Playbooks/ Last updated: 2026-09-29

Playbook: the supplier got slower, your reorder point didn't notice

The situation

Your buyer keeps a file on the desktop. In it, the lead times that are actually true — because the ones in the system stopped being true months ago. Shenzhen Precision used to deliver on time; over the last six receipts it has been about five days late on average. The buyer pads every order by hand. The reorder point for Precision PCB is not: it still triggers as if deliveries arrive on time.

The screenshots come from the Otiox demo workspace. To follow along, choose Switch to demo in the sidebar — changes there never touch your live data.

Step 1 — See the forecast

Go to Predictive insights and filter for Supplier lead-time drift.

The forecast: 5 days late on average, buffer inadequate, production exposure

The card reads like a chain of cause and effect: the supplier is 5 days late on average over 6 receipts; the Precision PCB buffer — 120 available against a reorder point of 80 — no longer covers the real wait; replenishment will land after the buffer runs out. The warning comes about nine days ahead. Decision synthesis recommends raising the reorder point or safety stock to cover the five extra days, or ordering from a second supplier.

Step 2 — Check the supplier's record

Open the supplier.

The supplier's record: on-time rate, days late, receipts

The on-time rate and the average days late come from the receipts themselves — the same numbers the buyer was keeping by hand.

Step 3 — Raise the reorder point

Open the material (Materials → Precision PCB → Edit) and go to Inventory Settings.

Size the new reorder point to cover the extra days at your normal usage. In the demo we raise it from 80 to 110, choose Next and Save Changes. Replenishment now triggers earlier — and the real lead time is in the system instead of a private file.

If the drift keeps growing, a bigger buffer only hides it. The Supplier Switch playbook walks through ordering from a backup supplier.

What you have at the end

Supplier lateness measured on every receipt.
A warning while the buffer can still be fixed.
A reorder point sized for the supplier you actually have.