Swiftly Adjusting Your Schedule for Change | PlanetTogether

Maximizing productivity within your manufacturing operation is difficult without a proper production plan. This process is much easier said than done, considering that a production plan has to account for materials, equipment, and any forms of human labor that are available. The production plan has to also ensure that these components are available when and where they are needed. This is why it is essential to have a sound production plan that enables you to locate the most advantageous schedule for your operation. There is production scheduling software available that enables you to make quick changes to schedules and boost production efficiency. Some of the advantages of an effective production plan and schedule include reduced labor cost, reduced inventory cost, optimized equipment utilization, and improved delivery times.

Properly Planning Work within Manufacturing

In order to experience these benefits and advantages, it is essential to understand how a production plan works within a manufacturing operation.

• Material Ordering - Materials that require long lead times or are further away in terms of shipping distance, need to be ordered at an earlier time. This is to ensure that the materials will be there within a specific time period and will be ready for production.
• Bottlenecks - Bottlenecks are constraints within production that do not allow production to flow easily. Any constraints or restrictions within production should be evaluated in advanced and you should either plan around them or attempt to eliminate them before production begins.
• Equipment Procurement - Procuring specialized tools and equipment in order to effectively initiate production may require a much longer lead time. You must keep in mind that equipment may have to be custom made or is simply difficult to set up. Accounting for this is a must within a production plan.

A software that can effectively establish an effective production plan is PlanetTogether’s advanced planning and scheduling software (APS). Advanced planning and scheduling software (APS) can effectively account for changes within production and generate schedules that are optimized for efficiency and waste reduction. APS has become a necessity for manufacturing operations around the globe that are seeking to take their operation to the next level.

Advanced Planning and Scheduling Software

Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) software has become a must for modern-day manufacturing operations due to customer demand for increased product mix and fast delivery combined with downward cost pressures. APS can be quickly integrated with a ERP/MRP software to fill gaps where these system lack planning and scheduling flexibility and accuracy. Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) helps planners save time while providing greater agility in updating ever-changing priorities, production schedules, and inventory plans.

• Create optimized schedules balancing production efficiency and delivery performance
• Maximize output on bottleneck resources to increase revenue
• Synchronize supply with demand to reduce inventories
• Provide company-wide visibility to capacity
• Enable scenario data-driven decision making

Video: Using PlanetTogether APS to Manage Resource Capacity in Real Time

Learn how APS uses finite capacity scheduling, visual load charts, and capacity-constrained what-if scenarios to keep your production plan realistic—even when priorities, materials, or machine availability change. Ideal for operations leaders, production planners, and schedulers looking to move beyond spreadsheets and basic ERP/MRP planning.

Turn Constant Schedule Changes into a Manageable Plan

Rush orders, late materials, and equipment issues will always happen—but they don’t have to derail your entire production plan. With the right advanced planning and scheduling (APS) system, planners can quickly re-balance loads, protect bottleneck resources, and keep delivery promises without living in spreadsheets all day.

Download our one-page “Before & After: Free Up Your Day with APS” infographic to see how moving from manual planning to PlanetTogether APS helps you:

• React faster to last-minute schedule changes
• Maximize output on constrained resources
• Reduce overtime, expediting, and wasted capacity
• Spend less time rebuilding schedules and more time improving them

Use it as a quick benchmark for where your production planning process is today—and what it could look like with APS in place.