Patent ID: 6889197
Filing Date: 2005-05-03
Classification: G06Q

Abstract:
1. A method for processing customer forecasted demands for direct material, the method comprising: electronically receiving customer forecasted demands for procurement of direct material to be used for production of products in accordance with the customer forecasted demands by a supply chain server from at least one customer; electronically analyzing by the supply chain server the customer forecasted demands to determine whether the customer forecasted demands are valid, wherein said step of analyzing includes determining whether the customer forecasted demands represent a known customer, whether the customer forecasted demands comply with contractual terms, whether the customer forecasted demands are complete, whether the customer forecasted demands are accurate, whether the customer forecasted demands adhere to previous forecasts, whether the customer forecasted demands adhere to previous buying patterns, and whether the customer forecasted demands represent requests within agreed to capacities, and wherein the step of analyzing further includes at least one of identifying major shifts relative to previous weeks' forecasts, identifying major cumulative shifts in buying patterns, identifying requests outside of agreed upon capacities, and identifying supply and demand requirements relative to at least one of a start-up, an end-of-run and a plant shutdown; and electronically sending by the supply chain server the customer forecasted demands to at least one supplier when the customer forecasted demands are determined to be valid.