What is CRP (Capacity Requirements Planning)?
A process that calculates whether available work-center capacity is sufficient to meet the production plan generated by MRP.
Definition
Capacity Requirements Planning (CRP) is the step that validates the material plan against the plant's real capacity, answering whether the factory can actually build what MRP says to build. It takes the planned and released production orders, explodes their routings, and sums the resulting load on each work center, then compares that load to available capacity over time. Where MRP assumes infinite capacity, CRP exposes overloads and underloads so planners can level the schedule, add shifts, shift work to alternate resources, or outsource. CRP typically operates at a more detailed, operation-level horizon than the earlier, rougher rough-cut capacity planning performed against the master schedule.
How CRP Works in ERP
After the MRP run, the ERP's CRP function reads each order's routing and projects hours onto the relevant work centers, producing a load profile by period. Planners view capacity load graphs that highlight overloaded resources and use the system to reschedule, split orders, or reassign operations to alternates. In systems with finite scheduling, capacity constraints are enforced directly during scheduling rather than only reported after the fact.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between MRP and CRP?
MRP plans what materials are needed and when, assuming the plant has unlimited capacity to execute. CRP then checks that assumption by calculating the load each order places on work centers and comparing it to available hours. MRP tells you what to make; CRP tells you whether you actually have the capacity to make it.
What is the difference between CRP and rough-cut capacity planning?
Rough-cut capacity planning (RCCP) is a higher-level, approximate check performed against the master production schedule using key resources, done early to validate the overall plan. CRP is more detailed, run after MRP using full routings to load every work center at the operation level. RCCP catches big feasibility problems early, while CRP fine-tunes capacity at the execution level.