🔄 Why Am I Ordering Too Often?
If you find yourself busy placing orders for a long time, or if the system prompts you to place another order shortly after one has just been completed, it usually means something is not configured correctly in your backend.
When Optiply asks you to order too frequently, it is almost always driven by incorrect supplier parameters or pending system updates. Here is a breakdown of the most common causes and how to adjust your settings for a smoother workflow.
🛑 1. Key Takeaways: Causes of Extra Orders
If you are ordering too often or seeing unreliable predictions, check these three core areas:
Cause 1: Wrong Supplier Settings
Incorrectly filled-in delivery times—or delivery times that are actually longer in reality than they are on paper—can trick the system into generating extra orders to compensate for the "delay." Additionally, errors in the 'Minimum Order Value', 'Fixed Order Costs', and 'Manual Order Period' can force the algorithm to behave erratically.
The Fix: Regularly review your constraints. For more information on how to configure these properly, please see our dedicated article on The Supplier Page.
Cause 2: Parameter Updates on Active Drafts
Have you ever adjusted a supplier parameter (like increasing the lead time or reorder period) but the system still prompts you for another order immediately?
The Fix: Changes to supplier parameters do not immediately affect active purchase advice. If a purchase advice was already generated as a draft before you made the change, the system will continue to prompt for an order based on the old parameters. The updated settings will only apply to the next future purchase advice cycle once the current draft is cleared or processed.
Cause 3: Unreliable Predictions (Red & Orange Tags)
We always advise you to check the red and orange tags next to your products. These tags appear when Optiply cannot confidently estimate the right advice for an item.
The Fix: Review these items manually. Optiply triggers these warnings if a product has highly variable demand, an upcoming trend, frequent stockouts, or if it is a brand-new product that has been sold fewer than five times.
📋 2. Best Practices for Managing Parameter Changes
To avoid confusion and reduce the likelihood of unexpected prompts for additional orders, follow these best practices when updating your supplier settings:
Review Active Advice: Always check if there are any active purchase advice drafts pending before making parameter changes.
Plan Parameter Updates: Schedule changes to your supplier parameters during periods when no active advice is pending for that specific supplier.
Monitor Future Advice: After making changes, observe the impact on subsequent purchase advice cycles at the next order moment to confirm the updates applied correctly.
❓ 3. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Why did my lead time update not change my current advice?
Optiply generates purchase advice based on the supplier parameters at the exact moment the advice is created. If you change the lead time after the draft is generated, the system waits for the next order calculation moment to apply the new rules. Until then, the previous advice remains valid.
What exactly do the red and orange dots mean?
They are visual indicators of unpredictability. A red or orange dot means the algorithm's confidence score is low because the historical data is erratic (e.g., highly variable demand, too many days out of stock, or simply not enough sales history yet). These products require a quick human review!
Can fixed order costs really cause extra orders?
Yes! If you input fixed order costs incorrectly, the algorithm might try to mathematically optimize your shipments in ways that don't make sense for your physical warehouse, sometimes leading to split or extra orders. Always ensure these financial constraints reflect your actual supplier agreements.