Building Dashboards in SyteLine
SyteLine's homepage dashboard system provides role-based visibility into manufacturing operations through configurable widgets that display real-time KPIs, charts, and action lists. Effective dashboards reduce the time from data to decision by surfacing critical metrics—late orders, production bottlenecks, inventory exceptions—without requiring users to navigate multiple forms. Dashboard configuration combines SyteLine's built-in widget framework with IDO data queries and optional BI tool integration.
Homepage Configuration and Widget Layout
SyteLine homepages are configured per role (production manager, buyer, shipping supervisor) through the Homepage administration form. Each homepage is a grid of widgets that pull data from IDO queries, SSRS reports, or external URLs. The widget catalog includes chart widgets (bar, line, pie), data grid widgets, metric tiles, and embedded report widgets. Layout follows a responsive column-based grid that adapts to screen size.
- Create role-based homepages in SyteLine administration: ProductionManager, Buyer, ShippingSuper, ExecutiveSummary
- Add chart widgets using IDO-based queries: late jobs from SLJobs where end_date < GETDATE() and stat = 'R'
- Configure metric tile widgets showing counts: open COs from SLCos where stat = 'O', past due POs from SLPoitems
- Place data grid widgets with sortable columns for action lists: items below reorder point from SLWhseitems
- Arrange widgets in priority order: critical alerts top-left, trend charts top-right, detail grids below
Real-Time Data Queries and Refresh Configuration
Dashboard widgets execute IDO queries on a configurable refresh interval, typically 60-300 seconds depending on data volatility. Production-critical widgets like late job counts should refresh frequently, while trend charts over historical data can use longer intervals. Each widget's query should be optimized with proper filtering and limited property lists to minimize database load from concurrent dashboard users.
- Set refresh intervals per widget: 60s for critical alerts, 120s for operational metrics, 300s for trend charts
- Optimize widget queries by filtering on indexed columns (stat, due_date, whse) and limiting to top N results
- Use SyteLine's aggregate IDO methods for count, sum, and average calculations rather than client-side aggregation
- Implement drill-down navigation from widget charts to SyteLine forms: click late job count to open Jobs form filtered
- Cache widget query results server-side to reduce database load when multiple users view the same dashboard
Executive Dashboards and Cross-Functional Views
Executive dashboards aggregate data across SyteLine modules into a unified operational view. Key metrics include order-to-cash cycle time (from SLCos.order_date to SLInvHdr.inv_date), production efficiency (actual vs. planned hours from SLJobRoutes), inventory turns (COGS / average inventory from SLWhseitems), and on-time delivery percentage. These cross-functional KPIs often require custom SQL views that join data from multiple SL tables.
- Create a custom SQL view joining SLCos, SLShipments, and SLInvHdr for order-to-cash cycle time calculation
- Build production efficiency widget from SLJobRoutes: SUM(run_hrs_t) / SUM(run_hrs_t_conv) * 100 per work center
- Calculate inventory turns using rolling 12-month COGS from SLGlTrans divided by average SLWhseitems.qty_on_hand
- Design on-time delivery KPI: COUNT where ship_date <= due_date / total shipped from SLShipments joined to SLCoitems
- Embed Power BI or Birst dashboards via URL widget for advanced visualization beyond SyteLine's native charting
Transform SyteLine data into actionable dashboards—Netray's team designs role-based dashboards that drive manufacturing performance. Contact us.
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