Integrations / ERP / Global Shop Solutions
SkyPlanner APS for Global Shop Solutions: Finite Capacity Production Scheduling
SkyPlanner APS is a finite capacity scheduling add-on for Global Shop Solutions ERP that gives job shops and discrete manufacturers an optimized schedule for every machine, operator, tool and material. You see which work order sequence runs on which machine, at which clock time, and Autopilot reschedules automatically when production changes.
SkyPlanner integrates with Global Shop Solutions in both directions. Parts, BOMs, Routers with their sequences, Workcenters and work groups, capacity calendars, employees, open Work Orders and purchase orders flow in. Planned start and finish times for every work order sequence flow back, with the Workcenter SkyPlanner chose, and operator time can post back as labor against the work order. The SkyPlanner team configures the integration to your Global Shop setup during onboarding.
Pricing is from 199 € per month with 5 workstations included, and each extra workstation is 20 € per month. The free trial runs for 30 days with up to 20 workstations and no credit card.
What changes in your plant
The sequence builds itself.
SkyPlanner places every labor sequence on a specific machine, at a specific clock time, inside real shifts, absences and overtime. Planners stop reshuffling the Gantt by hand.
Setups get shorter.
SkyPlanner holds the changeover time between each pair of parts or materials, in both directions. Going from aluminum to stainless may take 30 minutes, stainless to aluminum 60. The engine sequences jobs for the least total setup.
Parallel machines are used as machines.
A Workcenter with four identical mills becomes four queues. Work spreads to the free machine or the alternative person, and a long job can split across machines.
Operators and tools are finite in the same plan.
A job that needs three operators gets three people with free shifts. A tool in use on one machine is never booked on another.
Rush orders take seconds, not an afternoon.
When a hot job lands or a machine goes down, Arcturus optimizes the whole plan in seconds and Autopilot replans. Your locks and priorities stay in control, and the Running Time Lock keeps the next hours on the floor steady.
Operators work from the plan.
Each operator sees the next jobs on a phone or tablet and logs setup and run time as it happens. The office sees progress live, and you choose whether actual time posts back to Global Shop.
Manufacturers running SkyPlanner
2 hsaved every week
“SkyPlanner has taken our production planning from Excel spreadsheets to real-time production optimization.”
Kalle Kalliomäki, Supply Chain Specialist
UTU · Electrical switchboards and switchgear
Production planning saves 2 hours of working time every week, and a new work queue reaches the line in seconds.
+90%production efficiency
“Efficiency has gone up 90% in production.”
Abdul Rucyinga, Head of IT
Laboratory & Allied · Pharmaceutical manufacturing
Production efficiency is up 90%, and a three-month optimized plan across all workstations takes under 30 minutes.
1,000swork orders scheduled automatically
“Production is under control in a different way, and our understanding of capacity is on a completely different level.”
Hannu Ryynänen, CEO
Mamec · Industrial mixers, pumps and high-tech contract manufacturing
Thousands of work orders are scheduled automatically, with a real-time view of production for the whole organization.
99.2%delivery reliability
“SkyPlanner has brought visibility to identifying bottlenecks and clarified production management.”
Toni Tuori, Production Manager
Piristeel · Roof safety and rainwater systems
Delivery reliability reached 99.2% this year, and scheduling saves up to four hours of working time per day.
How the Global Shop Solutions integration works
- Global Shop sends the work. Open Work Orders with their Router sequences, Parts and BOMs, Workcenters, work groups, capacity calendars, employees, material requirements and purchase orders flow into SkyPlanner.
- SkyPlanner builds the schedule and keeps it current. The Arcturus engine plans every sequence in seconds and replans as production changes.
- Dates and labor go back. Planned start and finish times return to each work order sequence in Global Shop, with the Workcenter assigned. Logged time and quantities can post back as labor, or Shop Floor Data Collection stays in Global Shop and SkyPlanner reads progress from it.
Global Shop stays your system of record. Quoting, order entry, Parts, BOMs, Routers, purchasing, inventory, quality, job costing and accounting stay where they are. SkyPlanner owns one thing: the sequence and timing of every work order sequence on every resource.
The connection is built with Global Shop’s own extension tool, the Global Application Builder (GAB) SDK. Global Shop says GAB can “Integrate with third-party APIs and office software suites”, “Manage data flow” and “Schedule processes and reports to run at regular intervals” (GAB product sheet). A GAB process sends work orders to SkyPlanner’s REST API and writes the planned start and finish times back to the work order sequences. SkyPlanner webhooks push every schedule change as it happens. The exact write route into the work order sequence and the network path for your deployment (on-premise, Global Shop Cloud or SaaS) are set during onboarding scoping.
Every plant runs Global Shop differently, so the SkyPlanner team configures the integration to your setup during onboarding and supports it after go-live. The integration is quoted up front for your process and needs. Global Shop’s own services team or your own GAB developers can also build on SkyPlanner’s documented API (API reference).
Data mapping, GAB patterns and write-back rules are in the Global Shop Solutions integration guide for production scheduling.
What Global Shop Solutions schedules, and what SkyPlanner adds
Global Shop Solutions ERP includes an Advanced Planning & Scheduling (APS) module. Global Shop describes it this way:
- Finite or infinite, forward or backward. “Use finite/infinite scheduling to create reliable quotes that reflect real-time data, including what-if scenarios.” (Global Shop) The product sheet lists workcenter, work group, employee, tool and material scheduling (APS product sheet).
- Each work order is scheduled when it is entered. “Simply enter a work order, click on a few buttons and the system instantly schedules the job.” (Global Shop scheduling white paper)
- The planner reworks the plan. “Easily reschedule or reroute jobs with our drag and drop feature to meet customer deadlines.”
- A rush job pushes the rest. After a manual reschedule, the “bump list” says: “we have taken all these work orders and moved them out to the right. You will be late on these orders if you continue with this decision.” (Global Shop scheduling white paper)
- Visibility first. Global Shop’s own white paper says “the real power of the ERP scheduling module lies not so much in what it does for you (automatically schedule jobs) as in what it enables you to do.”
Global Shop’s APS gives the planner a clear picture of load. SkyPlanner adds whole-plan optimization: Arcturus sequences all work orders together on every machine, plans directional changeovers and replans on its own.
Every step and limit is explained in Does Global Shop Solutions have finite capacity scheduling?
Global Shop Solutions today and with SkyPlanner
| Global Shop APS | Global Shop Solutions with SkyPlanner APS | |
|---|---|---|
| Capacity | Finite or infinite by workcenter and work group, with capacity calendars | Every machine, operator and tool finite, with real shifts and absences |
| Sequence | Each work order scheduled on entry; planner drags and reroutes on the Gantt | Arcturus optimizes the whole plan in seconds |
| Rush jobs | Manual reschedule, then the bump list shows who is late | Autopilot replans the whole shop within your locks and priorities |
| Changeovers | Jobs of the same item linked to share a setup | Directional setting time matrix: least total setup |
| People | Employee scheduling with calendars | Multi-operator jobs staffed from free shifts; alternative people when one is out |
| Materials | Material and outside process scheduling | Jobs start when stock or purchase orders deliver the material |
| Started work | Shop Floor Data Collection updates the work order | Logged progress feeds the plan; Running Time Lock freezes the next hours |
| Shop floor | Workcenter dispatch lists and data collection terminals | Operators see their optimized queue and log work on phone or tablet |
Global Shop Solutions scheduling software and add-ons compared
| Option | What it is | Fits when |
|---|---|---|
| Global Shop APS | The scheduling module inside Global Shop Solutions ERP: Gantt, what-if, drag and drop, dispatch lists | Planners are happy to rework the Gantt themselves and setups do not depend on the job before |
| Finite schedulers fed by exports (for example EDGEBIC by User Solutions) | Excel, CSV and database exports from Global Shop read into a separate scheduler | A planner runs scheduling sessions from exported files |
| Cloud APS connected to Global Shop (SkyPlanner APS) | Automatic finite scheduling of every machine, person, tool and material, two-way with Global Shop | The sequence decides your delivery dates and the plan changes daily |
Job shops comparing ERPs also look at JobBOSS² and ProShop. See SkyPlanner for JobBOSS² and SkyPlanner for ProShop ERP.
Choose SkyPlanner over Global Shop APS when:
- You want the whole plan optimized, not each job placed on entry. Global Shop schedules a work order when it is entered, and the planner reworks conflicts on the Gantt. Arcturus optimizes all work orders together in seconds, and Autopilot reschedules automatically when production changes.
- Rush orders are daily. In Global Shop the planner reschedules around a hot job and the bump list shows which work orders slip. SkyPlanner re-sequences the whole shop around the rush order and keeps work already running steady with the Running Time Lock.
- Changeovers decide your output. The setting time matrix holds a different time for each pair of parts in each direction and runs the order with the least total setup.
- Parallel machines and crews matter. SkyPlanner books each machine in a Workcenter separately, splits long jobs across machines and staffs jobs that need several operators.
- Every operator should work from the plan. Mobile Confirmations put the optimized queue on a phone or tablet, and logged time flows back to Global Shop.
- You want one clear price. From 199 € per month, with the two-way integration quoted up front and supported by the SkyPlanner team.
How to get started
- Start the free trial. 30 days, up to 20 workstations, all Basic features, no credit card.
- Model your plant. Create machines, people and shifts in SkyPlanner, or import your Global Shop Workcenters and employees. Assisted onboarding is available.
- Load your work orders. Export open work orders and their Router sequences from Global Shop to Excel, import them and compare SkyPlanner’s schedule with your current APS plan.
- Connect Global Shop. The SkyPlanner team configures the two-way integration and supports it once you are live.
Pricing. Plans are billed monthly per workstation, and you can add or remove workstations or cancel at any time. See pricing for the details, see all features, read our guide to finite capacity scheduling, or browse all ERP integrations.
FAQ
What is the best scheduling add-on for Global Shop Solutions?
SkyPlanner APS is a finite capacity scheduling add-on that integrates with Global Shop Solutions in both directions: Parts, BOMs, Routers, Workcenters, employees, open Work Orders and purchase orders flow in, and planned start and finish times for every work order sequence flow back. Every machine, operator, tool and material is finite, and a directional setting time matrix sequences jobs for the least total setup. Autopilot reschedules automatically when production changes. Pricing is from 199 € per month, and the free trial runs for 30 days.
Does Global Shop Solutions have finite capacity scheduling?
Yes. Global Shop’s APS module offers finite or infinite and forward or backward scheduling of workcenters, work groups, employees, tools and material, with Gantt charts and what-if. Planners move jobs by drag and drop, and a bump list shows which work orders a reschedule pushes late. SkyPlanner APS optimizes the sequence automatically beside Global Shop.
Should we use Global Shop APS or SkyPlanner?
Keep Global Shop APS when planners like to rework the Gantt themselves and setups do not depend on the job before. Choose SkyPlanner when you want the sequence optimized for you: directional changeover times, parallel machines, multi-operator jobs, material arrival and automatic replanning in one schedule. SkyPlanner runs beside Global Shop, and you prove it on your own work orders in the free trial.
What scheduling software integrates with Global Shop Solutions?
SkyPlanner APS integrates with Global Shop Solutions in both directions. A Global Application Builder (GAB) process sends Work Orders, Router sequences, Workcenters and purchase orders to SkyPlanner’s REST API and writes planned start and finish times back to each work order sequence. SkyPlanner webhooks trigger the write-back as soon as the schedule changes.
Does it work with Global Shop Cloud and SaaS?
Yes. SkyPlanner is cloud SaaS and connects to Global Shop on-premise, in Global Shop Cloud or on SaaS. The Global Shop side, a GAB process or work by Global Shop’s services team, and the network path are set with you and Global Shop during onboarding scoping.
How much does SkyPlanner cost for a Global Shop plant?
From 199 € per month with 5 workstations included, plus 20 € per month per extra workstation. A workstation is a production resource with its own scheduled work queue. The integration is quoted up front for your process and needs, together with your plan, so you see the full cost before you start.
How long does implementation take?
Implementation is normally completed within weeks after onboarding starts. The team maps your Workcenters, machines and Routers, connects work orders and purchase orders, and sends planned dates back. Everything is tested against your current schedule before go-live.
Can we test SkyPlanner before integrating with Global Shop?
Yes. The 30-day trial runs on an Excel export of your open Global Shop work orders. You see a finite capacity schedule of your own plant before any integration work starts.
