Production Planning Software (APS)
Your production, perfectly planned. Accevo APS is advanced planning and scheduling software that works alongside your ERP to build realistic, optimized production schedules – at the push of a button, respecting every real constraint.
Built on GANTTPLAN by DUALIS, our Dürr Group partner: finite capacity scheduling, integrated MRP, interactive Gantt chart and what-if scenarios, in a modern web application.
What is APS (advanced planning and scheduling)?
An APS system is production planning software that schedules manufacturing orders against the resources you actually have: machine capacity, personnel and their qualifications, tools and materials. Unlike ERP or MRP planning, which assumes infinite capacity, APS software applies finite capacity scheduling – so the plan it produces can actually be executed on the shop floor.
Accevo APS plans across long, medium and short-term horizons, simulating scenarios in real time to shorten lead times, smooth bottlenecks, keep inventory lean and improve on-time delivery. It is the manufacturing scheduling software that replaces the planning spreadsheet – and the daily firefighting that comes with it.
APS vs ERP planning: what is the difference?
ERP planning (SAP, Oracle, Microsoft, Infor, Comarch) is built for commercial and material processes. Its scheduling assumes infinite capacity: it tells you what to make and roughly when, without checking whether the machines, people and tools are free.
APS software takes those rough orders and turns them into a detailed, feasible sequence using finite capacity scheduling and multi-criteria optimization. APS does not replace ERP – it is the planning layer between ERP and MES that makes the plan real.
ERP production planning gives you:
- Infinite capacity assumptions - no check against real machine or labour availability
- Order-level planning with fixed lead times, not operation-level sequencing
- No visibility of bottlenecks until they hit the shop floor
- Manual rescheduling in Excel whenever reality changes
An APS system adds:
- Finite capacity scheduling across machines, personnel, tools and material at once
- Multi-criteria optimization: setup costs, throughput time, utilisation, delivery reliability
- Interactive Gantt chart with restriction-checked drag-and-drop changes
- What-if scenario analysis before you commit to a plan
30%
efficiency increase
25%
cost savings
50%
time saved in planning
100%
transparency across the plan
Key features of Accevo APS software
Everything a planner needs in one web-based advanced planning scheduling system – no client install, accessible from anywhere, with the planner always in control of the automated result.
Automated planning & optimisation engine
Generate a feasible, optimized schedule at the push of a button. The engine balances up to seven weighted target criteria – setup costs, production costs, personnel costs, throughput times, capacity utilisation, capital commitment and delivery reliability.
Multi-resource planning
Machines and work centres, personnel with qualifications, production resources and tools, and material – all planned simultaneously, so a plan is never blocked by the one resource nobody checked.
Integrated MRP with ATP/CTP
Material requirements planning with lot-size optimisation, hybrid pull-push strategies and live Available-to-Promise checks. Demand planning over medium and long horizons uses both actual and forecast requirements to keep the supply chain synchronised.
Bottleneck-oriented scheduling
Multi-level BOMs are scheduled around the constraint, minimising total throughput time across the order network while keeping work-in-progress down. Bottleneck analysis becomes routine, not detective work.
Shop-floor feedback from MES
Confirmations, machine states and order progress flow back from Accevo MES in real time, so the plan reflects what is actually happening – not what was assumed this morning.
AI-supported planning & analytics
A self-learning layer analyses historical production data, flags expected deviations early and forecasts realistic process durations – making every next plan more accurate than the last.
Scheduling capabilities: finite capacity & Gantt chart
The graphical production control centre is where planning becomes visible. Every order, resource and constraint on one interactive Gantt chart – with the system checking every move you make.
Finite capacity scheduling
Every operation is scheduled within the real limits of the resource: machine availability, shift calendars, tooling, qualifications and material. No overbooking, no plans that only work on paper.
Interactive Gantt chart
Drag and drop orders directly on the Gantt chart. Every manual intervention is restriction-checked in real time, so a planner’s local fix can never break a global constraint.
Utilisation & bottleneck views
Switch between order view, resource utilisation and cost allocation. Bottlenecks, idle capacity and late orders are visible at a glance, with drill-down to any work centre or timeframe.
What-if scenario analysis: test the plan before you live it
A rush order lands. A machine goes down. A key operator calls in sick. With scenario mode you simulate the change in seconds, compare plans side by side against your KPIs, and pick the one that costs least – before anything reaches the shop floor. The same capability supports tactical and strategic decisions: capacity investments, shift models, new product introductions. Planning stops being a reaction and becomes a decision.
Accevo Pharma MES is built for that reality – batch processing, LIMS integration and real-time quality checks across drugs, vaccines, supplements and cosmetics. You make decisions on real production data and correlate it with utilities usage.
ERP integration: SAP, Microsoft, Oracle, Infor & more
APS sits between your enterprise systems and the shop floor. Accevo APS integrates with all major ERP systems via REST APIs and dedicated connectors, aligned with the ISA-95 standard for enterprise-to-control integration.
From ERP
Master and transaction data, personnel, work centres, production resources and tools, BOMs, routings and demands flow in from SAP, Microsoft Dynamics, Oracle, Infor or Comarch – synchronised bidirectionally.
In APS
Planning and optimisation, order sequencing, constraint handling, Gantt chart visualisation and analysis. The optimized schedule is written back to ERP as the committed plan.
From MES
Confirmations, machine states and real-time order progress come back from the shop floor, closing the loop so the next planning run starts from reality rather than assumption.
Benefits: shorter lead times, lower costs
Manufacturers using our APS report the same pattern: planning that used to take two days takes two hours, and the plan that results is cheaper to execute. Where the gains come from:
Shorter lead times
Bottleneck-oriented sequencing and smooth order flow cut throughput times across the order network, while work-in-progress and capital commitment fall with them.
Higher on-time delivery
Realistic, finite-capacity plans plus ATP/CTP checks mean the delivery dates you promise are dates you can keep – and customers notice first.
Lower setup and personnel costs
Optimised sequencing groups similar setups and balances workloads, cutting changeover time and idle labour without anyone rebuilding the plan by hand.
Planners freed from firefighting
Automation handles the combinatorics; planners handle the exceptions and the judgement calls. New team members can produce a good plan from their first week.
Industries we plan for
APS manufacturing scheduling applies wherever orders, resources and constraints outgrow a spreadsheet. Over 150 international companies plan with the GANTTPLAN engine behind Accevo APS, across more than 1,000 projects.
Food, beverage & FMCG
Planning for freshness, allergen sequencing and ingredient availability, with fast-changing demand and short shelf life driving waste down.
Automotive & electronics
Just-in-time scheduling against complex, changing supply chains, with fast product changes handled by agile re-planning rather than manual rework.
Pharmaceutical & life sciences
Batch tracking, expiry-based planning and compliance constraints built into the schedule, integrated with EBR and quality systems.
Discrete Manufacturing
High product variety, long setup times and volatile order volumes - the classic case for optimisation-based sequencing and tool-set management.
Contact with our Expert
Marcin Marczewski, Industrial Software Expert
- A 60-minute online meeting with a dedicated specialist presenting a top system from an industry similar to yours
- Live modeling of your production process
- A budget quotation after the meeting
Frequently Asked Questions
Production planning software, explained
APS (Advanced Planning and Scheduling) software is production planning software that schedules manufacturing orders against real resource constraints - machines, personnel, tools and materials. It works alongside ERP to turn rough production orders into detailed, executable schedules optimized for cost and delivery.
ERP systems plan with infinite capacity assumptions: they schedule without checking real machine and labour constraints. APS software uses finite capacity scheduling to create realistic, optimized plans. Accevo APS works alongside SAP, Oracle and Microsoft ERP, transforming rough orders into detailed schedules and sending them back.
Finite capacity scheduling is a planning method that respects actual resource limits: machine availability, labour shifts, tooling and materials. Unlike infinite scheduling in ERP, it prevents overloading and produces achievable plans. Accevo APS combines it with multi-criteria optimization to balance setup time, cost and on-time delivery.
Scenario mode lets you simulate changes - a rush order, a machine breakdown, an absent operator - and compare the resulting plans against KPIs before committing. It supports both daily firefighting and medium- to long-term decisions like capacity investment or shift models.
Yes. Accevo APS integrates with all major ERP systems including SAP, Microsoft Dynamics, Oracle, Infor and Comarch via REST APIs and dedicated connectors. Master data, work orders and BOMs synchronise bidirectionally, and real-time confirmations flow back from MES.
A typical Accevo APS implementation takes 3-6 months depending on complexity. Phase 1, data integration with ERP, usually takes 4-6 weeks, followed by scheduling model configuration, testing and go-live. Most customers see ROI within the first quarter through reduced setup times and better on-time delivery.
No, APS delivers value on ERP data alone. But shop-floor feedback makes plans far more accurate: with Accevo MES connected, confirmations, machine states and order progress update the schedule in real time, closing the loop between plan and reality.
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