Flowlity's calculation of supply recommendations is multi-criteria. Our stock sizing and ordering algorithm takes into account the following parameters:
• Forecasted demand (and its variability) over the replenishment horizon – derived from your historical data, commercial forecasts, demand sensing AI, etc.
• Current and current stocks – available stock, supplier orders already placed, customer orders in the pipeline (to calculate a net requirement).
• Supply lead times – supplier or production lead time, to cover the period until the next delivery. The longer the lead time, the more safety stock the algorithm must provide.
• Target service level – you can define a service rate (e.g., 99% on product A, 95% on B, etc.). Flowlity calculates the corresponding safety quantities by probabilizing the risks of shortages.
• Supplier variability – the reliability of delivery times or quantities. For example, if a supplier is unreliable or prone to delays, the system can increase the buffer stock.
• Purchasing constraints – MOQ, batch size, pallet packaging, order frequency, etc., as mentioned above. We will not order below the MOQ and we will respect the required multiples.
• Capacities or schedules – the supplier's production or delivery capacity (working days, holidays), as well as your own constraints (available storage space, monthly budget).
By combining these parameters, Flowlity calculates when and how much to order for each item and stock point, so as to avoid both shortages and overstocks. In short, the recommended quantities are the result of a multi-parameter optimization integrating your service objectives, anticipated demand and all your logistics and supplier constraints.