Independent IFS Cloud practice · Purchasing design
Split a requirement between suppliers on purpose, and check the quantities before the orders go out
IFS Cloud multi-supplier ordering divides the quantity of one purchase requisition between suppliers by percentage. One supplier cannot or should not carry the whole requirement, so the business agrees shares. If the shares, the periods and the rounding are not understood, the quantities on the requisition lines do not match the agreement, and for a part that an internal site also supplies, the same quantity can be ordered twice. This article follows the IFS documentation on multi-supplier ordering in the 25R2 tree.
Key takeaways
- The page allows multi-supplier ordering only for requisitions from MRP, Master Scheduling, Order Point, Next Level Demand and manual entry, and only for inventory registered and non-inventory registered purchase parts.
- Within a period there can be multiple suppliers, the split percentages must total 100 percent, and periods cannot overlap.
- Each supplier’s quantity follows the page’s formula with the standard multiple; the supplier with the highest percentage is executed first and the last supplier receives the remainder.
- For a manual requisition line the decision to split is taken when the line is created and not in a second place.
- Where an internal supplier covers part of the requirement, the page warns against double sourcing.
- The test table has four cases: the page’s worked example, a manual line, a requisition from another order and an internal supplier.
1.What is multi-supplier ordering in IFS Cloud, and which requisitions can use it?
Multi-supplier ordering creates a new purchase requisition line for each supplier in the supplier split basic data. The documentation limits it to requisitions from these sources:
- MRP (Material Requirements Planning)
- MS (Master Scheduling)
- Order Point
- NLD (Next Level Demand)
- manually entered purchase requisitions
The page adds two limits. It is only possible to use the function with inventory registered and non-inventory registered purchase parts. And supplier splits are not allowed if you have an acquisition from another order. The planning side of these sources is covered in dynamic structures in MRP and, for the order point, in reorder point planning in IFS Cloud.
2.How do split percentages and periods work?
The split definition holds periods, and each period holds the suppliers with their percentages. The page states that periods cannot overlap, that for each period there can be multiple suppliers, and that the total of the split percentage must be 100 percent.
The system retrieves the supplier split data for the particular part, site and period, and the desired receipt date should be between the phase-in and phase-out date. Check that the periods cover the receipt dates the business plans.
3.How is the split quantity calculated and rounded?
The page gives the formula Split Qty = Std Multiple Qty * Round (Requisition Qty * Split Percentage / Std Multiple Qty). The standard multiple quantity is based on the purchase unit of measure, and its default value is 1. All calculations are performed in the inventory unit of measure, and after the order quantity is calculated it is converted to the purchase unit of measure for each supplier.
The page works one example. A requisition of 1200 is split 70 and 30 percent with a standard multiple of 200. The first supplier receives 200 * Round (1200 * 0.7 / 200) = 800, and the second receives the rest, 1200 - 800 = 400. The supplier with the highest percentage has first priority for the system’s execution, and in the page’s second example the last supplier receives the remainder, 6000 - 3200 - 2000 = 800.
The design consequence is that the quantity on a line is the formula’s result and not the percentage multiplied by the requirement. A percentage on paper is the input to the formula. Compare the two on a test requisition before the shares go into a contract.
4.What changes when a requisition line is entered manually?
For a manual line, the buyer must decide whether supplier split is used when creating the requisition line, and the page states that it is not possible to do this in a second place. A question dialog opens and asks whether the requested quantity should be split, and it appears only if multiple suppliers are entered for the purchase part.
A buyer who answers the dialog without knowing what it does has taken the split decision for that line. Train buyers on the dialog and agree who may answer it. The purchasing set-up around these lines is covered in mastering centralized purchasing in IFS Cloud and new purchasing functionality in IFS Cloud 25R2.
5.How do you avoid double sourcing with an internal supplier?
The page warns that it is important not to double source to a multi-site planned internal supplier, due to a supplier split definition, and it repeats the warning for supplier schedules created by MRP.
The page’s example makes the mechanism visible. MRP needs 100 units. It creates a distribution order for 50 units for the internal supplier and a requisition for the remaining 50 units. That requisition is split between the external suppliers, and the page calculates 25/50 * 50 units = 25 units for one of them. The warning exists so that a supplier split definition does not order the internal share a second time. Distribution orders themselves are covered in distribution orders in IFS Cloud.
6.Which decisions belong to purchasing?
Purchasing owns four decisions: the shares, the periods, the standard multiples and the person who maintains them. The shares are a commercial agreement, so they come from the contract or the sourcing strategy, and the system only executes them. Which source delivers an order line in the first place is a separate question, treated in IFS Cloud sourcing rules.
Name one maintainer for the split definition. A share changed in the contract and not in the definition produces requisitions that follow the old agreement.
7.How do you test a split before go-live?
Test a split with one requisition per source type and compare the lines the system creates with the lines the business expects. The table gives four cases that follow from the documentation.
| Case | Input | Expected result | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|
| The page’s worked example | Requisition of 1200, split 70 and 30, standard multiple 200 | Two lines, 800 and 400 | Buyer |
| Manual line | New line for a part with multiple suppliers entered | A question dialog asks whether to split; the answer is fixed at creation | Buyer |
| Requisition from another order | Acquisition from another order | No supplier split | Purchasing lead |
| Internal supplier | MRP requirement of 100, internal supplier at 50 percent by distribution order | A requisition for the remaining 50, split between the external suppliers | Planner |
8.What does a supplier split checklist contain?
A supplier split is ready for go-live when each of the checks below has a record behind it.
- The requisition sources in use are on the page’s list of allowed sources.
- Each period’s percentages total 100 and the periods do not overlap.
- The periods cover the receipt dates the business plans.
- The standard multiples are set per supplier, and the effect of rounding has been compared with the agreed shares.
- Buyers know what the split question does on a manual line.
- Parts that an internal site also supplies have been checked for double sourcing.
- The four test cases are recorded with evidence.
- One person maintains the split definition.
9.Frequently asked questions
What is multi-supplier ordering in IFS Cloud?
Multi-supplier ordering in IFS Cloud divides the quantity of a purchase requisition between suppliers by percentage. A new purchase requisition line is created for each supplier in the supplier split basic data. The percentages are held per period, and the total of the split percentage in a period must be 100 percent.
Which requisitions can be split between suppliers?
The IFS Cloud documentation allows multi-supplier ordering for requisitions from MRP, Master Scheduling, Order Point, Next Level Demand and for manually entered purchase requisitions. It works only with inventory registered and non-inventory registered purchase parts, and supplier splits are not allowed for an acquisition from another order.
How does IFS Cloud round the quantity per supplier?
IFS Cloud calculates each supplier’s quantity as Std Multiple Qty * Round (Requisition Qty * Split Percentage / Std Multiple Qty). For a requisition of 1200 split 70 and 30 with a standard multiple of 200, the first supplier receives 800 and the second 400. The standard multiple quantity defaults to 1 and is based on the purchase unit of measure.
Can I split a manually entered requisition line after it is created?
No. The IFS Cloud documentation states that the decision whether to use supplier split must be made when the requisition line is created, and that it is not possible to do this in a second place. A question dialog asks whether the requested quantity should be split, and it appears only if multiple suppliers are entered for the purchase part.
How do I avoid ordering the same quantity from an internal site and an external supplier?
Check that the external split applies only to the requirement that is left after the internal share. The IFS Cloud documentation warns against double sourcing to a multi-site planned internal supplier due to a supplier split definition. In its example, MRP creates a distribution order for 50 of 100 units and a requisition for the other 50, and only those 50 are split between the external suppliers.
10.About the author
Dariusz Myśliwiec: 18 years hands-on with IFS, including IFS Cloud. Based in Kraków, delivering remotely across Europe and globally through an independent practice. You talk to the consultant who does the work, not a sales layer.
IFS is a registered trademark of IFS AB; this practice is not affiliated with IFS AB.
Do your agreed supplier shares match what the system orders?
A review of the supplier split set-up against the agreed shares, with test requisitions, shows where the quantities differ and why. Purchasing and a planner take part.