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Blog · Territory, capacity and quota planning · Supply chain

On-time-in-full trend by supplier and site: the monthly watch list

How a supply chain team turns receipt and purchase order data into an on-time-in-full figure per supplier per site, why the trend matters more than the level, the three-month rule that separates a bad month from a deteriorating supplier, and the watch list that goes to the category manager.

The short answerOn-time-in-full per supplier per site comes from joining purchase order lines to goods receipts: on time if received by the due date, in full if the received quantity matches. The level is a scorecard; the trend is the finding. A supplier whose OTIF has fallen for three consecutive months at one site, while holding at others, is a site-specific problem worth a call. The watch list ranks suppliers by trend, weighted by the spend at risk.

A supplier scorecard says 94 percent on-time-in-full and the category manager files it. The receiving team at one plant has been expediting that supplier's deliveries every week for two months. Both are right: the supplier is fine on average and failing at one site, and the average is the wrong number to look at. This guide sets out OTIF per supplier per site, the trend rule, and the watch list.

The measure

OTIF = PO lines received on time and in full ÷ PO lines due in the period

Per supplier, per site, per month. On time within a stated window; in full when received quantity equals ordered quantity, or within a stated tolerance.

The rows you need

  • Purchase order lines: PO, line, supplier, site, item, quantity, confirmed due date.
  • Goods receipts: PO, line, date, quantity received.

Supplier and site identifiers only. The join is on PO and line.

The assertion

Σ received quantity per PO line ≤ ordered quantity

Over-receipts fail it and are listed; they are usually a receiving error, and they would otherwise inflate in-full.

The trend rule

For each supplier-site:

Signal Rule
This month vs trailing three Difference in points
Consecutive declines Count of months OTIF fell from the prior month
Spend at risk Purchase value at this supplier-site over the trailing three months

Watch list: three consecutive declines, or a fall of more than a stated number of points in one month, ranked by spend at risk.

A worked watch list

Supplier Site OTIF now Trailing 3 Consecutive declines Spend at risk
S-0217 Plant B 71% 89% 3 $2.1m
S-0217 Plant A 96% 95% 0 $3.4m
S-0442 Plant C 82% 91% 2 $640,000
S-0108 Plant A 88% 97% 1 $1.9m

Supplier S-0217 is at 94 percent overall and on the scorecard as green. At Plant B it has declined for three months and $2.1m of spend is behind it. That is the top line, and the category manager calls the supplier about Plant B specifically, which is a conversation the overall figure would never have prompted.

Where it goes wrong

Supplier-level only. The problem averages away.

Due date taken from the request, not the confirmation. A supplier that confirmed a later date is marked late against a date it never agreed to. Use the confirmed date.

One bad month escalated. Noise. Three consecutive declines, or a large single fall, and not otherwise.

Spend at risk ignored. A small supplier with a terrible trend ranks above a large one with a worrying trend. Weight by spend.

Every month, per supplier per site

Mapped once, PO lines and receipts produce OTIF at both levels, the trend signals and the ranked watch list every month. Covirage builds this from the exports as they are. The supply chain page describes the setup, and the single-source parts guide covers the concentration measures that sit beside this one.

Questions people ask

What counts as on time?

Received on or before the confirmed due date, or within a stated tolerance window, say two days early to zero days late. State the window on the report and use the same one everywhere.

Why per site and not just per supplier?

A supplier can be excellent at one site and failing at another, because the lanes, the carriers and the receiving teams differ. A supplier-level figure averages a problem away. Per site finds it; per supplier ranks it.

How is the trend measured?

OTIF this month against the trailing three-month average, and the count of consecutive months of decline. Three consecutive declines from a stable base is the threshold for the watch list; one bad month is noise.