Material Planning Simulation is a planning tool that enables organizations to model and evaluate various
demand and supply scenarios without impacting live production data. It helps analyze how changes in demand and
corresponding supply could affect the overall supply chain and manufacturing operations.
This simulation capability supports tactical decision-making, risk mitigation, and agile responses to dynamic
market conditions.
IFS/Material Planning Simulation operates using the same rules and concepts as IFS/Material Requirements Planning (MRP) and IFS/Master Scheduling (MS) solutions.
Different simulation runs are represented by Material Planning Scenarios, which define
specific material setups used to simulate varying supply and demand outcomes. These scenarios are defined on the
Material Planning Scenarios page.
Material Planning Scenario 1 (Planning Table for MRP and CRP) is automatically created during system installation
and represents the live execution of MRP or MS. All other scenarios are user-defined and are used exclusively for
simulation purposes. It enables users to perform “what-if” analysis by running MS and MRP simulations
independently of the live execution scenario (Scenario 1).
While live MRP or MS creates actual supply proposals, such as Shop Order Requisitions, Purchase Requisitions, Production Schedules, or Supplier Schedules, simulations do not create real supply proposals. Instead, simulated supply and demand explosions remain virtual, allowing users to explore different planning situations without affecting live data.
MRP simulation supports parallel execution across multiple planning scenarios for the same site or planning network. This flexibility allows planners to execute simulations for different material setups simultaneously, enabling faster comparisons, improved scenario analysis, and more informed decision-making, all without disrupting live operations.
Material Planning Simulation fits into the broader planning process by starting with a demand forecast in Demand Planner, importing it into Master Scheduling (MS), running MS and reviewing key pages, validating capacity feasibility through Rough-Cut Capacity Planning (RRP), adjusting the Master Production Schedule as needed, re-running RRP, and finally performing an MRP Simulation to evaluate material availability and planning outcomes.
MRP simulation is fundamentally another MRP run, executed on a Material Planning Scenario other than material scenario 1. It can be executed for a site or a planning network.
If Master Scheduling (MS) top-level parts are present, the simulation begins with the exploded demands to
MRP-planned parts, based on planned receipts already executed for MS level 1 parts within the selected Material
Planning Scenario. It then proceeds to perform MRP and MS calculations for all MRP- and/or MS-planned parts
across the bill of materials, either per site or across a planning network.
If you want to retrieve the latest demands and generate supply proposals for MS top-level parts, you must first
execute the MS calculation for the selected Material Planning Scenario.
Supply and demand data can be included in the simulation in three ways:
A simulation profile is used to define and manage supply and demand data for simulation purposes. It
is created per site and per Material Planning Scenario for MRP-planned parts.
Existing demands and open supply orders along with relevant MRP planning parameters can be imported from the last
live MRP run using the Import Results from Material Planning Scenario
One job. These are stored on the Existing
Demands and Existing Supplies tabs.
Note: Simulation profiles, which allow users to manipulate existing demands and add additional demands, apply only to MRP-Planned parts. For MS-Planned parts, forecast functionality can be used to simulate additional demand scenarios.
Users can modify independent demand quantities and their required dates for selected MRP sources. Simulation
required date should be a working date in the site manufacturing calendar.
Editable demand sources include:
Additional hypothetical demands, such as potential customer orders, can be added via the Additional Demands tab. These will be captured in the simulation as Simulated Independent Demand with its MRP source. Including or excluding an additional demand in the subsequent simulation runs can be controlled using the Include in Simulation toggle without deleting the simulation demand line.
When using a simulation profile, the independent demands, open supply orders, on-hand inventory, and key
planning parameters remain consistent over time. This provides a stable baseline for simulation runs, ensuring
repeatability and clarity when comparing different planning scenarios.
Since the data is not retrieved live during each run, this method also reduces execution time and offers
performance benefits.
This option uses the most up-to-date material positions by fetching live data from inventory, customer orders, purchase orders, and other sources. If no changes have occurred since the last MRP run, the simulation results will closely mirror the live execution.
This method combines real-time system data with manually added simulation demands. It allows users to assess the impact of hypothetical demand spikes on the current supply-demand setup, offering a dynamic view of potential planning outcomes.
MRP action messages can be used to analyze simulation results and derive meaningful insights. All standard MRP Action Messages generated during a live MRP run are also applied in MRP Simulation.
Note: When using a simulation profile, the system does not take a new snapshot of live
data. As a result, some action messages that are generated during that phase are skipped.
The following messages are not regenerated:
The Remove Material Planning Simulation Results job is used to clear
outdated or unnecessary simulation results from the MRP tables without deleting the associated Material Planning
Scenario or any created simulation profiles.
This ensures that users work with the most relevant and current data, prevents confusion caused by obsolete
simulations, and optimizes database storage for better system performance.