Production scheduling for SMEs
Production scheduling software for small manufacturers
SkyPlanner APS turns the orders, machines, people and shifts of a small factory into one finite-capacity schedule. Start on your own with demo data or an Excel import, and rebuild the plan in seconds when the day changes. As you grow, the same scheduler handles more workstations, more plants and an ERP connection.
- Finite-capacity scheduling
- Excel and CSV import
- 30-day free trial
- From 199 € / month
98%
on-time delivery at best, up from around 50%, KJH-Comp
2 → 1
supervisors needed for scheduling, KJH-Comp
99.2%
delivery reliability this year, Piristeel
Since 2021
scheduling dozens of CNC lathes and machining centres, Eskomatic
Results reported by SkyPlanner customers Eskomatic, KJH-Comp and Piristeel. Read all SkyPlanner APS reviews
Why small factories outgrow Excel
Excel cannot see your capacity
In a small factory the schedule often lives in one spreadsheet or in one person’s head. That works until orders, machines and rush jobs grow faster than the planner’s day.
A spreadsheet plans every machine as free
Excel lists the orders but does not know that the press is booked until Thursday or that the welder is on holiday. Every date it gives is a guess.
One person holds the plan
When the plan lives in one planner’s file, nobody else can answer a customer or replan when that person is away.
One rush order moves everything
A rush job, a breakdown or a late delivery means hours of moving rows by hand, and the plan is out of date before it is finished.
Delivery dates without the load
Sales quotes dates without seeing the load on the machines, and the shop floor works overtime to keep promises it never made.
Missing materials found on the day
Without a link between the schedule and stock, a missing part is found when the job should already be running.
Big systems cost more than the problem
An ERP project takes months and a budget that a small factory does not have just to get a working schedule.
SkyPlanner gives a small factory finite-capacity scheduling without an IT project. Every machine is loaded to its real capacity, and the whole plan is rebuilt in seconds when the day changes.
Finite capacity scheduling
Finite capacity scheduling without an ERP project
SkyPlanner runs on its own from the first day. Bring your machines, products and orders, and the Arcturus AI engine builds a schedule that never loads a machine beyond the hours it really has.
Start from Excel or demo data
Import workstations, products and orders from Excel or CSV files, or start the free trial with demo data and replace it with your own when you are ready.
Every job on a machine that is free
Each process step is placed on a workstation with free time in its shift calendar, in the right order, with setting time included.
The whole plan on one screen
The Gantt timeline shows every order on every workstation, so anyone in the company can see what runs next and when an order will be ready.
How SkyPlanner works in a small factory
Your first schedule the same day
Small manufacturers set up SkyPlanner themselves and add the details as they go.
Machines, people and shifts
Enter each machine or work centre as a workstation with its own shift calendar. Plan by operator or by plain capacity, run several shifts on one workstation, and enter holidays and maintenance as exceptions.
- Operator-based or capacity-based planning
- Several shifts per workstation
Materials and purchased parts
SkyPlanner handles multi-level bills of materials, calculates material needs and, with material-based scheduling on, starts a job only when its materials will be there.
- Material shortages visible in planning
- Need dates for purchasing
Shop-floor reporting
Operators see their own work queue in a simple worker view or the SkyPlanner shop-floor app. They start, pause and complete jobs as they go, so the schedule always reflects what has really happened.
Rush orders and breakdowns
A rush order arrives. The new schedule is ready in seconds.
When a customer pulls an order forward or a machine stops, the Arcturus AI engine rebuilds the schedule in seconds. Lock jobs that must not move and raise the priority of the urgent order.
- Add a quote as a sales prospect scheduled as a simulated order and see the earliest realistic delivery date, without disturbing confirmed orders.
- See what accepting a rush order does to every other promise.
- Quote dates from the real load on your workstations.
The value SkyPlanner brings us is that it is a tool that works in daily use, especially for setting delivery dates. There, I think, it works well.
Tommi Männistö, Production Planning Manager, Eskomatic Oy
Contract machining of demanding metal components · Eskomatic’s SkyPlanner APS review
Integrates with any ERP or MES
Start on your own. Connect your ERP when you are ready.
SkyPlanner connects to all ERP and MES systems through its open REST API, including in-house systems. Orders and products flow in, planned times and material need dates flow back. It also runs standalone, so you can start scheduling before an integration is in place.
From your ERP
ERP · MES · CSV · Manual
- Sales & production orders
- Products & routings
- Materials & stock
- Customers & due dates
SkyPlanner APS
Schedules production
- Machines
- Shifts
- People
- Routings
- Materials
- Schedule
Back to your ERP
ERP · Reports · Management
- Planned start & end times
- Material need dates
- Progress & quantities
- Delivery dates
- SAP S/4HANA
- Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
- Oracle NetSuite
- Infor
- Epicor
- IFS Cloud
- Sage X3
- Odoo
Room to grow
Grows with your factory
SkyPlanner is used by manufacturers of every size. A small factory starts with a few workstations, and the same system runs large plants, several sites and tens of thousands of active process steps.
As your factory grows
- Add or remove workstations at any time
- Connect any ERP or MES through the REST API
- Add subcontractors as their own workstations
- Schedule several plants with workstation groups
- Give operators their own view in 29 languages
- Add guided onboarding or custom features when you need them
Why SkyPlanner
Why small manufacturers schedule with SkyPlanner
SkyPlanner APS is AI production scheduling software for small and medium-sized manufacturers that want a real schedule instead of a spreadsheet, without an ERP project. It runs on its own from day one and connects to any ERP or MES through an open REST API when you are ready.
Published price
From 199 € / month with 5 workstations included, and 20 € per month for each additional workstation.
Free trial without a credit card
Start a 30-day free trial with up to 20 workstations, with demo data or your own.
Excel and CSV import
Bring your existing lists of machines, products and orders and import them instead of typing them in.
Replanned in seconds
The Arcturus AI engine rebuilds the finite-capacity schedule in seconds when a machine stops or a rush order arrives.
Monthly subscription
Monthly billing is available, and you can raise or lower the number of workstations or cancel at any time.
Nothing to install
SkyPlanner is a cloud service that runs in the browser, and the ERP connection can wait until you need it.
Security and data
SkyPlanner runs in the cloud on AWS. If your data needs to stay in a specific country, a dedicated server there is available by agreement. Data is backed up daily and backups are kept for 30 days. Users can sign in with Google or Microsoft accounts and two-factor authentication. A data processing agreement is available, and customer data is never used to train AI models.
Pricing
From 199 € / month
5 workstations included. Each additional workstation is 20 € per month. There is a free trial, and guided onboarding packages are available if you want help setting up workstations, products and shift calendars.
Every industry
Production scheduling software by industry
SkyPlanner is configured to the process of each factory, so manufacturers in every industry schedule with the same software.
- Food manufacturing
- Beverage
- Chemical manufacturing
- Pharmaceutical manufacturing
- Cosmetics and personal care
- Metal fabrication
- Machine shops
- Foundries and metal forming
- Surface treatment
- Machinery manufacturing
- Automotive parts
- Aerospace and defense
- Electronics manufacturing
- Electrical equipment
- Medical devices
- Contract manufacturing
- Plastics manufacturing
- Packaging and printing
- Furniture manufacturing
- Building products
- Textile, apparel and footwear
Questions small manufacturers ask
Frequently asked questions
What is the best production scheduling software for small manufacturers?
A small manufacturer needs scheduling software that plans to real machine capacity, can be set up without an IT project and has a price that fits a small budget. SkyPlanner APS does finite-capacity scheduling with the Arcturus AI engine, imports existing data from Excel or CSV files and costs from 199 € / month with 5 workstations included. There is a 30-day free trial, and SkyPlanner connects to any ERP or MES through its REST API when you need it.
Is SkyPlanner suitable for SMEs?
Yes. SkyPlanner is used by small and medium-sized manufacturers as well as large plants. Pricing is per workstation, so a small factory pays for the workstations it schedules, and the same system grows with more workstations, more plants and an ERP connection.
Can SkyPlanner replace Excel for production scheduling?
Yes. Import workstations, products and orders from Excel or CSV files, and SkyPlanner builds a finite-capacity schedule from them. Unlike a spreadsheet, it knows the shift calendar of every workstation, places each job only where there is free time and rebuilds the whole plan in seconds when something changes.
Do we need an ERP to use SkyPlanner?
No. SkyPlanner can be used as a standalone solution, with data entered by hand or imported from CSV and Excel files. If you have an ERP or MES, it can be connected later through the open REST API, built by Skycode or by your own developers using the public API documentation.
Our production process is unusual. Can SkyPlanner handle it?
Most likely. SkyPlanner has more than 1,000 configurable settings in its scheduling logic, user interface and data structure, and most process-specific needs are handled by settings. Subcontracted steps can be part of the routing as their own workstations. If something cannot be configured, it can be added as a customization service, estimated before the work starts.
How much does production scheduling software cost for a small factory?
SkyPlanner costs 199 € per month including the first 5 workstations, and 20 € per month for each additional workstation. A workstation is a production resource with its own scheduled work queue, such as a machine or a work centre. Guided onboarding packages and integrations are available separately. See pricing for the details.
Is there a free trial?
Yes. The free trial lasts 30 days, includes up to 20 workstations and needs no credit card. You can start with demo data or your own, support is available during the trial, and you can continue to the paid version when it ends.
Does SkyPlanner still fit when the company grows?
Yes. You can add workstations at any time, connect an ERP or MES and schedule several plants with workstation groups. SkyPlanner has customers with tens of thousands of active process steps, and the user interface is available in 29 languages. See multi-site production scheduling and SkyPlanner for large manufacturers.
See next week’s orders on your own machines
Start the free trial with demo data or your own machine list, or book a demo and we will show your orders scheduled to real capacity.
