What is Supply Planning?
Supply Planning is one of the most crucial steps in Sales & Operations Planning (S&OP) and supply chain management. It aims at achieving a plan that efficiently fulfils the demand for any product or service.
Procurement, manufacturing, warehousing, distribution and logistics are the constituent parts of supply planning. Supply and demand need to be balanced; hence, inputs are taken from production plan, demand plan, sales and marketing plan and historical data.
How does it help?
Supply plan consists of schedules and actions related to manufacturing and inventory capacities. Scheduling is crucial to prevent zero stocks or a surplus of stock and reduces the possibilities of financial losses in logistics and inventory management. Customer satisfaction, hassle-free operations and on-time delivery goals are the foundations of supply planning.
Scenario planning plays a very important role in creating a good supply plan as it helps a planner to stay ready for any possible spikes or drops in demand. The assumptions and constraints decided at the beginning of a project are also considered while defining various scenarios.
How to create a good supply plan?
Supply chain partners need to collaborate and share insights for effective supply planning. Co-ordination between manufacturing, warehousing, distribution, and vendors results in smooth flow of process, information, and products.
Can a supply chain solution make it easier for you?
Cross-functional planning is the best way of achieving a balance in demand and supply. A business management solution that integrates all departments and stakeholders, ensures a dynamic approach to planning. Supply chains are evolving with the innovations in technology and keeping data in static form (such as Excel sheets) isn’t beneficial. Dynamic planning can be gained from real-time data sharing.