--- alias: tutorials-materials-and-containers-howto-index description: "Learn how to manage materials and containers within the system’s workflows" --- # Materials & Containers: How-To Material tracking is at the core of a Manufacturing Execution System (MES). A typical plant will have many different types of materials: WIP, raw materials, semi-finished and finished goods. Materials will change their characteristics during the course of the manufacturing process. Capturing the real-time state of every material and managing their life cycle in the plant is absolutely essential for shop-floor operations. In addition, for traceability purposes, the history of every material must be captured in the system. In the Critical Manufacturing MES system, a material is a generic hierarchical object with a rich life cycle supported by a very comprehensive set of transactions to track all materials in the shop floor while recording their complete history and genealogy. ## Available guides

| Module | Title | Guide | PDF | | ---- | ---- | -- | :-: | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Add a Material to a Container](howto_addmaterialstocontainer.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_addmaterialstocontainer/howto_addmaterialstocontainer.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Attach Material](howto_attachmaterial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_attachmaterial/howto_attachmaterial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Change the Product of a Material](howto_changeproductofmaterial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_changeproductofmaterial/howto_changeproductofmaterial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Combine Material](howto_combinematerial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_combinematerial/howto_combinematerial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Compose Material](howto_composematerial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_composematerial/howto_composematerial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Create a BOM](howto_createbom.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_createbom/howto_createbom.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Create a Container](howto_createcontainer.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_createcontainer/howto_createcontainer.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Create a Material](howto_creatematerial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_creatematerial/howto_creatematerial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Create a Product](howto_createproduct.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_createproduct/howto_createproduct.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Create a Product Group](howto_createproductgroup.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_createproductgroup/howto_createproductgroup.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Detach Material](howto_detachmaterial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_detachmaterial/howto_detachmaterial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Disassemble an Assembled Material](howto_disassemblematerial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_disassemblematerial/howto_disassemblematerial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Empty a Container](howto_emptycontainer.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_emptycontainer/howto_emptycontainer.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Expand/Collapse Material](howto_expandcollapse.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_expandcollapse/howto_expandcollapse.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Grade a Material](howto_gradematerial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_gradematerial/howto_gradematerial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Hold a Material](howto_holdmaterial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_holdmaterial/howto_holdmaterial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Make Container Available/Unavailable](howto_makecontaineravailableunavailable.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_makecontaineravailableunavailable/howto_makecontaineravailableunavailable.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Manage BOM Items](howto_managebomitems.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_managebomitems/howto_managebomitems.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Manage Container Positions](howto_managecontainerpositions.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_managecontainerpositions/howto_managecontainerpositions.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Manage Product Binning](howto_manageproductbinning.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_manageproductbinning/howto_manageproductbinning.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Manage Product Group Parameters](howto_manageproductgroupparameters.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_manageproductgroupparameters/howto_manageproductgroupparameters.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Manage Shipping Information](howto_manageshippinginformation.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_manageshippinginformation/howto_manageshippinginformation.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Manage Sub-Products](howto_managesubproducts.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_managesubproducts/howto_managesubproducts.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Open Material Deviation](howto_openmaterialdeviation.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_openmaterialdeviation/howto_openmaterialdeviation.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Perform Assemble](howto_performassemble.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_performassemble/howto_performassemble.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Receive Material](howto_receivematerial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_receivematerial/howto_receivematerial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Release a Material](howto_releasematerial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_releasematerial/howto_releasematerial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Remove Materials from Container](howto_removematerialsfromcontainer.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_removematerialsfromcontainer/howto_removematerialsfromcontainer.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Replace an Assembled Material](howto_replaceassembledmaterial.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_replaceassembledmaterial/howto_replaceassembledmaterial.pdf) | | Materials & Containers: How-To | [How to: Transfer Material Between Containers](howto_transfermaterialbetweencontainers.md) | How To | [:fontawesome-solid-file-pdf:](howto_transfermaterialbetweencontainers/howto_transfermaterialbetweencontainers.pdf) | Table: Materials & Containers: How-To guides