When you run planning in Business Central, the planning worksheet returns a list of action messages. These tell you what the system suggests you do: cancel an order, change a quantity, reschedule, and so on. The action messages are not optional noise. They reflect how the calculation expects supply and demand to balance.
If you delete an action message line without adjusting the related lines, you break the assumptions behind the rest of the plan. The other lines were calculated on the basis that you would carry out the suggested action. Skip it, and the numbers no longer add up.
This article explains why you should not simply delete cancellation suggestions in the planning worksheet, and what to do instead.
Action messages in the planning worksheet
As a planner, you need to pay attention to the action messages in the planning worksheet after you have run your planning. The different action messages, such as cancel or change quantity, appear in the lines. Each line shows you exactly what the suggestion applies to.
For example, a line might point to item number 1000 on location SILVER, with a suggestion to cancel a firm planned production order for a quantity of 50.
Why deleting a cancellation suggestion causes problems
A common mistake is to delete the line instead of acting on it. When customers run MRP and see a cancellation suggestion, they often react like this: “Here’s a suggestion to cancel a firm planned production order. We already agreed to produce that order, so we won’t cancel it.” Then they delete the line in the worksheet.
The problem is that the rest of the lines in the plan are based on the assumption that you will cancel that order. The calculation has already factored in that the quantity of 50 disappears as supply. If you delete the suggestion and keep the production order running, the system has planned other lines to cover demand that the production order now still covers. You end up with too much supply.
What to do instead of deleting the line
You cannot just remove an existing suggestion line without taking the consequences into account on the other lines. If you decide not to cancel the firm planned production order, you have to follow the chain through.
At a minimum, you need to modify the quantities on the other lines so they match the fact that you are keeping the order you chose not to cancel. That way the plan stays consistent and you avoid over-planning.
Q&A
What are action messages in the planning worksheet?
Action messages are the suggestions Business Central generates when you run planning. They tell you what to do to balance supply and demand, such as cancel an order, change a quantity, or reschedule. Each suggestion appears as a line showing the item, location, and the action involved.
Can I just delete a cancellation suggestion I don’t want to follow?
No. The other lines in the plan are calculated on the assumption that you carry out the suggested cancellation. If you delete the suggestion and keep the order, the rest of the plan still expects that supply to be gone, so you end up with too much supply.
What should I do if I don’t want to cancel a firm planned production order the worksheet suggests cancelling?
Adjust the quantities on the other lines so they reflect that you are keeping the production order. This keeps the plan consistent with your decision and prevents over-planning.