Blog
Insights on production scheduling, lean manufacturing, and manufacturing software from 35+ years of industry experience.
Planning and scheduling practice that applies whichever system you run.
Operator Skill Constraints in Scheduling: Managing Certified Bottlenecks
When certified operators are your real bottleneck, machines sit idle. Learn skill matrix scheduling, cross-training ROI, and how to model operator constraints in scheduling software.
OTIF (On Time In Full): The Manufacturing KPI That Measures Delivery Performance
OTIF measures whether customers receive the right quantity at the right time. Learn how to calculate it, what drives poor scores, and how scheduling software closes the gap.
PCB Fabrication Scheduling: Managing Phototool Sequences, Plating Tanks, and Layer Constraints
PCB fabrication scheduling software that handles phototool sequencing, plating bath chemistry, drill allocation, and AOI queues. Built for electronics manufacturers.
Pegging in MRP: How to Trace Customer Orders All the Way to Raw Materials
Pegging lets you trace any MRP planned order back to its demand source - and forward from any supply shortage to the customer orders at risk. Here's how to use it.
Predictive vs. Prescriptive Analytics in Manufacturing Scheduling: What Your System Should Actually Do
Understand the four analytics levels - descriptive, diagnostic, predictive, and prescriptive - and why SMB manufacturers need prescriptive scheduling to compete.
Product Lifecycle Management in Manufacturing: From Design to End-of-Life
Learn what product lifecycle management (PLM) is, its 4 stages, how it connects to BOM management and production scheduling, and when manufacturers need PLM software.
Product Recall Management for Manufacturers: Lot Traceability, Serialization, and Rapid Response
How to manage a product recall in manufacturing - covering lot traceability, serialization, regulatory obligations, and how scheduling software speeds response.
Production Control: How Manufacturers Manage Shop Floor Execution Against the Schedule
Production control is the discipline of monitoring and adjusting shop floor activity to keep jobs on schedule. Learn the methods, metrics, and tools that make it work.
Production Routing: What It Is, How It Works, and Why It Drives Better Scheduling
Production routing defines the step-by-step path a job takes through your shop. Learn how accurate routings unlock faster scheduling, better capacity planning, and fewer delays.
Why Your Quoted Lead Time Never Matches Actual: The Data Behind Job Shop Quoting Accuracy
Queue time is 80% of lead time. Learn Little's Law, capacity-based quoting, and how to track quoting accuracy as a KPI to fix broken job shop delivery promises.
The Real Cost of Rush Orders in Job Shops: What They're Actually Doing to Your Schedule
Rush orders cost far more than expedite fees. Learn the cascade math, capacity buffer strategy, and how to quote rush orders with accurate finite capacity data.
Remanufacturing Scheduling: Variable Yield, Uncertain Content, and Teardown-to-Rebuild Workflows
Remanufacturing scheduling software that handles variable work content, probabilistic routing, core inventory constraints, and serial number traceability for rebuilt engines and equipment.