The document outlines the process of material requirements planning (MRP) which involves determining gross requirements by working backwards from a master production schedule, accounting for bills of materials, lead times, and offsetting requirements by lead times to determine the necessary timing and quantities of orders. MRP provides a structure and process for planning dependent demand across a company based on end item requirements, component relationships, and timing constraints. The example shows how MRP is used to generate a gross requirements plan by exploding bills of materials levels and accounting for different item lead times.