APS is an Anglo-Saxon acronym that stands for Advanced Planning & Scheduling (i.e. a system for advanced planning and scheduling).
According to the definition given by the APICS organization, these systems are: “real computer programs that use algorithms and mathematical logic for optimization and production simulation issues, in order to solve scheduling problems. Thanks to these techniques, APS can simultaneously manage a wide range of production limits, offering decision-making support for production planning and scheduling “.
These programs are used by cutting-edge manufacturing companies and among these CyberPlan is the most innovative APS on the market, developed by Cybertec based on over 25 years of experience in planning and scheduling.
What do you mean by planning and scheduling?
It is useful to clarify what is meant by planning and scheduling.
Planning means the determination of future activities in terms of which activities to carry out, and when to carry them out, with reference to business processes, in the medium and long term.
Scheduling refers to the definition of when to carry out the aforementioned processes, in the short term. In this second case, the future activities have already been determined and the dating is more precise and detailed (indicate the day and time when they will be carried out).
It is worth noting that a good business plan is only such if there are real capacities to do so, dating is therefore constrained by the actual availability of the resources to carry it out (e.g. personnel, machinery, materials). The more a scheduler takes these constraints into account in a way that is faithful to reality, the greater the goodness of the released production plan. The constraint is therefore the element that characterizes scheduling, while planning still has the theoretical possibility of removing the constraint by better managing the customer or the re-supply of materials.
| SCOPE | INPUT | OUTPUT | TIME | |
| PLANNING | What to do | Orders | Production plan | Medium-Long |
| SCHEDULING | When to do | Production plan | Work Sequences | Short |
| EXECUTION | DO | Work Sequences | Progress | Immediate |
Why does it call itself Advanced?
The word Advanced is due to the fact that these planning software carry out planning and scheduling thanks to interactive processing and show the results in a graphical way, allowing you to search for the optimal plan extremely quickly.
In which sectors is it used?
APS software is used in all production sectors, from Make To Stock to Engineering To Order.
Companies characterized by MTS (Make To Stock) type production work according to sales forecasts and therefore to MF (Manufacturing Forecasting). MTS companies have more time available, both for the formulation of the production plan and for its revision, modification and correction. In these cases, the lead time is usually far greater than the lead time required by the market. In the MTS production scenario, different types of products are made on the basis of a constant and known demand, so it is necessary to define the optimal “production mix”. CyberPlan makes it possible to obtain effective demand forecasts and align production with these forecasts while keeping fixed capital at an optimal level. (For the story of some success stories of Make To Stock companies click here: Case Study MTS).
MTO (Make To Order) production systems face difficulties in optimizing on the finite horizon. CyberPlan allows you to easily schedule the load on each resource, minimizing costs related to the production process but constantly monitoring the level of service. The possibility of simulating alternative scenarios allows you to identify the best production plan that best meets the needs of the business. (For an account of some success stories of MTO companies click here: Case Study MTO).
The ATO (Assembly To Order) production sector is characterised by the presence of a high mix on the assembly line and the high risk of missing parts. CyberPlan allows you to balance the mix on the final assembly line, having all the materials and limiting inventories (in particular those with high consumption variability). (For an account of some success stories of ATO companies click here: ATO Case Study).
APS software is in any case the perfect application in companies that work on a contract basis, that is, whose production can be classified as ETO (Engineering To Order). In fact, in these companies the situation is more complex since the order cannot be expected and the delivery time is much longer. There is also an additional problem related to the purchase of critical materials (in terms of time and/or costs) that must be planned. When the order arrives, the bill must be exploded and the raw materials ordered according to the individual lead time of the material. In these productions, a fundamental aspect is to guarantee the expected delivery times to the customer and to better organize the production, with respect for the constraints and with the simulation of the consequences deriving from the changes. Production in the ETO sector is characterised by a high lead time and a high unit cost. CyberPlan gives the necessary visibility, allowing you to constantly monitor project milestones and to intervene well in advance in the presence of anomalies or unforeseen events, scheduling production in line with the requests of each order. (For an account of some success stories of ETO companies click here: ETO Case Study).
| Warehouse | Example | |
| ETO – Engineering To Order | Absent |  |
| MTO – Make To Order | Raw materials |  |
| ATO – Assembly To Order (FTO, BTO) | Semi-finished products |  |
| MTS – Make To Stock | Finished products |  |
What capabilities does an APS add to planning?
APS systems support the decision-making process of companies by providing them with the ability to:
- Simulate different scenarios (what-if analysis);
- Create feasible production plans considering factory constraints (finished capacity);
- Interact between different users to adjust the originally proposed plan;
- Maximize visibility over the entire planning, from the creation of demand forecasts to the purchasing plan and work sequences.
What requirements must an APS have?
First of all, it must be equipped with advanced algorithms for the management of the logics necessary for the planning and programming of production and the simulation of what-if scenarios. The best solution is not only the one that brings together all the necessary logics (MPs, MRP/CRP, finite capacity planning and scheduling) but that allows them to be processed in a compact way with a so-called “Closed Loop” approach where the feasibility of the plan is verified at each step. It is also essential for most companies that the finished capacity manages not only resource loads but also constraints on materials, in order to eliminate the problems of production shortages.
These algorithms must be supported by a technology in RAM that makes the processing of information extremely fast (thousands of articles in very few seconds) in order to guarantee the real interactivity of the user;
In order to make the best decisions, the APS must be equipped with very powerful, dynamic and interactive graphics. The user must be able to interact with every part of the software and have not only data but the data processed into useful information. Graphics therefore play a fundamental role. In fact, it must allow a process to be completed in a single window by analysing the scenarios, identifying the critical issues to bring the plan in line with the company’s objectives.
In addition, the software must be extremely customisable in order to adapt to the company and to be able to adapt over time as the company evolves. The software must therefore make the planning process scalable, so that it does not constitute a constraint to a change in the business (such as variations in the mix of products you know how to manage volumes).
Last but not least, the integrability of the APS system. An Advanced Planning System (APS) requires to be fed with a regular frequency with data from the company ERP and possibly from additional tools to support production planning such as MES (Manufacturing Execution Systems). The quality of the data received in input depends, to a large extent, on the goodness of the outputs that the new tool will be able to produce: this is why the phase of creating a data interface is particularly delicate. The integration must therefore be done by experienced personnel and the software must allow it to integrate naturally with external systems. The best way to understand the integrability of a software is to see how effective the integrations with other customers have been.
CyberPlan, leading APS for discrete manufacturing companies
Of all APS systems, CyberPlan is the leader in performance, reliability and adaptability over time. CyberPlan is the Italian Advanced Planning and Scheduling software with powerful algorithms built with a collaboration with mit in Boston, a modern technology with RAM databases that allows a processing of information in the frame of a few seconds even in the largest companies. It is the only APS that allows a real Closed Loop among the production algorithms. For this reason, it has also been awarded by APICS as part of General Electric’s innovation and performance optimisation project (Read the APICS article: Fueling the future) .
Anyone who sees or uses the APS CyberPlan software immediately recognizes the power of the unique graphical interface. Extremely elaborate, it allows the user to identify all the critical issues at a glance, analyse them and try to solve them while keeping the KPIs under control.
Over the years, CyberPlan has adapted perfectly to companies of all types and sizes. From small-medium-sized companies typical of the Italian territory (Selle Royal, Gewiss, Carraro, Unifarco) to large multinationals (General Electric, ABB, Vertiv, Luxottica, Ansaldo).
Thanks to this wide variety of companies, it has built a solid and mature software base as well as considerable experience in integrating with any type of ERP and other business systems. With regard to the most popular ERPs, it has also built a standard interface module that greatly reduces time and risks (these include, for example, SAP, Oracle, and eSolver). The implementation of CyberPlan in manufacturing companies with ERPs has made it possible to obtain Supply Chain Planning systems.
In addition, after years of development and investment, Cybertec solutions have been brought to the web, maintaining the same performance as before but greatly increasing information dispatching and collaboration in the development and execution of production plans.
Cybertec customer results
Thanks to these features, the Advanced Planning and Scheduling software CyberPlan allows the planner to have all the necessary information, to process it and thus make the best decisions quickly and safely, knowing the impacts at both operational and business level. The planner is able to manage production reliably simply and quickly, reducing costs, increasing efficiency and raising the level of service.
- Increase in the level of customer service: up to 98-99%;
- Increase in working capital thanks to the reduction of WIP by up to 50%, the increase in turnover and the reduction in production lead times;
- Increase in production capacity (up to 40-50%), as in the case of General Electric;
- ROI within the year and multiplied in subsequent years;
Scheduling with CyberPlan is the first step to take to compete in the current and future market that pursues Industry 4.0. Not using this technology would put your company at a disadvantage as other companies equipped with advanced software for production planning and scheduling accelerate the speed of supply chain execution to such a level that working harder and running faster is no longer enough to keep up.
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