Integrations / ERP / Lemonsoft
Does Lemonsoft Have Finite Capacity Scheduling? Hienokuormitus Gantt vs SkyPlanner APS
Yes. Lemonsoft’s production planning loads each machine up to its capacity and places work stages in a Gantt. Release 2026.10.2 added priority-based automatic scheduling that keeps stage order and locked jobs. SkyPlanner APS goes further: it chooses among alternative workstations, plans each stage against projected stock and incoming purchase orders, and sequences jobs by a setting time matrix to cut setups. Plants that need those run SkyPlanner APS beside Lemonsoft.
This article describes Lemonsoft releases 2026.9.x and 2026.10.x in the browser client LemonOnline. The Windows workstation version runs automatic scheduling without the dialog settings below.
How Lemonsoft schedules production, step by step
Production planning is sold as the P1 Tuotannon suunnittelu package. Lemonsoft describes it as meant “for production planners who follow production load and plan production” (our translation, source). The Gantt planning feature needs the WTUGANT license. (source)
1. Machines and capacity
Each machine (Tuotantokone) has a Laskentatapa that sets where its capacity comes from:
- Kiinteä kapasiteetti: a fixed daily capacity.
- Työvuorosuunnittelu: shift planning, renewed in the workstation version as Rosteri.
- Lapsikoneilta: summed from child machines.
Machines also carry a Kapasiteettikerroin (capacity factor), Pakota ylikuormitus (force overload), an Isäkonetunnus (parent machine) and a Koneryhmä, the group of interchangeable machines. A parent machine sums the capacity and load of its children, and a machine can hold tool sets (Työkalusetit) that each stage selects from. (source)
2. Work stages in the product structure
Lemonsoft has no separate routing master. Work stages are rows on the Työvaiheet tab of the Tuoterakenne screen. Each row holds the machine, duration, setup time (asetusaika), settle time (asettumisaika) and overlap percentage (Limitys%). A stage can also be steered to a person or a shift. (source)
3. Work numbers on the Tuotantolista
A production job is a työnumero (work number) on the Tuotantolista. Semi-finished items in the structure create their own work numbers and are scheduled to finish before the parent. A start permit (Aloituslupa) brings a job into automatic scheduling. (source)
4. Forward, backward and free
The planner schedules a job with Eteen (forward), Taakse (backward) or Vapaa (first free capacity). The setting FREE_TIMING decides how Vapaa works. With the default value 0, Lemonsoft avoids exceeding the day’s total but “does not search for a free time slot within the day or a single shift” (our translation). With value 1, it anchors on the first free minute of the day and schedules forward; stages still overlap when the free gap is too short, and the overlap percentage (Limitys%) cannot be used. CHECK_OVERLAPPING (values 1 to 3) checks stage overlaps in the New production job screen, also during forward, backward and free scheduling. (source)
5. Automatic scheduling, option 1 (default)
The legacy option fills machine capacity with no gaps and no overload. It re-runs about every 30 minutes (AUTOTIMING_INTERVAL), when the production list opens, at completion posting, or on a manual refresh. Lemonsoft’s help page states that it schedules work stages one at a time, so stages of one job may not land in chronological order. Release 2026.9.4 made forward, backward and free automatic scheduling respect stage order and overlap. (source, release notes)
6. Automatic scheduling, option 3 (release 2026.10.2)
Release 2026.10.2 lists option 3 as a highlight: jobs are ordered by customer, job, product and material priority, delivery time and material status, in an order the user sets. Locked jobs stay in place, and overlapping jobs can be blocked on a machine. (release notes) It “is not on by default; the administrator turns it on with the AUTOTIMING_LEGACY setting” (our translation). It starts from the Hienokuormitus Gantt in LemonOnline or runs on a timer. The dialog sets the stages to include, the start offset and horizon in days, finish date updates, and JIT backward from the delivery date.
The logic walks the machines in turn and gives each one the highest-priority stage that can start. It respects stage order, overlap, setup time, settle time and semi-finished sub-jobs. Priority comes from six fields: delivery date, customer, work number, product, material priority and stage state. The next field is compared only when two jobs tie on the previous one. (source)
7. The Hienokuormitus Gantt and locks
The Gantt shows dependencies and flags late jobs and material shortages. You can drag a job to another machine in the same group, and the rest of the queue re-sequences. Release 2026.9.1 added a Production AI assistant that analyzes the schedule and suggests changes. The schedule lock fixes the timing of every stage of a work number. Koneiden kapasiteetin lukitus blocks new work on a machine’s shift or day; it locks capacity only, so automatic scheduling moves unlocked jobs off a locked day. Lemonsoft advises locking the jobs first, then the capacity. (source, release notes, capacity lock)
What stays with the planner
- Priority order, one field at a time. Option 3 sorts stages by six fields in a fixed order and looks at the next field only on a tie. Nothing in that order trades setups against lateness or load.
- Machine choice stays with the planner. Each stage runs on the machine set on its row. Moving load to an interchangeable machine in the same group is a drag in the Gantt. (source)
- Material enters through the priority order. Option 3 sorts by material priority and status, and the Gantt flags shortages.
- Deviations without a clock time. Fixed capacity deviations are added to or removed from the day’s capacity “without a clock time” (our translation). With FREE_TIMING at 0, stages can share clock time inside a day; at 1 they queue from the first free minute but still overlap when the gap is too short.
- Locked jobs stay put. In option 1, locked jobs are not moved and, in Lemonsoft’s words, “may cause overload on the machine” (our translation). (source)
- One run at a time. “Only one scheduling run can be active in a company at a time” (our translation). Timed runs need the separate Lemonsoft Windows services application. (source)
- Setups are fixed per stage. Setup time is one value on the stage row, whatever ran before. None of the six priority fields groups similar jobs.
In practice, the planner still moves stages between machines and sets the grouping by hand.
When Lemonsoft’s own scheduling is enough
The Hienokuormitus Gantt does the job when:
- Each product runs on one fixed machine per stage.
- Material is in stock before you release a work number.
- Changeovers are short or the same whatever ran before.
- You plan in days and a supervisor sets the exact order at the machine.
- One planner owns the Gantt and has time to balance load by hand.
If that is your plant, turn on option 3 and keep machine capacities current.
When you need a finite capacity scheduler
You have outgrown it when several of these are true:
- Several machines can run the same stage and the planner moves jobs between them every day.
- Changeover time depends on which product ran before.
- Material arrival, not stock on hand, decides which job can start.
- Operators, shifts and shared tools limit the plan as much as machines.
- Rush orders and breakdowns force a replan several times a week.
What to look for
- All resources finite at clock time, including tools and multi-operator jobs, with shifts, holidays, overtime and breakdowns on the calendar.
- Alternative workstations per job that the engine actually uses.
- A setting time matrix of sequence-dependent changeover times that the engine uses to order jobs for the least setup.
- Material-aware scheduling from stock and incoming purchase orders.
- Automatic rescheduling when production changes, inside your locks.
- A concrete Lemonsoft write-back. Ask each vendor which REST API calls write stage times and post confirmations, and how they keep Lemonsoft’s own automatic scheduling from moving those stages again.
The options fall into three groups:
- Lemonsoft’s own production planning covers single-machine stages inside one system.
- Enterprise APS suites connect through an implementation project and need a dedicated planning team.
- Cloud APS with shop-floor execution, where SkyPlanner sits, schedules every resource automatically beside Lemonsoft and puts the queue in operators’ hands.
Where SkyPlanner fits
SkyPlanner APS covers each point above. The Arcturus AI engine schedules every machine, person and tool at clock time and optimizes the whole plan in seconds inside your real limits: capacity, shifts, materials, setup times, tools and dependencies. A job that needs three operators gets three people with free shifts. Dynamic Priorities set how much it weighs lead time, on-time delivery, customer and job priority and similar jobs, and Fast Track handles urgent orders.
When the first machine is busy, the engine moves the stage to another workstation you allowed for that job, weighted by each workstation’s efficiency. The setting time matrix holds the changeover time between product properties such as color, material or tool in each direction, and the engine orders jobs for the least setup. Material-driven scheduling projects future stock from balances, purchase orders, reservations and consumption, so a stage is planned when its material is there.
Autopilot reschedules automatically when production changes. Operators confirm work with Mobile Confirmations on phone or tablet.
Choose SkyPlanner when your planner moves jobs between interchangeable machines every day.
Choose SkyPlanner when setups or material arrivals decide what can run next.
Choose SkyPlanner when the plan changes several times a week and you want it to replan itself.
Start with an Excel export in the 30-day free trial (up to 20 workstations, no credit card). After that, pricing is from 199 € per month with 5 workstations included, billed monthly, cancel any time. The integration is quoted up front for your process and needs, together with your plan.
SkyPlanner integrates with Lemonsoft in both directions over Lemonsoft’s REST API. Work numbers and stages flow in, planned times go back to the stages, and operator confirmations post back as completion entries. Kaskea Group runs SkyPlanner with a two-way Lemonsoft integration. The SkyPlanner team configures it during onboarding and supports it after go-live. Your Lemonsoft partner or your developers can build on the documented REST API (API reference) with just an API token.
See the SkyPlanner for Lemonsoft page, the Lemonsoft integration guide, or other systems in the ERP integrations hub.
SkyPlanner reviews from manufacturers
Lemonsofttwo-way integration with SkyPlanner
Kaskea Group
Contract manufacturing: CNC machining, steel structures and assembly
Production is planned in SkyPlanner, with a two-way integration to Lemonsoft.
Fewerstoppages from material shortages
“The value SkyPlanner brings us is that it is a tool that works in daily use, especially for setting delivery dates.”
Tommi Männistö, Production Planning Manager
Eskomatic · Contract machining
Automatic load scheduling gives more accurate delivery dates, and production stoppages caused by material shortages have fallen sharply.
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.
FAQ
Does Lemonsoft have a production scheduling tool?
Yes. The P1 package with the WTUGANT license includes the Hienokuormitus Gantt, forward, backward and free scheduling, and automatic scheduling options 1 and 3. Automatic scheduling fills each machine’s capacity without overloading it.
What is Lemonsoft automatic scheduling option 3?
The priority-based scheduler highlighted in Lemonsoft release 2026.10.2. It walks the machines in turn and gives each the highest-priority stage that can start, keeping stage order, overlap and locked jobs. It is off by default; an administrator turns it on with AUTOTIMING_LEGACY.
Does Lemonsoft schedule against material availability?
Material priority and material status are part of option 3’s priority order, and the Gantt flags shortages. SkyPlanner APS schedules against projected stock: each stage is planned for when its material arrives, from stock and incoming purchase orders.
Can Lemonsoft move work to an alternative machine automatically?
Each stage runs on the machine set in the product structure, and the planner moves work between machines of the same group in the Gantt. SkyPlanner APS chooses among alternative workstations per product automatically.
Can I test SkyPlanner before integrating it with Lemonsoft?
Yes. Export open work numbers, stages and machines from Lemonsoft to Excel, import them during the 30-day trial and compare the schedule with your current Gantt. See pricing, start the trial or talk to sales.
