The Kanban flow is shown at the bottom of this page and includes the following steps:

• The process starts with an item being consumed at the plant floor or at a store. Consumption of an item generally implies a new lot item must be ordered to replace the one just consumed.
• When a new lot is ordered to replace the one just consumed, a card is released by the factory and a PO is generated in the ERP/MRP system. A signal is sent to either a supplier or a work center to produce one more lot of that item.
• When the supplier or work center receives the signal indicating a new item is needed, they must accept the order. If you wish to have orders automatically accepted, you must enable that option by clicking Manage > Supplier, select the supplier to set this rule for, and then clicking Edit, which opens the Edit Supplier screen. On this screen, select the Enable Auto Accept checkbox and then click Submit. There may be one or more reasons you do not wish to have orders automatically accepted, including:
  • The released card needs to wait till Run Line is reached.
  • The released card needs to wait till PO is created.
  • There are occasions where the items must be re-scheduled.
• Once an order has been accepted by the supplier or work center, there will be some wait period (lead time which is composed of set up time and cycle time) before the supplier or work center can complete the item(s) designated on the card and ship the item(s).
• After the item(s) have been completed by the supplier or work center, the item(s) and associated card are shipped to either a shipping hub or directly to the factory/plant. In the case where a ship hub is used, the goods are consolidated and shipped to the plant/factory.
• Next the carrier delivers the items to the plant/factory and the item then must be received. Once a card has been received, you have the option of inspecting the items and approving or rejecting some or all of them.
• If you do not wish to inspect the goods and instead wish to automatically accept them, click the Manage menu, then click Item, which opens the Items List screen. Select the desired item to bypass inspection, and click Edit to open the Edit Item screen. Uncheck the "Check this box for this item to go through inspection" and click Submit.
• If you are inspecting goods, then you must approve or reject some or all of the items.
• When the goods are received a P.O. receipt transaction is generated in the ERP/MRP system.
• For items not requiring inspection or those that have been approved, the items are then stored in the factory at the appropriate location and waiting to be consumed to start the process over again