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Hello!

The problem we are experiencing is that the system adds Level 0 forecast lines behind DTF when the forecast should be dropped. We cannot interpret why the system behaves this way. Some facts that might be relevant:

 

  • Forecasts are exported from Demand Planner
  • Forecasts are imported into MS every night within the (long) PTF. (not recommended, we know 🙂)
  • Forecasts are distributed weekly in MS forecast 0
  • Forecast consumption is set to DROP but still these lines end up in Forecast 0 when DTF is passed

 

Some Parts have long Picking Lead times that result in an Actual demand appearing when the DTF is passed. If we have understood the MS logic correctly, the system will keep consuming forecast as long as the goods haven’t been shipped. The consumed forecast lines behind DTF doesn’t completely add upp with the Actual Demand though, although it’s close.

 

In this example there was no unconsumed forecast left to consume for March so if left unhandled, the system will add these 10 503 pcs as an extra forecast. The customer is afraid that they will order too much components as a result of this. It became better when they changed Forecast Consumption from Roll out to Drop, but the problem is not gone. 

This is an example of how it can look:

 

 

We need help to understand how the MS logic calculates here. ​@majose We would love to hear what your experienced mind has to say about this. 🙏 

 

​@ADDMIWA Please add more details if I have missed something.

 

Thanks & Regards

 

Eva Dahl

Hej Eva,

 

There are two ways forecast columns gets reduced (and/or set to zero).

I will just focus when the level 1 part setup is setup to “Drop Unconsumed Forecast” within DTF !

Within MS Level 1 calculation itself (simplified just to focus on reducing forecast columns:

  1. Old open demands/supplies from previous execution are removed and reloaded
  1. System recalculates forecast consumption from scratch. And here it starts with demands in chronological order and so on. Backward- and Forward consumption windows are considered.
  1. Once that is done, the MS Level 1 calculation continues to analyze how to reduce UNCONSUMED forecast within DTF:

 If “(forecast level 0 + forecast level 1 - consumed forecast) = unconsumed forecast” becomes a positive value then reduce the forecasts with unconsumed forecast. (looking at your yellow figures above we can see that they are consumed - system thinks they will be “shipped out through the door” and reduced when they are shipped in the customer order flow - explained below)

  1. Then system continues with the calculation of proposed MS receipts …

When shipping the part

From the order delivery process system calls master scheduling to reduce forecast and consumed forecast. Planned Due Date of the customer order line and shipped qty is used.

First it uses backward consumption window - considering Planned Due Date. Here it reduces forecast using Ms Dates in descending order. Basically it reduces the forecast and consumed forecast with what has been shipped (there are some details under the hood regarding how level 0- and level 1 columns gets updated if both of them have value > 0)

System can continue backwards until backward consumption window. I mean if the Qty Shipped is large, larger than consumed forecast system keeps track of this and going backward and kind of consumes of the qty shipped. Hard to explain in words 😞 Hope u get it.  

Then if there in any remaining “unconsumed Qty Shipped” system goes forward using the forward consumption window. And now it reduces forecast using Ms Dates in ascending order.

***

In later Cloud versions we have corrected two defects when it comes to forecast reduction when shipping the part. One was about we didn’t care about checking the backward boundary in “First it uses backward consumption window - considering Planned Due Date”. Another is about if you are using both level 0 and level 1 forecast for the same part.

Ooooh lots of text above, sorry for the long answer. Hope you can digest it over a nice chocolate bar.

 

Cheers,

Mats 

Thank you for the explanation Mats! I have been discussing it with the customer and we have read the text several times and still don’t understand how the lines that are added behind DTF can appear 🤔 but since this concerns APP10, we will look forward to the development done in IFS Cloud and hope that it will resolve this issue as well. Until then, we have to use a configuration that removes the lines in question.

 

Take care! 

 

Eva

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