In the absence of any ERP solutions, clinical-stage or early-stage commercial pharmaceutical organizations leverage Excel-based planning tools to plan the API, drug products, and finished products. Although Excel is a powerful analytical tool, it has significant limitations in supporting comprehensive planning requirements.
If we look back past four decades, we realize how the supply chain management process has evolved. It was not even called a Supply Chain as the process was highly siloed without computerization. With the introduction of the mainframe-based computation, the end-to-end supply chain process started its rapid evolution. Although not real-time, the supply chain stakeholders started getting better visibility into the performance and operations. With further technological progress, the supply chain management processes improved significantly. The ERP and other best-in-class systems provided the capabilities to integrate the Financial, Accounting, Quality, Sales and Distribution, and other processes, which paved the way for exponential process transformation and real-time visibility. With cloud-based, big data computation, machine learning, and predictive and prescriptive analytics capabilities, the supply chains are now highly secure, cost-effective, and super-efficient.
On the planning side, as a supply chain planner, we used the manual KARDEX systems and processes to plan the materials. However, starting early 1980s, we started the transition to computer-based planning processes. The planning solutions evolved from the core materials requirements planning (MRP) to MRP-II systems that could provide more capabilities to perform capacity planning and other functions. In the late 80s, the MRP-II solutions evolved into the Enterprise-wise Resource Planning (ERP) systems that changed the world. The enterprise-wide supply chain functions were now supported by the ERP system, which the large and mid-size organizations deployed to overcome potential Y2K technology risks. All ERP solutions like SAP and Oracle can effectively support the supply planning processes like Sales & Operations Planning, Capacity Planning, Demand, and Supply Planning, Production Planning, and MRP.
However, we have observed that in the absence of any ERP solutions, clinical-stage or early-stage commercial pharmaceutical organizations leverage Excel-based planning tools to plan the API, drug products, and finished products. Although Excel is a powerful analytical tool, it has significant limitations in supporting comprehensive planning requirements.
In some instances, the implemented ERP system is bypassed by users due to inadequate data accuracy. In the absence of required ERP usage discipline, users working around the system increase the risk of data unreliability. In such environments, supply planners use Excel planning tools to manage the planning process that may lead to other challenges listed below.
Here are some critical shortcomings that such pharmaceutical companies encounter:
- Limited Capabilities: Excel-based tools are built to support basic planning activities and may not support end-to-end supply planning processes.
- Siloed: Excel planning versions are managed by one individual planner to plan only a handful of materials.
- Manual Effort: The second problem with this system is that it relies on manual inputs, leading to inaccuracies in data entry and processing.
- Lack of Collaboration: The third issue with this system is the limitation in collaboration with the internal and external stakeholders. Since it is a siloed tool, any manual updates can affect the embedded formula resulting in unreliable outcomes.
- Lack of Best-practice: It is challenging to embed best supply planning practices in Excel-based planning tools as managing the master data, planning parameters, lead-time-based backward scheduling, and planning dependencies is difficult.
- Lack of Integration: Excel-based tools aren’t integrated with any other systems or external partners, meaning there’s no connection between Excel spreadsheets and any other software used by the company.
- Non-Scalable: Excel is outdated in terms of its features and functions. It’s considerably less powerful than other alternatives that are built on secure cloud-based platforms. In addition, it is difficult to add new products and ingredients to the tool as new products are launched.
- Lack of Flexibility: Excel may not offer any configuration or customization to support other planning variations.
- Efficiency: As more complex formulas are added, and looks are included, Excel-based tools become less responsive and slow in providing planning outputs.
- Lack of Visibility: Due to the siloed nature of Excel-based tools, the critical planning KPIs and data are not visible across the teams and to the management.
- Decision-making: Due to lack of data visibility, strategic decisions by planners and the management team is ineffective and may lead to potential supply planning and availability risks.
As organizations grow in the product portfolio, markets and volumes, Excel-based planning needs be replaced with a cloud based, secured planning solution like SCmple that solves current issues and scales up to support future business requirements.
Scmple can help you finally ditch manual Excel-based supply planning and manage it from anywhere, at any time!