Manufacturing Operations · Capacity planning · Component
The capacity decision
Whether to lead or lag demand, and what triggers the next change — a choice rather than a drift.
The deliverable
What it is
Leading demand costs idle capacity; lagging it costs missed sales and service failures. Neither is generally correct, and drifting between them is the common outcome.
The trigger matters more than the strategy. Without one, the decision is made when the constraint is already binding.
One level in
What it is made of
Each element is a constituent part of the component. Follow one to see the attributes it carries.
The strategy
Whether capacity is added ahead of demand or in response to it.
3 attributes: Strategy · Reason · Target buffer
LearnThe trigger
The condition that starts the next capacity change.
3 attributes: Trigger level · Sustained for · Owner
LearnThe options
How capacity would be added, with cost and lead time for each.
3 attributes: Option · Cost · Lead time
Learn
Cost the capacity options before the trigger fires, or the trigger starts a six-month evaluation rather than an action.
The other components in capacity planning
The capacity model
Practical output per period, per resource, with the constraint identified — because output is set by one step and not by the average.
LearnThe demand plan
What will be needed, over a horizon that matches how long capacity takes to add.
Learn