Summary
StockIQ's estimates feature allows you to provide StockIQ with insight about specific, upcoming, expected sales. Enabling the Estimates feature is done through the Admin --> System Configuration --> Global Estimates Settings
Estimates are currently provided to StockIQ through an interface data feed, or through the 'Estimates' Screen under System Configuration.
Estimates usually come from the sales team in collaboration with customers. The customer provides an anticipated purchase date and quantity, but the quantity is not yet in the ERP as an order. In this way, the estimate is more firm than forecast, but it is not yet as firm as a real order.
Each estimate is always entered against a specific item, site, and customer-ship-to. Further, the estimate must be assigned a specific date, and quantity.
Estimate Effects - Future
When the estimate is still out in the future, several things are done:
- A demand order of type "Estimate" is created by StockIQ to represent this expected firm demand. This likely causes an increase in suggested releases to make sure you are covered for this extra demand.
- As actual orders come in matching the item, site, and customer, StockIQ reduces the amount of the Estimate demand order by the amount of matched orders actually received, to ensure the system is not "double counting" this expected demand - see the Consumption heading below.
- If the Estimate is marked as exceptional, an event of type "Estimate" is created in the forecasting period that it modifies to make the effect of this estimate visible on the Forecast Chart. This event is updated daily by StockIQ and is not editable by the user.
Estimate Effects - Historical
Once the estimate has moved in to the past, what was originally an estimate on the part of the sales person is now in demand history.
If the Estimate is not marked as exceptional, then nothing further must be done.
If the Estimate is exceptional (e.g. unusual demand) StockIQ will examine what orders were actually received for that customer against that item-site, and adjust the historical event accordingly to match, so that you have neither a dip, nor a rise in your demand history as a result of the activity against that exceptional estimate.
Estimate Consumption
Matching of real orders against the estimate is done according to the settings in the Settings --> System Configuration --> Global Estimates Settings screen. The only two settings here are whether estimates are enabled, and what day range is allowed for matching orders.
To match orders against an estimate, StockIQ will look that number of days on either side of the estimate for demand that matches the same item, site, and customer. It adds up the matches, and that is the amount of firm, actual demand that has been received.
This amount is "consumed" off of the amount remaining on the estimate, and that is used to either create the forward-looking Estimate demand order, or to create any necessary historical event for explaining away an "Exceptional" estimate.
Troubleshooting
Estimates are consumed by actual sales so take this into account when reviewing the Order Schedule
Estimates will consume the forecast in the Order Schedule
Use the estimates screen or Open Sales orders screen to show estimates and how much is consumed
Tags/Metadata
How is forecast consumed? | Order Schedule Detail Grid