The Manufacturing Planning Podcast

Real talk on the act before manufACTuring.

Where production planners, schedulers, and supply chain leaders get straight talk on planning. No vendor pitch, no hype. Hosted by Tyler Grefe.

8
Episodes published
50+
Monthly listeners
2
Industry guests
5.0★
Apple Podcasts rating
The archive

Every episode

Practical, honest, and built for the people who make manufacturing work.

08
Latest · Season 1 · Guest: Justin StraubLatest

Where Quality Meets Planning: Lessons from Regulated Manufacturing

Tyler sits down with Justin Straub to explore how quality and planning drive material flow in aerospace, defense, and medical manufacturing. Compliance, traceability, supplier qualification, and the lessons every manufacturer can borrow from the industries that had to get it right first.

QualityAerospaceDefenseMedicalGuest
07
Season 1 · Jun 1, 2026

Digital Transformation: AI Agents, Digital Twins & Paperless ERP

Where AI scheduling actually is in 2026, three real proof-of-concept stories from the shop floor, and an honest look at the risks and opportunities every planning leader needs to understand before making a move.

AIDigital TwinsPaperless ERPPlanning Agents
06
Season 1 · May 24, 2026

The People Side: Communication Across Planning, Engineering & Quality

Clear and concise communication across planning, engineering, and quality. The cross-functional conversations that make or break execution on the shop floor.

CommunicationCross-FunctionalQuality
05
Season 1 · 25 min · Mar 22, 2026

On Forecast and the Use of AI

Forecasting in manufacturing and how to introduce AI into your organization. Practical guidance on improving forecast accuracy and making your planning smarter.

ForecastingAIDemand Planning
04
Season 1 · 37 min · Jan 25, 2026

Load and Capacity: The Balancing Act

Guest Matt Stewart, Site Manager at a Twin Cities manufacturer, on load and capacity: the challenges that come up and the P&L impact when the two fall out of alignment.

Capacity PlanningBottlenecksGuest
03
Season 1 · 35 min · Jan 11, 2026

The Role of the Planner: The Unsung Hero of the Shop Floor

Everything from Standard of Work for planners to the right KPIs for the department, and how to get your planning team proactive instead of reactive.

PlannersKPIsStandard of Work
02
Season 1 · 28 min · Jan 5, 2026

From Whiteboards to ERP: The Evolution of Planning Tools

Tracing the evolution of manufacturing planning from manual boards and spreadsheets to ERP, analytics, and emerging AI tools. Where most manufacturers get stuck and what digital maturity really looks like.

ERPDigital TransformationAI
01
Pilot · Season 1 · 19 min · Jan 5, 2026

The Backbone of Manufacturing: Why Planning Matters

Why manufacturing success is won or lost long before a part reaches the shop floor, and how effective planning shifts organizations from constant firefighting to controlled execution.

IntroductionStrategyFoundation
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  • Planning, scheduling, ERP, S&OP, or supply chain leadership
  • Roughly 30 to 40 minutes, recorded remotely
  • No vendor pitches
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