How do I choose between different supply chain planning software options for aerospace production control?

Choosing supply chain planning software for aerospace production control is less about “best software” and more about best fit for your operational reality. Aerospace has unusual requirements: long lead times, strict traceability, make-to-order or engineer-to-order flows, configuration control, serial/lot tracking, regulatory compliance, high mix/low volume, and frequent disruption from supplier shortages.

Here’s a practical way to choose.

1) Start with your planning problem

Define what you need the software to do, specifically.

Common aerospace planning needs:

• Demand planning for OEM/customer schedules and spares
• MRP / material requirements planning
• Capacity planning across constrained resources
• Production scheduling and finite loading
• Supplier coordination and risk management
• Inventory optimization
• Traceability by serial/lot/batch
• Change management for engineering revisions
• Multi-site and multi-tier visibility
• ERP integration and shop-floor execution

If you can, separate:

• Strategic planning: network, inventory policy, make/buy
• Tactical planning: S&OP, demand/capacity balancing
• Operational control: detailed scheduling, shortages, expediting, work orders

Different tools are better at different layers.

2) Decide what type of system you need

There are several categories:

ERP with planning modules

Best if you need a broad system that already covers finance, purchasing, inventory, and basic production planning.

Pros:

• Easier integration
• Single data model
• Usually lower implementation complexity

Cons:

• Planning capabilities may be weaker than best-of-breed tools
• Scheduling and scenario modeling can be limited

APS (Advanced Planning and Scheduling)

Best for finite capacity scheduling, constraint-based planning, and short-term control.

Pros:

• Stronger scheduling and what-if analysis
• Good for bottlenecks and resource conflicts

Cons:

• Often depends heavily on clean master data
• Needs integration with ERP/MES

Supply chain planning / IBP platforms

Best for demand, supply, inventory, and scenario planning at higher levels.

Pros:

• Good visibility across the supply chain
• Better collaboration and scenario modeling

Cons:

• May not provide detailed shop-floor scheduling

MES-integrated planning

Best if production control is tightly linked to execution and quality.

Pros:

• Real-time visibility
• Strong shop-floor control

Cons:

• Not always strong at enterprise planning

For aerospace, many companies use a combination: ERP + APS + MES, or ERP + supply chain planning platform.

3) Make aerospace-specific requirements non-negotiable

Build a checklist of must-haves. For aerospace, these often include:

• Serial and lot traceability
• Configuration management and revision control
• Effectivity dates for engineering changes
• Quality holds and nonconformance handling
• AS9100 support or alignment with regulated processes
• Multi-level BOM complexity
• Long lead-time parts and obsolescence management
• Supplier certification and approved vendor lists
• Kitting and staged material control
• Traceability for exported/regulatory requirements if relevant
• Strong audit trail and document control

If a vendor cannot support these natively or through proven integration, move on.

4) Evaluate planning depth, not just dashboard quality

Good software demos can look impressive but hide weak logic. Test these areas:

• Can it handle multi-level BOMs and substitutes?
• Can it plan with capacity constraints?
• Does it support alternate routings?
• Can it run scenario analysis quickly?
• How does it treat shortages and exceptions?
• Can it prioritize by customer, program, or contractual due date?
• Can it manage ECO/ECN changes without breaking the plan?
• Does it support project-based manufacturing or program-level control?
• How well does it deal with engineering-to-order or make-to-order?

Ask for a live test using your real data, not a canned demo.

5) Check integration fit

Aerospace production control rarely runs in one system.

Confirm integration with:

• ERP
• MES / shop-floor systems
• PLM / engineering change systems
• QMS / quality systems
• Supplier portals / EDI
• Demand signals from customers or programs
• Warehouse and barcode/RFID systems

Important questions:

• Is integration API-based?
• Is there proven integration with your ERP/PLM/MES stack?
• How is master data synchronized?
• What happens when revisions change?
• Is there near-real-time updating or batch only?

Integration risk is often the biggest hidden cost.

6) Compare usability for planners and production controllers

If the system is too complex, users will work around it.

Look for:

• Exception-based worklists
• Clear shortage/root-cause views
• Simple scenario comparison
• Drill-down from enterprise to part level
• Role-based dashboards
• Easy re-planning after disruptions
• Collaboration features for procurement, engineering, and manufacturing

In aerospace, planners often need to coordinate across engineering, procurement, quality, and operations. The software should support that workflow.

7) Score vendors using a weighted matrix

Create a simple scorecard with weights. Example:

• Aerospace functional fit: 25%
• Planning/scheduling capability: 20%
• Integration capability: 15%
• Traceability/compliance support: 15%
• Usability/adoption: 10%
• Implementation effort/risk: 10%
• Total cost of ownership: 5%

Score each vendor 1–5 on each category, then multiply by weight. This helps avoid choosing a tool based on marketing.

8) Evaluate implementation reality

Many planning systems fail during implementation, not selection.

Ask:

• How long is a typical deployment in aerospace?
• What data cleanup is required?
• Do they provide aerospace references?
• Who configures the rules?
• How much customization is needed?
• What internal team will own the system after go-live?
• What training is included?
• How is change management handled?

A tool that needs massive customization may be risky unless you have strong IT/process support.

9) Request proof with your own use cases

Use 3–5 real scenarios, for example:

• Supplier delay on a critical long-lead component
• Engineering change impacting work-in-process
• Capacity loss at a bottleneck work center
• Late customer schedule change
• Quality hold on a serialized part

Ask each vendor to demonstrate how their system handles these scenarios end-to-end.

10) Consider the total cost of ownership

Don’t focus only on license price. Include:

• Implementation
• Data cleansing and migration
• Integration
• Training
• Customization
• Support
• Annual maintenance/subscription
• Ongoing admin and planner effort
• Upgrade costs

Sometimes a cheaper tool is more expensive over time because it requires workarounds or heavy IT support.

11) Ask for aerospace references

Prefer vendors with references in:

• Aerospace OEMs
• Tier 1 / Tier 2 suppliers
• Defense manufacturing
• High-mix, low-volume discrete manufacturing

Reference questions:

• What worked well?
• What was harder than expected?
• How accurate is the planning output?
• How well does it handle revisions and traceability?
• Would they choose it again?

12) Watch for red flags

Be cautious if a vendor:

• Says it can handle aerospace but has no real references
• Relies on lots of manual spreadsheet steps
• Cannot explain how it handles configuration control
• Needs major customization for basic planning
• Has weak integration options
• Cannot support exception-based planning
• Focuses on pretty dashboards but weak logic underneath

A simple decision rule

• Choose ERP-first if you need broad process standardization and only moderate planning sophistication.
• Choose APS if your biggest issue is detailed capacity/scheduling control.
• Choose IBP/supply planning if your challenge is enterprise visibility, scenario planning, and multi-echelon supply coordination.
• Choose MES-linked planning if production execution and real-time control are the main pain points.

Recommended selection process

1. Define business goals and must-have requirements
2. Map current processes and pain points
3. Shortlist 3–5 vendors
4. Run a weighted scorecard
5. Test with real aerospace scenarios and data
6. Validate integrations and reference customers
7. Estimate implementation effort and TCO
8. Choose the smallest system that fully solves the problem

If you want, I can also help you build a vendor comparison scorecard template for aerospace production control, or a requirements checklist you can use in an RFP.