STEELMAN: Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRPII)

The Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRPII) module of STEELMAN translates planned manufacturing outputs into schedules of required resource inputs. The system functions in three modes. The first is a planning mode in which long term plans for production are translated into resource requirements by period. The second is an operational mode in which production orders accepted into the system are translated into time phased resource requirements whose availability can be checked against capacity plans and projected inventories. The third is a "what if" mode in which alternative, operational production plans can be tested for their impact on resource requirements.

The system can also be used to relieve inventory through what is usually called a "back-flush". As an alternative to controlling the issue of MRPII materials to production departments, the completed production reported each shift (or day) is exploded through the bills of material and the required quantity of each input material is removed from inventory and charged to production. In manufacturing operations which use bulk materials and have a short cycle time, the accuracy of back-flushing is as good or better than actual measurement. It is also much more efficient and less subject to errors.

Manufacturing Resource Planning: SPECIAL FEATURES

• The system translates production output into resource inputs using Resource Bills. A Resource Bill indicates all manufacturing resource inputs (including off-set time) required at any one stage of production to produce one unit of output. The total resources required to produce a specific product from raw materials are shown by the linked Resource Bills for all stages of production required for that product.
• The conceptual structure of the linked Resource Bills shows the manufacturing resource inputs required to produce one ton/tone of the product. Further sections show the intermediate manufactured product required as input to this stage of production, and so on.
• The MRPII module takes each planned production order and the appropriate Resource Bills to produce a time-phased schedule of the manufacturing resource requirements in each period for that particular order. Requirements for the resources required by all orders over as many periods as are covered by the production plan are merged to give the gross manufacturing resource requirements. The gross manufacturing resource requirements can then be compared to the unallocated resources on hand and on order to determine the net manufacturing resource requirements which must be provided in each period in order to complete the planned production.
• Procurement recommendations to provide the required materials are then generated by the Procurement/Inventory system.
• The MRPII module can also use actual production reported for each shift (or day) and Resource Bills to determine the amount of MRPII materials which were consumed. This information can then be used to relieve material inventories in what is called a "back-flush".
• The STEELMAN MRPII module is designed to function on a universal daily calendar. In such a system it is possible to approach real time transactions, and many users would work in a near-real time mode. Alternatively, a weekly (or 7 day) planning interval for materials management activities can be used.
• Buyers would have a new set of replenishment recommendations presented to them at the beginning of each day or week, and would have the next two or three days to act on them.
• A number of time fences can be established to control how recommendations are generated and presented. These fences are:
  • a Freeze Fence. This recognizes that some time is necessary before any supply action can become effective, and prevents the generation of any recommendations for action within the set number of days from the system run date.
  • a Planning Fence. The entire order or forecast file may extend many months into the future. For material requirements planning purposes, it is not necessary to look at the requirements which arise out beyond the longest material lead time, plus the manufacturing cycle time, plus the system planning interval. In order to avoid unnecessary data processing, the planning fence should be set to this period.
  • an Action Fence. When an update is run, the system processes all requirements for the entire order or forecast file, out to the limit of the Planning Fence. Buyers need only see those recommendations they are required to act on in the short term, so it is necessary to give the system a cut-off on how far forward to present recommendation messages.
• What If analysis can be performed to enable alternative production plans to be tested to ensure that the required manufacturing resources are available or can be made available in time to meet order delivery dates.