The issue you're encountering with the Dynamics 365 Requisition Worksheet is likely due to how the system prioritizes rescheduling existing orders over creating new orders, as well as how it interprets lead times and demand timing.
Key Observations:
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System Suggests Rescheduling Instead of Creating a New Order:
- The system is suggesting rescheduling an existing purchase order due on 02/02/2024 to meet the 29/11/2024 demand. This happens because Dynamics 365 assumes that rescheduling is possible within the
Rescheduling Period (12 weeks in your case) and will prioritize rescheduling over creating a new purchase order.
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Lead Time Calculation for New Orders:
- The Requisition Worksheet is likely not considering lead time when safety stock is driving the demand. It is treating the safety stock replenishment as an immediate demand that should be addressed as soon as possible. This behavior is tied to how the worksheet interprets Lot-for-Lot reorder policy and the safety stock requirement.
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Other Configurations Influencing the Suggestion:
- Dampener Period (12W): This setting prevents the system from suggesting changes to existing orders if the new suggested date is within the dampener period.
- Rescheduling Period (12W): The system will attempt to reschedule existing orders within this period to meet demand.
Why Lead Times Are Being Ignored
The Requisition Worksheet in Dynamics 365 interprets lead time in specific ways depending on the source of demand:
- Safety Stock Demand: Lead time is often not considered because the system assumes the safety stock is an ongoing requirement and not tied to a specific future demand date.
- Actual Demand (e.g., Sales Orders): Lead time is applied from the expected receipt date to meet the due date of the demand.
Since your safety stock is driving the replenishment in this scenario, the system isn't calculating lead time for the new purchase.
Proposed Solutions
1. Check the "Lot-for-Lot" Reorder Policy Behavior
The Lot-for-Lot policy replenishes exactly what is needed to meet demand within the Lot Accumulation Period. It does not account for lead times when safety stock drives the replenishment. To address this:
- Consider using Fixed Reorder Quantity or another policy that accounts for lead time in safety stock replenishment scenarios.
2. Adjust Dampener and Rescheduling Periods
Since the dampener and rescheduling periods are both set to 12 weeks, the system might be overly aggressive in suggesting reschedules. Try reducing these periods to minimize interference with lead time calculations:
- Reduce the Dampener Period to a lower value (e.g., 1 or 2 weeks).
- Reduce the Rescheduling Period to a lower value (e.g., 2–4 weeks).
This will make the system less likely to reschedule existing orders and more likely to create a new purchase order considering lead times.
3. Force Lead Time Consideration for Safety Stock
You can create a workaround by creating a dummy demand (e.g., a Sales Order or Production Order) that triggers the safety stock replenishment but explicitly applies the vendor/item lead time. This will force the Requisition Worksheet to calculate the due date correctly.
4. Review Vendor Calendar and Supply Settings
- Confirm that the Base Calendar assigned to the Vendor is correct and includes valid working days.
- Ensure there are no conflicting calendars between the Vendor, Item, and Locations that could interfere with lead time calculations.
5. Introduce SKUs
Since you mentioned that some items with SKUs are showing similar issues, ensure that SKU-specific settings are aligned with the item's global settings. SKUs can help apply location-specific or vendor-specific lead times more accurately.
6. Test with a Simpler Configuration
To isolate the issue, test the scenario with minimal configuration:
- Remove the dampener, rescheduling, and lot accumulation periods temporarily.
- Set reorder policy to Fixed Reorder Quantity or Order.
- Ensure vendor/item lead times are still set to 10 weeks.
This will help verify whether the lead time issue is tied to safety stock replenishment logic or some other configuration.
Steps to Verify
- Reduce Dampener and Rescheduling Periods.
- Re-run the Requisition Worksheet and verify whether the lead time is being correctly applied.
- Test by creating a Sales Order or Production Order for the item and checking if lead time is respected.
- If necessary, adjust the reorder policy or test with an SKU.
Conclusion
The core issue appears to be related to how the Requisition Worksheet treats safety stock replenishment when lead time is involved. By tweaking the Dampener Period, Rescheduling Period, and possibly using a different reorder policy or dummy demand, you should be able to resolve the problem. If the issue persists, more granular debugging with SKUs or specific demand scenarios may be necessary.
