Which Sheets are Essential

In this article, we will explain which are the basic, advanced, and optional sheets of the input template.

Basic Sheets

A sheet is considered Basic if you need it to obtain a feasible model.

The basic sheets are:

  • String Settings

  • Periods

  • Products

  • Locations

  • Supplier

  • Supplier Product

  • Warehouse

  • Warehouse Product

  • Mode of Transport

  • Transport Cost

  • Customer Product Data

Note: Warehouse and Warehouse Product sheets can be left blank if your model does not include warehouses.

Advanced Sheets

A sheet is considered Advanced if you need it for one of the following reasons:

  • Modeling the conversion of raw materials to finished goods (i.e., production), for which the following sheets are relevant:

    • Production

    • Bill Of Material

    • Production Routing

  • Using multiple units of measure:

    • UOM Conversions

  • Modeling Source, Destination, and Count constraints:

    • Location Product

  • Modeling Ratio Constraints:

    • Supplier Ratio

    • Warehouse Ratio

    • Production Routing Ratio

    • Transport Ratio

  • Specifying the cost of transportation using Rate Cards or Stepwise Costing:

    • Rate Cards

    • Stepwise Cost

  • Specifying the duration and/or distance between two locations:

    • Transport Trip

  • Using Custom Objectives:

    • Custom Objectives

Optional Sheets

A sheet is considered optional when the user may decide whether or not to include it.

Optional Sheets can be categorized by Definition Sheets and Group Sheets.

Definition Sheets

These sheets allow the user to use descriptions in the template, which can be used as text in the user interface.

For example, maybe is easier to work in the template with a code to refer to your customer, but in the user interface you would like to see the full name of the customer.

These sheets are:

  • Supplier Definition

  • Production Definition

  • Warehouse Definition

  • Customers

Group Sheets

These sheets allow the user to create groups. (How to Use and Define Groups)

These sheets are:

  • Product Groups

  • Location Groups

  • Supplier Groups

  • Warehouse Groups

  • Production Groups

  • Bill Of Material Groups

  • Mode Of Transport Groups

  • Customer Groups

Note

Even though the sheets Product Groups and Location Groups are in the ‘Optional’ sheet category, it is recommended to make use of these sheets to model a supply chain with least effort.