What Is Production Planning and Control (PPC)?

Introduction

Production Planning and Control (PPC) is the function responsible for planning, coordinating and monitoring manufacturing activities.

Its objective is to ensure that the right products are manufactured in the required quantity, at the right time, using available materials, machines and manpower.

What Is Production Planning?

Production planning determines what to manufacture, how much to manufacture, when to manufacture it and what resources are required.

A production plan generally considers:

• Customer demand
• Monthly production targets
• Available inventory
• BOM requirements
• Machine capacity
• Manpower availability
• Supplier lead times
• Production priorities

What Is Production Control?

Production control monitors actual manufacturing activities against the production plan.

It helps identify deviations such as:

• Production delays
• Material shortages
• Machine breakdowns
• Labour shortages
• Quality rejections
• Excessive scrap
• Work order backlogs

The control function provides information for corrective action.

Main Stages of PPC

1. Demand planning

Collect customer orders, forecasts and management production targets.

2. Material planning

Calculate material requirements using the BOM and compare them with available inventory and expected receipts.

3. Capacity planning

Evaluate whether available machines, manpower and production hours can meet the required output.

4. Production scheduling

Assign work orders to dates, shifts, machines or work centres.

5. Production execution

Release work orders and issue materials to production.

6. Production monitoring

Record actual output, pending quantities, rejections and delays.

7. Plan versus actual analysis

Compare planned production with actual production and identify reasons for deviations.

Example of PPC in a Manufacturing Company

Assume a factory receives a monthly requirement of 10,000 electrical components.

The PPC department checks:

• Required BOM quantities
• Current raw material stock
• Pending purchase orders
• Machine capacity
• Available manpower
• Daily production targets

If a critical component is short, the planner identifies the shortage and coordinates with purchase before releasing the production schedule.

During production, actual output and rejection quantities are monitored against the plan.

How Manufacturing ERP Supports PPC

A manufacturing ERP can help PPC by providing:

• Production demand records
• BOM-based material calculations
• Material shortage reports
• Work order generation
• Capacity information
• Daily production schedules
• Plan-versus-actual dashboards
• Production delay tracking

However, accurate planning requires reliable BOMs, inventory balances, lead times and capacity data.

Conclusion

PPC is essential for coordinating demand, materials, capacity and production execution. When supported by manufacturing ERP, it becomes easier to identify constraints, monitor performance and maintain better control over factory operations.