Industrial Planning: Optimize Your Production Efficiently

Does industrial planning truly constitute the linchpin of your production operations? Absolutely! Indeed, this orchestral discipline determines the success or failure of your manufacturing objectives. In fact, 85% of high-performing industrial companies rely on structured industrial planning. But why do so many companies excel in theory yet fail in the field? The answer is simple: the gap between planning and execution. This disconnect is often worsened by the lack of effective workshop planning management, which prevents teams from efficiently translating strategic plans into coordinated shop floor actions. Moreover, statistics reveal that only 30% of industrial plans are executed in accordance with initial forecasts. 

This discrepancy not only affects performance but also poses challenges in terms of industrial risk management, as poor execution increases exposure to delays, quality issues, and safety incidents.

How can you transform your theoretical plans into concrete operational success? In this article, we explore the fundamentals of production management, its different application levels, and especially how digitalization is revolutionizing industrial execution.

Key Takeaways Regarding Industrial Planning: 

• Optimized industrial planning reduces production costs by 15-20%  
• Digital work instructions reduce production errors by 90%  
• ERP + execution solution integration multiplies efficiency by 3  
• Real-time visibility enables dynamic plan adjustments  
• Picomto bridges the critical gap between planning and operational execution 

1. What is Industrial Planning and Why is it Crucial?

Industrial planning is the art of transforming strategic objectives into concrete actions. First and foremost, this approach optimizes the utilization of human, material, and financial resources. Next, it ensures perfect coordination between production, sales, and procurement. 

In summary, industrial planning synchronizes your processes to achieve your results.

1.1. Industrial Planning: Simple and Complete Definition 

Production planning anticipates, organizes, and coordinates all manufacturing activities. 

In practice, it answers three key questions: 

• What to produce? 
• When to produce? 
• With which resources?

It is important to distinguish two concepts: 

• Planning: determines what and when to produce. 
• Scheduling: specifies how and in what order to produce.

Planning relies on four complementary levels: 

• Strategy (long-term vision) 
• Tactics (medium-term planning) 
• Operations (short-term preparation) 
• Execution (daily field actions)

Concrete Example: At Renault, industrial planning connects 36 plants worldwide. Each site manufactures the right parts at the right time. Result: customer deadlines are met and production flows smoothly.

1.2. Why Can Your Company No Longer Do Without Effective Industrial Planning? 

Direct Financial Impact Optimized planning reduces production costs by 15 to 20%. It also improves customer service levels by 25% on average. 

Production Cost Optimization 

• 30% inventory reduction 
• Working capital liberation 
• Waste reduction and substantial savings

Operational Performance Improvement 

• Better interdepartmental coordination 
• 70% reduction in production disruptions 
• Deadline compliance and enhanced customer satisfaction

Agility in Face of Market Uncertainties 

• Reactivity to changes within 48 hours 
• Comparatively, a rigid structure takes several weeks to adapt

Informed Strategic Decision-Making 

• Bottleneck analysis to guide investments 
• Every invested euro becomes a source of measurable return 

2. How to Successfully Transition from Planning to Execution?

Transforming your plans into concrete results remains the major challenge of modern industry. 

In reality, this critical step determines the success or failure of your production. Yet, 70% of industrial strategies fail in the field. 

2.1. Why Do So Many Industrial Plans Fail in the Field? 

According to studies, four factors explain this frequent gap between planning and execution. 

The Universal Execution Challenge: 

• Only 30% of companies execute their plans perfectly. 
• This weakness costs on average 15% of revenue.

Main Causes: 

• Unclear or obsolete instructions: Paper procedures lead to divergent interpretations. 
• Lack of real-time visibility: Deviations are discovered too late. 
• Non-compliance with standards: Operators take risky shortcuts. 
• Insufficient feedback: Planners work with inaccurate data. 

Financial Impact: 

• Rework and scrap represent 8% of revenue. 
• Delivery delays erode an additional 3% margin.

2.2. How Does Picomto Revolutionize the Execution of Your Industrial Plans? 

Picomto digitalizes your instructions and eliminates paper constraints. 

Result: your plans become clear, interactive, and efficient.

Complete Digitalization: 

• Standard operating procedures enriched with videos, photos, and diagrams. 
• Accessible on tablets and smartphones.

Advanced Features: 

• Interactive checklists with step-by-step validation. 
• Automatic blocking in case of anomaly. 
• Seamless integration of maintenance procedures. 
• Complete traceability to simplify audits.

Added Value: 

• Perfect standardization: all operators apply the same procedures. 
• Drastic reduction in performance deviations. 
• Real-time visibility: instant progress, proactive adjustments. 
• Human errors reduced by 90% through interactive guidance. 
• Continuous improvement: automatic detection of weak points. 

3. What Tools and Technologies to Optimize Your Planning? 

The success of your industrial planning depends on the chosen technological tools. Indeed, these solutions determine your ability to coordinate production flows and gain operational agility. 

3.1. ERP, MRP, APS: How to Choose the Right Tools? 

Let’s analyze the three main categories of planning software. Each type addresses specific needs according to your company size and operational complexity. 

ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) 

• Offers a global and integrated enterprise view. 
• Connects all departments via a single database. 
• Standardizes administrative and financial processes.

Suitable for companies with simple flows, but shows limitations for complex manufacturing processes. 

MRP (Manufacturing Resource Planning) 

• Focuses on production optimization. 
• Manages operation sheets and productive resources. 
• Integrates algorithms for precise and optimized schedules. 

Ideal for manufacturers with specific production needs.

APS (Advanced Planning Systems) 

• Uses AI to optimize complex flows. 
• Simulates scenarios to anticipate decisions. 
• Recommended for large companies with sophisticated processes.

3.2. Where Does Picomto Position Itself in Your Ecosystem? 

Picomto complements your existing planning tools. It acts as an intelligent execution layer, amplifying the efficiency of your ERP and MRP systems. 

Complementary Role: 

• ERP/MRP plan, Picomto executes and standardizes.

Native Integration: 

• Easy connection with your ERPs through standardized APIs. 
• Automatic import of manufacturing orders and routings. 
• Real-time data synchronization.

Added Value: 

• Concrete and interactive instructions for operators. 
• Immediate field feedback to adjust planning. 
• Continuous improvement through enriched execution data.

3.3. How Does Industry 4.0 Transform Industrial Planning? 

Industry 4.0 opens unprecedented perspectives for production.

IoT and Sensors: 

• Provide ultra-precise real-time data. 
• Instantly detect production deviations. 
• Automatically adjust schedules.

Artificial Intelligence: 

• Predicts failures and bottlenecks through historical analysis. 
• Proposes preventive adjustments. 
• Refines forecasts for greater precision.

Digital Twins: 

• Simulate the impact of decisions before real application. 
• Secure your strategic choices.

Picomto and the 4.0 Ecosystem: 

• Connected instructions automatically collecting field data. 
• Integration with analytics and AI systems. 
• Advanced interfaces like smart glasses and augmented reality. 

4. How to Implement Effective Industrial Planning?

Implementing high-performing planning requires a methodical and rigorous approach. This transformation impacts all your processes and requires mastered change management.

4.1. What Are the Key Steps to Succeed in Your Planning?

Let’s structure this approach into 6 complementary phases, each bringing measurable benefits.

1. Initial Diagnosis and Process Audit:

• Analyze your current production practices.
• Identify waste and bottlenecks.
• Map your information flows.

Result: a clear vision of your weak points and quantified data to measure progress.

• 2. Objective and Indicator Definition:
• Set SMART objectives: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time-bound.
• Target KPIs for quality, deadlines, costs, and flexibility.
• Example: reduce work-in-progress by 20% in 6 months.

3. Tool Selection and Integration:

• Select solutions adapted to your real needs.
• Favor progressive integration, starting with pilot workstations.
• Picomto illustrates this pragmatic approach.

4. Team Training and Appropriation:

• Organize practical training sessions.
• Appoint internal ambassadors to foster adoption.
• Personnel buy-in is the key to success.

5. Progressive Deployment and Validation:

• Implement in stages while measuring results.
• Celebrate intermediate successes and adjust if necessary.

6. Continuous Improvement:

• Organize regular reviews.
• Capitalize on collected data to optimize your processes.
• Your planning evolves with your market.

4.2. What Mistakes to Avoid in Your Industrial Planning?

1. Siloed Planning: Each department optimizes its objectives without global vision, creating overstocks or stockouts.
2. Execution Neglect: Plans remain theoretical without field connection. Result: 70% of strategies fail.
3. Lack of Flexibility: Rigid systems amplify the impact of uncertainties. A supplier delay can block entire production.
4. Absence of Feedback: Without field data, errors repeat. Visibility is essential to correct and improve.
5. Insufficient Training: Unprepared teams generate errors and resistance. Solid training is indispensable.

4.3. How to Measure the Effectiveness of Your Industrial Planning?

Operational Indicators:

• Customer service rate: measures your ability to meet commitments.
• Deadline compliance: differentiate planning and execution delays.
• Productivity: actual production / theoretical production ratio.

Quality Indicators:

• Defect rate: measures process stability.
• Customer complaints: reflect dysfunction impact.
• Procedure compliance: with Picomto, up to 95% versus 70% manual.
• Financial Indicators:
• Unit costs: reduced through optimization.
• Inventory turnover: reflects supply/demand synchronization.
• Scrap and rework rate: quantifies your losses.

With Picomto:

• Detailed and real-time reports.
• Immediate alerts for rapid interventions.

Result: your performance remains under control and your costs decrease.

Conclusion 

Industrial planning determines 70% of your manufacturing performance. However, only 30% of plans execute perfectly in the field. 

Why this dramatic gap? Simple: the absence of a bridge between your design offices and your production workshops. Picomto definitively solves this equation.

By integrating seamlessly with your manufacturing operations management strategy, Picomto ensures that every plan is translated into consistent, high-quality execution on the shop floor.

By integrating seamlessly with your manufacturing operations management strategy, Picomto ensures that every plan is translated into consistent, high-quality execution on the shop floor.

By digitalizing your work instructions, the solution guarantees perfect execution of your best plans. Concretely: better procedure compliance, fewer field errors, higher productivity percentage. 

Moreover, it creates a solid foundation for Continuous Improvement in a Production Workshop by providing real-time insights and traceable execution data to support ongoing optimization.

FAQ 

What is industrial planning?  

Process of organizing and optimally allocating productive resources to achieve your manufacturing objectives.

What are the 3 types of planning?  

Strategic planning (S&OP), tactical (MPS), and operational (MRP/scheduling). Each level coordinates different time horizons.

What are the 3 stages of planning?  

Needs forecasting, resource allocation, operations programming. Digital execution with Picomto finalizes the process.

What are the planning tools?  

ERP, MRP, APS for theoretical planning. Picomto digitalizes field execution to guarantee compliance.

What are the planning strategies?  

Push flows (anticipation), pull flows (customer demand), mixed planning. Picomto adapts to all these approaches.