Advanced Production Planning with Limited Resources APS (Advanced Planning and Scheduling) and Infor APS Solution
Production planning and scheduling is the most core activity in a business, helping to create sustainable competitive advantages as well as helping business owners make optimal and accurate business and investment decisions.
In the context of resources (machinery, labor, raw materials) always being limited, how to achieve the highest production efficiency is a question that is always asked and difficult to have a satisfactory answer.
Usually, businesses are using the most knowledgeable, experienced and productive personnel to carry out the above complex tasks.
To free up some of the labor force and take advantage of the intelligence of talented people in the enterprise, applying a support system to do these things will help the enterprise become stable, sustainable, measure information and be the premise for later applying artificial intelligence systems to predict or analyze difficult situations in the face of unpredictable and volatile futures like today.
APS Deployment Steps
Determine production requirements from demand and forecasts
- Demand Forecasting: Based on sales forecast and orders, determine quantity and completion time of each product.
- Order Analysis: Prioritize orders based on delivery date, order value, and customer commitment.
Make a list of available resources
- Human Resource: Includes number of workers and available shifts.
- Machine: Check the number of machines available and the capacity of each machine.
- Raw materials: Check stock and availability of raw materials.
Build process and implementation time
- Analysis of production stages: Analyze the steps required to produce each product and the time required for each step.
- Determine the capacity of each stage: Check how many products each process is capable of producing in a given time.
Using APS software for production planning
- Optimizing and Allocating Resources: Based on the information, the software will provide an optimal plan to allocate resources, ensuring orders are completed on time at the lowest cost.
- Consider constraints and priorities: APS software will help adjust the plan to prioritize urgent orders or products with special requirements.
Check and adjust the plan accordingly
- Review initial results: Check if the plan is feasible and meets production requirements.
- Flexible adjustment: During implementation, if there are any changes in resources or requirements, the plan needs to be adjusted.
Monitor and evaluate performance during and after
- Monitor the production process: Monitor implementation progress and feedback from production to make timely adjustments if there are problems.
- Post-production review: Evaluate the effectiveness of the plan and draw lessons to improve for the next production period.
Infor APS
Infor Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) is an advanced software solution designed to optimize production planning and scheduling processes in complex manufacturing environments. Infor APS provides comprehensive planning capabilities that help businesses balance supply and demand, optimize resource utilization, and improve production efficiency.
1. Advanced production planning and scheduling
Infor APS enables detailed production planning, taking into account factors such as machine capacity, manpower, and raw materials. The system provides forecasts of order lead times by comparing all requirements (such as customer orders) with long-term plans.
2. Managing limited resources:
In APS mode, the system considers the actual capacity of resources, ensuring that resources such as machines and workers are not overloaded and are used efficiently. This helps in realistic and feasible production planning.
3. Multi-location integration
Infor APS supports production planning for multiple plants or locations, allowing businesses to optimize their supply chain and production on a global scale. The system can create transfer orders between locations, ensuring timely delivery of raw materials and products.
4. Analysis and reporting
The system provides powerful analytical tools, allowing businesses to monitor production performance, identify process bottlenecks, and make decisions based on real data.
Compare Infor APS and SAP APO (Advanced Planning and Optimization)
Infor APS and SAP APO (Advanced Planning and Optimization) are two advanced production planning management solutions that help businesses optimize their supply chains and improve manufacturing performance. Here is a detailed comparison between the two software.
Features and functions
Infor APS
- Managing limited resources: Infor APS focuses on detailed planning with limited resources, ensuring optimal use of manpower, machinery and materials.
- Multi-location integration: Supports production planning for multiple locations, enabling global supply chain optimization.
- ERP Integration: Infor APS integrates well with ERP systems like Infor CloudSuite and other Infor software.
- Detailed planning: Allows immediate planning and adjustment when there are changes in demand or production capacity.
SAP APO
- Demand planning: SAP APO has a powerful Demand Planning (DP) module, which helps in demand forecasting and inventory planning.
- Supply Chain Optimization: SAP APO integrates supply chain optimization tools including Supply Network Planning (SNP), Production Planning (PP), and Global Available-to-Promise (GATP).
- Powerful optimization tools: SAP APO features sophisticated optimization algorithms, suitable for businesses with diverse and complex supply chains.
Deployability
Infor APS
- Designed to be user-friendly and easy to deploy for small and medium businesses.
- Can integrate with various ERP systems besides Infor ERP.
- Infor APS is suitable for businesses that need a fast, flexible solution to adjust to changes in the production process.
SAP APO
- Typically deployed in large enterprises with complex supply chains.
- SAP APO requires higher implementation time and cost due to system complexity and integration with SAP ERP.
- Strong integration with SAP solutions for efficient data management and synchronization, but difficult to integrate with other ERP systems.
Scalability
Infor APS
- Suitable for small and medium sized businesses or large companies with not too complex planning requirements.
- Fast deployment speed, less expensive when needing to expand or scale.
SAP APO
- Very suitable for multinational corporations with large and complex supply chains.
- Good scalability, suitable for organizations that want to scale with complex and multinational business models.
Ability to analyze and optimize
Infor APS
- Easier analysis and use of visualization tools to optimize production planning and resource allocation.
- Mainly focused on optimizing production with limited resources
SAP APO
- Capable of comprehensive supply chain optimization with various optimization modules, from demand planning to goods allocation.
- Sophisticated analytics tools, enabling detailed demand forecasting and planning.
Expense
Infor APS
- Often lower cost than SAP APO, especially for small and medium sized businesses
SAP APO
- Has higher implementation and operating costs, more suitable for large enterprises with large budgets and complex supply chain requirements
Flexibility and ease of use
Infor APS
- Designed to be flexible and easy to use, suitable for businesses that need a system that is quick and easy to adapt to changes
SAP APO
- Although SAP APO is powerful, it is more complex, requiring more time and cost to train employees to use it effectively.
Conclude
Infor APS
- Suitable for small and medium-sized enterprises or organizations with simple production processes that need flexible and cost-effective planning solutions
SAP APO
- A good choice for large corporations with complex supply chains, requiring deep integration with the SAP ecosystem and having a need for comprehensive supply chain optimization
Through evaluating the scale and quantity of most companies, Infor APS is suitable for reasonable cost, easy to apply, specialized and flexible. We choose Infor APS to provide to our customers.
Please contact us for more specific advice.
