Managing a Forecast
Forecasts in MRP can be used for planning Sales, Production, and Purchasing for a company. This page discusses the setup required prior to using Forecasts, such as Vendor Part Cross References or Facility-specific MRP options, and how to use the output of an MRP report to optimize prices and enter orders. When running MRP, users have several display options for determining what information will be used to generate the output. Some commonly used displays include showing:
- All parts regardless of the need to order the part.
- Parts that have requirements regardless of their current supply.
- Parts that have net inventory below zero (output would include Purchase Orders and job supplies).
- Parts with a total Net in any bucket that exceed the maximum quantity listed on the Item Master. This option is especially useful when searching for over-ordered items and assists in situations where users wish to move the Purchase Order "Due to Dock" date to an earlier date.
For more information on these and other display options, refer to the MRP page.
Configuration
To use Forecasts, the set up for MRP, Purchasing, Sales, and Production must be completed. Please refer to the Configuration sections of the following pages for more information: Entering Purchase Orders, Entering Sales Orders, Entering Production Jobs. Additional configuration requirements are discussed in the Process section below.
Process
Configuring Forecast and MRP inputs
What setup is required prior to using Forecasts?
- Vendor Part Cross References - These Parts contain their own lead times, minimal PO quantities, unique vendor part number and descriptions, as well as pricing information that can be set with specific valid from and expiration dates. This information can be used by purchasing users to make informed decisions when ordering supplies and can help when using the optimize prices feature in DEACOM to determine the best possible price for specific items.
- Using Preferred Vendors - The Vendor Part record also allows users to identify a Vendor as preferred. If marked as "Preferred" on the Edit Vendor Info form, this Vendor will be displayed in the "Vendor" column for this item when running MRP. This flag is not necessary in order to use the optimize prices feature. To use the Auto PO feature, the “Preferred” flag must be checked for at least one of the Vendor Parts assigned to the regular item. For more information on how this flag works, refer to the Setting Vendors as Preferred section of Managing Vendors Using Vendor Part Cross References.
- Configuring Facility-Specific MRP options - The Facilities tab on the Item Master offers the ability to configure MRP options for a Part that will apply to this specific Facility. When running MRP for a specified Facility and Facility-specific MRP information is present in the Facilities tab and set as active, then this information will be used instead of the information on the Item Master MRP tab. If the use flags option is not checked or a Facility is not selected on the MRP pre-filter, the system will fall back on the settings defined on the base Item Master.
Creating a Forecast
Forecasts allows users to easily create and modify forecasts to assist with production and sales management. In DEACOM, sales forecasts are used to drive the MRP process. Active forecast sheets setup demand in the "(-M) forecast" demand bucket in time-phased MRP. Forecasts can be leveraged to create sales forecasts based on historical sales of items in DEACOM, update existing sales forecasts by utilizing the percentage change tool and the pre-filter capabilities, and compare forecast sheets to actual sales. More information can be found in Creating and Modifying Forecasts.
Note:
Entering orders via MRP
What is an easy way to determine the best possible price for specific items?
Using the "Optimize Prices" button - Used in conjunction with Vendor Part Cross References and the "Auto PO" button (described below). While viewing an MRP report, users may click the "Optimize Prices" button. This action will trigger DEACOM to check if active Vendor Parts exist for the selected Parts and then check for the best possible price based on the defined quantity and valid starting and ending dates. At this point, users can click the “Auto PO” button. For information on what happens next, see the Auto PO section below.
What methods are available for Purchase Order entry?
- Auto PO - Used in conjunction with Vendor Part Cross References and the "Optimize Prices" button to create purchase orders based on the best possible prices for specific items. The feature is designed to be used when running MRP for a specific Facility since using the "Auto PO" button only allows one Facility to be selected when creating the multiple orders. Once a user has run an MRP report, clicked the "Optimize Prices" button, reviewed the output then clicked the "Auto PO" button, the system will display a prompt indicating the total number of Purchase Orders to be created. Once the user clicks “Yes”, the system will display the Facility Selection form to allow the user to select a Facility. Once the Facility has been selected, the system will automatically create the orders and display them in the Purchase Order Summary report. If necessary, modifications can be made at this point, otherwise the process is complete.
- Create PO - Used in cases where the optimize pricing feature is not desired. This option may be used if there is an immediate need for the Part, even though pricing may be a bit higher, or if there is a contract in place with a specific Vendor for the chosen Part. If the latter is the case, it may be best to set this Vendor as preferred (see the Using Preferred Vendors section above). Refer to the Adding a new Purchase Order section of Utilizing Forecasts in MRP for the steps on using this feature.
What if inventory for a Forecast is not available in the correct Facility?
Inter-company Transfer Orders (ICTs) are used to move inventory from one Facility to another, within the same company. Information on the configuration, setup, and processing of ICTs is available on the Using Inter-Company Transfers and Shipping and Receiving Inter-Company Transfers pages.
FAQs and Diagnostic Tips
Tip: The Actual vs Forecast option groups by Item, Facility, Bill-to, and Ship-to.
Tip: Forecast revenues from deal pricing are calculated assuming a quantity of the pricing unit rather than the sales unit.
Tip: In DEACOM, forecast quantities are represented in the item's stock unit of measure.