Net change material requirements planning

Conventional approaches to Material Requirements Planning (MRP) entail an inherent massive data-handling task. Consequently, batch-oriented MRP systems tend to be untimely in their response to change since replanning can be done only periodically—at best, probably once a week. A method of continuous replanning that minimizes the number of accesses to inventory records and bills of material at any given time is presented in this paper. Called net change, this approach offers the user the ability to replan at high frequency, or continuously in a transaction-driven system. The COPICS manuals describe a system that is based on net change material requirements planning.