MULTI-LEVEL DISTRIBUTION PLANNING

• US 20150168947A1
• Filed: 12/13/2013
• Published: 06/18/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Oracle International Corporation (Oracle Corporation)
• Inventors: IRELAND, Ashley V., SMITH, Lisa M.
• Granted Patent: US 9,704,125 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

Systems and methods are described herein that provide multi-level distribution planning utilizing simplified inventory movements to simplify the distribution planning process for inventory movements that include cross-docking while identifying cross-docked inventory to the cross-dock locations to prevent unnecessary handling. A simplified inventory movement is constructed that represents a multi-level route as a single movement from source to destination with an associated lead time that includes all time-related factors that arise in moving the inventory from the source through the cross-dock locations to the destination. The simplified inventory movement is provided to distribution planning solutions and the distribution planning solutions treat the multi-level route in the same manner as a single level route having the same source, destination, and lead time. This simplifies the distribution planning process and prevents the inventory from being re-allocated by the distribution planning solutions.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer storage medium storing computer-executable instructions comprising instructions for:

identifying an inventory movement for a quantity of items from a source to a destination that includes at least one cross-dock location, where the cross-dock location has an associated cross-dock delay time and the destination has an associated destination delay time; and

determining a simplified inventory movement comprising the source and the destination with an associated lead time, where the lead time corresponds to the sum of the cross-dock delay time and the destination delay time; and

providing the simplified inventory movement to a distribution planning process, such that the distribution planning process plans inventory movements for the quantity of items in the same manner as when the inventory movement does not include the cross-dock location.

2. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 1, where the instructions for determining include aggregating a cross-dock lead time, a cross-dock processing time, and a destination lead time to calculate the lead time.

3. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 1, where the instructions for determining include instructions for retrieving a stored simplified inventory movement mapped to the source, the cross-dock location, and the destination.

4. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 1, where the instructions for determining include instructions for retrieving a stored simplified inventory movement mapped to a SKU for the items, the source, the cross-dock location, and the destination.

5. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 1, where the cross-dock delay time includes a maximum hold time associated with the cross-dock location.

6. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 1, where the instructions further comprise instructions for releasing the quantity of items at the cross-dock location at the same time the quantity of items is released from the source.

7. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 1, where the instructions further comprise instructions for creating a receipt plan for the cross-dock location that does not include the quantity of goods.

8. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 1, where the instructions further comprise instructions for:

after the distribution planning process is complete, creating a first transaction that corresponds to a first shipment of the quantity of items from the source to cross-dock location;

creating a second transaction that corresponds to a second shipment of the quantity of items from the cross-dock location to the destination; and

linking the first transaction to the second transaction such that, at the cross-dock location, the quantity of items for the second shipment is satisfied from the first shipment.

9. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 1, where the instructions further comprise preventing the distribution planning process from altering the quantity of items.

10. A computing system, comprising:

a simplified inventory movement (SIM) logic configured to identify an inventory movement for a quantity of items from a source to a destination that includes at least one cross-dock location, where the cross-dock location has an associated cross-dock lead time and the destination has an associated destination lead time; and

determine a simplified inventory movement comprising the source and the destination with an associated lead time, where the lead time corresponds to the sum of the cross-dock lead time and the destination lead time; and

a planning logic configured to plan inventory movements for the quantity of items based on the simplified inventory movement, such that the planning logic plans the inventory movements for the quantity of items in the same manner as when the inventory movement does not include the cross-dock location.

11. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the SIM logic is configured to aggregate the cross-dock lead time and the destination lead time to calculate the lead time.

12. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the SIM logic is configured to retrieve a stored simplified inventory movement mapped to the source, the cross-dock location, and the destination.

13. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the SIM logic is configured to retrieve a stored simplified inventory movement mapped to a SKU the items, the source, the cross-dock location, and the destination.

14. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the cross-dock lead time includes a processing time associated with the cross-dock location.

15. The computing system of claim 10, wherein the planning logic is configured to release the quantity of items at the cross-dock location at the same time the quantity of items is released from the source.

16. The computing system of claim 10, further comprising an expansion logic configured to, after the planning logic plans using the simplified inventory movement:

create a first transaction that corresponds to a first shipment of the quantity of items from the source to cross-dock location;

create a second transaction that corresponds to a second shipment of the quantity of items from the cross-dock location to the destination; and

link the first transaction to the second transaction such that, at the cross-dock location, the quantity of items for the second shipment is satisfied from the first shipment.

17. A non-transitory computer storage medium storing computer-executable instructions comprising instructions for:

identifying an inventory movement of a quantity of items that includes a first shipment of the quantity of items from a source to a cross-dock location and a second shipment of the quantity of items from the cross-dock location to a destination; and

for distribution planning purposes, releasing the quantity of items at the cross-dock location at the same time the quantity of items is released at the source.

18. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 17, where the instructions further comprise instructions for:

creating a first transaction that corresponds to a first shipment of the quantity of items from the source to cross-dock location;

creating a second transaction that corresponds to a second shipment of the quantity of items from the cross-dock location to the destination; and

linking the first transaction to the second transaction such that, at the cross-dock location, the quantity of items for the second shipment is satisfied from the first shipment.

19. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 17, where the instructions further comprise instructions for preventing alteration of the quantity of items once the first shipment is released.

20. The non-transitory computer storage medium of claim 17, where the instructions further comprise instructions for:

determining a simplified inventory movement comprising the source and the destination with an associated lead time, where the lead time corresponds to a sum of a cross-dock lead time and a destination lead time; and

providing the simplified inventory movement to a distribution planning process, such that the distribution planning process plans inventory movements for the quantity of items in the same manner as when the inventory movement does not include the cross-dock location.