IntermediateTopic 38 of 102Manufacturing, Robotics & Systems
Production planning and scheduling
Plan capacity, materials and timing.
In depth
Planning converts demand into schedules: aggregate planning, master production schedule, MRP (bill of materials, lead times, inventory), capacity planning, sequencing (SPT, EDD, critical ratio), Gantt charts, finite scheduling. ERP systems (SAP) integrate data. Bottlenecks (theory of constraints) govern throughput.
Key points
- Lead time
- Utilisation
- Rolling horizon
ExampleMRP calculates when to order components so assembly never waits.
What is Production planning and scheduling?
Plan capacity, materials and timing.
Why is it important to understand production planning and scheduling?
Production planning matches capacity and materials to demand, so the factory delivers on time without excess stock.
What is a bill of materials?
A list of all components needed to make a product, with quantities, which drives material requirements planning.
What is capacity planning?
Estimating the output a set of machines and labour can deliver, so the plan does not promise more than the plant can make.
How is Production planning and scheduling used in practice?
Typical applications include scheduling machines for next week's customer orders, planning raw material deliveries for a new product launch and balancing the workload between two assembly lines.
What should I learn before Production planning and scheduling?
Study "Plant layout and material handling" first (topic 37 of 102 in Manufacturing, Robotics & Systems). It covers the groundwork this topic builds on.
What are the key points of Production planning and scheduling?
Lead time. Utilisation. Rolling horizon.
Can you give an example of Production planning and scheduling?
MRP calculates when to order components so assembly never waits.
What comes after Production planning and scheduling?
The next topic is "Inventory management", which builds directly on this one.
How difficult is Production planning and scheduling?
It is classed as Intermediate in Manufacturing, Robotics & Systems (topic 38 of 102). It is an intermediate topic. Work through the beginner topics in Manufacturing, Robotics & Systems first.