Capacity Planning

Capacity Planning with SMV (Not Pieces)

Most likely, you are already using standard minutes/hours (SMV/SAH) in your line plan and probably know your monthly capacity in minutes/hours. However when it comes to accepting orders, or monthly reporting, many businesses still work in pieces because, in a dynamic situation, it is too difficult to constantly recalculate all the different working hours, product styling, orders, efficiencies and style changes to a concise figure.

When accepting new orders, many businesses do not have clear picture of the combined impact of the existing workload, plus these new orders on the business. In particular, most businesses cannot see the direct impact on supporting processes or specialist operations such as embroidery, printing or specific machinery/skill areas. Yet it is the areas which so often lead to work in progress and delivery problems.

Decision One Systems, (Working with your own pre-determined planning parameters) does all the calculations dynamically as the plan is built and then immediately as it changes. The Capacity Plan is based on:
• Measured Work content, (normally SMV but other units are possible)
• Working Hours
• The number of workers (can be fixed or varied according to product)
• Efficiency by Line / team by Product
• Style Change / Learning Curve Allowances

The end result is that you can:
• See your exact status when taking orders
• Build the effect of the new orders into a realistic plan quickly
• Quote much more reliable delivery dates, much faster