Recalculating planned requests

• US 20040117230A1
• Filed: 12/16/2002
• Published: 06/17/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/16/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Dell Products LP (Dell Technologies Inc.)
• Inventors: Jones, Kevin Thomas, Marrs, Jeffrey Alan, Beebe, Melissa Doris, Castle, Michael Shane
• Application Number:
  US10/320,889
• Publication Number:
  US 20040117230A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 705/8
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/41865 characterised by job scheduling, process planning, material flow
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32024 Remote ordering, electronic selection article and fitting to form of client
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/32256 Due dates, pieces must be ready, priority of dates, deadline
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06314 Calendaring for a resource
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0201 Market modelling; Market analysis; Collecting market data
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 80/40 Minimising material used in manufacturing processes
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

A method for scheduling work and delivery of material for items in a factory which includes obtaining a customer order, determining a current state of an available inventory of material from a plurality of material sources, generating a material request plan for producing the item using the customer order and the current state of the available inventory, and executing the material request plan. The customer order includes an item, having an associated quantity of a material to produce, ordered by a customer. The executing the material request plan includes netting deliveries of material with planned requests for material during the executing of the material request plan.

Claims

1. A method for scheduling work and delivery of material for items in a factory comprising:

obtaining a customer order, the customer order including an item ordered by a customer, the item having an associated quantity of a material to produce;

determining a current state of an available inventory of material from a plurality of material sources;

generating a material request plan for producing the item using the customer order and the current state of the available inventory;

executing the material request plan, the executing the material request plan including netting deliveries of material with planned requests for material during the executing of the material request plan.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein

the customer order and the current state of the available inventory are used to generate a subsequent work schedule and the material delivery schedule.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein

the obtaining the customer order includes using a status for the customer order, the status for each customer order being updated continuously;

and

the status for each outstanding customer order corresponds to an outstanding status.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein

the available inventory comprises external inventory.

5. The method of claim 1 wherein

the available inventory comprises work-in-progress inventory.

6. The method of claim 1 wherein

the available inventory comprises in-transit inventory.

7. The method of claim 1 wherein

the available inventory comprises in-house inventory.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein

the material source includes an external material source, the external material source providing an external inventory of the material of the available inventory;

and

the determining the available inventory of the material includes using an external visibility interface module to determine the available inventory of the first material in the external inventory.

9. The method of claim 1 wherein

the material request plan takes into account a true arrival time of the material.

10. The method of claim 1 wherein

the material request plan takes into account material requests that were netted out of an earlier execution cycle.

11. The method of claim 1 wherein

the item is an information handling system.

12. The method of claim 1 wherein

the deliveries include committed deliveries.

13. The method of claim 1 wherein

the deliveries include actual deliveries.

14. A system for scheduling work and delivery of material for items in a factory comprising:

means for obtaining a customer order, the customer order including an item ordered by a customer, the item having an associated quantity of a material to produce;

means for determining a current state of an available inventory of material from a plurality of material sources;

means for generating a material request plan for producing the item using the customer order and the current state of the available inventory;

means for executing the material request plan, the means for executing the material request plan including means for netting deliveries of material with planned requests for material during the executing of the material request plan.

15. The system of claim 14 wherein

the customer order and the current state of the available inventory are used to generate a subsequent work schedule and the material delivery schedule.

16. The system of claim 14 wherein

the obtaining the customer order includes using a status for the customer order, the status for each customer order being updated continuously;

and

the status for each outstanding customer order corresponds to an outstanding status.

17. The system of claim 14 wherein

the available inventory comprises external inventory.

18. The system of claim 14 wherein

the available inventory comprises work-in-progress inventory.

19. The system of claim 14 wherein

the available inventory comprises in-transit inventory.

20. The system of claim 14 wherein

the available inventory comprises in-house inventory.

21. The system of claim 14 wherein

the material source includes an external material source, the external material source providing an external inventory of the material of the available inventory;

and

the means for determining the available inventory of the material includes means for using an external visibility interface module to determine the available inventory of the first material in the external inventory.

22. The system of claim 14 wherein

the material request plan takes into account a true arrival time of the material.

23. The system of claim 14 wherein

the material request plan takes into account material requests that were netted out of an earlier execution cycle.

24. The system of claim 14 wherein

the item is an information handling system.

25. The system of claim 14 wherein

the deliveries include committed deliveries.

26. The system of claim 14 wherein

the deliveries include actual deliveries.

27. An apparatus for scheduling work and delivery of material for items in a factory comprising:

an obtaining module, the obtaining module obtaining a customer order, the customer order including an item ordered by a customer, the item having an associated quantity of a material to produce;

a determining module, the determining module determining a current state of an available inventory of material from a plurality of material sources;

a generating module, the generating module generating a material request plan for producing the item using the customer order and the current state of the available inventory;

a plan execution module, the plan execution module executing the material request plan, the plan execution module including a netting module, the netting module netting deliveries of material with planned requests for material during the executing of the material request plan.

28. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the customer order and the current state of the available inventory are used to generate a subsequent work schedule and the material delivery schedule.

29. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the obtaining the customer order includes using a status for the customer order, the status for each customer order being updated continuously;

and

the status for each outstanding customer order corresponds to an outstanding status.

30. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the available inventory comprises external inventory.

31. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the available inventory comprises work-in-progress inventory.

32. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the available inventory comprises in-transit inventory.

33. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the available inventory comprises in-house inventory.

34. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the material source includes an external material source, the external material source providing an external inventory of the material of the available inventory;

and

the determining the available inventory of the material includes using an external visibility interface module to determine the available inventory of the first material in the external inventory.

35. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the material request plan takes into account a true arrival time of the material.

36. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the material request plan takes into account material requests that were netted out of an earlier execution cycle.

37. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the item is an information handling system.

38. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the deliveries include committed deliveries.

39. The apparatus of claim 27 wherein

the deliveries include actual deliveries.