Is it True that MRP is a Poor Fit for ETO and Project Based Production Scheduling?

Executive Summary Waterloo Manufacturing Software states that MRP is poorly suited for ETO and project-based production scheduling. We evaluate this claim. Introduction The first thing to know is that when searching for the material on ETO production scheduling or project-based production scheduling, the material I found on ETO or project-based production planning was very shallow….

How to Understand Production Planning with Constraints Versus Capacity Leveling

Executive Summary There are two methods to perform capacity management. One is capacity leveling, and the second is capacity constraining. Capacity leveling is a two-step method, while capacity constraining is a one-step method. Constraints Versus Capacity Leveling in Production Planning Capacity levelling uses unconstrained resources, which allow any load to be placed on any resource….

How to Best Understand Bottling, Contract and Green Packaging

Executive Summary We cover the major packaging areas in this article, which include bottling, contract, and green packaging. Bottling Plant and Packaging Industry The bottling Plant and packaging industry are one of the early forms of what is now known as contract packing. The packaging industry is divided into companies that perform their packaging and…

How to Best Understand Buffer Stock or Buffer Inventory

Executive Summary A buffer stock or buffer inventory is used to account for variability in supply or demand. We cover the definition of buffer stock or buffer inventory as well as a buffer stock calculation. Video Introduction: Buffer Stock or Buffer Inventory Text Introduction (Skip if You Watched the Video) Buffer stock or buffer inventory is…

How to Grade Your Production Scheduling System

Executive Summary Companies generally don’t know what their production scheduling systems should be able to do. We explain how to grade your production scheduling system against essential criteria. Introduction Production scheduling software will never be considered the sexy category of enterprise software. That may be hard for people who work in this area to read;…

How to Combine MES and ERP for Production

Executive Summary How ERP requires support from specialized manufacturing systems like the MES application. We cover MES ERP or ERP MES for complete production management. Introduction For decades ERP companies, along with most of the major consulting companies, have overestimated to their customers how much ERP software can be used for. Several reasons for this…

What Production Planning Does with Forecast Error

Executive Summary Production planning must absorb the forecast error created by the forecasting system. This has important implications for stock and safety stock management. This brings up the topic of both make to stock versus assembles to order and estimating the costs of forecast error. An Introduction to Forecast Error Usage When a company has…

Why Airbus Runs a Superplant Manufacturing Operation

Executive Summary Due to outsourcing, Airbus runs a superplant, which is multiple plants feeding master plants. We cover this superplant concept. Introduction Superplant is a container term for three functionalities that allow locations that are traditionally considered “separate” to be planned as they are part of one giant plant or superplant. Superplant is the most…

Why the Printing Press Was a Manufacturing Technology

Executive Summary The printing press is a type of manufacturing technology. We cover the history of the printing press. The History of Printing The following quotation explains the development of the printing press. Printing is a type of manufacturing. Printing with moveable type printing presses preceded Gutenberg by 400 years. Gutenberg’s contribution was the “in devising…

Which Country Produces How Much Output?

Executive Summary Manufacturing is concentrated in countries with the majority of production taking place in just a few countries. Which Country Makes How Much of Global Output? This is a recreation of a table that can be found at Wikipedia. See our references for this article and related articles at this link. Interesting Features When…