New Features in Sage MAS 500 Version 7.4

Sage MAS 500 ERP Version 7.4 is scheduled for release this summer. In our last post on 7.4, we reviewed the extensive enhancements for Advanced Manufacturing and Accounts Receivable that are included in this release. In this post, we highlight the performance and usability enhancements added for the Business Insights, Inventory Management, Purchase Order, and Sales Order modules.

Faster Business Insights
Several customer-requested enhancements are added to the Business Insights module to improve performance and usability. Metadata has been optimized and the response time to return filtered and selected results is improved.

In System Manager, an option was added to the Maintain Business Insights Views/Context Menus allowing you to limit output to only the Top N results. This option provides you with a quick view of your top performers. You also will have the option to export only the selected data from views to speed the process of exporting to Excel® for advanced analysis.

Landed Cost Flexibility
New flexibility in entering Landed Cost allows you to apply, change, and generate landed costs from the Enter Receipt of Goods screen. You can now define, override, and apply landed costs on an individual receipt basis. The landed cost can be applied to a receipt line using a per-unit percent of cost or a flat amount per unit, or it can be applied to a receipt total and allocated by cost, quantity, weight, volume, or manually.

When a landed cost is being allocated by receipt total, the allocation method can be changed and the landed cost amount can be modified even if using a predefined landed cost. The calculated line unit cost also can be overridden if the user has security event permissions.

Inventory Unit Of Measure Refinements
A number of enhancements have been made to Inventory Unit of Measure capabilities to improve the accuracy of converting from one unit of measure (UOM) to another and to allow more flexibility in using alternative UOMs.

The accuracy of conversion from one UOM to another is greatly enhanced by expanding the decimal precision in data tables, creating flexible rounding methods for the base (smallest) UOM, and adding user-definable conversion types. The system also stores the conversion factors used with the transaction. Amounts less than the displayed decimal precision will adjust automatically, and you will be able to print inventory reports in an alternative UOM other than Stock.

Expanded decimal precision in the display of physical counts and the ability to perform bin transfers in alternative UOMs increases usability. A BIE view for UOM also is added in Version 7.4 for ease in tracking and viewing UOM settings.

Preferred Vendor Override For Replenishment And MRP
Version 7.4 includes the ability to change the primary vendor for replenishment and MRP. Previously, the Preferred Vendor was automatically set based on the setting in Set Up Warehouse Replenishment. The addition of a checkbox in Maintain Inventory on the Replenishment tab allows you to choose whether to use the default primary vendor from Warehouse Replenishment or set the Primary Vendor separately for replenishment purposes. In either instance, the vendor can be overridden at the individual item level in Replenishment or MRP.

When the checkbox is selected, the Primary Vendor is View Only, and displays the default vendor. These options are not available if the source for replenishment is Warehouse.

Sales Order
In Sales Order you now can enter negative line items for non-inventory items; this gives you added flexibility in applying credits and discounts on customer orders.

Helping Sage Improve Sage ERP MAS 500
The new product enhancement program, introduced in a Version 7.3 product update, also is included in the Version 7.4 release. This first-stage enhancement monitors your Sage ERP MAS 500 system, gathering platform and operating system information, and tracking usage information on the local client installation. These statistics assist Sage in determining what are the most used tasks. The information gathered is then used to prioritize the areas of the software that will get the most attention.

When installing the new release, you have the option to opt-out of installing the product enhancement program software, and the feature can be disabled at any time in the Administrative Tools window. The periodic uploads of data to Sage are automatic and require no action on the part of the user. Note: The product enhancement program does not gather any confidential or company-specific data, such as financial information or customer lists.

Smart Updates
Smart Updates first were included in a Version 7.3 product update and are continued in Version 7.4. Smart Updates simplify software updates and upgrades and protect customizations.

The current Smart Update program detects the current updates that have been applied and installs only those objects that have changed since the last update was applied. It also alerts the user to customizations that exist and the objects identified as having changed since the last update was applied. Phase 2 is planned to apply the same detection capabilities to server-side updates and the ability to automate client-side updates by pulling them down from the server.

Support Retirements
With the release of Sage ERP MAS 500 Version 7.4 there are several platform, module, and version retirements.

• SQL Server 2000, and Windows 2000 server and client no longer will be supported.
• Support for Sage ERP MAS 500 Version 7.05 will end as of September 2011.
• Microsoft FRx, replaced by Sage MAS Intelligence, will no longer be supported with the release of Version 7.4.
• eCustomer, eSalesforce, and eOrder have been retired and are replaced by the eBusiness Suite for Sage ERP MAS 500 powered by RKL eSolutions.

Give us a call for assistance in planning your upgrade to Sage ERP MAS 500 Version 7.4.