The document discusses various concepts related to forecasting, planning, and scheduling for production including: 1. Qualitative and quantitative forecasting approaches used depending on whether the situation involves new or existing products/technologies and the availability of historical data. 2. Qualitative forecasting methods like executive opinion, Delphi method, and consumer surveys. 3. The relationships between aggregate production plans, master production schedules, material requirements planning (MRP) systems, and detailed work schedules. 4. Factors considered in choosing a scheduling method like priority rules and quantitative criteria involving job completion times, utilization, work-in-process inventory, and customer wait times.

1. Forecasting, Planning and Scheduling http:// www.managementsupport.com

3. Strategy and Issues During a Product’s Life Introduction Growth Maturity Decline Standardization Less rapid product changes - more minor changes Optimum capacity Increasing stability of process Long production runs Product improvement and cost cutting Little product differentiation Cost minimization Over capacity in the industry Prune line to eliminate items not returning good margin Reduce capacity Forecasting critical Product and process reliability Competitive product improvements and options Increase capacity Shift toward product focused Enhance distribution Product design and development critical Frequent product and process design changes Short production runs High production costs Limited models Attention to quality Best period to increase market share R&D product engineering critical Practical to change price or quality image Strengthen niche Cost control critical Poor time to change image, price, or quality Competitive costs become critical Defend market position OM Strategy/Issues Company Strategy/Issues HDTV CD-ROM Color copiers Drive-thru restaurants Fax machines Station wagons Sales 3 1/2” Floppy disks Internet

6. Relationships of the Aggregate Plan Aggregate Plan for Production Demand Forecasts, orders Master Production Schedule, and MRP systems Detailed Work Schedules External Capacity Subcontractors Inventory On Hand Raw Materials Available Work Force Product Decisions Process Planning & Capacity Decisions Marketplace and Demand Research and Technology

9. Inputs to the Production Plan Aggregate Production Plan Marketing Customer Demand Engineering Design Completion Management Return on Investment Capital Human Resources Manpower Planning Procurement Supplier Performance Finance Cash Flow Production Capacity Inventory