ABSTRACT
The authors describe the “Make to Availability” (MTA) concept. This is distinguished from making to stock (MTS) and making to order (MTO) — common ways to describe production environments. The MTA approach is a midpoint between building to stock and building to order. The authors describe the goal of S‐DBR to maximize “throughput.” This term is not the same as “output” (volume of units); the S‐DBR definition is that throughput represents the financial value of that output, frequently the cash flow from sold product. It seeks to guarantee reliable stock availability to customers for selected items. This provides a competitive edge over the make to stock and make to order competitors. The advantage over MTS comes from a more efficient operations; the advantage over MTO competitors is the higher service level from having ready inventory for immediate shipping. The entry describes a four‐step process to implement MTA.
