System and method for predictive maintenance and service parts fulfillment in a supply chain

• US 7,313,534 B2
• Filed: 05/29/2001
• Issued: 12/25/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 01/22/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: WW Grainger Incorporated
• Original Assignee: WW Grainger Incorporated
• Inventors: Scheer, Robert H.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hafiz, Tariq R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Jarrett, Scott L.
• Application Number:
  US09/867,068
• Publication Number:
  US 20020143598A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,401 Days
• Field of Search: 705/8, 705/9, 705/10
• US Class Current: 705/7.26
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06316 Sequencing of tasks or work
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/80 Management or planning

Abstract

A supply chain transaction network. The network includes a customer agent server hosting a collection of intelligent customer agents for interfacing with and extracting information from one or more of a condition monitoring system, a computer maintenance management system and a procurement system and a distributor agent server hosting a collection of intelligent distributor agents for interfacing and communicating with one or more of a supply chain planning system, an inventory management system, a logistic management system, an order management system, an intelligent order fulfillment system, and an equipment knowledge base. An agent network manager and broker routes messages between the distributor agent server and the customer agent server to effect a movement of items within the supply chain.

Claims

1. A system for positioning items within a supply chain network having a plurality of geographic locations, comprising:

a customer maintenance system into which a work order is entered including information that identifies a piece of equipment to be repaired and at least one item expected to be used during a repair procedure;

a customer agent system in communication with the customer maintenance system which extracts from the work order entered into the customer maintenance system the information that identifies the at least one item expected to be used during the repair procedure and which uses the information extracted from the work order entered into the customer maintenance system to create an advance demand notice order for the at least one item; and

a distributor system in communication with the customer agent server which responds to a receipt of the advance demand notice order that was created using the information extracted from the work order to;

a) determine if the advance demand notice order includes a probability that the at least one item will need to be used during the repair procedure;

b) estimate, using at least forecast data associated with one or more of the piece of equipment and the at least one item which forecast data is extracted from a database of forecast data accessible to the distributor system, the probability that the at least one item will need to be used during the repair procedure when it is determined that the advance demand notice order fails to include the probability that the at least one item will need to be used during the repair procedure;

c) determine a cost associated with moving the at least one item within the supply chain;

d) determine, based upon the probability that the at least one item will need to be used during the repair procedure, a customer specified level of service associated with the advance demand notice, and the cost associated with moving the at least one item within the supply chain, a plurality of fulfillment plans for the at least one item each of which includes a specification of a one of the plurality of geographic locations within the supply chain from which the at least one item is to be sourced and a one of the plurality of geographic locations within the supply chain at which the at least one item is to be positioned prior to commencement of the repair procedure; and

e) select one of the plurality of fulfillments plans for implementation;

a supplier system that cooperates with the distributor system by initiating a replenishment of the at least one item at the one of the plurality of geographic locations within the supply chain from which the at least one item is to be sourced in accordance with the selected fulfillment plan; and

a transportation agent system in communication with the distributor system that coordinates with the distributor system to assist in moving the at least one item between the one of the plurality of geographic locations within the supply chain from which the at least one item is to be sourced and the one of the plurality of geographic locations within the supply chain at which the at least one item is to be positioned in accordance with the selected fulfillment plan.

2. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the forecast data comprises one or more of historical data indicative of prior consumption rates of the at least one item by a customer that is to repair the piece of equipment, deterministic demand data indicative of scheduled maintenance activity for the piece of equipment, and non-deterministic demand data indicative of scheduled maintenance activity for the piece of equipment compared to historical unscheduled maintenance activity for the piece of equipment.

3. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the customer specified level of service comprises a customer desired one of the geographic locations within the supply chain at which the at least one item is to be positioned in response to the advance demand notice.

4. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the cost associated with moving the at least one item within the supply chain comprises one or more of an activity cost, a transportation cost, a holding cost, and an opportunity cost.

5. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the customer maintenance system comprises a computerized maintenance management system.

6. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the customer maintenance system comprises an enterprise asset management system.

7. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the customer agent server comprises an intelligent agent that extracts the information from the customer maintenance system in response to a user entering or modifying a work order.

8. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the distributor system comprises an intelligent agent in communication with the transportation agent system that monitors movement of the at least one item within the supply chain.

9. The system as recited in claim 3, wherein the intelligent agent forms a corrective fulfillment plan if the intelligent agent determines that the at least one item is not being moved within the supply chain in accordance with the selected fulfillment plan.

10. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the customer agent server extracts from the customer maintenance system forecast data for populating the database used in connection with estimating the probability that the at least one item will need to be used during the repair procedure.

11. The system as recited in claim 1, wherein the distributor system further uses one or more of a calculated distributor margin associated with fulfilling the advance demand notice and a customer pricing tolerance associated with fulfilling the advance demand notice when determining a plurality of fulfillment plans for the at least one item.