Bramvia — Business Central Experts
What a cosmetics manufacturer or lab needs from its ERP: versioned formulas, raw materials on hold, batch manufacturing, release with a certificate of analysis, filling with expiry, regulatory files for the US, UK and EU, and real cost per batch. With the whole cycle in 3D.
Short answer: a cosmetics manufacturer or lab works in batches and lives by its formula. The ERP has to hold raw materials until they are tested and manufacture with the right formula version. It also has to record which lot of each ingredient went into each batch, release only what passes QC with its certificate of analysis, and keep each product's regulatory file current. Walk through the whole cycle below and see what happens with a batch that fails on viscosity.
The whole cycle of a batch
- Formula and specification: INCI ingredients, percentages, allergens and version.
- Raw materials: receipt with the supplier lot and certificate, held until tested.
- Batch manufacturing: each ingredient weighed and the batch record kept.
- Quality control: pH, viscosity, microbiology and release.
- Filling and labeling: lot and best-before date or period after opening.
- Regulatory file: linked to each formula version (see below).
- Sales and distribution, with the lot on every shipment so you can recall.
- Cost per batch and margin against the formula's standard cost.
Regulation by market
- United States: MoCRA (the Modernization of Cosmetics Regulation Act of 2022) brought facility registration, product listing with the FDA, adverse event reporting and safety substantiation records.
- United Kingdom: a UK Responsible Person, notification through the Submit Cosmetic Product Notification (SCPN) service and a product information file.
- European Union: Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009, with the product information file and CPNP notification.
Good manufacturing practice for cosmetics is usually built on ISO 22716. The ERP does not replace your regulatory team, but it keeps every document linked to the formula version and the batches made with it.
What Business Central has and what is added
Versioned bills of materials, manufacturing, lots with expiry, lot blocking and item tracing are standard. Guided weighing, signed batch records and regulatory document management come from configuration or an add-on. Release with inspections is covered in quality management in Business Central.
How we implement it
We start with one product family. We load its formulas with versions, the raw materials with their lots and the tests you run today. Then we run a real batch end to end, from receipt to release, plus a mock recall. You pay for each phase only after it is delivered and you accept that it works.
Signs you need it now: batch records are on paper; you cannot tell within minutes which customers received a batch; or batch cost is estimated instead of measured.
FAQ
Does Business Central hold raw materials until QC approves them? Yes. The lot comes in blocked and cannot be consumed until quality releases it.
Can a formula be versioned? Yes. Bills of materials have dated versions, and each production order uses the current one.
Does it work for supplement manufacturers? Yes, with the same logic of formulas, lots, testing and release.
Related: quality management in Business Central and food and beverage manufacturing traceability.
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