Planning Optimization: Production Planning in Dynamics 365 – Part 2

But is it faster? Let’s first turn our attention to the setup that needs to occur before running Planning Optimization. Ellipse Solutions will be happy to partner with your company to evaluate the business’ Planning Optimization fit analysis before going live with this Dynamics 365 feature. The following steps are a high-level look at what needs to be completed before using Planning Optimization.

1. The feature for Planned Production order for Planning Optimization must be turned on by an authorized user in either D365 system administration or the business LCS.
2. As with all production needs, the products, routes (including resources and all other related information) and BOMs all need to be created (activated and approved) in order for the Planned Orders to appear after running Planning Optimization.
3. Prior to running Planning Optimization, the procurement and inventory item lead times need to be set with Today’s date + procurement time at the released item. This will ensure any purchased items, like raw materials, will be calculated correctly with the new planning feature. Keep in mind, the planned production order lead could possibly vary from the firmed production order:
   1. The planned production order will be calculated with the static lead time from the released product.
   2. The firmed production order will schedule will be based on route information and related resource constraints.
4. Run MRP

After the setup is complete, Planning Optimization MRP is ready to run. A great business practice is to notify all supply chain personnel before running MRP during the day, as the Planned Orders and Net Requirements will change after the MRP run. Now, back to the question at hand… is it faster?

Real-life scenario:

Did the sales team just win a new million-dollar order with a requested shortened lead time? Fantastic! Previously, the Supply Chain team was notified once the order was created then had to wait for MRP to run overnight to explode the new demand throughout D365. The production planners would arrive to work the next business day (that could be up to 3 calendar days if the order was placed on a Friday!) to check the MRP run for any exceptions and errors, then firm planned production orders as needed. Another option they could have used is to export the sales order from D365 to email to the Supply Chain team, then manually create orders (hoping nothing was skipped over or incorrectly ordered). Now for the good news! Once the features required are turned on, and after the last line is added to the new sales order, Planning Optimization MRP can be initiated, during business hours, for immediate supply chain needs!

A picture is worth a thousand words: The built-in MRP versus Planning Optimization Service.

Not only is Planning Optimization a faster service than the built-in MRP engine, but various scenarios can be executed during the day that would normally have to wait for after hour availability (being sure not to interfere with the nightly MRP run and other scheduled batch jobs). Does your business work with Forecast models? Would it be helpful to see what would be required to produce additional stock? Do you know a customer will place the same order in another month, and you want to produce stock now with the current order to save production cost? Simulation Plans can be run during office hours with no disruption to the business! By creating a secondary simulation plan or forecast plan, with up to one sub model, Planning Optimization can run simulations to generate planned orders and gain insight for future demand needs.

Don’t forget – the Planning Optimization service is in the process of being built from the ground up. There will be new features to turn on and use as they become available. Look for Microsoft update in your business’ LCS. Ellipse Solutions would be happy to partner with your company to evaluate the business’ Planning Optimization fit analysis.

Check out Part 1 of our Dynamics 365 Planning Optimization Series here:

https://ellipsesolutions.com/planning-optimization-the-future-of-master-planning-in-dynamics-365-part-1/ 

Tune in soon for the final installment of the 3-part blog series on D365 Planning Optimization as it relates to Procurement.