Advanced Planning and Scheduling. AP&S software is a term used to describe software with more powerful planning and scheduling features than traditional MRP and MRPII. The main distinguishing features are memory based planning, simultaneous planning and optimization of all resources (constraints), use of infinite or finite capacity planning or both. The constraints covered would usually include materials, machines and people, and may also include tools, warehouse capacity, distribution networks and transportation. In fact the scope of some products covers the entire supply chain. Key functional areas may include Demand Planning, Manufacturing Planning and Scheduling, Distribution, Transport. Planning and scheduling may also provide for optimization across multi-warehouse, multi-plant, multi-country environments.
Bill of Materials - Contains information related to the structuring of a product. Information such as the quantity of each component required for the fabrication of an end item or subassembly.
Cost Management - The ability to maintain and calculate appropriate cost data relating to the business. May include the ability to handle weighted costs, standard product cost, actual cost and activity based cost.
Customer Relationship Management - Managing the overall marketing, sales and service process. May include lead management from initial prospect to close of sale and beyond, campaign management to monitor the success of a specific marketing campaign, marketing encyclopedia distributing resources for sales personnel (brochures, product information etc).
Demand Management/Forecasting - Covers forecasting and order management and may include advanced forecasting techniques, collaborative forecasting, multi dimensional planning and ways of dealing with common sales patterns and events such as promotions and seasonality.
Distribution - Distribution organizations manage the activities associated with the movement of materials through the supply chain, usually finished goods or parts, from the supplier to the customer.
Distribution Requirements Planning (DRP) - DRP determines the need to replenish inventory at branch warehouses. A time phased order point approach is often used (similar to MRP logic) whereby the planned orders are driven by actual requirements by date. The overall intent of DRP is to schedule inventory replenishments to meet demand at branch warehouses within the customer service guidelines and inventory levels specified by management policies.
E-Commerce - Is the paperless (electronic) exchange of business information such as purchase orders, shipment authorizations, advanced shipment notices and invoices. It may act as an enabler for a wide range of applications including electronic payments, credit rating, communication within virtual teams, information access and sharing, electronic catalogues etc.
Engagement Management: This is the real heavy-lifting segment of Professional Services Accounting (PSA) and can be broken down into four key deliverable areas: Delivery Management ensures service enterprises effectively and efficiently manage time, expenses, materials and other resources during an engagement. Project Management through tight, bi-directional integration with Microsoft Outlook and Microsoft Project enriched by functionality that helps managers assign the right resource by considering factors like skills, availability and billing or cost
Estimating - Estimating is an important aspect of make-to-order or engineer-to-order environments. An estimating function facilitates timely estimates and retains information for subsequent conversion to manufacturing orders. In most estimating systems a product configurator is used as a tool to automate the development of the estimate.
Financials - Covers Accounts Receivable, Accounts Payable and General Ledger. Accounts Payable handles vendor invoice processing, payment approval, and check printing. Accounts Receivable performs the functions of maintaining customer account information, the generation of customer invoices and periodic statements, and the application of payments received. A means is usually provided to monitor the aging of account balances, as well as the maintenance of customer credit limit data. General Ledger classifies and summarizes all financial activity and provides the ability for financial reporting.
Fixed Asset Management - Provides for the maintenance of property, plant, equipment and other depreciable items. Also manages depreciation expense and accumulated depreciation schedules.
Human Resource Management - Describes the functions within a company that relate to people. Computer systems to support this function include Payroll, Personnel and Skills Database.
Inventory Management - Handles all functions related to the tracking and management of material. This would include the monitoring of material moved into and out of stockroom locations and the reconciling of the inventory balances. Also may include ABC analysis, lot tracking, serial number tracking and cycle counting support.
Logistics - In an industrial context, logistics means the art and science of obtaining, producing, and distributing material and product in the proper place and in proper quantities.
Maintenance Management - Provides for the planning and control of activities associated with maintenance activities of a plant or facility. This would normally encompass labor and materials and may include the management of parts inventory.
Material Requirements Planning (MRP) - The Material Requirements Planning process is designed to take the Master Production Schedule replenishment quantities, 'explode' through the bill of materials to create component requirements which are netted against on-hand and on-order, level by level. The component requirements are a series of planned production and purchase orders. It is a time-phased process whereby the planned orders are driven by actual requirements by date.
MRPII - A method for the effective planning of all resources of a manufacturing company. Ideally, it addresses operational planning in units, financial planning in dollars and has a simulation capability to answer 'what if' questions.
Product Configurator - A software tool to assist with the configuration of products from a number of options. This would involve selecting customer requirements by choosing from a menu of option driven by an underlying set of rules. Automatic generation of bills of materials, routings and costs are typical features associated with a product configurator. Most useful in a Make to Order or an Engineer to Order environment.
Production Scheduling - The process of developing a schedule authorizing the factory to perform certain work (items, quantities, dates).
Project Accounting: The concept of accounting for the financial aspects of running a project and ensuring that they are properly represented within fiscal statements. Capturing costs, accruing for ongoing work in process (WIP) and billing for work is all part of project accounting.
Project Management and Accounting - A mechanism to control project accounting, enter time and materials consumed and conduct financial follow-up on time and material projects and internal projects. Advanced features could encompass advanced financial management including work-in-process handling for more complex time and material projects, internal projects, and fixed-price projects.
Resource Management: Assigning staff based on skill development, within desired geography and providing the means to reduce working hours over and above an eight to nine hour day are essential elements of staff retention and increased profitability.