Master Scheduling

Master Scheduling is a tool for turning forecasts into production plans. Based on registered forecasts and current supply/demand situation, supply proposals are created to fulfill the forecasts/demands, taking lot sizing, safety stock and safety lead time into consideration. When actual demands come in, they are netted/consumed against the forecasts.

Forecast Consumption is further described in About Forecast and Forecast Consumption.

Based on the total demand, which then is the sum of actual demand and unconsumed forecast, the master schedule calculation generates MS proposals. These proposals can also automatically be turned into Shop Order proposals or Purchase Proposals depending on planning time fence and other parameters in the system.

The Master Schedule proposals will use lot sizing rules according to settings on Inventory Part. They will also be seen as demands for subassemblies and components based on manufacturing structure and hence picked up by MRP.

To be included in Master Schedule calculation parts must be defined as active MS Level 1 parts.

Family Forecasts

In order to simplify forecasting, there is a possibility to register forecasts on an aggregated level, e.g. a product family. These parts are registered as MS Level 0 parts

A Level 0 part is a form of a blow-through part and cannot have a balance on hand or be ordered. Disaggregation of Level 0 parts will yield Level 1 parts for master scheduling. They are the parts which are planned by MS Level 1

Level 0 refers to the top level plan group which collectively represent parts with similar design. Level 1 parts represent the tangible items that are at the lowest level of the planning structure. In between Level 0 and Level 1 parts there can be MS phantom parts (order code T) which can be used for sub grouping of parts with similar design. Level 0 parts, Level 0 phantoms, and Level 1 parts will be defined in IFS Applications using MRP order code O, T and A respectively.

It is also possible to aggregate Level 1 Part forecasts up to Level 0 Part forecasts, e.g. for Sales&Operations Planning.

Although master scheduling can start at the Level 0 part family, it can also start directly by planning level 1 forecasts for Level 1 parts in the Master Schedule Level 1 Part page

Project Master Scheduling

Master Scheduling can also be performed by project. Then a project planned netting group, which defines the context of the plan, will be attached to Level 0 and Level 1 parts.

Project Master scheduling Level 1 parts can be distinguished from non project master schedule Level 1 parts as project master schedule has a project PNG value and non project master schedule has the value * for project PNG.

Note: In IFS Cloud, project MS and MS features are executed in the same pages by separating them with the PNG value (If the value for the PNG is *, master scheduling is used and a unique ID must be given for the PNG if project master scheduling should be used)

Time Fences

An important feature in Master Scheduling is the time fences. These fences controls how MS proposals are created and also how forecasts are disposed when approach today’s date.

There are two time fences, Demand Time Fence (DTF) and Planning Time Fence (PTF). Normally the DTF should correspond to the manufacturing Lead Time for the part and Planning Time Fence to the Cumulative Lead Time.

Inside DTF, the production plan is considered fixed and not possible to change. No forecasts can exist inside DTF and, depending on settings, forecasts are either dropped or rolled out outside DTF when passing the fence.

Inside PTF, the MS calculation will not create or modify any supply proposals, since we can’t make sure manufacturing is actually possible. When planned MS Supplies fall inside PTF they will become Fixed and if you have indicated that requisitions can be created, also shop order requisitions and/or purchase order requisitions will be created.

Outside PTF, the MS calculation will generate Planned MS proposals. Shop order requisitions and/or purchase order requisitions can be created if wanted.

Important Details for MS Calculation

When master scheduling plans supply, the manufacturing calendar connected to the Site is used for manufactured parts and the distribution calendar is used for purchased parts.

The supply proposals for parent parts created by MS are broken down and generate demand for sub-assemblies and purchased component parts, which is input to the material requirements planning (MRP/PMRP) process.
You may indicate whether the supply for the MS part should be created by the MS calculation or not. If you choose not to have supply created by MS, supply proposals will be created by MRP/PMRP based on actual demand, but forecast consumption will take place in MS.

Fixed master schedule proposals remain in existence until the run date, but they do not affect any calculations within the demand time fence. Planned proposals are set to zero (0) so that they can be recalculated outside the planning time fence.

Site level attributes control how master scheduling plans for a part. The selections that you make in the Manufacturing tab of the Site page determine how the system processes the part during master scheduling. Selecting the Use Rel Purch Reqs in Planning setting causes master scheduling to not delete purchase requisitions in Released status at the start of the master scheduling run. These are viewed as supply, later in the master scheduling process.

When demand for a part arises, shop order requisitions or purchase requisitions are usually created from the fixed master schedule proposals within the planning time fence. Multiple requisitions or schedules will be created depending on the maximum, minimum and multiple values set in the Inventory Part/Planning Data tab. However, this kind of supply is created only if the value in the Proposal Release field in the Inventory Part/Planning Data tab is set to Release, indicating supply for the part is not managed by Kanban circuits.

If you specify that fixed master schedule proposals are to be created automatically, this happens when the variable proposals fall within the planning time fence. Quantity on-hand development and quantity available to promise are based on the current quantity on-hand minus safety stock.

Dependent Demands

In a situation where parts are mainly defined as end products in some structures and as components in several other structures, such parts will have dependent and independent demands due to its nature of how it is defined in the structure. If such Component parts are planned by MS or defined as MS level 1 parts the Supply proposals for parent parts created by MS are broken down and they explode demands to these MS planned Components as planned Dependent Demands. During MS level 1 calculation demand explosion stops when it hits MRP planned component.

Important Parameters for MS Calculation

The MS calculation considers various parameters and their settings.

Rolling

If you indicate that rolling should be used, the estimated quantity on-hand development is used to update the MS proposals after the planning time fence. This means that the first master schedule proposal after the planning time fence is adjusted by the estimated quantity on-hand development between the run date and the planning time fence. For example, if there is an excess part quantity of 100, it is subtracted from the first MS proposal after the planning time fence.

Minimum, Maximum and Multiple Lot Sizes

The MS calculation takes any specified lot sizes into consideration. This information is retrieved from the planning data entered for the inventory parts. If the minimum and maximum lot sizes are set to zero, the lot size is unlimited.

Important Details for MS Calculation

Fixed master schedule proposals remain in existence until the run date, but they do not affect any calculations within the demand time fence. Variable proposals are set to zero (0) so that they can be recalculated outside the planning time fence.

Site level attributes control how master scheduling plans for a part. The selections that you make in the Manufacturing tab of the Site page determine how the system processes the part during master scheduling. Selecting the Use Rel Purch Reqs in Planning setting causes master scheduling to not delete purchase requisitions in Released status at the start of the master scheduling run. These are viewed as supply, later in the master scheduling process.

When demand for a part arises, shop order requisitions or purchase requisitions are created from the fixed master schedule proposals within the planning time fence. Multiple requisitions or schedules will be created depending on the maximum, minimum and multiple values set in the Inventory Part/Planning Data tab. However, this kind of supply is created only if the value in the Proposal Release field in the Inventory Part/Planning Data tab is set to Release, indicating supply for the part is not managed by Kanban circuits.

If you specify that fixed master schedule proposals are to be created automatically, this happens when the variable proposals fall within the planning time fence. Quantity on-hand development and quantity available to promise are based on the current quantity on-hand minus safety stock.

Forecast Consumption Window

This is a range of periods, defined for each part, in which the forecast for a part could be consumed for a customer order or a sales quotation. Forecasts can be consumed both backwards and forwards in time depending on the Forecast Consumption settings in Master Schedule Level 1 Part
More information about forecast consumption can be found in About Forecast Consumption