The Benefits of Using PFM for Production Planning and Scheduling

As a manufacturer in today’s competitive market, you need a production planning and scheduling software solution that enables you to utilize resources effectively, consistently exceed consumer expectations, and prepare for anything that comes your way. Protected Flow Manufacturing (PFM) is the only production planning system that can deliver all of that and more.

See what PFM has in store:

icon Protect Commitments

Protect Commitments

Proper production scheduling and management lets you make customer commitments with confidence. Using PFM, you can adjust the threat level (risk of being late) when unexpected variables arise to ensure all job deadlines are met.
icon Shop Floor Scheduling Made Easy

Shop Floor Scheduling Made Easy

Our production planning and scheduling software provides a clear priority for each operation, without complex finite scheduling. Instead of trying to plan the use of each resource into future time periods, PFM dynamically calculates the threat level of every work order in real time and optimally prioritizes work.
icon Optimize Resources

Optimize Resources

Ensure that every job runs through resources in the right sequence. By using our shop floor scheduling software to develop optimized flows, you can ensure that resources aren’t overloaded, thereby enabling you to complete one operation and move seamlessly on to the next.
icon Maximize Throughput

Maximize Throughput

PFM enables you to strategically allot resources for each job, which makes it possible to move more jobs through the shop floor in a shorter period of time.
icon Optimize Jobs of All Sizes

Optimize Jobs of All Sizes

Traditional scheduling prioritizes work by due date. Our manufacturing scheduling software identifies which jobs have the highest threat level and prioritizes them accordingly, so work is always completed on time.
icon Eliminate Expediting

Eliminate Expediting

Expediting jobs is both time-consuming and costly. PFM eliminates the need for it by enabling you to monitor work completed across all jobs in real time and determine which jobs to expedite without manual analysis.
icon Reliable Delivery Dates

Reliable Delivery Dates

Our production planning and scheduling software streamlines every aspect of the production cycle and enables you to account for variability. In doing so, we make it possible for you to consistently provide your customers with reliable delivery dates.
icon Increase Profitability

Increase Profitability

PFM provides you with opportunities to capture more business and to charge a premium for shorter lead times. It also provides faster cash velocity, meaning it reduces the amount of time between when you pay for materials and collect from customers.
Features & Capabilities of PFM Production Planning and Scheduling Software
icon Real-Time Shop Floor Execution

Real-Time Shop Floor Execution

PFM’s foundation prioritizes work in real time rather than require you to run and re-run a schedule. This puts the most accurate and up-to-date information directly into the hands of the people who need it most. Job assignments are understood, trusted, and executed in the correct order.
icon Integration with Existing Production Planning Systems

Integration with Existing Production Planning Systems

Our production planning and scheduling software seamlessly integrates with all of your existing production planning systems, including ERP, stock, and CRM solutions, in order to augment and extend their functionality.
icon Manufacturing Predictive Analytics

Manufacturing Predictive Analytics

Rather than assign future capacity to jobs the way traditional production scheduling software would, PFM simulates capacity usage and points out which jobs and resources are most likely to have problems. This provides you with a clear picture of the future and enables you to implement an action plan to deliver jobs on time.
icon Real-Time Reporting

Real-Time Reporting

PFM automatically adjusts priorities based on real-time labor reporting, so you always have access to the most up-to-date information.
icon Precise Production Line Routing

Precise Production Line Routing

Thanks to real-time reporting, our shop floor scheduling software enables you to see the exact status of every job on the production floor.
icon Visual Dashboards

Visual Dashboards

PFM takes production control one step further than traditional solutions by not only presenting schedules in an easy-to-understand visual format, but also by color-coding job sequences based on priority. This enables shop floor staff to see what needs to be worked on and when, and for you to see the status of different jobs.
icon Protective Time Buffers

Protective Time Buffers

Our manufacturing production scheduling software plans for unexpected problems that can disrupt a static schedule. It achieves this by calculating time buffers based on the ratio of actual time to buffer time and the sum of different buffer sizes based on the operations required. PFM then automatically builds those into your schedule.
icon Mobile Access

Mobile Access

PFM is internet-capable, meaning workers can access priority lists from any device connected to the internet, including tablets and smartphones.
Why Our Customers Refer Us
Video Poster

The results were immediate. We went from four weeks late to three weeks late to two weeks late to one week late. And now, I can look out one month and see that we’re going to be one day, two days late on this job, but on time for that job.

Val Zanchuk, President
Graphicast
View Case Study
Video Poster

We don’t "kick" all of the jobs to the shop floor at once like we used to. Putting too many jobs onto the shop floor prematurely burns up machine time. You utilize capacity before it needs to be used by putting all the jobs out on the shop floor at once.

Jeff Cederstrom, President
Arch Global Precision
View Case Study
Video Poster

In the first couple months using PFM, our concentration was to just get rid of the backlog of late orders. Now, since February 2018, we’ve run four months in a row where we’ve been 90% or better on time with all of the orders coming through the door. That’s a dramatic turnaround!

Rory Lee, Business Development Manager
Saturn Industries
View Case Study
Facts about Manufacturing Production Scheduling and Planning with PFM
81%
decrease in lead time from 16 to 3 weeks
3 weeks
average time it takes to set up our production control software
66.7%
decrease in backlog after a few weeks
Designed for Your Industry
Aerospace & Defense
Automotive Manufacturing
Electronics & High-Tech
Energy Manufacturing
Field Service, Maintenance & Repair
Furniture & Fixtures
History of Production Control
Industrial Equipment & Machinery
Industrial Manufacturing
Medical Device Manufacturing
Metal, Glass, & Plastic Fabrication
Process Manufacturing
Image Poster
Aerospace & Defense

Aerospace & Defense

The aerospace, defense, space and security (A&D) industries are major contributors to our economy. They thrive if supported by scalable, industry specific applications. Synergy Resources’ applications and modules aid scientific and engineering talent in cutting-edge A&D industries. Synergy Resources helps you meet your goals faster-even while confronting escalating costs and market complexity.
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Highlights
  • Engineering with CAD integration
  • Engineering change control
  • Specifications and data "flow down" for ITAR, DFAR, etc.
  • Actual job costing
  • Project Management with Earned Value Management and milestone reporting
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Automotive Manufacturing

Automotive Manufacturing

As a manufacturer in the specialty vehicle industry, such as boats or emergency vehicles, you need a solution that can quickly respond to unique product configurations and accurately budget and manage actual costs associated with these jobs or projects. Infor VISUAL ERP is it!
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Highlights
  • Configuration management
  • Serial and lot control
  • Design and engineering
  • Capacity planning & scheduling (Lean, TOC, JIT)
  • Actual costing
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Electronics & High-Tech

Electronics & High-Tech

As a high tech or electronic manufacturer, you need control over component and finished goods inventory at the revision and tracking number level to efficiently and effectively service customers. Infor VISUAL ERP delivers the supply chain visibility to meet these demands and also offers comprehensive material and capacity planning functionality, which maximizes productivity.
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Highlights
  • Alternate item on bill of materials (BOM)
  • Item cross reference (supplier and manufacturer)
  • Approved vendors and manufacturer lists
  • Supply chain visibility with Web based portals
  • Reference designators
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Energy Manufacturing

Energy Manufacturing

Synergy has a track record of implementing the right software, deploying efficient business processes, and developing the right metrics. This provides you with the insight and visibility you need into business operations and drives desired behaviors.
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Optimize People, Processes, & Technology.
  • Strengthen Your Supply Chain
  • Sophisticated Project Management
  • Connect Service Efforts to Operations
  • Localization & Financial Accounting Visibility
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Field Service, Maintenance & Repair

Field Service, Maintenance & Repair

Revenue growth, customer satisfaction, and strategic goals around competitive differentiation are requiring field service and MRO organizations to rapidly transform. Manufacturing companies that once outsourced field service are seeing the growth and profit potential of an "insourced" aftermarket service team. Staying competitive with solutions that allow you to track costs, improve inventory availability, and take advantage of digital technologies such as IIoT, GPS, and predictive AI is not only advantageous, but necessary.
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Highlights
  • Improve Customer Satisfaction & First Time Fix Rate
  • Reduce Days Sales Outstanding (DSO)
  • Optimize Routing of Field Service Techs
  • Support for Depot Repair, Break-Fix & More
  • Offer Managed Service Contracts
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Furniture & Fixtures

Furniture & Fixtures

Today's customers demand that furniture and fixture manufacturers offer new product lines and custom options for existing products on demand. We can help you build speed and flexibility into your engineering and production processes so you can meet expectations.
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Highlights
  • Industry Expert Partners
  • Increase Quote Win Rate
  • Improve Planning & Scheduling
  • Cut Operational Costs
  • Shorten Product Development Lifecycles
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History of Production Control

History of Production Control

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Industrial Equipment & Machinery

Industrial Equipment & Machinery

If you're like most of our equipment manufacturer customers, you compete by selling a complete solution that includes aftermarket services, countless configuration options, and available spare parts. Our solutions have a broad set of capabilities to meet your unique challenges. You'll have the control and visibility you need throughout the entire product lifecycle.
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Gain a competitive edge and extend your aftermarket offerings.
  • Win More Business
  • Meet Customer Delivery Expectations
  • Increase Velocity of Spare Part Sales
  • Collaborate With Suppliers & Customers
  • Leave Your Competitors Behind
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Industrial Manufacturing

Industrial Manufacturing

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Highlights
  • End-to-end customer relationship, sales, purchasing, performance, and financial management
  • Estimating with multiple quantity breaks
  • Integrated capacity planning (Lean, TOC, JIT) with unlimited "what-if" scenarios
  • Material planning with real-time visibility of demand and supply
  • Cost control (actual, average, standard)
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Medical Device Manufacturing

Medical Device Manufacturing

Synergy's Continuous Improvement teams have helped medical device manufacturers to increase productivity both in the office and on the shop floor. Our ERP products enable employees to complete assigned tasks faster and make more products without increasing costs.
Learn More
Highlights
  • End-to-end customer relationship, sales, purchasing, performance, and financial management
  • Estimating with multiple quantity breaks
  • Integrated capacity planning (Lean, TOC, JIT) with unlimited "what-if" scenarios
  • Material planning with real-time visibility of demand and supply
  • Cost control (actual, average, standard)
Image Poster
Metal, Glass, & Plastic Fabrication

Metal, Glass, & Plastic Fabrication

Our ERPs are purpose-built for MTO, ETO, CTO/ATO, MTS, and mixed-mode manufacturing companies. The end-to-end solutions helps manufacturers like you increase efficiency, accurately manage cost position, meet and exceed customer expectations, and accelerate growth.
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Highlights
  • Purpose-Built ERP
  • Estimate with Confidence
  • Improve Delivery Performance
  • Paperless Real-Time Shop Floor Data Collection
  • The Right Materials at the Right Time
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Process Manufacturing

Process Manufacturing

As a food, beverage, chemical, or life science manufacturer, you have specific requirements when it comes to your manufacturing operations. Infor CloudSuite Process makes it easy to adjust formulas based on exacting manufacturing specifications and to monitor and respond to the evolving regulatory environment.
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Highlights
  • Flexible Formula Management
  • Stay On Top of Quality Requirements & Regulations
  • Build a Better Batch
  • Lot Recall
  • Process Workbench

Production Planning and Scheduling FAQs

Q: What is production planning?
A: Production planning refers to the process by which manufacturers allocate resources — including raw materials, employees, and production capacity — to meet the requirements of incoming work orders.

Q: Why are production planning and scheduling important?
A: Production planning and scheduling are essential to ensuring proper resource allocation, completing work on time, and meeting customer commitments.

Q: What are the main things to consider when scheduling production?
A: When scheduling production, it’s important to consider raw materials, available inventory, production capacity, employee skill levels, forecasted demand, and due dates, as well as other variables that can crop up during a job.

Q: Why is Excel and other spreadsheet-based software insufficient for production planning and scheduling?
A: Although Excel and other manual forms of shop floor scheduling are affordable and pose a relatively low barrier to entry, using spreadsheets for production planning and scheduling is labor intensive and error prone. Excel and other spreadsheet-based software do not offer true dynamic capacity management, meaning manual schedules quickly become outdated. By comparison, PFM uses dynamic capacity management, so your employees can trust that all schedules are up to date and accurate.

Q: Why is QuickBooks insufficient for production planning and scheduling?
A: Although QuickBooks Enterprise for Manufacturing & Wholesale is a popular production scheduling software solution, it doesn’t enable you to convert raw material levels into finished product stock. Additionally, QuickBooks is unable to account for variability on the shop floor — such as workers calling out sick, machinery breaking down, and so on — the same way that PFM does.