Planningspanning

Planningspanning is a concept in operations management and logistics describing the time interval into the future for which planning decisions are actively created and updated in a planning system. It specifies the window over which activities such as production scheduling, procurement, and capacity decisions are performed with a chosen level of detail. In practice the term is most common in Dutch-language manuals and software documentation and is closely related to the planning horizon or planning window, though it emphasizes the practical scope of active planning and rescheduling within that horizon.

Determining the planningspanning involves considering forecast accuracy, lead times, variability in demand and supply, and service level objectives. A short planning span supports detailed, resource-constrained scheduling and rapid response to changes, but requires frequent replanning as actuals diverge. A longer planning span supports strategic decisions and aggregated planning (for example capacity and inventory targets) but may rely on simplified assumptions for execution.

Organizations often separate near-term detailed planning from longer-term capacity and demand planning, using a short planning span (for example several weeks) within a broader horizon (several months to years). The exact span depends on industry, product mix, and system capabilities.

Examples: In manufacturing, detailed scheduling might cover 4 weeks, while capacity planning runs 2–3 months ahead; in project management a planning span could align with sprint cycles or milestones.

See also: planning horizon, capacity planning, master production scheduling, materials requirements planning, demand forecasting.