Improve Forecast Accuracy, Eliminate Excess Inventory, & Maximize Service Levels
In this Video Dr. Thomas Willemain, co–Founder and SVP Research, talks about forecast-based inventory management policy, also known as MRP logic. This is the fourth in our series on major approaches to managing inventory. We begin by looking at some very simple and then more robust models of inventory dynamics that help us determine how much to order or manufacture and when. We then consider how to calculate lead time and account for lead time variability. Tom concludes by describing the importance of safety stock, it’s role in properly buffering against demand and supply uncertainty, and how best to calculate it.
RECENT POSTS
Smart Software to Present at Community Summit North America
Smart Software’s Channel Sales Director and Enterprise Solution Engineer, to present three sessions at this year’s Microsoft Dynamics Community Summit North America event in Orlando, FL.
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Smart Software to lead a webinar as part of the WERC Solutions Partner Program
Smart Software, will lead a 30-minute webinar as part of the WERC Solutions Partner Program. The presentation will focus on how a leading Electric Utility implemented Smart Inventory Planning and Optimization (Smart IP&O) as part of the company’s strategic supply chain optimization (SCO) initiative.
The Supply Chain Blame Game: Top 3 Excuses for Inventory Shortage and Excess
The supply chain has become the blame game for almost any industrial or retail problem. Shortages on lead time variability, bad forecasts, and problems with bad data are facts of life, yet inventory-carrying organizations are often caught by surprise when any of these difficulties arise. So, again, who is to blame for the supply chain chaos? Keep reading this blog and we will try to show you how to prevent product shortages and overstocking.
Recent Posts
Extend Epicor Prophet 21 with Smart IP&O’s Forecasting & Dynamic Reorder Point PlanningSmart Inventory Planning & Optimization (Smart IP&O) can help with inventory ordering functionality in Epicor P21, reduce inventory, minimize stockouts and restore your organization’s trust by providing robust predictive analytics, consensus-based forecasting, and what-if scenario planning. […]
Supply Chain Math: Don’t Bring a Knife to a GunfightMath and the supply chain go hand and hand. As supply chains grow, increasing complexity will drive companies to look for ways to manage large-scale decision-making. Math is a fact of life for anyone in inventory management and demand forecasting who is hoping to remain competitive in the modern world. Read our article to learn more. […]
Service Parts Planning: Planning for consumable parts vs. Repairable PartsWhen deciding on the right stocking parameters for spare and replacement parts, it is important to distinguish between consumable and repairable servoce parts. These differences are often overlooked by inventory planning software and can result in incorrect estimates of what to stock. Different approaches are required when planning for consumables vs. repairable service parts. […]
Four Common Mistakes when Planning Replenishment TargetsHow often do you recalibrate your stocking policies? Why? Learn how to avoid key mistakes when planning replenishment targets by automating the process, recalibrating parts, using targeting forecasting methods, and reviewing exceptions. […]
Extend Epicor Kinetic’s Forecasting & Min/Max Planning with Smart IP&OEpicor Kinetic can manage replenishment by suggesting what to order and when via reorder point-based inventory policies. The problem is that the ERP system requires that the user either manually specify these reorder points, or use a rudimentary “rule of thumb” approach based on daily averages. In this article, we will review the inventory ordering functionality in Epicor Kinetic, explain its limitations, and summarize how to reduce inventory, and minimize stockouts by providing the robust predictive functionality that is missing in Epicor. […]
Inventory Optimization for Manufacturers, Distributors, and MRO
Blanket OrdersOur customers are great teachers who have always helped us bridge the gap between textbook theory and practical application. A prime example happened over twenty years ago, when we were introduced to the phenomenon of intermittent demand, which is common among spare parts but rare among the finished goods managed by our original customers working in sales and marketing. This revelation soon led to our preeminent position as vendors of software for managing inventories of spare parts. Our latest bit of schooling concerns “blanket orders.” […]
Probabilistic Forecasting for Intermittent DemandThe New Forecasting Technology derives from Probabilistic Forecasting, a statistical method that accurately forecasts both average product demand per period and customer service level inventory requirements. […]
Engineering to Order at Kratos Space – Making Parts Availability a Strategic AdvantageThe Kratos Space group within National Security technology innovator Kratos Defense & Security Solutions, Inc., produces COTS s software and component products for space communications - Making Parts Availability a Strategic Advantage […]
Managing the Inventory of Promoted ItemsIn a previous post, I discussed one of the thornier problems demand planners sometimes face: working with product demand data characterized by what statisticians call skewness—a situation that can necessitate costly inventory investments. This sort of problematic data is found in several different scenarios. In at least one, the combination of intermittent demand and very effective sales promotions, the problem lends itself to an effective solution. […]