Material Requirements Planning (MRP) Software

MRP (which stands for material requirements planning) systems help automate the front end of the production process. Once an order has been received, manufacturers need to begin analyzing current resources and planning out the different production steps. Repetitive, simple processes likely will not require a robust planning system, but more complex, order-driven jobs can often require extensive planning before production can begin.

MRP software automates the planning of materials, labor, and equipment. Systems help manufacturers take into account inventory already in stock, items that need to be purchased or acquired from subcontractors, and how long it will take to receive each item. This planning can help optimize the production schedule and prevent delays due to material shortages from occuring.

In planning labor and equipment utilization, manufacturing planning software will take into account product manufacturing restraints, labor and machine standards, the necessary internal routing of materials, quality assurance testing periods, and "what-if" scenarios. This will help prevent bottlenecks and esure an efficient, streamlined production process, minimizing waste and maximizing productivity.

In discrete manufacturing software, the output of an MRP system is a bill of materials (BOM) and a master production schedule. In process manufacturing software the end product is formula or recipe. Manufacturing schedules are generated by either finite capacity or infinite capacity scheduling systems. Finite capacity scheduling programs take into account limited resources and constraints to produce a realistic production schedule. These items will then be used by managers to initiate the production process.

MRP software is typically offered as a module within a greater manufacturing system. It is commonly integrated with CRM and MES systems. Production planning and scheduling systems are often referred to as MRP systems. However, formal MRP systems include both CRM and production planning software. Material resource planning (MRP II or MRP2) software takes this one step further by integrating manufacturing accounting modules as well.