Negotiation Automation Platform
Price consistency means that the sale price is reasonable with the total procurement and other costs . In contrast , delivery consistency means having an adequate inventory of the necessary parts at the appropriate time in the vehicle manufacturing process and being able to use the critical processes in the required order . They require managing :
• which parts are needed to manufacture a specific vehicle ,
• how many stock units each part has at each time considering the consumption and delivery results of manufacturing ,
• the required order of processes for vehicle manufacturing , and
• when the manufacturing facility of each process will be available .
To achieve delivery consistency , Automated Negotiation AI refers to data called BOM / BOP ( Bill of Materials / Bill of Process ) and ATP / CTP ( Available to Promise / Capable to Promise ). The former is structured data of the necessary parts and processes for a specific vehicle . At the same time , the latter is structured data of when and how many units of each part and manufacturing facility can be consumed or used . Fundamentally , the former is static information determined by vehicle and production method designs . At the same time , the latter is dynamic information updated by delivery and usage plans for parts or booking production facilities .
Figure 5-4 shows a solution architecture that simultaneously and consistently executes procurement and sales negotiations by referring to BOM / BOP and ATP / CTP . At the center is the company itself ; on the left side , negotiation AI conducts sales negotiations with customers , while the negotiation AI conducts procurement negotiations with suppliers on the right .
In sales negotiations , scheduling done by referring to BOM / BOP and ATP / CTP information makes it possible to identify when the delivery date of a completed vehicle will be during negotiation or which parts are missing to meet a specific delivery date , as well as when those parts should be delivered . The information on the missing parts and required delivery dates is passed to the negotiation AI on the right side , and procurement negotiations are conducted accordingly .
If the procurement negotiations succeed , the content of ATP / CTP is updated following the scheduled delivery ( the planned inventory quantity increases according to the agreed delivery date ). Suppose the completed car sales negotiation is established . In that case , the ATP / CTP content is updated following the manufacturing schedule ( the planned inventory quantity of consumed parts decreases , and the available schedule for production facilities is reduced ).
Such configuration and operation simultaneously enable consistent sales and procurement negotiations regarding delivery dates .
74 August 2023