Production planning is the process of translating customer demand into a plan that allows you to produce, source, and deliver products to meet that demand. It involves developing strategies to coordinate activities across functions — such as engineering, operations, procurement, and distribution — with the goal of optimizing production costs and meeting customer requirements. Production planning puts in place the necessary components to ensure order accuracy, on-time delivery, quality standards, and inventory management. It also helps to ensure that the right material is available when it’s needed, which decreases delays in production and minimizes expensive waste.