Routing in Production Planning and Control: SME Guide

Routing is the production path a job follows from the first operation to finished goods. BOM tells you what material is needed. Routing tells you where the work happens, in what sequence and under which release condition.

Direct answer

Routing defines the sequence of operations needed to make a product. For SMEs, a useful route sheet shows work centre, setup time, run time, inspection and release condition. For a manufacturer, the useful version is the one that names the record, owner, status and exception. That is how the team acts without turning every shortage or supplier issue into a WhatsApp chase.

Worked manufacturing example

A fabrication shop must make 50 brackets. The material is available, but production can only start if cutting, drilling, bending, powder coating and inspection are sequenced with realistic capacity.

Step	Work centre	Basis	Release condition	Optiwise use
10	Cutting saw	15 min setup + 2 min/unit	Approved drawing revision	Create first process entry
20	Drilling	10 min setup + 3 min/unit	Cut blanks accepted	Track machine and worker time
30	Bending	8 min setup + 2 min/unit	Hole position checked	Record good/rework quantity
40	Outside powder coating	Supplier lead time	Delivery challan issued	Track subcontract stock
50	Final inspection	Sampling plan	Pass/rework/reject decision	Receive accepted finished goods

How Optiwise handles this workflow

• Keep routing separate from BOM revision so a design change does not hide a process change.
• Use setup time and run time differently; a one-piece order and a 200-piece order do not consume capacity the same way.
• Put inspection and outside work in the route, otherwise planners release jobs that cannot actually finish.
• Compare planned route time with actual process entries after production closes.

Optiwise connects inventory, purchasing, production, quality checks, role approvals and AI-assisted actions around the same operating records. The result is not a loose dashboard; it is a workflow your buyer, planner, storekeeper and supervisor can check.

Implementation checklist

• Define the exact trigger that creates or updates the record.
• Name the owner who approves the next action.
• Separate planned, received, accepted, rejected and closed quantities.
• Keep missing data visible instead of converting it into a false score.
• Review one real order or item before rolling the rule across every product.

Related Optiwise pages and source checks

• Optiwise production
• Optiwise inventory
• Optiwise purchase
• docs.frappe.io
• docs.frappe.io

FAQs

What is routing in production planning?

Routing is the ordered list of operations, work centres and checks needed to make a product.

Is routing the same as BOM?

No. BOM lists materials and quantities. Routing lists operations, machines, sequence and time basis.

How does Optiwise use routing?

Optiwise connects routing with production orders, process entries, material movement, subcontracting and inspection decisions.