Microsoft Dynamics NAV

Microsoft Dynamics NAV is a configurable system where the effect of changing data element values can have significant effect on your processes.  For this reason, it is important to be able to track manual changes to data that could result in an adverse effect on your business.  Microsoft Dynamics NAV addresses this issue through the use of the Change Log.  This feature allows the system administrator to identify data fields that are to be monitored.  Once turned on, NAV will track changes to the specified data including who made the changes, from what, to what and when the changes were made.Here is how you turn on Change Log in NAV 2013:From Departments → Administration → IT Administration → General, you can access the Change Log setup … [Read more...] about Microsoft Dynamics NAV Change Log

Many companies today have a hard time being pigeonholed as either a manufacturer or a distributer, when they are a combination with both sides being important in the life of the business.  Companies that many consider a manufacturer often have a smaller but important distribution portion of the business, and vice versa.  I have worked with a couple of distribution companies that not only started manufacturing products, but in a number of cases, the manufacturing became the primary focus of the company and what drove growth and profit. I have also worked with a number of manufacturing companies that distributed not only their product but sometimes the supplies those products require.How do you select an ERP software package when you are so … [Read more...] about Distributor or Manufacturer? Microsoft Dynamics NAV is the Choice for Both

Many Microsoft Dynamics NAV users do not realize that NAV will accept a negative line on either a Sales Order or a Purchase Order, as well as on a Sales Invoice or Purchase Invoice.Negative lines can be an easy way to process returns or exchanges from customers or to vendors.  The only limitation is the result of the posted transaction (Sales Invoice or Purchase Invoice) cannot have a negative balance.  As long as the transaction posted is not negative, everything will post.  Some users have used the negative line functionality to add charges to documents like Sales Returns; through the use of a negative line, they are able to add a restocking or other fee without affecting the value of the item being returned.  Negative lines are … [Read more...] about Negative Lines on Sales Orders or Purchase Orders in NAV

I am always amazed when I visit a Microsoft Dynamics NAV user who has been on the system for a while and I find that their purchasing department is not taking advantage of the Requisition Worksheet capabilities of NAV.  Often, I hear it is too complicated or there is a fear of loss of control in the requisition process.  Both of these could not be further from the truth.What the NAV Requisition Worksheet does is move the requisition process from being reactive to being more proactive.  Through the proper setup of controls on an item and the maintaining of those controls based on changes in that item’s environment, companies have a tool that will suggest what, when, and how much to buy.  All of this information is the result of what is … [Read more...] about Proactive Planning with the Microsoft Dynamics NAV Requisition Worksheet

It is not uncommon for manufacturing companies to have byproducts as the result of manufacturing.  In some cases, this is a different product that is produced and has a value; other times, it may be the same basic end item but of a different quality.  I have run into both of these situations.  One was a chemical company with a different byproduct, and the other was a cloth manufacturer where, upon completion, some of the finished material was of a sub-grade and could not be sold as the end item. Both of these situations can be managed by setting up a negative line in the Microsoft Dynamics NAV Bill of Materials.Be careful when setting up a negative line, as you don’t normally want this to be flushed, but rather the result of a negative … [Read more...] about Managing Byproducts with Microsoft Dynamics NAV

Check out our first Microsoft Dynamics NAV newsletter, featuring the upcoming NAV event on May 22, NAV tip on Zero Inventory Field, Dynamics NAV 2013 R2 free trial, and much more! Click here to get the newsletter, and sign-up here for future Microsoft Dynamics NAV news. … [Read more...] about NAV News You Can Use

Most Microsoft Dynamics NAV users are familiar with filters and their use in limiting the data displayed on the screen or in a report.  Microsoft Dynamics NAV allows users to filter on any field in the table in order to find the information the user wants. In addition to user filters, there are NAV filters that come on automatically when a particular screen is accessed. An example of this is ledger entries; when a user selects ledger entries from a GL Account, Customer, Vendor, or Inventory Item, NAV automatically filters the data to just the element that was selected.  If you were to call for general ledger entries from a chart of account, NAV will only show you the ledger entries related to that account.What some users are not aware … [Read more...] about Microsoft Dynamics NAV System Generated Filters – Sometimes Turning Them Off Turns You On To Data

Jet Reports allows companies to gain visibility through the creation of reports and dashboards using Microsoft Excel – analysis all seamlessly integrated with Microsoft Dynamics NAV.  Through Jet Reports, companies can author and publish their own reports, sharing them within and outside of the company.Jet Reports allows custom reports to be written using multiple tables and with advanced calculations built-in.  These reports can be distributed through automatic distribution functionality and saved to be used time and again.  Jet screen inquiries allow the user to drill down on the data back to the source within NAV to allow for quick and easy verification of data.  Jet’s drill down capability respects the security setups within NAV, so … [Read more...] about Jet Reports – A Simple Reporting Solution for Microsoft Dynamics NAV