Master Planning - Supply Network Planning

Abstract

There are a number of decisions which have to be made in the medium-term because these have to be prepared some weeks in advance (like an additional shift on Saturdays which has to be agreed to by worker’s representatives) or take some time to become e ective (like building up seasonal stocks). Another reason for placing decisions at the medium-term planning level (instead of short-term) is the scope of consequences. As an example consider a manufacturer with several production sites with similar capabilities. Decisions regarding the allocation of production quantities to sites and directives which site will serve which market will have consequences on the profitability of each site and should be made centrally. Note that short-term production planning and scheduling is often done decentrally.