Graphical scheduler operations

Production Scheduling • Article • 2/2/2026 •

Drag and drop

When you move a task, the system validates the new placement and shows warnings or confirmations for conflicts and risks.

To reschedule operations by drag-and-drop, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select an operation task in the Gantt chart.
Drag the task to the required time and drop it.
The system runs validation checks.
If an overlap confirmation is displayed, confirm or reject the overlap.
If you reject it, the task returns to the previous position.
Review any due date or dependency warnings displayed after the move.
These warnings help you identify schedule risk.
Continue adjusting tasks as required, and then publish the draft when ready.

Move

The Move Task action lets you reassign an operation to a different resource when an allowed alternative is available. If no alternate resource exists, the system does not provide move options and the task remains on the current resource.

To move an operation using Move Task, follow these steps:

On the Graphical Scheduler page, select an operation task.
On the action bar, select Task Actions > Move Task.
Select the resource you want to move the task to when the system displays a list of available resources.
Confirm your selection.
The task is reassigned to the selected resource and the scheduler updates the task placement.

If no resources are available, no options are displayed and the task remains in its current position.

Lock or unlock

Locking and unlocking helps you control whether an operation should be treated as fixed during scheduling.

To lock or unlock operations, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select a task line (operation).
On the action bar, select Task Actions > Lock/Unlock Task.
The system updates the lock status for the production order line context and stores the change as a draft change.
Verify that tasks belonging to the same production order line show the updated lock status.
The lock status is kept consistent across related tasks.
Publish the draft to apply the change to production data.

When you lock/unlock task lines (operations), system will lock/unlock only that ones. If you select a work center header row or production order header, the system will lock/unlock all the task lines (operations) related.

Add downtime

You can insert downtime from the scheduler so the plan reflects current resource availability.

To add downtime, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select one or more tasks.
On the action bar, select Task Actions > Add Downtime.
The system creates downtime and reloads the scheduler.
Review the updated schedule to confirm that downtime is reflected in resource availability.

Add absence

You can create absences from the scheduler so non-working periods are reflected during scheduling..

To add absence, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select a task.
On the action bar, select Task Actions > Add Absence.
The system creates the absence and reloads the scheduler.
Publish the draft.
Review the schedule to confirm the absence is reflected.

Validate non-working time and absence when rescheduling

The scheduler prevents you from moving tasks into non-working time or absence periods so that resource availability is respected and the schedule remains executable.

To validate non-working time and absence when rescheduling, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select an operation task in the Gantt chart.
Drag the task so that the new start time falls within a non-working time window or an absence period.
Drop the task.
The system validates the new placement.
Review the error message displayed by the scheduler.
The task is rejected because the new start time is not allowed.
Confirm that the task returns to its previous position.
The schedule is restored to the last valid placement.

Review material shortages

Material shortage checks help ensure that a schedule that is feasible from a time/capacity perspective is also feasible from a component availability perspective.

To review material shortages, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select an operation task.
On the action bar, select Task Actions > Material Shortage.
The shortage information opens for the selected task context.

Change production scenario

Changing production scenario updates the scenario used for the production order line and refreshes the scheduler to reflect new routing and schedule results.

To change production scenario, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select an operation task.
On the action bar, select Task Actions > Change Scenario.
Select the required production scenario and confirm.
The system applies the change and reloads the scheduler.
Review the updated routing/schedule in the Gantt chart.

Show link tree

The link tree provides visibility of upstream and downstream dependencies for the selected production order or task.

To show the link tree, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select a production order header row or an operation task.
On the action bar, select Task Actions > Show Link Tree.
The link tree view opens for the selected context.
Review upstream and downstream links to understand dependencies.

Review changeover warnings when rescheduling

Changeover warnings help you understand the operational impact of reordering tasks on the same resource. When you move a task, the scheduler evaluates the tasks immediately before and after the moved task on the same work center and calculates the additional changeover time required.

To review changeover warnings when rescheduling, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select an operation task on a work center that is sequenced with other tasks.
Drag the task to a new position in time so that its sequence changes relative to adjacent tasks.
Drop the task.
The system evaluates the sequence and calculates changeover impact.
Review the changeover warning message.
The message shows the expected changeover minutes introduced by the new order.
If needed, adjust the task position to reduce changeover time and repeat the move.
Use the warning to choose a more efficient sequence.

Changeover time is calculated from two sources: scheduling attribute (sequencing attribute) changeover minutes (for example from downtime matrix rules) and item-to-item changeover minutes when the produced item changes from one task to the next.

Utilization indicators

The scheduler shows utilization to help you understand how busy a work center is during the selected period. A low utilization percentage indicates available capacity, while a high percentage indicates the work center is near or above capacity.

Utilization shows the planned load compared to the available capacity for a work center during the selected period.

Load is the scheduled capacity needed for the work center or machine center during the selected period.
Capacity is based on calendar capacity entries for the resource during the same period and adjusted for efficiency.

To use utilization indicators, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select a view where utilization is enabled.
Utilization visibility is controlled by the active view configuration.
Review utilization for the selected period.
High utilization indicates the resource is near or above capacity.
If needed, reschedule operations or move tasks to alternative resources to reduce overload.

If the work center has no capacity in the selected period, utilization can show as N/A.

Use scheduler ribbon actions

Scheduler ribbon actions support planning workflows such as opening related records, reviewing load, and exporting or printing the schedule.

To use scheduler ribbon actions, follow these steps:

Open the Graphical Scheduler page.
Select a task or relevant row context (if required by the action).
On the action bar, select Task Actions > Open Record.
The related record opens for review.
On the action bar, select Task Actions > Work Center Load.
Work center load details open for the selected context.
On the action bar, select Export > Export to Excel or Export > Print Gantt.
The schedule is exported or printed.