Infor SyteLine3 min readNetray Engineering TeamUpdated March 4, 2025

How to Configure Standard Costing in SyteLine

Standard costing in SyteLine provides a predictable cost baseline for manufactured and purchased items, enabling variance analysis against actual spending. Proper configuration requires defining cost types, setting material and labor rates, and establishing overhead absorption methods. This guide walks through the complete setup using SyteLine's costing forms and parameters to ensure accurate product cost calculations across your organization.

Setting Up Cost Types and Cost Components

Navigate to Finance > Costing > Cost Types to define the cost categories SyteLine uses when building standard costs. Each cost type represents a component such as material, labor, fixed overhead, or variable overhead. The SL_CostType IDO manages these records in the cost_type table. You must assign cost types to each cost element that contributes to your product costs, and link them to the appropriate general ledger accounts for variance posting.

Define material, labor, fixed overhead, and variable overhead cost types in the Cost Types form
Map each cost type to GL accounts for purchase price variance, work order variance, and inventory revaluation
Set the cost method to 'Standard' on the Costing Parameters form under Finance > Costing > Costing Parameters
Configure the cost_type table entries to flag which cost elements roll into total standard cost

Configuring Material and Labor Standard Rates

Standard material costs are maintained on the Item Costs form at Products > Items > Item Costs, where you enter the expected purchase price or manufactured cost per unit. For labor, navigate to Production > Resources > Work Centers to set standard labor rates per work center. The SL_ItemCost IDO stores item-level cost records while work center rates feed into routing-based cost calculations during the cost rollup process.

Enter standard material costs per unit on the Item Costs form for each purchased item
Set standard labor rates per hour on the Work Center form including burden and overhead rates
Define outside processing costs for subcontracted operations on the routing operation detail
Use the Cost Adjustment Utility to mass-update standard costs when rates change periodically

Running Initial Standard Cost Freeze

After configuring all cost components, perform an initial cost freeze by navigating to Finance > Costing > Cost Rollup and running the rollup in update mode. This calculates rolled-up costs for all BOM levels and writes the results to the item_cost table. Before freezing, run in report-only mode to review calculated costs against expected values. The frozen standard costs become the baseline for all inventory transactions and variance reporting.

Run cost rollup in report mode first via Finance > Costing > Cost Rollup to validate calculations
Review the Cost Rollup Report for anomalies such as missing BOM components or zero-rate work centers
Execute the rollup in update mode to freeze standard costs across all inventory items
Schedule periodic standard cost updates aligned with your fiscal year or quarterly review cycle

Frequently Asked Questions

How often should standard costs be updated in SyteLine?

Most organizations update standard costs annually at the start of each fiscal year, though quarterly updates are recommended for volatile markets. SyteLine supports mid-period cost freezes, but revaluation transactions will post to the general ledger. Plan for 2-4 weeks of review time before each freeze cycle to validate rates across 100% of active items.

What variances does SyteLine track with standard costing?

SyteLine tracks purchase price variance (PPV) at receipt, work order material usage variance, labor rate and efficiency variances, and overhead absorption variances. These post automatically to designated GL accounts configured in the cost type setup. Most implementations monitor 5-8 variance accounts per cost type for granular analysis.

Can standard and actual costing be used simultaneously in SyteLine?

SyteLine supports standard costing at the site level, meaning all items within a site must use the same cost method. However, multi-site deployments can configure different sites with different costing methods. Intercompany transfers between sites with different cost methods require transfer pricing rules configured in the Intercompany Parameters form.

Key Takeaways

1Setting Up Cost Types and Cost Components: Navigate to Finance > Costing > Cost Types to define the cost categories SyteLine uses when building standard costs. Each cost type represents a component such as material, labor, fixed overhead, or variable overhead.
2Configuring Material and Labor Standard Rates: Standard material costs are maintained on the Item Costs form at Products > Items > Item Costs, where you enter the expected purchase price or manufactured cost per unit. For labor, navigate to Production > Resources > Work Centers to set standard labor rates per work center.
3Running Initial Standard Cost Freeze: After configuring all cost components, perform an initial cost freeze by navigating to Finance > Costing > Cost Rollup and running the rollup in update mode. This calculates rolled-up costs for all BOM levels and writes the results to the item_cost table.

Need help implementing standard costing in SyteLine? Netray's consultants specialize in SyteLine costing configuration and can ensure your standard costs accurately reflect your manufacturing operations.

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