To enter forecast period parameters for a product:Demand patterns for products selling an average of 10 times a month are different from those for products selling an average of 10 times a year. Therefore, the system forecasts product demand based on variable forecast periods.
On average, the following is true:
Fast-moving items use shorter forecast periods, because most recent sales are the best for predicting future demand.
Slow-moving items use a longer forecast period, because you need more time and purchase for accurate predictions.
Seasonal products, which are in greater demand at certain times of the year, use the demand history from the prior year's season.
In addition to setting forecast period parameters at the product level, you can also set these parameters at the branch or buy line level. Parameters set at the product level override those set at the buy line and branch level.
Note: The following procedure is a manual process for a single product. Use the Mass Load program to enter inventory parameters to groups of products.
To enter forecast period parameters for a product:
From the Files menu, select Product to display the Product Maintenance screen.
Select a product and use the Inven hot key to display the Primary Inventory Maintenance screen.
Use the Forecast Params hot key to display the Forecast Parameters Maintenance screen.
Use the Forecast hot key to display the Forecast Parameters screen.
To enter non-seasonal demand parameters for a branch, under the Regular area, complete the following information:
|
Field |
Value |
|
Hits |
Number of hits the system looks for within the regular Min Days and Max Days range to calculate the number of days of sales history which is used to calculate a non-seasonal product's demand. |
|
Min Days |
Minimum days used with regular Hits to determine the number of days of sales history used to calculate a non-seasonal product's demand. |
|
Max Days |
Maximum days used with regular Hits to determine the number of days of sales history used to calculate a non-seasonal product's demand. |
Click to see an example of regular forecast parameters.
Note: If the date of the first transaction for a product is less than Max Days, the demand history calculation program uses the date of the first transaction for Max Days. If the date of the first transaction for a product is also less than Min Days, the program also uses the date of the first transaction as Min Days.
Enter seasonal forecast parameters in the Seasonal section of the Forecast Parameters screen:
|
Field |
Value |
|
Hits |
Number of hits the system looks for within the seasonal Min Days and Max Days range to calculate the number of days of sales history which is used to calculate a seasonal product's demand. |
|
Min Days |
Minimum days used with seasonal Hits to determine the number of days of sales history used to calculate a seasonal product's demand. |
|
Max Days |
Maximum days used with seasonal Hits to determine the number of days of sales history used to calculate a seasonal product's demand. |
Click to see an example of seasonal forecast parameters:
Note: If the date of the first transaction for a product is less than Max Days, the demand history calculation program uses the date of the first transaction for Max Days. If the date of the first transaction for a product is also less than Min Days, the program also uses the date of the first transaction as Min Days.
Press Esc to save changes and return to the previous screen.
Exit Product Maintenance for changes to take effect.
See Also: