There are many approaches to supply chain production scheduling, each relying on different business process and/or technology solutions. Manufacturers have a key decision to make at each of their production facilities: How much information technology is needed to support the scheduling process, and how could the manufacturing process be simplified to reduce the information technology requirements?
Profit Point uses a structured decision process to help determine the appropriate level of technology to support scheduling in each manufacturing environment. This assessment process considers the following factors:
1. Material flow through the stages of the manufacturing process (product routing), including alternate routings, manufacturing options, and bill of materials
2. Storage asset utilization
3. Impact of make- to-order and make-to-stock policies on production
4. Manufacturing bottlenecks and their locations (single or multiple)
5. Cost of de-bottlenecking the operation
6. Information requirements to support the scheduling process
7. Information sources and bottlenecks, including refreshing of data elements
8. Scheduler (user) experience and analytic capabilities
9. Business rules for customer responsiveness and manufacturing flexibility
10. Cost of information technology solutions and their support
11. Cost of manufacturing simplification
A one day hands-on Scheduling Process Assessment incorporates the needs of the following stakeholders:
1. Plant Scheduling Management
2. Plant manufacturing operations
3. Business owner (e.g. product manager)
4. Information Technology support staff
The Assessment process culminates with a specific recommendation for the most cost effective approach to support and sustain the scheduling requirements.