Example: Automobile with Two Engine Options

A part number can be assigned to the engine feature for planning purposes. The two engine options cannot be assembled together, so the engine feature never actually exists in inventory. It is a pseudo item.

A stocking type of K identifies that the parent (automobile) is planned for in the same way as a kit. The feature item (engine) has a stocking type of 0 (phantom). Phantoms call for a special type of processing for which the leadtime is zero and the order policy is lot-for-lot.

The planner does not know which automobile will ship with which engine next month, but the ratio of engine types consumed is predictable. The planning bill of material identifies the percentages of each type of engine that you expect to ship.

By exploding this bill against the master schedule for the planning family of automobiles, the system can calculate the total requirements for each type of engine.