Capacity Planning

Capacity Planning helps manufacturers determine whether new production orders can be accepted based on the available manufacturing resources, workstation capacity, and existing production schedule. It ensures that production is planned within the organization’s operational limits, preventing resource overloading and improving production efficiency.

ERPNext automatically schedules manufacturing operations by considering workstation availability, production capacity, working hours, and the estimated duration of each operation. This enables manufacturers to create realistic production schedules and utilize resources more effectively.

Capacity Planning in ERPNext

Capacity Planning is enabled by default in ERPNext and can be configured through the Manufacturing Settings.

The feature helps organizations estimate how much production can be completed within a specified planning period and schedules Work Orders accordingly.

Prerequisites

Before using Capacity Planning, the following manufacturing records should be configured:

• Bill of Materials (BOM)
• Operation
• Workstation
• Work Order

How Capacity Planning Works

The planning period is controlled through the Capacity Planning For field available in the Manufacturing Settings.

This value defines how many future days ERPNext should consider while scheduling manufacturing operations.

For example, if:

• The planning period is set to 30 days.
• Each finished product requires 5 days to manufacture.

ERPNext can schedule up to 6 Work Orders (30 ÷ 5 = 6) within the available planning period. Additional Work Orders can only be scheduled after workstation capacity becomes available.

Creating Work Orders with Operations

To use Capacity Planning effectively, Work Orders should include manufacturing operations.

When a Work Order containing operations is submitted:

• ERPNext automatically generates the required Job Cards.
• The system assigns available workstation time for each operation.
• Operations are scheduled according to workstation availability.

The scheduling process also considers Manufacturing Settings.

• If Allow Overtime is disabled, operations are scheduled only within the workstation’s configured working hours.
• If Allow Production on Holidays is disabled, operations are scheduled only on working days.

Workstation Production Capacity

Each Workstation includes a Production Capacity setting that defines how many manufacturing operations can run simultaneously.

For example, if a workstation can process ten operations at the same time, its Production Capacity should be set to 10.

ERPNext uses this value during scheduling to ensure that the workstation is not overloaded with more operations than it can handle.

Automatic Job Card Scheduling

After a Work Order is submitted, ERPNext automatically creates Job Cards for every operation defined in the Bill of Materials.

The system calculates:

• Planned Start Date.
• Planned End Date.
• Allocated Workstation.
• Operation duration.

The planned completion time is calculated using the operation time and the workstation’s available schedule.

This allows production teams to monitor workloads and execute manufacturing activities according to the planned schedule.

Work Order Planning and Calendar View

ERPNext calculates the overall Planned Start Date and Planned End Date for every Work Order based on the scheduled operations.

These planned dates help manufacturers:

• Measure workstation utilization.
• Monitor production progress.
• Track ongoing and upcoming Work Orders.
• Identify production bottlenecks.

Work Orders can also be viewed in the Calendar View, providing a visual production schedule that makes it easier to manage manufacturing capacity over time.

Capacity Planning Validation

ERPNext validates workstation capacity before scheduling manufacturing operations.

If the available production capacity is insufficient for the estimated operation time, the system displays a Capacity Planning error and prevents unrealistic scheduling.

This situation typically occurs when:

• The planning period is too short for the required production.
• The workstation does not have sufficient production capacity.
• The quantity being manufactured exceeds the available production capacity.

Business Benefits

• Prevents overloading of manufacturing resources.
• Schedules production based on actual workstation availability.
• Automatically generates Job Cards with planned timings.
• Improves production planning and resource utilization.
• Supports workstation capacity management.
• Provides visibility into future production schedules through Calendar View.
• Reduces scheduling conflicts and production delays.
• Helps manufacturers make informed decisions before accepting new production orders.

Key Summary

Capacity Planning in ERPNext enables manufacturers to schedule production based on workstation capacity, operational timings, and available manufacturing resources. By automatically generating Job Cards, calculating production schedules, validating workstation capacity, and providing calendar-based visibility into production workloads, ERPNext helps organizations optimize resource utilization, improve production efficiency, and prevent unrealistic manufacturing schedules.