Manufacturing planning is primarily a contractor function though there are some DOD organizations that do accomplish manufacturing tasks and as such must plan for those activities. Planning is a complex task that includes long-range plans, medium-range plans, and short-range plans (see Figure 6-1).
Long-range manufacturing or production plans (2-5 years) takes into consideration Corporate Strategic Plans and long-range business forecasts to leverage core capabilities in the achievement of corporate goals. This planning, sometimes referred to as aggregate production planning, represents the role of production in the strategic business plan and aligns financial planning along with resource/capacity planning and market conditions to align production with long-term demand forecast. Corporations that do business with the DOD align their long range plans with DOD strategic plans, forecast and world politics. A good example of this is when the DOD releases its Five Year Defense Plan (FYDP) it provides contractors with DOD 's roadmap for spending and they can align their strategic plans and investment strategies to those plans.
Figure 6-1 Manufacturing Planning
Medium-range manufacturing plans (6-18 months), sometimes referred to as the Master Production Scheduling (MPS), breaks down a business plan and aggregate production plan into product plans or families of products. The MPS generates schedules for specific products and the amount company intends to produce by month for the next few months. The MPS is not a detailed plan. The MPS might include medium-range demand forecasting, capacity planning, shop-floor modeling and simulation to optimize production and layout production schedules and workflow, materials planning to include supplier agreements and partnering, plans for tooling and special test equipment, and investment strategies to support the achievement of the above considerations. A good example of shifting plans to meet market conditions is when automobile manufacturers shift production from larger vehicles to smaller, more gas efficient vehicles after seeing gasoline prices rise sharply. A good DOD example of companies reacting to changing world politics is when the wars against terrorism saw a dramatic rise in the use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs) it caused the DOD to accelerate its development and production of Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles.
Short-range manufacturing plans are the day-to-day plans and activities. This could include capacity planning and scheduling; materials requirements planning; production planning which includes detailed workflow analysis from procurement to receiving through fabrication; sub-assembly; assembly; inspection/test; and packaging and shipping. Short range plans include Material Requirements Planning (MRP) and Capacity Requirements Planning (CRP).
Materials Requirements Planning (MRP) takes the product requirements from the Master Production Schedule and breaks them down into sub-assemblies and components. The MRP is used to help ensure materials are released on time to production and that the system can meet the customer's delivery or schedule requirements. The MRP helps to manage and minimize inventory and purchasing activities.
Capacity Requirements Planning (CRP) provides a detailed schedule of each operation by workstation and identifies the processing times for each operation.
Planning is carried out so that activities and resources are coordinated over time to achieve the goals with as little resource consumption as possible. Planning must be done so that the progress of the plan can be monitored at regular intervals and control over operations can be maintained. Planning in the manufacturing environment involves many elements: scheduling, labor planning, equipment planning, process planning, materials planning, quality planning, and cost planning.
- Scheduling involves specifying the start, duration, sequencing and end of the various activities.
- Labor planning involves the training and allocation of qualified personnel, distribution of responsibilities and resources.
- Equipment planning involves identification, purchasing, installation and checkout of the required equipment.
- Process planning involves the identification of processes (especially key and critical processes) and the maturing of these processes so that their cost and performance is well characterized.
- Materials planning involves could involve the entire supply chain and at a minimum should include key and critical suppliers and vendors.
- Quality planning involves the identification of methods to verify product quality (measurement) and the purchasing and proofing of that equipment.
- Cost planning involves identification of costs and when they will occur to include long term capital expenditures.
Based upon the product manufacturing demands, a business structure for the program can be developed. This structure should define the specific elements of the prime contractor organization that will be involved in the program and the numbers and types of subcontractors required. The decision regarding subcontractors should be made from the standpoint of contractor capability as well as capacity. Within the context of the defined business structure, there should be an identification of the specific resources required. Personnel should be identified in terms of both quantity and specific skill types required, and time-phased over the planning horizon. Manufacturing facilities and equipment which will be required at the prime and subcontractor locations should also be identified.
6.3.4 Integrated Master Plan
The Integrated Master Plan (IMP) is an event-based plan consisting of a hierarchy of program events, with each event being supported by specific accomplishments, and each accomplishment associated with specific criteria to be satisfied for its completion. The IMP should provide sufficient definition to allow for the tracking of the completion of required accomplishments for each event, and to demonstrate satisfaction of the completion criteria for each accomplishment. In addition, the IMP demonstrates the maturation of the design/development of the product as it progresses through a disciplined systems engineering process. IMP events are not tied to calendar dates; each event is completed when its supporting accomplishments are completed and when this is evidenced by the satisfaction of the criteria supporting each of those accomplishments. The IMP is placed on contract and becomes the baseline execution plan for the program/project. Although fairly detailed, the IMP is a relatively top-level document in comparison with the Integrated Master Schedule (IMS).
