Overview
The order period is the number of days AGR looks into the future to calculate how much to order.
There are four ways to define the order period:
Define it as you create the order proposal
If not defined, it consists of Lead time + Order frequency = Order period
Scheduled orders: Lead time + Days between scheduled orders = Order period
Deploy Order coverage days, and enable regular order need checks, with optimal replenishment sizes
here you get two order periods:
the first is a shorter period, where AGR checks if it's time to re-order
the second is a longer period, for optimal replenishment sizes.
1. Manual Orders: Cover demand until date
It is possible to create a manual order that will cover demand until a specific date by manually selecting the order period during the order creation. This means that the order created will consider the date chosen for the end of the period, being a more flexible order.
To do this, choose the option "Create order to cover demand until date" and pick a date while creating an order.
Ensure the date selected is long enough to cover the longest lead time of the items in the order, plus the additional days of stock you wish to receive.
If the order period is shorter than the lead time, AGR will issue a warning:
2. Manual Orders: Order Frequency
By creating a manual order, the order period is calculated by considering both the lead time and the order frequency of the items in the order.
Lead time: The number of days between placing an order and receiving it.
Order frequency: The number of days between orders.
For example, if an item has a 14-day lead time and the order frequency is set to 14 days, the order period will be 28 days.
The default order frequency is 30 days in AGR. This value can be overridden in the Item card details > Order logic settings for one item or Bulk update for multiple items.
3. Scheduled orders
Scheduled orders create a consistent flow of goods by automatically calculating the quantity needed to meet demand until the next scheduled order arrives.
The order period for scheduled orders includes the days between each scheduled order.
Scheduling orders ensures a smooth and predictable flow, as the order frequency is overridden by the days between scheduled orders.
For example, a bi-weekly schedule will have 14 days between scheduled orders
Scheduled orders are calculated during the night, so if you have many orders to create, then scheduled orders are a great way to speed up using the system since the orders will be already created when you open AGR and you won't have to wait for them.
4. Order period using Order coverage days
Order coverage days is a great way to find a balance between inventory costs and handling costs.
Splits the order calculations into two order periods:
Order period 1 - is it time to reorder?
Order period 2 - if it's time, then for how long should the order cover?
This is a more advanced way of defining the desired flow of goods and works very well with scheduled orders:
Adding in the order review enables the user to check on replenishment needs frequently, while only placing replenishment orders when the stock levels = the sales forecast during the lead time + Safety stock + days until the next order review.
By default, the order coverage days are not filled in at AGR. This value can be filled in the Item card details > Order logic settings for one item or Bulk update for multiple items.
By choosing the appropriate method to define the Order Period, you can optimize your stock levels and streamline your supply chain.