual
demand from a customer, a quotation, or a preliminary order. The process contains activities from
capturing the order, delivering the goods, and finally receiving payment from the customer. This process
will therefore cut across organizational boundaries such as customer service, logistics, warehousing,
finance and of course the customer itself.
Various types of customer orders can be entered, each behaving slightly differently, but all designed for
ease of use. After initial entry, the process can be very much focused on the connected shipments. New
orders are automatically connected to existing shipments or new ones are created based on planned
delivery dates, routes, delivery methods etc.

Simplified order-to-cash process (parts in blue are covered in this course)

Customer order entry

The order entry aims to create a customer order that is ready to be released for allocation and delivery.
The process is intended to be highly automated with automatic proposal of delivery dates, prices and
discounts etc. There are two types of domestic customers: those who order frequently such as retail and
food service customers and those customers who order less frequently such as specialty or industry
sales. Orders from regular customers, for example retail customers, should not normally require a change
to any major information related to the customer since they are well known and frequently repeat
purchases. For specialty customers, who order less frequently, it may be necessary to amend certain
order-specific details during the order entry process, so the order type configuration guides the user
through some additional panels.

157 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Orders for specialty customers basically follow the same order process but with one main exception, they
are treated initially as preliminary orders. The nature of these sales orders demands that additional pre-
shipment checks need to take place before an order can be accepted. It is uncommon for specialty orders
to be split across multiple consignments, so we make sure that all lines can be delivered before
progressing the order from its preliminary status.

Order monitoring to order management

It is a fact of life that things do not always go as planned and the management of customer orders is no
exception. Stock shortages, insufficient stock, transportation delays or vehicle malfunction, damaged
goods during the picking/packing process, goods not physically located where a pick list specified it would
be, customers changing their minds about delivery dates. The list is endless.
Monitoring customer orders for real or potential problems should be an on-going task, particularly in for
instance the food and beverage industry where the time between placing an order and delivering it is
relatively short. Having visibility of problem orders is one issue, deciding what to do about them is
another. Information about the order, and knowledge of the customer are key factors in deciding how to
deal with late orders (backorders). The first decision is whether to keep the order line or delete it. If
keeping it, you need to decide how ensure stock availability and how to determine a realistic delivery
date.

Shipment planning to pick list release

The manual shipment adjustments should be minimal if the route pre-selections have been properly
defined. Deliveries should automatically connect to appropriate shipments or where necessary create new
ones. Any significant changes such as shipment delays or requirements to split into multiple shipments
should preferably be done before releasing the allocation and the picking lists to the warehouse floor. The
main reason for this is to follow FIFO (first in first out) or FEFO (first expired first out) rules and release
allocation per the sequence you wish to pick, pack, and ship the goods. Allocation is a process used to
connect available stock to its demand. The process pinpoints ordered quantities down to specific
locations and lots to direct the picker to the correct locations in the warehouse. The process is generally
carried out automatically and therefore the release for allocation should follow the sequence you wish to
pick, pack, and ship the goods. Adjustments to stock allocations can be carried out manually and a soft
allocation may also be relevant (requires lot control).

Picking to delivery note

The tasks performed at the warehouse floor include picking the goods, placing them at a packing location,
packing the goods, and then labeling the packages. Apart from obvious examples of credit orders and
price adjustments, all customer orders should go through the packing process. Packing will take place
after picking the goods printed on the pick list has physically occurred. The packages can be either
manually or automatically generated at that time.
After the goods have been picked, packed, and loaded onto the delivery vehicle, dispatch confirmation of
the pick list can be carried out. This involves recording the movement of specific items and balance
identities out of the warehouse, reducing the stock levels of the affected items, generating the stock
transactions, and moving the order line and delivery statuses accordingly.
After confirming the dispatch of all the pick lists connected to a delivery number, the exact shipped
quantities and package details are known. The NEXT step in the order fulfillment process is to print the
delivery note document to accompany the goods.

158 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Invoice to cash
Before any invoicing can be carried out, it may be necessary to process an additional step in the order
fulfillment process called proof of delivery. This optional step involves a customer confirming that the
items and quantities physically received match the confirmed quantities dispatched and printed on the
delivery note.
While some invoices are required on a shipment by shipment basis, most invoices tend to be generated
through a series of scheduled batch invoicing runs where various rules exist for generating summary or
detailed, daily, or monthly invoices.
Deliveries must be fully confirmed and ready for invoicing. After successful invoicing, in addition to the
actual invoice document, there will be updates to sales statistics, sales and general ledgers, bonus and
commission reservations and various status updates on deliveries and customer orders.
Customers makes payments to settle an invoice or invoices for goods they have already received.
Payments could be received in different ways (e.g. cash, credit cards, bank transfers) and are recorded
and allocated to the appropriate outstanding invoices in accounts receivable.

Simplified process
Most of the steps in a transport planned customer order process are also applicable for simple customer
orders; they must still be entered, allocation must take place, a pick list must be generated, goods must
be picked, packed, delivered and invoiced. The difference here is that there is no transport planning so
the steps that are initiated from the shipment toolbox are now carried out through the delivery toolbox. In
addition, a “fast” order type (also known as over the counter (OTC) sales) is used which removes the
need to release the orders for allocation and pick list printing.

Exercise 3.5: Process a customer order

In this exercise, you will create a customer order (Swedish customer) for the end item, deliver
it from the Swedish sales warehouse (130), and invoice that customer. Finally, the payment
of the invoice will be recorded.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Create a customer order

1. Verify that the Infor logo displays in the Business processes widget. If not, click Home.
Click Order to Cash in the Business processes widget. The menu tasks for the Order to Cash
process display.
2. Click CO toolbox in the menu. The Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300/B) program
opens.
3. Verify that you are in division AAA.
4. Click the New order button. The Customer Order. Open (OIS100/A) program opens.
159 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 5. Type ALPHA in the Customer field. A menu opens and shows all customer records including this
text string. Note: This is a script (auto complete) that enables you to key/search for the customer
name.
6. Click the 10001 --- LL Alpha AB menu item.
7. Click the NEXT button to confirm the customer. The message, “Confirm” displays.
8. Click the OK button. Some details are retrieved from the customer such as the order type (010).
9. Verify that 010 displays in the CO type field.
10. Type 5 in the Panel sequence field.
11. Click the calendar icon in the Req delivery dt field. A calendar displays with the current month
and year visible.
12. Click [the NEXT working day].
13. Verify that A01 displays in the Facility field.
14. Click the NEXT button. The message, “WARNING – Requested delivery time is < than current
time” displays.
15. Click the OK button. The message, “Confirm” displays.
16. Click the OK button.
17. Click the NEXT button. The Customer Order. Open Line (OIS101/B) program opens.
18. Copy [your CO number] to Quick Note.
19. Verify that 130 displays in the Whs field.
20. Type STYLE in the Item field. A menu opens, showing all record including this text string.
21. Click the ITS[##]M menu item. Your end item is retrieved.
22. Type 50 in the Order qty field.
23. Click the Add button. An order line is created.
Click Refresh until the status of your order line is 33-Allocated. Note: Due to the order type
(010), the ordered quantity was automatically allocated (status 33).
24. Double-click the row related to [your customer order line]. Panel E displays.
Note: The pricing information in this panel indicates the following:
 A sales price of EUR 226.69 was automatically retrieved from the price list (ITS).
 The net price is lower than the sales price since one discount (1,5%) was applied based
on the item’s product group (226.69x0.985=223.29).
25. Click the NEXT button. You return to panel B.
26. Click the Close (X) button until the Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300/B) displays again.
Your customer order displays. The order record displays the lowest status (the status of the order
line with the lowest status) and the highest status (the status of the order line with the highest
status). As our order contains only one order line, these will always be the same.
27. Click Refresh until the status is 44-Pick list (picking list printed). Note: When you left the order
lines the line was automatically released for picking, and the picking list was automatically printed
(status 44). If connected via IDM, you can view the order confirmation in the Context app as
before.

160 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 28. Click to highlight the row related to [your customer order number].
29. Click to expand the Context Apps.
30. Click [your order confirmation document] in the Related Information app. The order
confirmation document opens in a new browser tab (stream).
31. Click the Close (X) button to close the document browser tab. The Customer Order. Open
Toolbox (OIS300/B) program displays again.

Part 2: Review your customer order

1. Verify that 1-Order Number displays in the Sorting order field.
2. Verify that [your customer order number] displays in the CO no filter field.
3. Click Apply, if required. Note: This is the main program that the sales administration team will
use to follow up customer orders. In the upper part of this function, you can filter the orders by
status. You can also select to only display delayed orders.
4. Click to highlight the row related to [your customer order number].
5. Click the Order line workbench link in the Shortcuts menu. The Customer Order. Open Line
Workbench (OIS302/B) program opens. This is another major function that the sales
administration team will use to follow up on customer orders. The difference with the customer
order toolbox is that you no longer manage customer orders on the header level. This time you
will manage the customer order lines, which means that you are at the item level. For example,
you can manage all the items to be delivered to a customer, independently from the customer
order number.
6. Click the Close (X) button. The Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300/B) program displays
again.
7. Click Infor icon. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 3: Pack and deliver the delivery number

1. Click Delivery toolbox (outbound) in the Business processes (Order to Cash) widget. The
Delivery. Open Toolbox (MWS410/B) program opens and the order to cash activities are listed.
2. Verify that 11-One-Stop displays in the Sorting order field.
3. Verify that 130 displays in the Whs field.
4. Type [today’s date] in the Dep dt filter field (in YYMMDD format), if required. Your delivery
displays.
5. Click the 10-Start Packing link (in the Packing Status column) related to your delivery. The
program Picking List. Report (MWS420/B1) opens. Your picking list line is pre-highlighted.
6. Click the View drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
Click the GENERAL3-General per Delivery number menu item. The picking status is 40 (ready
for reporting) and the packing status is 10 (packing not started). You normally print the logistical
documents such as the delivery note or the pro-forma invoice. Event based printing can automize
this for you.
7. Click the 10-Start packing link (in the Packing Status column). The status updates to 30-
Confirm dispatch.
8. Click the 30-Confirm dispatch link (in the Pack column). The status updates to 30-Completed.

161 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 9. Click to highlight the row related to [your delivery number].
10. Click to expand the Context Apps.
11. Click [your picking list document] in the Related Information app. The picking list document
opens in a new browser tab (stream).
12. Click the Close (X) button to close the document browser tab.
13. Click the Close (X) button until the Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300/B) program
displays again.
14. Click the Refresh button. The status updates to 66-Delivered. This delivery reduces the value of
the stock on your balance sheet. This is accounting event OI10. The value is the quantity
delivered, multiplied with the unit cost in EUR.
15. Click the Infor icon. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 4: Invoice the customer

1. Click CO invoice (create) in the Business processes (Order to Cash) widget. The program CO
Invoice. Print (OIS180/E) opens.
2. Verify that [today’s date] displays in the Invoice date field.
3. Verify that [today’s date] displays in the Accounting date field.
4. Click the B/C adv/settlm drop-down arrow. A list displays.
5. Click the 1-With delivery list item.
6. Click the Adv inv code drop-down arrow. A list displays.
7. Click the 1-Included list item.
8. Click the Summary inv cde drop-down arrow. A list displays.
9. Click the 1-All deliveries list item.
10. Type A01 in the Facility fields (From and To).
11. Clear the Payer fields (From and To) fields, if required.
12. Type [your customer order number] in the CO no fields (From and To).
13. Click the NEXT button. The message, “Job OIS180S1 has been submitted” displays.
14. Click the OK button.
15. Click the Close (X) button until the Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300/B) program
displays again.
16. Click Refresh. The status updates to 77-Invoiced. Note: Being in division AAA is required to
trigger the invoice.
17. Click the 77-Invoiced link (in the Lowest status column). The Invoice. Display (OIS350/B1)
program opens.
18. Click to highlight the row related to [your invoice number].
19. Copy [your extended invoice number] to Quick Note.
20. Click OPTIONS > Display. Panel E displays.
21. Copy [the Amount loc cur (local currency)] to Quick Note.

162 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 22. Click the Previous button. Panel B displays again. The line related to your invoice number is still
highlighted.
23. Click to expand the Context Apps.
Click [your invoice document] in the Related Information app. The invoice document opens in
a new browser tab.
24. Click the Close (X) button to close the document browser tab.
25. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

Part 5: Record the payment of the invoice

1. Click Record payment in the Business processes (Order to Cash) widget. The Payment
Received. Record (ARS110/B) program opens.
2. Double-click the row related to function 1. The Payment Received. Record (ARS112/E) program
opens. Note: 1-Select has been defined as the Program option for this program. The FAM
(Finance Accounting Management) codes are set up in a table and contain settings that define
the rules how the payment recording is completed.
3. Type [your received amount] (amount to pay in local currency, EUR) in the Received field.
4. Click the NEXT button. The Payment Received. Record (ARS110/F) program opens.
5. Type 10001 in the Payer field.
6. Click the Apply button. Your invoice displays in the list view. The amount in the Inv amount
(Invoice amount) column should equal the amount in the Outstanding column for your invoice. In
addition, this amount should also be listed in the Amount field at the top of the screen (these
must balance).
7. Right-click the row related to [your invoice number]. A list displays.
8. Click the Full payment/Select list item. The amount in the Amount field at the top of the screen
disappears; the payment received is balanced with the invoiced amount, and the amount in the
Outstanding column is transferred to the Received amount column for your invoice.
9. Click the Close (X) button. The message, “Voucher number is created” displays. Note: When you
record a payment, you create a voucher that is posted in the account receivable ledger and in the
general ledger. Therefore, it is very important that there is no amount left in the field Amount.
This guarantees that the voucher is balanced.
10. Click the OK button. The Payment Received. Record (ARS112/E) program displays again.
11. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 6: Review the accounts receivable

1. Click Accounts receivable (AAA) in the Business processes (Order to cash) widget. The Acc
Receivable. Display (ARS200/B) program opens.
2. Type 10001 in the Payer field.
3. Click the Select drop-down arrow. A list displays.
4. Click the 3-All invoices list item.
5. Type [your extended invoice number] in the Invoice no filter field.
6. Click Apply. Your invoice number displays at the top of the list view.

163 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 7. Click the [your invoice number] link (in the Invoice no column). The Customer Invoice.
Display Separate (ARS215/B1) program opens. The first line (OI20) represents the invoice. The
second line (AR30) represents the payment.
8. Click the OI20001 link (in the Name column). The Voucher. Display (GLS200/B1) program
opens, and the invoice details display.
9. Click the Close (X) button. The Customer Invoice. Display Separate (ARS215/B1) program
displays again.
10. Repeat steps 8-9 for the payment line (AR30001) to display the payment details.
11. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

164 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Supply chain orders

The supply chain orders process

Increasing globalization and the trend towards outsourcing of manufacturing and non-core processes are
leading to greater complexity in supply chain networks. As more and more supply chains become
customer demand-driven, manufacturers and distributors have been obliged to increase product variety
and adhere to each customer’s specific set of requirements around product specification, service levels
and delivery lead times to win and retain business. As supply chains and customer demands have
evolved, effective planning and execution have become increasingly critical and complex as organizations
strive to meet the conflicting goals of responding to greater fluctuations in customer demand and reducing
working capital. Missing a due date is often no longer an option. Making wrong decisions in the planning
process can have a major impact on an organization’s achievable on-time delivery performance, delivery
lead times and the need for safety stock buffers.

Supply chain orders (parts in blue are covered in this course)

Supply chain orders (SCOs) is a new planning concept that revolutionizes planning and execution. It is a
powerful method for linking all parts of an order network. The SCO automates the process of making a
change to an order network and provides the ability to enquire on the status of the linked order chain and
whether the current delivery terms can be met. This helps simplify the planning process and provides
165 Lesson 2: Infor OS
visibility across and tracking of entire order networks, enabling planners to see the effects of schedule or
delivery changes and to concentrate on critical issues. SCOs help improve decision making and the
prioritization of activities such as ordering, allocating and manufacturing. SCOs provide customer-focused
businesses the opportunity to integrate and manage their end-to-end supply chain planning and execution
processes. They are especially useful in make-to-order and buy-to-order environments and can
complement material requirements planning, advanced planning and scheduling, and lean manufacturing
strategies.

MRP Order initiation (MTO) SCOs

Order generation No supply chain relation is Supply chain relation can only be Supply chain relation is triggered
exploded. exploded using released orders. by either a customer order or
released distribution.
Relationship No direct relations between Only one-to-one relation between Can have multiple relation
between demand demand and supply. demand and supply. between demand and supply.
and supply
Explosion of No supply chain relations are One-directional supply chain Two-directional supply chain
supply chain exploded. relation explosion only – top-to- relations explosion – top-to-bottom
relations bottom. or bottom-to-top.
Order linking No links unless pre-allocation Automatic links based on fixed Automatic linking based on user-
links created manually. condition. defined policy conditions.
Use of existing Always considers available Available supply (stock or orders) Has options to consider available
stock or orders supply (stock or orders). are not considered – creates a supply (stock or manufacturing
new supply order. orders). More efficient supply
management.
Changes to No link between demand and Hard link – relations must be Relation can be broken, and
network supply unless pre-allocation is broken manually. network rebuilt at any time based
used. on the best scenario.

Differences between MRP, order initiation (make-to-order), and SCOs

SCOs vs. MRP

MRP does not always provide the necessary visibility on the status of customer orders, due to there being
no real links between supplying and demanding orders as with supply chain orders. This makes changes
to customer or purchase orders difficult to implement across the supply chain and can result in significant
additional manual work to identify and change all the appropriate orders. MRP lot-sizing rules can create
excess inventories and lead to obsolete stock. Over time there is a tendency to build inventory buffers to
ensure service levels are met. SCOs reduce the need for lot-sizing and safety inventory buffers.
As make-to-order companies need to peg critical materials to manufacturing, inter-site distribution and
customer orders to maintain control and visibility, some sophisticated MRP systems include pre-allocation
functionality to address this need for hard linking between orders. However, the nature of constant
change in complex supply chains necessitates significant time to create and change these pre-allocation
links. For SCOs, the links are created and managed in a more automated way due to the user-defined
planning policy.

SCOs vs. APS

Advanced planning and scheduling (APS) systems can sometimes help overcome the limitations of
ageing MRP systems. A major advantage of an APS system is that it schedules based on actual capacity
levels. Leading APS systems can dynamically create links between the different supply and demand
levels in MRP during simulations based on first demand, first supplied. However, this is just a snapshot in
time and on the NEXT planning cycle these links are likely to be different. If there is demand volatility and
frequent changes in prioritizations, APS may not provide the stability and visibility needed for execution.
SCOs overcome this issue as the links are retained.

166 Lesson 2: Infor OS

SCOs vs. Lean manufacturing
Lean manufacturing methods, such as Kanban, have helped to optimize individual production units,
however the global supply chain may not be optimized. As production is initiated on a pull basis, it is
difficult to quickly react to changes in the supply chain especially if there are large distances between
sites. With SCOs, the effects of increases or decreases in quantities can be immediately propagated
across the supply chain network.

SCO advantages
Some advantages of the supply chain order (SCO):
 The active supply chain is kept together with one single number: the supply chain order number.
You can see this in program Supply Chain Header. Open (RPS200), the planners can see the
active supply chain. But more importantly, sorting order 3 will reveal delays in the SCO.
 You can wait to the absolute latest moment in time before releasing the planned orders, avoiding
capital tie-up. A good example is the promotion with an initial SCO. A food producer wants to
penetrate a new market and does that via a (television) campaign. In Infor M3, this is a promotion
(OIS840). The customers can “sign in” by entering customer orders against this promotion, even
before the promotion is active. That way, the food company can buffer the real demand from
customer orders, have the system accrue the supply chain order, and then—at the last moment—
release the planned orders under the SCO. Hence the name “initial SCO.”
 A supply chain policy is a complement to the planning method for the item in that warehouse. It
can be combined with MRP, but also with re-order planning. It is the acquisition method that will
decide which process will be engaged with in the SCO.
 All transactions are “softly” linked to each other via pre-allocation. This in contrast with so-called
order-initiated orders. These are hard linked via the order number into each other. Order initiated
transactions are not flexible at all.
 All transactions “hear” each other, because of the pre-allocation. If a released purchase order
were to be delayed, an application message (965) is sent to the manufacturing order’s
responsible with a message to reschedule the MO with x number of days. This is Infor M3 talking
back to the process’ responsible. The application message can be seen in Infor OS widget M3
Application Message or via interactive program Application Message. Open (CRS420).
 Upstream and downstream changes tolerances (CMS016/RPS380) work hand-in-glove with the
supply chain policy (CRS709). Even the customer order type (OIS010/G) has settings dealing
with rescheduling of pre-allocated quantities.
 Because of the pre-allocation, additional demand from other customer orders can latch
themselves to the same supply chain order (if the supply chain policy allows this).
 If the orders in the SCO are planned, you can change the quantity on the customer order. The
change will propagate through the SCO. Once the orders are released, additional demand will
generate a new supply chain header. This is referred to as lean manufacturing.
 In traditional MRP, the tiers are not “listening” to each other, so a planner must guard each level
individually and take corrective action. This is fragmented, compared to the SCO strategy.

167 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Exercise 3.6: Create a supply chain order
In this exercise, you will create a customer order and deliver the end item from the Swedish
sales warehouse (130) to the Swedish customer. The difference, compared to how it was run
before (delivering from stock), is that you will now use a pull strategy. The demand for the
lower levels will be triggered by the customer order. The result is a four-tier supply chain
order:
1. A customer order (ITS[##]M, from warehouse 130 to the customer)
2. A (planned) distribution order (ITS[##]M, from warehouse 210 to warehouse 130)
3. A (planned) manufacturing order (ITS[##]M, in warehouse 210)
4. A (planned) purchase order (ITS[##]P, to warehouse 210)
The supply chain order can stop at any tier. This is decided by the supply chain policy
(CRS709), which is connected to the item/warehouse relationship (MMS002/E).
First, the supply chain order needs to be activated via the supply chain policy for the items.
Then the supply chain will be triggered via a customer order entry. The customer order will
be rescheduled to view the impact on the other tiers. The process will stop after the customer
order entry, because from there it is just a repetition of what was practiced in the previous
exercise.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Activate supply chain orders

1. Verify that the Infor logo displays in the Business processes menu widget. If not, click Home.
Click Supply Chain Orders in the Business processes widget. The menu tasks for the Supply
Chain Orders process display.
2. Click SCO policy (set) in the menu. The Item. Connect Warehouse (MMS002/B) program
opens.
3. Verify that you are in division AAA. If not close the program, run part 14/step 1 in Exercise 3.4,
and restart this exercise.
4. Verify that 65-Warehouse, Item (no filter) IES displays in the Sorting order field.
5. Click the View drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
6. Click the SCO-SCO policy menu item.
Type ITS[##]? in the Search field. Note: Ensure the question mark is included.
7. Press Enter. Note: Your items are listed. You activate the supply chain order by applying a
supply chain policy. The supply chain policy field has been added as an entry field in this view.
8. Type 00A in the SCO Policy field for all your item warehouse records. Note: The supply chain
policy must be entered in upper case. Note: This is an example of mass update.
9. Press Enter to confirm the entries.

168 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 10. Click the Refresh button. Note: Your three records should with the SCO policy connected.
11. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 2: Enter a customer order

1. Click CO toolbox in the Business processes (Supply chain orders) widget. The Customer
Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300/B) program opens.
2. Click the New order button. The Customer Order. Open (OIS100/A) program opens.
3. Verify that 10001 displays in the Customer field.
4. Click the NEXT button to confirm the customer. The message, “Confirm” displays.
5. Click the OK button. Customer 10001 is retrieved. Some details are retrieved from the customer,
including the order type (010).
6. Verify that 010 displays in the CO type field.
7. Type 5 in the Panel sequence field.
8. Click the calendar icon in the Req delivery dt field. A calendar displays with the current month
and year visible.
9. Click the [today’s date + 21 days] option.
10. Verify that A01 displays in the Facility field. If not, see step 4 in the previous part.
11. Click the NEXT button. The message, “Confirm” displays.
12. Click the OK button.
13. Click the NEXT button. The Customer Order. Open Line (OIS101/B1) program opens.
14. Verify that 130 displays in the Whs field.
15. Type STYLE in the Item field. A menu displays.
16. Click the ITS[##]M menu item. Your end item is retrieved.
17. Type 200 in the Order qty field.
18. Click the Add button. A new order line is created. The status is 22 (reserved). A drawback of this
strategy is that the customer must wait for the goods to be available. This is offset by the
advantage that you don’t have to store the end item, nor components, beforehand reducing
capital tie-up.
19. Click to highlight the row related to [your customer order line].
Click Supply Chain in the Shortcuts menu. The program Active Supply Chain. Display
(MWS150/B) opens. You see all the four tiers of the supply chain. You read the supply chain
bottom-up. At the bottom, you see the customer order (demand), with order category (Oct) 311.
Then, you have the planned distribution order from warehouse 210 to warehouse 130 (order
category 500). Next, you have the planned manufacturing order in warehouse 210 (order
category 100). Finally, at the top, you have the planned purchase order in warehouse 210 for
your purchased item (order category 250).
Pay special attention to the column Consignee (goods recipient). Here you see the Swedish
customer (10001) for the customer order, the Swedish warehouse (130) for the distribution order
and the US warehouse (210) for the manufacturing and purchase orders.
The last column shows a color flag for your purchase order. We will return to this later.

169 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 20. Click the Close (X) button until the Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300/B) program
displays again.
21. Click to highlight the row related to [your customer order number].
22. Click to expand the Context Apps.
23. Click [your order confirmation document] in the Related Information app. The order
confirmation document opens in a new browser tab (stream).
24. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.

Part 3: Reschedule the customer order

1. Click Supply chain header in the Business processes (Supply chain orders) widget. The
Supply Chain Header. Open (RPS200/B) program opens.
2. Click the Sorting order drop-down arrow. A menu displays.
3. Click the 3-Delay, OI chain menu item.
4. Verify that [your assigned user ID] displays in the Responsible (selection) field.
5. Click Apply, if required. Your supply chain record displays together with its unique supply chain
number.
6. Click the 1 link (in the Msg column). The Detailed Mail Message. Open (CMS421/B1) program
opens. You are informed that the planned manufacturing order was created within the lead time.
7. Click the Close (X) button. The Supply Chain Header. Open (RPS200/B) program displays
again.
8. Click [your supply chain number] link. The Active Supply Chain. Display (MWS150/B1)
program opens. Note: Your four-tier supply chain displays.
9. Click to highlight the row related to [your customer order number] (order category 311).
10. Copy [your planning date (Pl dt) for the customer order] to Quick Note.
11. Click the Reschedule link in the Shortcuts menu. The Customer Order. Reschedule
(OIS130/B) program opens.
12. Reschedule the customer order following these steps:
a. Type [planning date + 7 days] in the New dt field. This pushes out the order one week.
b. Click the Update button. The date is rescheduled.
c. Click the Close (X) button. The Active Supply Chain. Display (MWS150/B) program
displays again.
13. Click the Refresh button. The entire supply chain is rescheduled out one week.
14. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again.
15. Click the Refresh button in the M3 Application Messages widget. A message appears in the M3
Application Messages widget informing you that the order has been rescheduled.
16. Click the drop-down arrow for [your rescheduling message]. A reference to your order number
displays together with the original and the new dates.
17. Confirm a message following these steps:
a. Right-click [your rescheduling message]. A menu displays.

170 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 b. Click the Mark as completed menu item. The message, “Are you sure you want to mark the
message as completed? The message will be removed from the list” displays.
c. Click the OK button. The message is removed. Note: You have additional messages
informing you of a supply chain error. This is connected to the color flag shown in the
previous part. Repeat this step to confirm these messages as well.

Part 4: Reschedule the planned purchase order

1. Click Supply chain header in the Business processes (Supply chain orders) widget. The
Supply Chain Header. Open (RPS200/B) program opens.
2. Click the [your supply chain number] link (in the Supply chain no column). The Active Supply
Chain. Display (MWS150/B1) program opens. Your four-tier supply chain displays again.
3. Click to highlight the row related to [your planned purchase order number] (order category
250).
4. Click the Reschedule link in the Shortcuts menu. The Planned Purchase Order. Open
(PPS171/E) program opens.
5. Copy [the current (original) requested delivery date] to Quick Note.
6. Reschedule (forward) the planned purchase order following these steps:
a. Click the Calendar icon in the Req delivery dt field. A calendar displays with the current
month and year visible.
b. Click [the original requested delivery date +2 (working) days] option.
c. Click the NEXT button. The message, “WARNING – This order supplies another order via a
preallocation” displays.
d. Click the OK button.
e. Click the NEXT button until you return to Active Supply Chain. Display (MWS150/B1).
7. Click the Refresh button. The date for the planned purchase order is updated.
8. Click the Close (X) button. The Supply Chain Header. Open (RPS200/B) program displays
again.
9. Click the Refresh button. Your adjustment displays in the column for rescheduled days (date
inconsistency). The number of days may include a weekend if the reschedule was done on a
Thursday or Friday.
10. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.
Click Refresh for the M3 Application Messages widget. A message appears in the M3
Application Messages widget informing you that the order must be rescheduled.
11. Click the drop-down arrow for [your rescheduling message]. Note: A reference to your order
number displays together with the information about the delay.
12. Confirm a message following these steps:
a. Right-click [your rescheduling message]. A menu displays.
b. Click the Mark as completed menu item. The message, “Are you sure you want to makr the
message as completed? The message will be removed from the list” displays.
c. Click the OK button. The message is removed.
13. Click Supply chain header in the Business processes (Supply chain orders) menu widget.
The Supply Chain Header. Open (RPS200/B) program opens.
14. Click [your supply chain number] link in the Supply chain no column. The Active Supply
Chain. Display (MWS150/B1) program opens and your four-tier supply chain displays again.
171 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 15. Click to highlight the row related to [your planned purchase order number] (order category
250).
16. Click Reschedule in the Shortcuts menu. The program Planned Purchase Order. Open
(PPS171/E) opens.
17. Reschedule (backwards) the planned purchase order following these steps:
a. Click the Calendar icon in the Req delivery dt field. A calendar displays with the current
month and year visible.
b. Click [the current requested delivery date -7 days] option.
c. Click the NEXT button. The message, “WARNING – This order supplies another order via a
preallocation” displays.
d. Click the OK button.
e. Click the NEXT button until you return to Active Supply Chain. Display (MWS150/B1).
18. Click the Refresh button. The date for the planned purchase order is updated, and the color flag
is gone.

Part 5: Release the planned orders

1. Click the 20-Firm planned link (in the Sts column) for your planned purchase order (order
category 250).
2. Click the Refresh button. The planned purchase order is released (the order category becomes
251). The status is 15, purchase order document ready for printout. Normally, you will wait to
release the other planned orders when the system suggest you do so. Note: You may need to
refresh multiple times.
3. Repeat steps 1-2 for the row related to [your planned manufacturing order] (order category
100). The planned manufacturing order is released (the order category becomes 101). The status
is 20, the manufacturing order is definite.
4. Repeat steps 1-2 for the row related to [your planned distribution order] (order category 500).
The planned distribution order is released (the order category becomes 501). The status is 22,
not allocated yet (no stock). Your orders have been released. NEXT, these can be processed as
shown in the previous exercises.
5. Click the Close (X) button to close all open programs. The Introducing the Solution (ITS)
homepage displays again. Note: If you plan to practice the demand to plan (push approach)
again, you need to remove the supply chain policy (00A) connected to your items (see part 1).
6. Change back to division BBB following these steps:
a. Click [your assigned user ID] Homepage in the Page Navigator. [Your homepage]
displays.
b. Click US division BBB in the Menu widget.
c. Click Introducing the Solution (ITS) in the Page Navigator. The Introducing the Solution
(ITS) homepage displays.

172 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Financial plan to report

The financial-plan-to report process

The Infor M3 Finance suite is designed for customers who want to capture, analyze, and manage all
financial information related to their companies’ operations. It has specific appeal to the needs of product-
centric, international, distributed organizations that require advanced, integrated functionality and that
want to minimize administrative overheads.
Deriving much of its competitive advantage from the completeness and flexibility of the integration with
the other Infor M3 suites, Infor M3 Finance includes integrated accounting, costing, cash management,
budgeting, consolidation, and transaction management functionality.
With rich functionality operating in multiple currencies and automatic management of local legislative
differences, the suite’s highly flexible accounting structures and processes provide a powerful tool to
manage complex businesses. The account builder consists of the accounting type and events.

Account builder

The division level in Infor M3 manages finance. These are, usually, legal entities and have a different
chart of account. You can create a consolidation division, so that you can consolidate the financial results
from several divisions. Within this training database, two operating divisions exist:
 Division AAA, based in Sweden (SE)
 Division BBB, based in the United States of America (US)
The US division has USD as the local currency and multiplication as the currency conversion method,
and the Swedish divisions has EUR as the local currency and division as the currency conversion
method.

173 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 The standard training company (330)

When you send goods across borders (and continents), financial consequences are embedded and
implied. Logistics will trigger financials, and this is the truly integrated nature of ERP systems.

This course is biased (focused) towards logistics. Not so much towards financials. That is why we will not
address these reports. Examples of such reports are Intrastat. When importing the end item from the US
to Sweden, the Swedish regulatory and statutory rules obligate the enterprises to report to the European
Union the quantity, amount and value imported into the EU. The same obviously applies for export from
the EU. The same applies for a periodic (often monthly) VAT or value added tax report. In the US, you
might have VERTEX and/or sales tax reports.

Whatever the case, financials are regulated by legislation. This is what Infor refers to as Local.ly. Infor
ERP systems must comply to these—often country-specific—requirements.

174 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Exercise 3.7: Display the general ledger balance file
In this exercise, you will review the transaction created in the general ledger balance file due
to the orders created earlier. The perspective is the US division (BBB), expressed in US
dollars. In this division, you have transactions due to:
 The purchasing of item ITS[##]P into warehouse 210.
 The manufacturing of item ITS[##]M in warehouse 210.
 The distribution of item ITS[##]M from warehouse 210 – internal invoice (revenue).
What you don’t see in this division is the sales revenue, because that was recognized in
Swedish division (AAA). “When you sneeze in the warehouse, the accounts will know about
it.” This exercise will prove that very point. With three simple clicks, it’s possible to drill down
from the general ledger to the transaction history where it is revealed who did what and
when. All of this inside the ERP system, without any satellite products.

Before you begin:

 Ensure you have signed in to Infor OS and that the default Infor Education homepage
displays. If not, refer to Exercise 2.1.
 All preceding exercises and demonstrations must be completed prior to starting this one.

Exercise steps

Part 1: Create accounting entries

1. Verify that the Infor logo displays in the Business processes widget. If not, click Home.
2. Click Financial Plan to Report in the Business processes widget. The menu tasks for the
Financial Plan to Report process display.
3. Click Int account entries (create) in the menu. The Internal Account Entry. Create
(CAS950/E) program opens.

The creation of the accounting entries should be done by one user only.

4. Click the Calendar icon in the Trans date (From) field. A calendar displays with the current
month and year visible.
5. Click [three business days before today].
6. Type T in the Trans date (To) field. Today’s date is retrieved.
7. Verify that all the selection check boxes are selected.
 Stock transactions
 Operation transactions for MOs
 Other transactions
 Operation transactions for WOs
 Order costing
8. Verify that all the update option check boxes are selected.
 Update (order costing) balance file
175 Lesson 2: Infor OS
  Transfer (cost accounting transactions) to FIM (the financial system)
9. Type T in the Accounting date field. Today’s date is retrieved. Note: Click the NEXT button first
in case the Accounting date and the Voucher text fields do not display.
10. Type [today’s date] CAS950 BBB in the Voucher text field.
11. Click the NEXT button. The Output. Select Media (MNS212/B1) program opens.
12. Click the Confirm output button until the message, “Job CAS950CL has been submitted”
displays.
13. Click the OK button.
14. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

Part 2: Display the general ledger balance file

1. Click General ledger (display) in the Business processes (Financial report to plan) widget.
The GL Balance File. Display (GLS215/B) program opens. Note: Click the OK button if a dialog
box opens informing you that the column template does not exit. The first time this program is
launched for the user, the column template needs to be set.
2. Verify that 1-Balance ID 1 displays in the Sorting order field.
3. Verify that [the current period] (YYMM) displays in the Period field.
4. Verify that 1 displays in the Balance key (selection) field.
5. Type 101 in the Col template field.
6. Click the Apply button. The balance file displays for the selected period based on the selected
template. Please be aware that we are working in a training environment where the periods aren’t
closed/opened on a regular basis as in real life.
7. Type INV in the Account (From) field. A menu shows all accounts that includes this text string.
Note: This is a script (auto complete) that enables you to key/search for the account.
8. Click 13400 --- Finished Goods inventory in the drop-down menu. The account is retrieved.
9. Type PAY in the Account (To) field. A menu displays.
10. Click the 21100 --- Accounts Payable menu item. The account is retrieved.
11. Click the Apply button. The accounts between 13400 and 21100 are listed.
12. Click to highlight the 13400 line.
13. Click the Display transactions link in the Shortcuts menu. The General Ledger. Display
Transactions (GLS210/B1) program opens.
14. Verify that the Cum from date field is blank.
15. Verify that the From date field is [the first day of this month].
16. Verify that the To date field is [the last day of this month].
17. Click Apply, if required.
18. Type ITS[##]M in the Search field.
19. Press Enter. Note: A record displays in connection to your end item. The accounting event is
PM30 (put-away WIP to inventory) and the accounting type is 910 (inventory). This represents the
receipt of your manufactured item to stock.

176 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 20. Click the CA02001 link (in the Name column). The Internal Account Entry. Open (CAS300/B1)
program opens. The voucher in connection to your accounting transaction is listed. One voucher
can contain several hundreds of thousands of individual account numbers. This account number
is the connection (hinge) between financials and logistics.
21. Copy [your account number] to Quick Note.
22. Click the [your accounting number] link (in the Acc no column) connected to your voucher
number. The Stock Transaction. Display History (MWS070/B) program opens, sorted by
accounting number. Transaction type 10 (WOP) represents the receipt of your manufacturing
order (ITS[##]M). The transaction quantity is positive (inbound). This means a debit (increase in
value) on the general ledger account 13400 as it increased the value of the stock with the unit
cost, multiplied with the manufactured quantity. The transactions that follows are of transaction
type 11 (WOM), i.e. material issues of the included components. To manufacture 100 end items
you issued 100 pieces of ITS[##]P, 200 pieces of 001001, and 400 pieces of 002042.
23. Click the WOP link (in the transaction ID column) in connection to ITS[##]M. The Manufacturing
Order. Open (PMS100/B) program opens. Your manufacturing order displays.
Click the Close (X) button until the GL Balance File. Display (GLS215/B1) program displays
again. Note: Depending on the account you drill-down, the behavior will be different. Account
21100 (Accounts payable), for example, will enable you to drive back to the supplier invoice
payments.
24. Click to highlight the 21100 row.
25. Click the Display Transactions link in the Shortcuts menu. The General Ledger. Display
Transactions (GLS210/B) program opens for the selected period. Note: If you scroll to the right
you will see your supplier invoice reference (ITS32[##]) in the voucher text column.
26. Type ITS32[##] in the Search field.
27. Press Enter. You have four transactions connected to your supplier invoice; the actual invoice
transaction in accounts payable (transaction code 40), the invoice accounting entry (transaction
code 41), the payment transaction in accounts payable (transaction code 50), and the payment
accounting entry (transaction code 51).
28. Click [the voucher number] link in connection to your supplier invoice number (ITS32[##]) and
transaction code 40. The program Supplier Invoice. Display Separate (APS215/B1) opens. The
invoice matching displays. Event AP10 represents the invoice and AP30 the payment.
29. Click the Close (X) button until twice the GL Balance File. Display (GLS215/B1) program
displays again. Note: Some accounting events triggered this session in division BBB include:
 PP10 – Reception into warehouse of the purchased item (ITS[##]P)
 AP10 – Purchase invoice matching
 AP30 – Paying the purchase invoice, clearing the debt to your supplier
 PM10 – Usage of components in the manufacturing of the end item (ITS[##]M), also known
as work in progress (WIP)
 PM20 – Reporting of (labor or machine) time on work center 210
 PM30 – Receiving into stock the end item (ITS[##]M). This “relieves” the work in progress.
You don’t really want WIP because it represents capital tied-up capital.
 CA20 – Accounting for differences between the standard cost (pre-calculation) and the
actuals reported during manufacturing (post-calculation). In case differences occur
chronically, a decision must be made: is the product structure incorrect, or is the operator
doing something wrong on the factory floor? This is self-cleansing over time, so that CA20
events disappear eventually.

177 Lesson 2: Infor OS

  MM50 – Delivery from warehouse 210 (outbound-credit). The same accounting event is used
in Swedish division (AAA) to indicate the receipt (inbound-debit).
 MF01 – Internal revenue (invoice) from the US perspective. This is an internal debt from the
Swedish division perspective. In fact, it is the very same invoice number. In the US division
(BBB) it is seen as accounts receivable, but in the Swedish division (AAA) it is seen as
accounts payable.
30. Click the Close (X) button. The Introducing the Solution (ITS) homepage displays again.

178 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Check your understanding
Match each planning level with the position in the image. The possible planning levels are:
Business planning, Demand management, Execution, Master scheduling,
Requirements planning, and Sales and operations planning.

Planning level

 Business planning

 Demand management

 Execution

 Master scheduling

 Requirements planning

Sales and operations


planning

Describe the difference between procurement and purchasing.

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

179 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 The steps for the production-to-inventory process appear below in the wrong order. Order
the steps from 1-6 to reflect the correct sequence.

Finalize/close

Post calculations and statistics

Process order

Release planned order

Scheduling

Secure material, initiate execution, move material

Describe the relation between distribution orders, delivery numbers, and shipment numbers in
Infor M3.

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

The image is taken from the accounts receivable. What can be said about the invoice?

a) The invoice is not yet created.

b) The invoice is created but not yet printed.

c) The invoice is created and printed.

180 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 d) The invoice is paid.

Which program is used as the main entry when following up on customer orders in Infor M3?

a) CO delivery. Open (OIS150)

b) Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300)

c) Delivery. Open Toolbox (MWS410)

d) Shipment. Open Toolbox (DRS100)

Describe the benefits of supply chain orders compared to material requirements planning
(MRP).

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

181 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Which inventory structure level
normally represents the legal entity
(financial level) in Infor M3?

a) Company

b) Division

c) Facility

d) Warehouse

Refer to Appendix B for answers to the Check your understanding questions.

182 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Course summary
Estimated time
.5 hours

Learning objectives
Now that you have completed this course, you should be able to:
 Describe Infor as a company and Infor M3 as a business solution.
 Explain the main Infor OS components and how to use them.
 Explain the Infor M3 key features and process flows.

183 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Appendices
The following are included in this section:
 Appendix A: User accounts
 Appendix B: Check your understanding answers
 Appendix C: IDEF0 charts
 Appendix D: Infor M3 navigation

184 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Appendix A: User accounts
Your instructor will assign you a student user ID from the table listed below to use for class exercises.
Note: If you are taking this course as SDL, refer to the Training Desktop Login Instructions on the Lab On
Demand screen.

Course name/code - M3: Introducing the Solution in Cloud Edition (01_9111904_IEN0012_M3O)

Training User name Description Password

environment entry
point (VM)

M3 CE Desktop InforTRN All users Infor123!

Application Username (User ID) Description Password

Instructor login: [ccc]S98 Instructor user S98 [password]

• Infor OS
[ccc] represents the
company number. [ccc]S99 Instructor user S99 [password]

Student login: [ccc]S01 Student user S01 [password]

• Infor OS
[ccc] represents the [ccc]S02 Student user S02 [password]
company number.
[ccc]S03 Student user S03 [password]

[ccc]S04 Student user S04 [password]

[ccc]S05 Student user S05 [password]

[ccc]S06 Student user S06 [password]

[ccc]S07 Student user S07 [password]

[ccc]S08 Student user S08 [password]

[ccc]S09 Student user S09 [password]

[ccc]S10 Student user S10 [password]

[ccc]S11 Student user S11 [password]

[ccc]S12 Student user S12 [password]

[ccc]S13 Student user S13 [password]

[ccc]S14 Student user S14 [password]

[ccc]S15 Student user S15 [password]

185 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 [ccc]S16 Student user S16 [password]

[ccc]S17 Student user S17 [password]

[ccc]S18 Student user S18 [password]

[ccc]S19 Student user S19 [password]

[ccc]S20 Student user S20 [password]

[ccc]S21 Student user S21 [password]

[ccc]S22 Student user S22 [password]

[ccc]S23 Student user S23 [password]

[ccc]S24 Student user S24 [password]

[ccc]S25 Student user S25 [password]

Clear the Google Chrome cache following these steps if required:

1. Click Customize and control Google Chrome at the end of the browser address bar.
2. Hover with the mouse over More tools. A sub-menu opens.
3. Click Clear browsing data. The Clear browsing data window opens.
4. Click the Time range drop-down menu. A list of range options displays.
5. Click Last 24 hours in list of range options.
6. Verify that all check boxes are selected:
 Browsing history
 Cookies and other site data
 Cached images and files
7. Click Clear data. The Clear browsing data windows is closed and the Settings tab displays.
8. Click Close (Settings tab).
9. Sign out from Infor OS (Exercise 2.1, part 2).
10. Close the Google Chrome browser. You return to the training desktop (Skytap).
11. Sign in to Infor OS (Exercise 2.1, parts 1) with user your user ([your assigned user ID]).

186 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Appendix B: Check your understanding answers
This section provides the answers to the questions found at the end of each Lesson.

Lesson 1: Infor the company

Infor OS is your cloud operating platform for the future, designed to bring productivity, business
processes and artificial intelligence together, and offer operational insights that were never accessible
to a business before. Match each of the following Infor OS areas with its component. The possible
components are: Infor Coleman, Infor Data Lake, Infor Document Management, Infor ION
Enterprise Search, Infor Federation Services, Infor Graph, Infor ION, Infor IoT, Infor Local.ly,
Infor Ming.le, Infor SoHo, and Mongoose.

Area Component

A.I. Infor Coleman

API/Process integration Infor ION

Business/people/asset graph Infor Graph

Collaboration Infor Ming.le

Data management Infor Data Lake

Device readings Infor IoT

Digital compliancy Infor local.ly

Documents Infor Document Management

Extensibility Mongoose

Search Infor ION Enterprise Search

Security Infor Federation Services

User experience (UX) Infor SoHo

Infor has taken an enterprise-out approach to digital transformation services that improves operations
and provides new experiences for both customers and employees. Which are the three layers of this
approach? Select all that apply.

e) Artificial intelligence

f) Data and analytics

g) Digital compliancy

187 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 h) Hook & Loop digital

i) Process integration

j) Software and platforms

Name the five Infor strategy layers on top of the platform (Infor OS), and describe each layer’s three
key messages.
Industry
 Deep industry-specific functionality without complex, expensive customizations
 Industry best practices based on decades of experience and thousands of implementations
 Faster and simpler deployments with pre-packaged workflows, content, integrations, and
analytics
Cloud
 Highly secure, redundant availability zones via global cloud leader AWS
 Best-practice cloud operations for provisioning, self-service, monitoring, scalability, and business
continuity
 Lower cost of ownership, elastic computing power, hyper-scale, automatic upgrades, and
unlimited data lake
Network
 Global commerce for 50,000 trading partners, including carriers, shippers, freight forwarders,
suppliers, and brand owners
 Real-time visibility of orders and inventory in transit or at rest for global omni-channel fulfillment
 Collaboration with trading partners for real-time orchestration of USD 1 trillion in annual trade
Analytics
 Common analytics platform and data lake for Infor and third-party applications with automated
data refinement and common semantics
 Self-service analytics for end users with consumer grade visualization, data blending, and data
discovery tools
 Pre-packaged industry and role-based content, data surfaced automatically to users in context
Artificial intelligence
 Infor Coleman – a science-driven, industry-aware digital assistant
 Automates repetitive tasks and provides instant access to information via voice or chat
 An intelligent advisor that anticipates, advises, and derives insights from business data to allow
people to work smarter

In which four ways can extensibility be made within the system (Infor M3)? Describe each option and
give examples.
 Configurable, i.e. you can set the base parameters in the standard software.
Examples of configurations are: common settings, industry settings, homepages, toolboxes,
enterprise search, configurable lists and reports etc.

 Personalizable, i.e. you can tailor the solution to your individual needs.
Example of personalizations are: menus, fields, composite screens, scripts, mashups,
information viewers, monitor widgets, contextual apps, document layouts, IDM links etc.

 Extensible, i.e. you may alter the existing business logic, build new modules.
Example of extensions are: customer-defined fields, event-based alerts, ION workflows, event-
driven custom logic, Mongoose applications, etc.

188 Lesson 2: Infor OS

  Interoperable, i.e. you can deploy the solution into existing infrastructure and processes.
Example of integrations are: APIs, webservices, file transfers, BOD extensions, EDI messages,
etc.

The Infor M3 solution runs on the Infor OS architecture. The complete Infor M3 solution is made up of
several different software components, where some are unique for just a certain industry or micro
vertical, while others are mandatory and will be common for all Infor M3 installations no matter for what
industry. Under which product family name are these components gathered in Infor M3?

a) ION Grid

b) Infor M3 Business Engine

c) Infor M3 Core

d) Infor M3 Foundation

e) Infor H5 Enterprise

f) LifeCycle Manager

Which statement is true regarding Infor M3 Cloud?

a) No TCO

b) No new innovations

c) No more upgrades

d) No security needs

The final phase in Infor’s deployment method is finite, contractually agreed upon, post go-live work
where the ownership and responsibility for the system is transitioned to the customer. Which is the final
phase in Infor’s deployment method?

a) Construction

b) Elaboration

c) Inception

d) Optimize

e) Transition

“The objective is to speed up the implementation by deploying, among other things, industry content,

189 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 process flows, detailed process description/test scripts and a pre-configured application database as a
foundation; these deliverables provide a more advanced start-point to kick-start the implementation
and support all members of the project team throughout and beyond the implementation phases.”
What are we referring to?

a) Built-in industry experience

b) Hook & Loop digital

c) Infor’s deployment method

d) Implementation Accelerators

e) Mongoose software development framework

f) Responsive design

Lesson 2: Infor Operating Service (Infor OS)

What is the image illustrating?

a) Infor OS homepage

b) Infor H5 script

c) Infor H5 startpage

d) IDM page

e) Web application

f) Web mashup

Infor Ming.le, embedded in Infor OS, is a comprehensive platform for social collaboration, business
process improvement, and contextual analytics. It gives you the most innovative social media concepts
translated into a business environment; the solution marries communications with business processes
to help you work smarter and faster. Match each of the following Infor Ming.le components with its
description. The possible components are: Paparazzi, Contextual intelligence, Infor Ming.le Mobile,
Tasks and alerts, Drill-backs, Streams, and Infor communities.

Description Component

Infor Ming.le combines real-time information from ERP, Contextual intelligence

SCM, EAM, and financial systems, as well as any other
transactional information, on a single screen.

190 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Infor Ming.le enables you to organize recurring Streams
conversations around a business topic, defined by the
users, with the ability to involve internal and external
participants.

Infor Ming.le enables you to see the information Drill-backs

supporting the data on your screen. You can immediately
trace data and transactions behind the scene.

Infor Ming.le lets you “follow” social objects and people, Paparazzi
delivering automatic notices based on parameters that
you define.

Infor Ming.le lets you work smarter and faster anytime, Infor Ming.le Mobile
and anywhere. You can head off problems and keep
business moving with critical information and alerts
accessible on your mobile device.

Infor Ming.le transmits transactional information in real Task and alerts

time, so you can keep up with the progress of important
activities.

You can extend your Infor Ming.le platform to external Infor communities
participants, facilitating structured communication and
business process tracking with your customers, suppliers,
or citizens.

“These are visualized processes. The system telling you what activities to do and in which order. Color
coding will reveal which activities were done and by whom and which have not been done.”
What are we referring to in Infor OS?

a) APIs

b) Event-based alerts

c) Information monitors

d) ION integrations

e) Metadata publisher

f) Workflows

“Some customers belong to the same customer group. Changing it can both divert the revenue
bookings and upset the financial reporting. When a user, who is not the responsible for this customer,
changes the customer group the responsible will be notified.”
What are we referring to in Infor OS?

a) APIs

191 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 b) Event-based alerts

c) Information monitors

d) ION integrations

e) Metadata publisher

f) Workflows

“This widget informs you that something needs your attention, for example a customer order has been
stopped or a new customer record has been created.” What are we referring to in Infor OS?

a) APIs

b) Event-based alerts

c) Information monitors

d) ION integrations

e) Metadata publisher

f) Workflows

Personalization aims to increase your productivity and help you react when actions are needed, so you
can stay on top of your daily business challenges. The process to apply personalizations includes the
following four activities:
1. Analyze the personalizations needed
2. Copy the personalizations to the role
3. Create the personalizations for one user
4. Decide the roles within the company

Which one of the following is the correct order in which those activities should be performed?
4, 1, 3, 2

Infor Document Management (IDM) enables you to display images and documents within Infor H5. For
example, when selecting an item in the item master, an image of the item will display. Or, when
selecting an invoice record, the invoice document will display. Which icon should be pressed up to the
right in Infor H5 to open the Context Apps area where the image/document displays?

Icon Icon Icon

a) c) e)

192 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 b) d) f)

193 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 The Infor ION Enterprise Search syntaxes are taken from Lucene, an open source information retrieval
software library. Match each of the following syntax rules with its example. The possible components
are: Booleans, Intervals, Macros, Overrides (for special characters), Reserved keywords, and
Wildcards.

Example Syntax rule

Intervals

Booleans

Reserved keywords

Macros

Wildcards

Overrides (for special characters)

What UX functionality is the image illustrating?

a) Customized fields

b) Metadata publisher

c) Scripts

d) Web applications

e) Web mashups

f) Workflows

194 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Which table is used to store data for customized fields
(customer generic extension tables)?

a) CMSFLD

b) CUGEX1

c) CUSEXT

d) MITMAS

e) OCUSMA

f) STDDTA

What is the image illustrating?

a) Infor OS homepage

b) Infor H5 script

c) Infor H5 startpage

d) IDM page

e) Web application

f) Web mashup

What Infor OS tool/functionality is shown in the image? “Infor Coleman DA offers custom skill building,
a voice user experience and navigation, and natural language processing (NLP) extensibility. It uses a
conversational UX and natural language processing – with deep domain and industry knowledge – to
chat, hear, and talk to help people work more efficiently.”
What does DA stand for in Coleman DA?

a) Dashboard Analytics

b) Data Analyzer

c) Dedicated Audio

d) Digital Assistant

e) Direct Automation

f) Document Archiver

195 Lesson 2: Infor OS

196 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Lesson 3: Infor M3 business processes

Match each planning level with the position in the image. The possible planning levels are: Business
planning, Demand management, Execution, Master scheduling, Requirements planning, and
Sales and operations planning.

Planning level

Business planning


Demand management


Execution


Master scheduling


Requirements planning


Sales and operations


planning

Describe the difference between procurement and purchasing.

Procurement represents the business functions of procurement planning, purchasing, inventory control,
traffic, receiving, incoming inspection, and salvage operations. Purchasing is the term used in industry
and management to denote the function of and the responsibility for procuring materials, supplies, and
services.

197 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 The steps for the production-to-inventory process appear below in the wrong order. Order the steps
from 1-6 to reflect the correct sequence.

Finalize/close 5

Post calculations and statistics 6

Process order 4

Release planned order 1

Scheduling 3

Secure material, initiate execution, move material 2

Describe the relation between distribution orders, delivery numbers, and shipment numbers in Infor M3.

In Infor M3, deliveries are managed via delivery numbers. The delivery number is the delivery note
number, which is linked to the order line during order entry. When the following data is identical:
consignor (sending warehouse), consignee (receiving warehouse), departure date, and additional
setup such as delivery method, then an accumulation will take place on the same delivery number. If
the order lines are rescheduled, or the item is not available in stock during the dispatch, then Infor M3
will automatically and dynamically link the order line to another delivery number.

The image is taken from the accounts receivable. What can be said about the invoice?

a) The invoice is not yet created.

b) The invoice is created but not yet printed.

c) The invoice is created and printed.

d) The invoice is paid (no outstanding amount).

Which program is used as the main entry when following up on customer orders in Infor M3?

a) CO delivery. Open (OIS150)

b) Customer Order. Open Toolbox (OIS300)

198 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 c) Delivery. Open Toolbox (MWS410)

d) Shipment. Open Toolbox (DRS100)

Describe the benefits of supply chain orders compared to material requirements planning (MRP).

MRP does not always provide the necessary visibility on the status of customer orders, due to there
being no real links between supplying and demanding orders as with supply chain orders. This makes
changes to customer or purchase orders difficult to implement across the supply chain and can result
in significant additional manual work to identify and change all the appropriate orders. MRP lot-sizing
rules can create excess inventories and lead to obsolete stock. Over time there is a tendency to build
inventory buffers to ensure service levels are met. SCOs reduce the need for lot-sizing and safety
inventory buffers.
As make-to-order companies need to peg critical materials to manufacturing, inter-site distribution and
customer orders to maintain control and visibility, some sophisticated MRP systems include pre-
allocation functionality to address this need for hard linking between orders. However, the nature of
constant change in complex supply chains necessitates significant time to create and change these
pre-allocation links. For SCOs, the links are created and managed in a more automated way due to the
user-defined planning policy.

Which inventory structure level normally represents the legal

entity (financial level) in Infor M3?

a) Company

b) Division

c) Facility

d) Warehouse

199 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Appendix C: IDEF0 diagrams
This section provides the IDEF0 diagrams used in the Info M3 Business Processes lesson.

Demand to plan

Procure to pay

200 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Production to inventory

Order to cash

201 Lesson 2: Infor OS

202 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Distribution to internal invoice (1)

Distribution to internal invoice (2)

203 Lesson 2: Infor OS

204 Lesson 2: Infor OS
Supply chain orders (1)

Supply chain orders (2)

205 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Financial plan to report

206 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Appendix D: Infor M3 navigation
This section provides a guide how to navigate when working with Infor M3.
Click here and return to the Navigation topic.

Accessing Infor M3 (Infor H5)

There are multiple ways to access (drill back) and edit the data in the ERP system:
Level 1: The traditional way is to open Infor M3 (via the App menu)
and use the Infor H5 menus/commands to locate the data needed.

Level 2: Use links added to menus from the Infor

OS homepage. These links can be direct links to
the specific functions (so-called mforms), or be
bookmarks with specified data.
Level 3: You can tailor widgets, for example monitors and alerts, to
highlight activities and provide drill-backs using Infor ION Enterprise
Search to only display the data of interest in the desired functions (work
by exceptions).
Level 4: You can tailor widgets, for example
workflows and tasks, to highlight activities
and allow you to enter data that will update
the ERP system without accessing it.
Alternatively, you can use mobile devices or
communicate with Coleman to retrieve
information or execute tasks.

Program ID, company, and division

When accessing an Infor M3 function, the
program name will display in the title bar, and
the program ID (and panel) will display in the
status bar (bottom-right corner).

Your user setting has been pre-configured to

show the program ID as a prefix to the program
name in the title bar and to show the company and division in the status bar.

207 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Sorting orders and views
The Sorting order defines the keys (for
example customer number) used to sort the
shown data in the list view. It also enables
different selection criteria and the ability to
aggregate data. The View defines the fields to
display in the columns and in which order. With
the Filter Options (upper right) you can
expand/collapse the list view header.

Actions
Actions represent activities you can perform to navigate within a panel. The available actions vary a bit
from program to program, but there are some actions that exist in most panels (for example Confirm and
Close). You trigger an action by:
 Selecting the desired action from the Actions menu.
 Clicking the corresponding icon among the quick launch icons.
 Right-clicking the record and selecting the desired action.
 Pressing a hotkey command (function key).
 Clicking a shortcut in the Shortcuts menu (if applicable).

Action Key Icon Comment

Confirm Enter This action confirms an entry and (if applicable) takes you to the
NEXT panel (NEXT).

Field help F1 Self-explanatory

Close F3 This action closes the program you are working with
immediately. F3 does not save (commit) the changes you made
to the last panel you were on.

Browse F4 This action accesses underlying tables (pre-defined data).

Browsable fields have a triangle in the end of the field.

Refresh F5 This action is used to refresh the latest values.

Text F6 This action opens the text block in connection to the function.

Previous F12 This action takes you back to the previous panel without saving.
If used for the first panel, it will close the program completely
(without saving).

Settings F13 This action opens the program specific settings. These settings
are user-defined.

Note: Function keys higher than F12 are accessed by using the Shift key. For example, Shift + F1
represents F13.

208 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Options
Options represents different executions that you can do with a record. An
option can be triggered in many ways. You trigger an option by
highlighting a record and:
 Selecting the desired option from the Options menu.
 Clicking the corresponding icon among the quick launch icons.
 Right-clicking the record and selecting the desired option.
 Pressing a hotkey command (CTRL+ number key).
 Selecting and then clicking the option from the footer button.
 Double-clicking the record (the set program option is executed).
Note: The default program option for this course is Change (with some exceptions). The defaulted option
displays in bold in the Options menu.

Related options
Related options are contextual jumps to other programs (connected to
another database table) that are in some way related to the program with
which you are currently working. For example, when working with the
item master, the program for handling the warehouse connections is a
Related option. The Related option menu will look different from program
to program due to the perspective of the program. For example,
customers have delivery addresses, but items do not.
You trigger a Related option by highlighting a record and:
 Selecting the desired option from the Related options menu.
 Right-clicking the record and selecting the desired related option.
 Pressing a hotkey command (CTRL+ number key sequence).
 Clicking a shortcut in the Shortcuts menu (if applicable).
 Clicking a hyperlink connected to the record (if applicable).

Related options via hyperlink and shortcuts

Shortcuts menu
To speed up the navigation, you may add actions, related options, and
general links to the Shortcuts menu. This menu is located to the right of
the Infor H5 screen and it can be expanded (collapsed) via the
hamburger icon in the upper-right corner of the Infor H5 screen.

209 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Context Apps
Farther to the right at the Infor H5 screen you have the Context Apps
area. This area will carry different context apps to support the
processing. For example, you will find the Related Information app
that enables the ability to show product pictures and document
outputs (via IDM). The Context Apps area is expanded (collapsed) via
the double arrow icon in the upper-right corner of the Infor H5 screen.

Coleman/Chat

You can interact with Coleman verbally via the digital assistant, and in written form via the chat routine.

Activity feed
The activity feed (Alerts, Posts, Tasks, Notifications etc.) is accessed
via the Inbox.

Panels
Panels guide the user on how to move through an Infor M3 program. Each program has a predefined
workflow. That is, by default, a program opens specific panels in a certain order. The workflow of a
current session however, can be modified by adding, deleting, or reordering the panels. A panel is
designated either by a letter or a number. A letter represents the type of information that can be seen in
the panel. By contrast, a number indicates that a panel is associated with another program, but this panel
can also be accessed from the program you are currently working with.
This table shows the most common panel types:

Panel Type Description

A Add This panel is designed to create (add) new data, for example a new customer
order or a new purchase order. You fill in the necessary key field information
and click Create. A-panels are rare in Infor M3. An A-panel can be used as the
opening panel for some programs.

B Browse This panel shows existing records in a list view. Users may expand or collapse
the filter options to maximize the available space for viewing the records list.
The Sorting order will determine how you can search for the data you are
interested in. The View determines which columns (fields) to display and in
which order.

C Copy This panel is used to confirm the copying of a record.

D Delete This panel is used to confirm the deletion of a record.

210 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Panel Type Description

E-N Detail The detail panels contain column (field) information from the database. Take
the customer master as an example. Each customer carries information such
as name, address, customer group, delivery method etc. There are too many
columns (fields) to display them all in one panel. Instead they are grouped
(under headings) and split over several panels. Most programs in Infor M3 only
use one panel (E). Master data programs such as the customer master, item
master etc. have multiple detailed panels.

(E) Trigger This is a batch job trigger panel (special case). Here, you fill in the selection
fields and press Enter (NEXT) to start the batch job. An example is the
generation of customer order invoices.

P Parameter This panel enables user-defined program settings. It is available when there are
(settings) parameters to be set for a program. Here you set the default opening panel (A
or B) and your preferred panel sequence (permanently).

Nine out of 10 programs in Infor M3 use the B-panel as the opening panel. A rule of thumb is that you
search for that you know. For example, if you know the customer’s phone number, you use that phone
number to find that customer in the list of many other customers. Then you highlight (position on) the
customer record in the list view. Finally, you decide what you want to do with the selected data. It could
be an option such as change, copy or display, but it can also be a related option. You may select more
than one record in the list view at the time, for example when doing a multiple update.
Note: If you are guided to work with the B-panel and the A-panel displays when opening a program (or
vice versa), you can switch between the opening panels via the P-panel.

Panel sequence
A panel sequence represents a workflow. It is wise to minimize the number of panels, and by
consequence keystrokes that end users need to go through and validate. Different customers and
different roles have different needs, so this cannot be taken out of the box. This decision is often made in
workshops. Role-based security will solidify these panel sequence decisions, making working with Infor
M3 a smooth ride for end users.
The default panel sequence is managed through the program settings (F13). These changes are
user-defined and will be remembered whenever the program is launched. You can temporarily
change the panel sequence through the Page Navigator at the B-panel (these will be forgotten once you
close the program). To remove a panel from the sequence, drag and drop the panel away from the
sequence. To change the order of a panel in the sequence, drag and drop the panels among each other.
You can add a panel through the Add Panel option. Alternatively, if you are familiar with the panels, you
can type the desired panel sequence if you use the Direct Change (CTRL+D) option. The panel sequence
does not have to be in alphabetic (nor numerical) order, you can switch them around based on your
needs.
The set panel sequence will finally display at the bottom of each detailed panel (E-N). In the Panel
Navigator, you can decide if the panels should display with a description text (as in the Panel Navigator)
or if it should be minimized (small view). If hovering over a circle in the small view, the description text
displays.

211 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 Panel sequence – small view vs. description text (item master)

It is important to know that you save the data panel by panel. When clicking NEXT (or pressing Enter),
you will proceed to the NEXT panel and save (if in change mode) the columns that were shown on the
previous panel separately into the table. You can also add related programs to the panel sequence.
These are represented with numbers instead of letters. Naturally, each program offers different related
programs. When entering a related program in the panel sequence, you proceed in the panel sequence
by clicking Close (or pressing F3). Remember, each related program will use its own panel sequence if
you instead decide to open a record in the related program. Clicking Previous (or pressing F12) will bring
you back to the previous panel/related program in the panel sequence. After the last panel/related
program in the panel sequence you will return to the opening panel.

Navigate between panels and related programs

Note: A tip is to not use numbers in the panel sequence. Instead, use the Related options (via
hyperlinks/shortcuts) to jump actively between programs/tables to avoid any confusion.
Web mashups and web applications offer you an opportunity to gather only the columns (fields) that you
are interested in. Some programs offer customized panels (U-V), but it requires a small amount of coding
to prepare these panels.

User settings
The user settings are found under the Tools menu. These settings have been
defaulted from the H5 settings (Administration Tools) and can be (if allowed)
overruled by each user. After you have modified a setting, you need to save
the changes and click the Refresh button for the changes to take effect.
The following settings can be found under the User Settings option:

Display system messages in dialog window: If activated, messages will

display as a dialog box (see image to the right). If deactivated, the message
will display in the status bar at

212 Lesson 2: Infor OS

 the bottom of the mform (see image below).

Display company and division information on the status bar: If activated, the information displays in the
lower-right corner of the status bar (see image to the left). If deactivated (see image to the right), the
status bar will not contain this information.

Display label/help tooltips: If activated, a

label tooltip (to the left in the image) or a help
tooltip (to the right in the image) will display
when hovering with the mouse over a label or
a field. If deactivated, nothing will happen when hovering with the mouse over the label or the field.

Right align labels: This setting is normally deactivated. Then the label will be left aligned (see image to
the left). If activated, the labels will be right aligned (see image to the right).

Use plus key as tab: If activated you can use the plus sign as the "Tab"
key and, for example, move between fields.

Position cursor in end of input fields: If activated, the cursor will display in the end of the field when
moving between fields (see image to the left). If deactivated, the entire value will be selected instead
(see image to the right).

Expand list: If activated, it is in some mforms possible to expand a record in the list view. Then a drop-
down arrow is shown in front of the record (see image to the left). If deactivated, this option (the drop-
down arrow) is not available. Instead you need to scroll to the right to see the data.

Use small view for panel navigator: This setting is available in

the Panel Navigator as well (an update at one place will
213 Lesson 2: Infor OS
 update the other). If activated, the panel sequence will display with small circles (the upper image). If
deactivated, the detailed panel sequence will display (see lower image).

Show Program ID: If activated, the program ID will

display prior to the program name (the upper image). If
deactivated, only the program name will display (the lower image).

Start pages: If deactivated, the Startpages in H5 will not be used. Startpages may be used (activated) if
running Infor H5 stand-alone, for example on a mobile device. When running on a computer you should
use Infor OS Homepages.
Auto-switch to Homepages: This is used in combination with a deactivated Start pages setting. If
activated, you will automatically return to the Homepage when closing an Infor H5 program. If
deactivated, you will instead return to the blank Startpage and you need to manually trigger the
Homepage by clicking the Infor logo in the upper-left corner of the screen.

Use Infor Ming.le Language: If enabled, the set language in Ming.le will be used. If disabled, Infor H5
will use the language defined for the user (MNS150).
Activate context help: If activated, an inforFieldContext message (that contains the field ID and other
data) is published when you press F1 or hover with the mouse over a field. The data is then used by
the Context Help Context App (or any other Context App as long as it subscribes to the
inforFieldContext message type.

Standard option: This setting controls what should happen when you double-click a record in the list
view. It also defaults in the navigation button down to the right.

Theme: This setting defines the colors of the title bar and the menu in the Infor H5 client. The default
option is black (grey).

Calendar view: This setting defines the calendar to be used. In our training environment only one
calendar is implemented (Gregorian), which also is the default calendar.

Program Options: The Program Options allow you to define different

standard options per program. For example, when recording a
supplier invoice (APS100), you normally select a record instead of
changing it. The program ID must be entered in uppercase.

214 Lesson 2: Infor OS

Help
There is no help feature in the Infor M3 H5 client regarding Infor M3 H5 itself. If you open an mform you
can launch the Infocenter or the Form Help. Infocenter offers a quick entry online help regarding how to
work with Infor M3 applications. If you use the Form Help you will immediately get help with regards to the
specific program the call was made from. With the Infocenter option you need to perform the search
manually.

Help options

A label tooltip and a field help tooltip can be activated for all users in the User settings. The label tooltip
displays the full-length text for labels as pop-ups when hovering over the label. Labels are sometimes
abbreviated due to space constraints and the tooltips make the label easier to understand for the user.
The tooltip text may be the same as the label text if the full-length label fits. The field help tooltip displays
the field helps when hovering over a field (or check box).
If the tooltips aren't activated, help texts can still be shown. Place the cursor in the required field and
press the F1 key. The field help text will display, along with the full name of the field.

Field help

Quick Note
Quick Note is a way to save notes without having to write them down on
paper. Quick Note is only available in mforms. To access the note box,
click the Quick Note button in the upper-right corner. Then drag the text
from the mform and drop it on the Quick Note button. You close the
Quick Note window by clicking somewhere outside the window. If you
leave an Infor H5 program and return a homepage, please remember to
close Quick Note, otherwise the homepage links will not work properly.
Alternatively, you can right-click a text/number and select Add Text to
Quicknote.
Note: Quick Note is recommended by Infor Education whenever you are asked to write down something
in the course.

215 Lesson 2: Infor OS