BPCS Cycle counting- process vs. resource requirements

[John Braren <JBraren@xxxxxxxx>]

                We are in the 7th month of our first of 15 site
installations and are hitting a few snags using the Cycle Count processes
within BPCS 6.1.02.  While the theory and execution of that theory flows
nicely, in practice we are finding the detail execution is extremely labor
intensive.

                Currently we are using Lot and Location control on all
finished goods and only some raw materials.  Plants will carry inventories
covering from 200 to 600 SKU's of finished goods. Because of shelf-life
issues or extremely high volume on some SKU's, multiple productions per
month are common.  Stringent quality standards require very particular shop
order Lot controls.  Warehouse space consolidation is constant, so Location
movement can be extensive.

                Can anyone shed any light on their experiences in this area?
Did you have to significantly increase staffing in order to use the full
functionality of the BPCS Cycle Count process?  Is everyone counting the
zero balance Lot/Locations on the worksheet?  For some brands with high
volumes and low inventories we require several Cycle Counts per month, but
with the generation of Lot/Locations to be checked with zero inventory
balances, and because the ILI records are maintained until month-end and
show on the worksheets even though the last transaction was a 'Y', the
worksheets generated are huge, repetitive and become much too much work to
be covered even on a monthly basis.

                Adding to the size of the task is the fact that our staff is
used to doing counts by total SKU inventory at one time, not just
Lot/Location transaction verification.  This means that many or our SKU's
have been set for a frequency of 366 so that a total SKU Lot/Location
worksheet can be generated.  This means that all ILI records for the month
for a SKU appear, growing until month-end into worksheet where 80% or more
of the items to be 'counted' in fact have zero balances which already have
been 'Y'd'

                Any insights or suggestions would be very welcome.  We are
quickly moving to put all raws on Lot/Location control and foresee creating
an unmanageable monster.

        Thanks-

        JB