A Production planning model and a case study for the pharmaceutical industry in The Netherlands

A strategic aggregate production planning model was developed for a pharmaceutical company in The Netherlands. It supports strategic planning decisions on changing production capacity, The production line and ways of improving plant performance by comparing optimal total individual cost components with the actual performance data. The model also supports aggregate decisions with regards to order acceptance, detailed production planning and purchasing. Optimal production timing provides good estimates of sales and customer release dates. The effects of external factors such as an expedited order and possible production delays can also be analysed and the sales value of the order calculated. In addition, optimal production plans for the most important items can be used for detailed scheduling tasks and purchasing of raw materials for future periods.