Demand planning

Turn every order line into a clear supply decision

Use Orders to decide whether each item should use finished stock, be built in-house, be purchased, or ship directly from an approved supplier.

13 minute guide Order desk, owners, purchasing, and production planners

After this guide

Every line has a valid source, customer instructions remain attached, and only in-house work reaches the Builds board.

1. Capture customer demand

Orders may arrive through a connected store or be entered by staff. Both should use the same planning queue.

1
Open the order queue
Filter by status or source, search for the customer or order number, and work oldest or most urgent demand first.
Open Orders
2
Create a manual order when needed
Use New manual order for phone, invoice, social, or walk-in demand. Add as many product lines as the customer needs.
3
Choose the customer handoff
Take it now reserves finished stock for an immediate counter handoff. Pick up later creates future pickup demand. Ship to customer collects an address, service, and ship-by date.
4
Record customer and internal context
Keep customization on the line so it reaches production. Use the internal note for payment, pickup, or staff-only coordination.

One order can use several supply paths; deciding one line must not force the same choice on the rest.

1
Select an order line
Review quantity, current line status, finished stock, due date, and customization before choosing its source.
2
Reserve finished stock first
Use available finished units when they satisfy the quantity. MakerDesk reserves them for this order instead of creating unnecessary production.
3
Build in-house
Choose Build when an approved recipe exists and its material and tool checks can support the required quantity.
4
Order finished units to stock
Choose Purchase when an approved supplier can provide the item to your workshop. Respect available quantity, lead time, unit cost, and minimum order quantity.
5
Direct ship to the customer
Choose Direct ship only when the supplier is quality approved and explicitly supports delivery to the customer.

The decision panel explains why a route can or cannot supply the remaining quantity.

1
For builds, inspect the recipe
Confirm the selected version is approved and review the maximum buildable quantity.
2
Inspect each material check
Need versus Have is calculated for this order quantity. Any short input blocks the in-house route.
3
For suppliers, compare offers
Use approval, quality approval, route support, lead time, MOQ, available quantity, and estimated cost—not price alone.
4
Choose a fallback when needed
Replenish the blocking material, select an approved recipe or supplier alternate, place the order on hold, or discuss a new date with the customer.

The saved supply path creates the operational record that owns the next work.

1
Save the line decision
Confirm quantity and source. Repeat until every line is reserved or has an approved route.
2
Open the build ticket when created
An in-house choice creates production work linked back to the source order.
Open Builds
3
Track purchase and direct ship separately
A purchase is not a build. Direct ship does not pass through your shop. Keep their supplier status with the order.
4
Fulfill only when the whole order is ready
Confirm every line, customization, address or pickup details, and customer timing before handoff.

Orders choose the source for customer demand. Builds execute only the portion that the workshop must make.

Do not use Purchase or Direct ship as an escape hatch unless the offer is approved for that item and route.

Products & recipes

Build a catalog record that can be sold now and completed operationally over time without publishing incomplete production assumptions.