Tutorials

                                      FILLRATE100 helps making one decision: what to send to where and when.

                                      SKU - stock keeping unit, is the term to refer to each specific product. And location is where the SKUs are stored. When we use one unit of an SKU, because we sold it or because we consumed it, we will call that consumption.

                                      For each location, we need the list of SKUs that are going to be stored. FILLRATE100 will keep records for each SKU-Location.

                                      We need to configure basic data for each SKU-Location. To do this, we prepare a spreadsheet with the relevant data and we upload it, as seen in this video:

                                       
                                       
                                      In order to calculate the units to replenish, FILLRATE100 has also two optional parameters that can be configured: Minimum quantity and Multiple:
                                      * Minimum quantity can be dictated by a process or be a requirement of a vendor.
                                      * Multiple is the number of units in the minimum package.

                                      Examples:
                                      Quantity to be replenished to complete the buffer is 25. See how this number is modified in these situations:
                                      Min_qty = 30, Multiple = 1 ---> new quantity = 30.
                                      Min_qty = 30, Multiple = 12 ---> new quantity = 36.
                                      Min_qty = 0, Multiple = 6 ---> new quantity = 30.

                                      'Replenishment frequency' replaces 'Day to Replenish'

                                      This field remains free and you can use it as usual, however, a new feature is a structure that allows automating the exportation only of the replenishment orders corresponding to the current date.

                                      The structure is X:Y:Z:W

                                      X, Y, Z are numbers to designate days. 1 is Monday and 7 is Sunday.

                                      W can be 0, 1 or 2.

                                      The rationale of this structure is as follows:

                                      • Frequency must be fixed and as frequent as possible. The possible frequencies are daily, every other day, every three days, weekly and bi-weekly. If your frequency is lower that these, you won't get much benefit from the structure, or even from FILLRATE100.

                                      • Weekly means choosing one day of the week, every week.

                                      • When it is bi-weekly, we choose one day of the week and also if the week is even or odd., so the replenishment is triggered every other week.

                                      • W is 0 to indicate every week (weekly).

                                      • W is 1 for odd weeks, and 2 for even weeks (bi-weekly).

                                      Examples:

                                      • 0:0:0:0 or empty means everyday.

                                      • 1:3:5:0 means on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

                                      • 2:4:0:0 means every Tuesday and Thursday.

                                      • 2:0:0:1 means every other Tuesday on odd weeks.

                                      Notes:

                                      • When the configuration is two or more days per week, W is irrelevant because it doesn't make sense a bi-weekly two days, because then frequency wouldn't be fixed. Therefore 2:4:0:1 = 2:4:0:2 = 2:4:0:0.

                                      • W can be 1 or 2, or any other odd and even numbers. This is useful in case you want to do some filtering isolating W.

                                      • If you don't use this structure, you still can filter your data but the automatic filter for the daily exporting process will not work and you will get all the replenishment orders everyday, regardless of the frequency.

                                      If we have data to estimate consumption, we can use it. Otherwise, make your best estimation. Anyway buffers will be adjusted according to actual consumption (see Buffer Management).

                                      The rule is that the buffer is the minimum amount that we would need to satisfy the maximum expected consumption within replenishment time.

                                      Replenishment time is the addition of transit time and order lead time.

                                      Transit time is the time from replenishment order and reception of goods, which may include production and transport times. This time is one of the inputs you need to provide.

                                      Order lead time is the time between one replenishment order and the next. This time is automatically calculated from the defined frequency. You can export the resulting replenishment times in order to calculate initial buffers. Ask assistance to one of our experts in case of doubt.

                                      If there is data for daily consumption for the last 3 to 6 months, we can calculate the moving sum for days equal to replenishment time. The maximum of that series is our buffer.

                                      The only input for daily updates that we need is On Hand and On Transit for each SKU-Location.
                                      On Hand is the available stock at the location. Transit is the stock already commited to arrive to the location.
                                      The description in the following video:
                                       
                                       

                                      The daily operation with FILLRATE100 follows two steps:

                                      1. Upload updated status: on hand and transit.

                                      2. Generation of replenishment orders.

                                      NOTE: FILLRATE100 is set to automatic buffer management by default, therefore all adjustments to buffers (increasing and decreasing) are done in the background and you just replenish according to the crrent buffers. In special circumstances, the administrator may want to switch to manual buffer management and accept or reject suggestions manually. This operation is not explained in this tutorial but only included in the corresponding manual.

                                      The procedure is shown in the following video:

                                       
                                       

                                      The daily operation with FILLRATE100 follows two steps:

                                      1. Upload updated status: on hand and transit.

                                      2. Generation of replenishment orders.

                                      The second task in this list is to actually generate replenishment orders. For that, FILLRATE100 gives the quantity already adjusted by minimum and multiple, and it also allows to filter by day of replenishment. Remember, fixed frequency is key to reduce variability and stabilize flow.

                                      The manual procedure is shown in the following video:  


                                       
                                       
                                      As already explained, when the structure in 'Replenishment frequency' follows the guidelines, FILLRATE100 will export only the replenishment orders for the day to a file that can be retrieved via SFTP (see the documentation for more details).
                                      Replenishment orders are Production Orders and Purchase Orders. FILLRATE100 allows to import any of these to help teams to make decisions.
                                      These orders have the same color as the corresponding SKU at the location which is the destination when the order is completed.
                                      Some considerations regarding these orders:

                                      1) For Production Orders or Work Orders in a plant, this screen is especially useful to communicate to all collaborators the priority and the best sequence to process the orders. Without this simple priority system, many plants suffer from frequent changes, where capacity is wasted and service also suffers.

                                      2) For Purchase Orders, if uploaded, the team can see what suppliers to reach out to avoid possible stock outs.

                                      3) The total quantity in Replenishment Orders for an SKU-location is what you should put in transit. FILLRATE100 does automatically calculate this, adding up all the replenishment orders per SKU-location. And besides, you can upload transit for all locations without a work order or a purchase order. These two set of data are uploaded independently so transit will add up both. Therefore, if you upload replenishment orders, do not include those quantities in transit when importing data.

                                      You can see how to upload the data and how to use it to make decisions in the following video:

                                       
                                       

                                      There are some parameters that the designated administrator in your organization can adjust to fit your particular needs:

                                      • Percentage of reds to consider Too Much Red - TMR within a replenishment time. The default is 60.

                                      • Percentage of greens to consider Too Much Green - TMG within a replenishment time. The default is 85.

                                      • Whether adjustments are automatically or manually accepted. Default is manual (not checked). When this parameter is set to automatic, you will never see any suggested changes, however the history of all changes will be recorded.

                                      • Number of days to keep history. Default is 360 days.