Field insights from MRO supply chain leaders
When companies talk about improving spare parts planning, the focus usually goes straight to algorithms. Better forecasts. Smarter models. Advanced optimisation. But much of the real value sits before the algorithm even starts. This was the main take away we got from our Dutch Lanza Community Day.
Before a planner confirms an order, there are supplier calls, engineering updates, working capital discussions, and experience-based sense checks. Business context shapes the decision. Yet most of it never enters the system.
The invisible layer of decision-making
In MRO supply chain environments, planning decisions are heavily influenced by tacit knowledge:
- Supplier reliability concerns
- Upcoming redesigns
- Contract changes
- Asset performance insights
When this knowledge lives in conversations or individual experience rather than in a structured process, decisions become difficult to trace, justify or scale.
What we saw when bringing planners together
During our recent Lanza Community Day with Netherlands-based users, we explored use cases such as:
- Repairables management
- Slow mover management
- Mixed forecasting (after-sales and production demand)
- Phasing in and phasing out parts
Different practices were openly discussed and participants challenged each other’s approaches and system configurations.
What stood out was not just the diversity of use cases, but how much of the conversation focused on context rather than calculations. Companies are not struggling because they lack formulas. They are struggling because business knowledge is not consistently embedded in planning decisions.
Bringing practitioners together makes these patterns visible, which is why our Community Day remains one of the key dates in our calendar.
Moving beyond “Min-Max thinking”
Optimising the MRO supply chain requires more than adjusting min-max settings. It requires:
- Making information visible and traceable
- Capturing tacit knowledge from planners and stakeholders
- Structuring decision logic
- Connecting business context directly to planning actions
Our roadmap reflects this broader view. Lanza is evolving beyond inventory optimisation toward end-to-end MRO decision support, including solutions such as Operational Assist, Repairables Assist and Tactical Procurement accelerators.
A recent example is our Risk Assessor for slow-moving parts. It does not replace judgment. It structures it. By capturing input from Engineering, Procurement and Finance and translating it into a structured decision flow, planning decisions become not only data-driven but also context-aware and explainable.
We’re already looking forward to the next Community Day, which will create another opportunity to exchange real-world insights and keep raising the bar in MRO supply chain planning.
