Digital planning board or ERP/PPS planning board

Many companies already have an ERP or PPS system in which orders, materials, work steps and production data are managed. This raises a key question when introducing a digital planning board: is the planning functionality in the existing ERP or PPS system sufficient, or would an additional specialised planning board be beneficial?

The answer does not depend on which system is fundamentally more powerful. ERP, PPS and digital planning boards fulfil different roles. In many companies, the best solution is therefore not to replace one of the systems, but to combine their respective strengths.

This decision-making guide explains when an ERP or PPS planning board may be sufficient, when a specialised digital planning board offers advantages, and what data should be exchanged between the systems.

ERP, PPS and digital planning boards: what is the difference?

ERP systems are used for the centralised management of business processes and data. This includes, for example, customers, orders, purchasing, materials management, production, warehousing, human resources and financial data.

PPS systems focus more on production planning and production control. For example, they provide support for production orders, bills of materials, work plans, material requirements and capacities.

A digital planning board, on the other hand, focuses on the operational and visual planning of resources, orders and deadlines.

When is the planning board in the ERP or PPS system sufficient?

An additional planning solution is not automatically necessary. Many modern ERP and PPS systems already have integrated functions for capacity and scheduling planning.

If these functions meet the operational requirements, it may make more sense to continue using the existing system consistently.

Integrated ERP/PPS planning may be sufficient if:

• where production orders are primarily scheduled,
• the required resources are already fully available in the system,
• Planning and order management are closely linked,
• the existing graphical representation is sufficiently clear,
• last-minute changes rarely occur,
• no additional resource types need to be planned outside the ERP/PPS system.

The major advantage is that there is no need to introduce an additional application or set up an interface.

When does a separate digital planning board become a useful option?

An additional planning board becomes particularly useful when operational planning has requirements that are difficult to accommodate within the existing ERP or PPS system.

Typical reasons include:

• The existing planning board is too cluttered for day-to-day scheduling,
• Changing dates is too time-consuming,
• Additional resources such as staff, vehicles or tools must be taken into account,
• Several departments require different planning views,
• Planners need greater flexibility in the presentation,
• Order data should be combined visually with further information.

1. What data is already available in the ERP or PPS system?

Before introducing an additional planning solution, it is important to first check what information is already available in a structured format.

Typical data includes:

• Order number,
• Client,
• Article or product,
• Work steps,
• planned start and end dates,
• Processing times,
• Machines or workstations,
• Material status,
• Priority,
• Order status.

This information should not be maintained unnecessarily a second time.

In an integrated solution, the ERP or PPS system can remain the primary data source, whilst the digital planning board uses this data for operational planning.

2. What additional information is required for planning?

The reality of day-to-day scheduling is often more complex than the original production order.

Additional information may be required, such as:

• Availability of specific staff members,
• Qualifications,
• Shifts,
• Tools,
• Vehicles,
• Maintenance window,
• external service providers,
• customer-specific appointments,
• internal priorities.

If such information cannot be mapped in the ERP/PPS system, or can only be done so with considerable effort, supplementary resource planning may be advisable.

3. How important is the graphical overview?

For operational planning, a planning board must not only store information but also make it easy to grasp at a glance.

For example, a planner should be able to recognise immediately:

• which machines are in use,
• where there is spare capacity,
• which orders are overdue,
• where overlaps occur,
• which resources have been allocated to a job,
• which appointments can be rescheduled.

ERP and PPS systems are certainly capable of providing such visualisations. What is crucial, therefore, is not the mere presence of a planning board, but its suitability for day-to-day planning tasks.

4. How often do you need to reschedule at short notice?

The more dynamic operational planning is, the more important the speed at which changes can be implemented becomes.

Typical triggers for rescheduling are:

• Machine breakdown,
• An employee’s illness,
• delayed materials,
• Urgent client request,
• Rescheduling,
• changing priorities.

If such situations arise regularly, a software demonstration should specifically test how quickly a job can be rescheduled and assigned to a different resource.

5. Do several resource types need to be planned together?

A production order often requires more than one machine.

Depending on the company, the following may also be required:

• Machine,
• Staff,
• Tool,
• Test equipment,
• Vehicle,
• Room,
• external service provider.

If these resources need to be available at the same time, the complexity of planning increases significantly.

Companies should check whether their existing ERP/PPS system makes such interrelationships sufficiently visible and editable.

6. Which system should take the lead?

When combining ERP/PPS with a digital planning board, it must be clearly defined which system is responsible for which information.

A typical model might look like this, for example:

You can then specify which planning results need to be fed back to the ERP/PPS system.

7. What data should be fed back into the ERP or PPS?

An interface does not necessarily have to work in both directions. Nevertheless, it is important to check which results from operational planning are relevant to other business processes.

Possible responses include, for example:

• planned start date,
• scheduled completion date,
• assigned machine,
• Processing status,
• Confirmation of a work step.

The more systems that can process the same information, the more important it is to have clear lines of responsibility.

8. How complex is the integration?

An additional digital planning board only offers a lasting benefit if data exchange works reliably.

That is why the interface should be considered whilst selecting the product, rather than only after the decision has been made.

Points to be clarified include:

• What technical interfaces are available?
• What data is transferred?
• How often does the synchronisation take place?
• How are changes handled?
• How are errors detected during data exchange?
• Who is responsible for the interface?

A technically feasible integration is not automatically an economically viable one. The benefits should be proportionate to the implementation and maintenance costs.

System architecture also plays an important role in technical integration. You should therefore compare Cloud, hosting and on-premises solutions for resource planning.

9. Is real-time synchronisation always necessary?

Not every planning process requires real-time data exchange.

For some processes, regular synchronisation may be sufficient. In other situations, however, changes must be visible in both systems within a matter of seconds.

The required level of timeliness depends on how quickly data changes and what impact delayed information has.

Here, too, the most technically complex solution should not automatically be chosen.

10. Which users work with which system?

Not all employees need to be granted access to both applications.

A possible role model might look something like this, for example:

• Order processing is carried out in the ERP system,
• Production planning utilises ERP/PPS and a production board,
• Planners work mainly with the planning board,
• Employees only see the planning information relevant to them,
• Management uses aggregated reports.

This can simplify the user experience, as each employee primarily works with the system relevant to their role.

11. What are the limitations of an additional digital planning board?

A separate planning solution opens up additional possibilities, but also increases the complexity of the system landscape.

Possible disadvantages include:

• additional licence costs,
• Implementation costs,
• Interfaces must be set up and maintained,
• Users must be trained,
• Responsibilities between the systems must be clearly defined.

If the existing ERP/PPS planning board already meets all relevant requirements, an additional solution may therefore create unnecessary complexity.

12. When does the combination of ERP/PPS and a digital planning board make sense?

This combination is particularly useful when the ERP or PPS system is to remain the leading system for orders and master data, whilst operational resource planning is to be carried out in a more flexible and visual manner.

This allows both systems to perform different tasks without the need to maintain central data in duplicate.

How would you categorise Visual Planning?

Visual Planning is not ERP or PPS software. The solution focuses on graphical planning, resource management and the visualisation of operational planning processes.

Visual Planning can therefore be used, for example, as a supplementary planning layer, whilst orders and master data continue to be managed in the existing ERP or PPS system.

This may be of interest if the existing systems reliably map commercial or production-related processes, but operational planning needs to be organised more flexibly.

However, such a combination only makes sense if the additional flexibility justifies the effort involved in integration, configuration and operation.

When is Visual Planning not necessary?

If the existing ERP/PPS planning board clearly displays all the necessary resources, changes can be made easily and there are no additional planning requirements, there is no compelling reason to use another application.

Even with very simple production processes, an additional digital planning board can cause more trouble than it is worth.

The decision should therefore not be based on which system has more features, but rather on which specific planning process is to be improved.

A practical test for ERP/PPS and digital planning boards

To ensure a meaningful comparison, a real-life incident from within your own organisation should be used for testing.

For example:

1. A production order has already been scheduled.
2. The machine in question has been taken out of service at short notice.
3. An alternative machine must be found.
4. At the same time, it must be checked whether the required staff are available.
5. Subsequent orders may need to be rescheduled.
6. The new dates must be available in the master system.

This process allows you to assess whether the existing ERP/PPS planning is sufficient or whether additional graphical planning actually improves the workflow.

For manufacturing companies, you can find more detailed information on this topic in our Decision-making guide for resource planning in mechanical engineering.

Conclusion: Should ERP/PPS be replaced or supplemented?

A digital planning board should not, as a rule, replace an existing ERP or PPS system if the latter already reliably manages orders, master data and operational processes.

The key question is rather whether the existing planning functions are sufficiently flexible and clear for day-to-day scheduling.

If this is the case, the integrated ERP/PPS planning board may be the most economically viable solution.

If, on the other hand, a large number of resources need to be co-ordinated, schedules frequently need to be rescheduled at short notice, or additional information needs to be taken into account, a supplementary digital planning board may be useful.

Visual Planning is one possible solution for such requirements. Whether its use is appropriate should be assessed on the basis of the specific planning process and the integration effort required.

Frequently asked questions about digital planning boards and ERP/PPS

Do I need a digital planning board if my ERP system already has a planning function?

Not essential. If the existing planning system adequately supports all the necessary resources, dates and changes, the ERP system may be entirely sufficient.

Should a digital planning board replace the ERP system?

Generally speaking, no. ERP systems manage numerous core business processes, which a specialised planning board is not intended to replace. It often makes more sense to use it as a complement rather than a replacement.

What data should be imported from the ERP system?

Typically, orders, customers, items, work steps, dates and relevant resource master data are imported. The information actually required depends on the planning process.

Do changes made in the planning board need to be transferred back to the ERP system?

Only if this information is relevant to downstream processes. Changed dates or resource allocations can, for example, be fed back into the ERP system. The exact data ownership should be defined prior to integration.

Can Visual Planning be integrated with an ERP or PPS system?

Visual Planning can generally be integrated into an existing system landscape as a complementary planning solution. Whether and how a specific integration can be implemented depends on the existing ERP/PPS system, the available interfaces and the required data flows.

When does it make financial sense to have an additional planning board?

An additional solution may be worthwhile if, for example, it reduces the effort involved in manual coordination, prevents planning errors, makes available capacity visible more quickly or significantly simplifies last-minute rescheduling. The benefits should justify the additional implementation and operational costs.

Further guidance on resource planning

• A comparison of resource planning software: 12 selection criteria
• Visual Planning or Excel: When is it worth making the switch?
• How much does it cost to implement resource planning software?
• Cloud, hosting or on-premises: which deployment model is right for you?