How do you handle production planning when forecasts are inaccurate and OTD is critical?
I work in a manufacturing environment with order-based production, and I’m really interested in learning how different companies manage production planning challenges in real life.
Especially when:
Forecasts are inaccurate
Customers change priorities frequently
Capacity is limited
On-time delivery (OTD) is a key KPI
I’d love to know:
How do you build your production plan?
Do you rely more on forecast or actual orders?
How do you manage scheduling and prioritization?
How do you study capacity and bottlenecks before launching a project/product?
What tools or methods helped improve OTD in your factory?
How do planners coordinate with procurement, warehouse, and production teams?
Also curious about whether you use Excel, ERP systems, APS tools, or custom methods.
Would really appreciate hearing real experiences, lessons learned, or even mistakes that taught you something valuable.