Working with Similar Materials

Materials with similar compositions or characteristics can be organized into groups in the materials database. In a formula, you can replace an ingredient's material with a material from the same group, or with a unified material that represents the group's materials generically. You can replace an ingredient's material if you want to source the ingredient from a different supplier, use a substitute material that is cheaper, and so on.

For example, a group Glycerine might include the materials 70% Glycerine and 60% Glycerine, where the active substance is the same, but the amounts are different. The group is defined by a generic unified material called Glycerine. The materials 70% Glycerine and 60% Glycerine are members of this group, and can be either sourced materials or formulated materials.

This task shows you how to:

• View Similar Materials for an Ingredient
• Replace a Material with a Similar Material
• Refresh the List of Similar Materials