In this article we will discuss the main modelling grid or table used in the Modelling tab of AIM. 

As discussed previously, the layout of this grid can be controlled by the Toolbar layout options, so you can use this page to model your stock limits to be ideal for your cash-flow and sales opportunities, but also to construct important reports on stock health and product performance. 

Let's take a look at the default layout of the Modelling tab: 

The tick box on the left of each row indicates whether you want this row to be included in the Modelling process. If there are some products you want to not update, untick the product. 

The last product in the screenshot above is greyed out, and can not be ticked. This is because it is controlled by a forecast. (But you can disable a forecast if you want to return it to modelling. You'll find the option to disable a forecast under the 'Save Forecast' button drop down). 

The second column will detail the product code, and description and its forecast status: 

A forecast may be not set, active, inactive, or expired. You can hover over the coloured dot to see the status. 

Click on the product column will open that forecast, so you can use the Modelling tab as a product list to browse through, but do keep in mind that modelling and forecast are two distinct ways of managing a product. 

The next columns will detail the warehouse and rate of demand of that product in that warehouse. If you are using 'Per Warehouse Controls,' then you will be able to manage the stock limits of each warehouse separately, which we recommend! 

The next three columns highlight the demand history in a spark chart for you gain an insight into the profile of the product and its stage in its lifecycle. The Stock Level chart is a bullet chart that pins the min and max stock limits in a bar representing your stock on hand. As you update the stock limits, this chart will redraw itself to show you your stock positions according to these new limits. Finally, we have the current stock on hand. 

The stock limits and lead days value are displayed next. As these update, they will be bolded until submitted. You are able to edit these cells, if you wish to intervene on any values you wish. 

Finally, we have the quantity on purchase order, and the value of the min and max stock limits, which is calculated using the average landed cost. 

Below the grid, there are navigation features. You are able to set the size of the page, but note that the Demand Trend and Stock Level charts will only load on demand as you hover the mouse over them if you have loaded more than 10 rows at a time. 

If there are more than 1000 products in your modelling grid, AIM will split them up in sets of 1000 items each. You will have to calculate and submit each set individually (make changes, select and submit these changes) before moving on to process the next set. On the Modelling page, you will see the number of sets and the total number of items/records in the sets.

While you may have 500 products, if you have 10 warehouses, then there are actually 5,000 product/warehouse combinations with each having a unique rate of demand and stock holding strategy. 

TIP: Add more filters to reduce the number of products to make it more manageable and focused.

There's a lot more information that the Modelling grid can provide for you and you can configure custom layouts and share them. Check out our optional columns in the Modelling toolbar article.