Scheduling a Production Plan

You can use Factory Scheduling to schedule a production plan, and to analyze and possibly modify the schedule. Below is an overview of the main features. This is not a thorough description of your daily use of the app. Detailed user assistance is available from the app.

This task shows you how to:

Before you begin: When you open Factory Scheduling from the Compass, in the login dialog box:
  • The username and password are those you used to log in to the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, but you can enter other credentials.
  • Environments lists the production plans available for the credentials you are using. Select the plan to work on.
  • Take a moment to get familiar with the app workspace. Select Help > Help content to learn more about the user interface, and the options to configure it.

Configure the Scheduling Process

You can configure how the scheduling process determines which resource has to perform which operation, and at what start and end dates. Configuration is key to getting the optimum schedule for your business goals. There is a default configuration, but it is always worth verifying that it is right for your objectives.

  1. Select Optimization > Criteria configuration, and choose the criteria that the scheduling process must use.
    This is typically something you do once and for all for a given production plan. The objective is to find the right combination of criteria to meet your business goals. For example, you likely do not use the same scheduling criteria if the primary objective is to minimize inventory, or to avoid delays. Also, you do not use the same criteria to schedule the plan forward or backward.
  2. Select Optimization > Constraint configuration, and specify the planning constraints and rules the scheduling process must consider. For example, setup times are a constraint that you can choose to consider or not in the schedule.
    This is also something that is not likely to change often. Still, you may sometimes have to edit the scheduling constraints to address new conditions for the execution of the plan.
  3. Select Options > Configuration, and verify the app settings.
    Some of the parameters in the Configuration dialog box are generic, and apply to all the users of the production plan. Others have values that can vary from one user to another. They are always worth verifying, to make sure they suit your needs.

Once you have verified and fine-tuned the configuration in Factory Scheduling, you can schedule the plan.

Schedule, Analyze, Modify, and Save the Plan

You can schedule the plan, analyze the resulting schedule, bring changes to it, and then save it.

  1. From the Optimization menu, select one of the scheduling commands.
    • Choose a forward option to schedule the plan from the operation with the earliest start date.
    • Choose a backward option to schedule the plan from the operation with the latest due date.

    Schedule the entire plan at least once. Later on, you can use other options, for example to focus on a specific period.

    When scheduling is complete, you can see the resulting plan in the Gantt charts.
  2. From the Display menu, select:
    • Gantt charts to see when the operations start and end, and the resources they use.
    • The Capacity Requirements Planning chart to monitor the workload of resources. If there are periods of overload or overcapacity, you may want to bring changes to the plan.
    There are many options to filter and highlight information in the charts, and to help you analyze the plan. You can also monitor performance indicators, to see if the current schedule meets expectations.
  3. From the Performance menu, you can:
    • Select performance charts to monitor specific indicators.
    • Select Global performance to get an overview of the main indicators. When you reschedule the plan, this view offers to compare current performance with previous results. You can also fine-tune monitoring by configuring indicators and alerts, for example.
    Analyzing the indicators may highlight areas of improvement, and issues you have to solve. When the current plan performance is satisfactory, you can select Save reference plan to save it as a reference. You can then assess the quality and reliability of subsequent schedules based on how they compare with the reference plan.
  4. If this is the first time you have scheduled this plan, save it using File > Save WIP.
    Saving the plan at this stage is good practice for the first schedule, because it stores a preliminary version of the plan to go back to. Conversely, when rescheduling a plan that you have already saved, make sure that the new schedule is satisfactory before you save it.
  5. If your analysis shows you can improve some things, or if you receive new information to consider, you can bring changes to the plan.

    For example, if a machine breaks down, you can use the Capacity menu to mark the machine as unavailable for a period of time. You can then reschedule the plan to assign the operations to other resources, and update the whole plan accordingly.

    Another example: When a work order is ready for execution, you can right-click that work order to release it. Then, when the production teams get that information, they know they can start working on that order.

    There are many actions you can take to modify the plan on the fly. Always verify the impact of your changes on the plan as a whole. If you would rather cancel your actions, you can select File > Recall WIP to restore the plan that you last saved.

Once you are satisfied with the schedule, select File > Save WIP to save it. Other apps can then use the data you have saved. Typically, the Ready for execution status and the planned start and end dates of work orders can be useful information for other teams in your organization.