In Autodesk Fusion Operations, modifying the operation flow mid of the production can have direct consequences on inventory generation. This article explains how inventory behavior is affected when changes are made to the operation flow.

The Inventory is generated on the operation that is defined as the last operation in the flow at the moment it is completed. In other words, as long as an operation is the final one in the flow at that time, completing it will generate inventory.

It is important to note that inventory movements already generated are not removed or reversed if the operation flow is later modified and that operation is no longer the last one.

1. Consider an Orange Cake with 2 operations: MIXING and BAKING.

2. Create a Production Order "PO1" to produce 10 Orange cakes. Click here to learn how to create a production order.

3. Worker completes the MIXING operation for all 10 units, and the BAKING operation for 5 units.

Since BAKING is the last operation in the flow at this time, 5 units of inventory are generated.

4. Create a new operation, PACKING, and add it as the last operation of the Flow.

5. Worker completes the remaining 5 units of the BAKING operation and 10 units of the Packing operation.

Since Baking is no longer the last operation, inventory will be generated at the packing operation.

⚠️ As a result, the total inventory becomes 15 units (5 generated before the flow change + 10 generated after), even though the production order was created for only 10 units.

1. Consider a CHOCOLATE CAKE with the 4 operations: MIXING, BAKING, PACKING, and SHIPPING

2. Create a production order, PO2, to produce 10 units of CHOCOLATE CAKE.

3. Worker completes the operations MIXING, BAKING, and PACKING for all 10 units.

No inventory is generated, since SHIPPING is the last operation in the flow.

4. At this moment, the operation SHIPPING is deleted or disabled from the product.

⚠️ PACKING becomes the last operation in the operation flow. Although PACKING has already been completed, no inventory is generated retroactively.

The following behavior is expected only when the setting "DO NOT SHOW OPERATIONS THAT TAKE PLACE BEFORE OPERATIONS ALREADY COMPLETED, IN THE TABLET" is active.

1. Consider Orange Cake with 4 Operations: PREPARING, MIXING, BAKING, and PACKING.

2. Create a Production Order, PO3, to produce 10 units.

3. The worker completes the operations, PREPARING, MIXING, and BAKING.

4. The operation flow is modified by adding the operation, PREPARE BAKING PAN, before the BAKING operation.

Note: At this point, the operation BAKING is the last completed operation.

5. When the worker inserts the production order again on the tablet, the PREPARE BAKING PAN operation is not displayed.

This happens because:

As a result, all operations that appear before the last completed operation are hidden, including PREPARE BAKING PAN.

⚠️ Since the worker cannot see or perform the PREPARE BAKING PAN operation, the production order becomes blocked and cannot be completed through the tablet.

6. In the same scenario, if both the settings shown in the image below are active, then the Production Order itself will be hidden on the mobile app.

This happens because:

⚠️ Since the worker cannot see or perform any operation from that PO, the production order will be hidden and cannot be completed through the tablet.

This is relevant if the operations are not defined for any specific consumption in the BoM. By default, they'll be consumed on the first operation. Click here to learn how to add a Bill of Materials to the product.

1. Consider an Orange Cake with 4 Operations. MIXING, BAKING, COOLING, and PACKING.

2. All the consumptions except the "package" will be consumed on the first operation, because they don't have an operation defined.

3. Worker performs the MIXING operation to produce one cake. Since the consumptions are not specified to any operation, they will be consumed in the first operation itself.

4. The operation flow is modified by adding one more operation, PREPARING, before MIXING, so PREPARING becomes the first operation in the flow.

5. Worker performs the PREPARING operation to produce 1 cake.

The materials are consumed again for the same cake, since PREPARING is now the first operation in the operation flow.

⚠️ This leads to a duplication of consumption.

1. Does Fusion Operations recalculate inventory when the last operation is changed?

No. Inventory movements that have already been generated are not recalculated or removed, even if the operation flow is modified afterward.

2. Are completed production orders affected by changes to the operation flow?

No. Production orders that are completed and closed are not affected by changes made to the operation flow.

3. Can adding a new operation result in additional inventory being generated?

Yes. If a new operation is added and becomes the last operation in the flow, completing it can generate additional inventory, for production orders that are still open.

4. How to prevent unexpected inventory generation behavior when changing the flow?

Use a dedicated, fixed final operation (such as INVENTORY GENERATION) and ensure it is not modified or repositioned within the operation flow. Or, avoid change it mid production.

If, after reading this article, you still have some doubts, feel free to reach out to us through our Live-chat feature or directly to your CSM.