Usage Use the Solvers: Material Planning page to define conditions for
processing a master or material plan. The Material Planning Solver creates a simple material plan that resolves most material shortages.
Object Name RUN_PLS1011
Navigation Plan Production, Process Production Plan, Process, Production
DataLink, Solvers, Material Planning Access
Requirements
Select the Solvers tab, then click the Material Planning link on the Solvers page.
Process Name
PLPPCL, PLPPCTL, PL_LOAD, PLS1000, PLS9000
Process Type SQR, PSJOB, Application Engine
Production DataLink - Solvers: Material Planning page
The following elements are common to multiple pages and are defined in the preface of this PeopleBook in PeopleBooks Standard Field Definitions: Run Control ID, Report Manager, and Process Monitor.
Solver.
Planning Mode
This group box provides options for defining the data that Production DataLink uses when the material plan is created. The default value is Regenerative. The following values are available:
Regenerative When you run the Material Planning Solver in this mode,
all tasks or orders with a status of planned are deleted from existing data and a material plan is generated for all inventory items. Using this mode, all previous supply and demand relationships (recorded in the pegging) are erased and all independent demand is rescheduled back to its due date.
Net Change When you use this mode to run the Material Planning
Solver, the system produces a material plan only for those items that have shortages. This includes subassemblies and raw materials. When there is a material shortage recorded by the pegged chain, the entire part that is in demand is planned again.
When a supply is late for a demand but is pegged, it isn’t considered a material shortage. When a part is planned for again in the Net Change mode, all planned supplies are deleted and any end-demands for that part are returned to their due date. In addition, all pegging history for that part is deleted. All other parts remain unchanged.
The new net change ignores and may cause material shortages due to late demands as orders are rescheduled to satisfy supply. You can eliminate these shortages by running the Feasible Planning Solver or using the Late Supplies Inquiry in the Planning server to fix them. After Material Planning Run
Before you run the Production DataLink, you need to define whether you want to consolidate planned purchase orders (POs) or run the Feasible Planning Solver after the material planning run. Select the Consolidate Planned Purchase Orders check box to invoke the purchase order consolidation algorithm automatically after the solver run. This consolidation is the same as Fixed Period, except that it acts on purchases only. The default value for the box is clear (not selected).
Select the Run Feasible Planning check box if you want to the Feasible Planning Solver to run automatically immediately after the Material Planning Solver runs.
Material Planning - General Attributes
The Material Planning Solver uses the following information to process a material-feasible plan. Select the Calculate Low Level Code check box to verify the accuracy of low-level codes. The code is a number that identifies the lowest level in a BOM at which a component appears. These codes are maintained on items and calculated by the Planning engine. When this check box is selected, the low-level code for each item is calculated prior to the Material Planning run. Since the Material Planning Solver plans items in low-level code order, it is important to ensure that the low-level code associated with each item is accurate before you run the Material Planning Solver, especially if there have been BOM changes.
Select the Ignore Safety Stock check box to indicate whether you want the Material Planning Solver to plan for meeting safety-stock levels. When this option is selected, the solver ignores safety-stock constraints. As a result, the solver won’t plan supply for safety-stock demand. You can use this option for “what-if” scenarios.
When you select Include Capacity for the planning run, the Material Planning Solver minimizes capacity violations between the early fence and capacity fence when it generates the plan. This capacity repair tries to reschedule tasks earlier to find capacity. The solver doesn’t violate the pegged chain record of supply and demand to reschedule the tasks, nor does it place tasks before the early fence to reschedule the tasks. As the default, the box is clear.
The Include Capacity option isn’t the same as the Make Plan Capacity Feasible option in the Feasible Planning Solver. The Material Planning Solver repairs capacity levels by rescheduling tasks earlier on the primary resource, regardless of creating late supplies. In doing so, it doesn’t guarantee material feasibility. By contrast, the Feasible Planning Solver moves the tasks earlier, searches for alternate resources, and finally moves the tasks later without ever creating late supplies.
We recommend that you use this repair only when you have a plan that isn’t heavily capacity constrained. In all other cases, you should use the Feasible Planning Solver to resolve capacity overages.
Select the Use Fixed Period check box to define whether the fixed period of supply algorithm is applied during the Material Planning run. When a planned production or purchase order needs to be created after all existing orders have been used, the Material Planning Solver uses this option to determine the maximum amount needed between the first demand and a fixed-period amount of time. The time is defined as a number of days on the item record. The solver creates a single supply for this amount. The default for this check box is clear.
Select the Material Plan Items check box to include material-planning items in the solver processing. You can run a plan that includes both material- and master-planning items. Select the Master Plan Items check box to include any items in solver processing that have been selected as master-planning items. These values are assigned using the Planned By option on the Business Unit Item Definition page.
Usage Use the Solvers: Feasibility Solver page to define the planning elements that you want to include in material and capacity feasibility planning. You can use the Feasible Planning Solver to create a master or material plan.
Object Name RUN_PLS1012
Navigation Plan Production, Process Production Plan, Process, Production
DataLink, General, General, Access
Requirements
Select the Solvers tab, then click the Feasibility Solver link on the Solvers page.
Process Name
PLPPCL, PLPPCTL, PL_LOAD, PLS1000, PLS9000
Process Type SQR, PSJOB, Application Engine
Production DataLink - Solvers: Feasibility Solver page
The following elements are common to multiple pages and are defined in the preface of this PeopleBook in PeopleBooks Standard Field Definitions: Run Control ID, Report Manager, and Process Monitor.
The Feasible Planning Solver ensures material feasibility for all resolvable material violations between the early fence and end of time and is designed to start from any initial plan and turn it into an executable plan. The solver generates an executable plan that contains no tasks in the past, no material shortages, and, optionally, no capacity violations. The solver guarantees material feasibility for all resolvable material violations between the early fence and end time, regardless of the settings.
For more information about how the Feasible Planning Solver processes a plan, see Overview of the Feasible Planning Solver.
Feasibility Solver
Select the Ignore Safety Stock check box to indicate you do not want the system to respect safety-stock constraints during the processing of the Feasibility Planning Solver. As a result, the solver doesn’t plan supply for safety-stock demand. If supply was created for safety stock by an earlier solver, the Feasible Planning Solver recognizes it as excess. As the default, the box is clear, so that safety-stock levels are accounted for in the planning process.
Select the Allow Material Reallocation check box to allow the Feasible Planning Solver to correct material inversions by reallocating supply. These inversions occur when a supply task is late for the demand that it supplies. When you allow material allocation, the solver tries to reallocate supply from a lower-priority pegged chain before trying to reschedule the demand later or the supply earlier.
Select the Allow Rescheduling check box to control the rescheduling of tasks to resolve late supplies by the Feasible Planning Solver. The pegged chains are rescheduled only after the Feasible Planning Solver searches for any allowed alternate sources of supply.
If the Allow Rescheduling check box isn’t selected, only the material phase of the Feasible Planning Solver runs and the solver cannot ensure a material-feasible plan.
You must select Allow Rescheduling in order to use the Make Plan Capacity Feasible and phase options in plan processing.
The Feasible Planning Solver uses the move preference that you define in the Planning server’s Late Supplies Inquiry to decide if the demand should be made late or the supply should be rescheduled before the early fence to resolve any remaining late demands. In case of frozen demand, the supply is scheduled earlier if the demand cannot be made on time. In all other cases, the default behavior schedules the demand later.
Select the Make Plan Capacity Feasible check box to indicate that you want the Feasible Planning Solver to resolve capacity violations between the early fence and capacity fence. When the box is clear, the Feasible Planning Solver considers only material feasibility, not capacity feasibility, when you run the plan.
The Make Plan Capacity Feasible option in the Feasible Planning Solver isn’t the same as the Include Capacity option in the Material Planning Solver. The Material Planning Solver repairs capacity level by rescheduling tasks earlier on the primary resource regardless of creating late supplies. In doing so, it doesn’t guarantee material feasibility. By contrast, the Feasible Planning Solver moves the tasks earlier, then searches for alternate resources, and finally moves the task later without ever creating late supplies.
The Feasible Planning Solver resolves aggregate resource violations, not detailed resource violations.
For more information about how the Feasible Planning Solver processes a plan to make it capacity-feasible, see Making the Plan Capacity Feasible.
tries to explode the supply for a violated demand again, using either alternate purchase or transfer options. The Feasible Planning Solver tries to use alternate purchases or transfers to resolve a material infeasibility before it tries to reschedule the demand or supply. Enabling alternate routings also controls if alternate routings are used when the Make Plan Capacity Feasible and Run Lateness Phase check boxes are selected.
Select the Allow Item Substitution check box to indicate that the Feasible Planning Solver can use substitute items to correct material inversions. When you select this option, the solver tries to reallocate the supply of a valid substitute item from a lower-priority pegged chain before it tries to reschedule the demand or supply. Item substitution is used if it helps make a late supply on time, and if it helps during all reschedules to reduce excess inventory. If the box is clear, substitutions are not made during solver processing. For example, the Run Lateness Phase won’t use item substitution.
If you select the Run Lateness Phase check box, the Lateness Phase of the Feasible Planning Solver executes after a material- or capacity-feasible plan is in place. This phase maintains the feasibility of the schedule while searching for opportunities to reduce the lateness of demands that have been delayed past their due date. As the default, the box is clear. This phase adds quality to your plan.
If you select the Run Lateness Phase check box, you must also select the Allow Rescheduling check box.
Use the Time Limit field to define the maximum number of minutes the Lateness Phase is run. When the Planning engine reaches the limit you set, it stops processing and provides you with a plan up to the point that it stopped. The default value for this field is 60 minutes. You cannot enter a negative number.
Run Lateness Phase potentially creates and deletes multiple orders. You should not use it if you want to change the existing schedule minimally.
Select the Ignore problems later than check box to indicate that you want to limit the scope of the Lateness Phase by entering a smaller time period. If this option isn’t selected, the system considers all late demands between the early fence and end of time in this phase. As the default, the box is clear.
You use the days after Current Time field to indicate how long after the current time the solver should begin to ignore the Lateness Phase. The system considers this field if you have selected the Ignore problems later than check box. The value of this field represents a number of days after current time. This offset from current time defines a boundary after which late demands are ignored by the Lateness Phase. An attempt isn’t made to reduce the lateness of demands that start outside this boundary. The default value for the field is 30 days.
The Run Stock Adjustment Phase check box maintains the feasibility of the schedule while searching for opportunities to reduce excess inventory that occurs between the early fence and end of time. It also searches for opportunities to satisfy unfulfilled safety-stock requirements.
The Stock Adjustment Phase check box causes numerous reschedules and should not be selected if you want to change the existing schedule minimally.
If the Run Stock Adjustment Phase check box is selected, the Planning engine invokes this feature when you run the Feasible Planning Solver after a material- or capacity-feasible plan is in place. As the default, the box is clear.
If you select the Run Lateness Phase check box, the Feasible Planning Solver executes the Run Stock Adjustment Phase after the Lateness Phase.
Use the Time Limit field to enter the maximum number of minutes you want the Run Stock Adjustment Phase to run. When the solver reaches the limit you set, it stops processing and provides you a plan up to the point that it stopped. The default value for this field is 60 minutes. You cannot enter negative numbers.
Select the Ignore problems later than check box to indicate that you want to limit the scope of the Stock Reduction Phase by entering a smaller time period. If this check box isn’t selected, excess inventory and unfulfilled safety stock that exists between the early fence and end of time are considered in this phase. As the default, the check box is clear.
When you type a value in the days after Current Time field, the solver doesn’t attempt to reduce excess inventory or fulfill safety-stock requirements outside the time periods. The default value for this field is 30 days.
This field is considered if the Ignore problems later than check box is selected. The value of this field represents a number of days after the current time. This offset from current time defines a boundary after which excess inventory and unfulfilled safety-stock requirements are ignored by the Stock Reduction Phase.
For more information about the Lateness and Stock Adjustment Phases, see Improving Plan Quality.