Overview

In general simulation refers to factitiously producing chronicle of a system. Simulation is an effective technique in many areas to estimate a system's performance before actually putting together the system in place.

planLM Supply Chain Simulator imitates the execution of a supply chain plan in order to gain intelligence of the robustness of the plan. It provides detailed information on key performance indicators of the the supply chain plan over time before actually implementing it.

Plan generating optimization applications use mathematical modeling of the supply chain, often make assumptions that, only at best, approximate the actual practice. Simulation models have better, more detailed modeling capabilities, due to their descriptive nature. They are not decision makers, they are evaluators of decisions made by others, in this case optimizers.

There are several simulation modeling tools in the market, however building simulation models are time consuming. One of the most important features of planLM Supply Chain Simulator is that the simulation model is automatically build based on the supply chain and plan data residing in the planLM data model.

Scalable Technology

planLM Supply Chain Simulator is based on propriety discrete event simulation engine specifically developed for supply chain simulation. It features 64bit client-server architecture, that utilize multiple servers to run simulation replicas with unprecedented scalability.

Features

Simulation Model

planLM Supply Chain Simulator models uncertainty of demand, transportation lead time, production lead time, supply lead time, production and supply quantities.

Most common push and pull replenishment policies in practice are available in planLM Supply Chain Simulator execution engine.

Order History

In addition to the ability of randomly generating orders from a variety of probability distributions, planLM Supply Chain Simulator also has the capability to simulate an actual order history.

Comprehensive List of KPI's

During the simulation of the supply chain, planLM Supply Chain Simulator tracks a comprehensive list of key performance indicators, and reports their progression over time. These KPIs include;

• customer service levels
• inventory profile
• replenishment and fulfillment activities
• shortages
• backorders
• supplier performance
• and manufacturing and transportation activities

The summary reports contain specified confidence levels. Also, the number of simulation replicas are automatically determined based on the specified confidence level for these KPI's.