Implementing a Distribution Requirements Planning System for Optimized Order Planning: A Case Study of Luxottica

Nowadays, in the current new normality of a continuously evolving market due to an ever more segmented and increasingly rapidly changing market demand, effective order planning is a critical aspect of modern supply chain management, essential for achieving and sustaining a competitive advantage over time. Additionally, it is crucial for both maintaining an operational efficiency and meeting customers demand, thus ensuring long-term business success. In the context of the dynamic eyewear industry, EssilorLuxottica stands out among the leaders in this sector. This company has faced increasing demand over the last few decades and continues to grow. The fluctuating nature of demand necessitates that large companies manage it effectively, employing all available tools and systems for monitoring and forecasting the future demand requirements, enabling them to anticipate trends ahead of others. This thesis aims to explore the implementation of a Distribution and Requirement Planning (DRP) system to enhance EssilorLuxottica’s order planning processes, incorporating both theoretical insights and practical experience from the company. First of all, the research begins presenting the broad theoretical framework of supply chain management in general, focusing then more deeply on the main topic of DRP. Then, the company under examination, EssilorLuxottica, is presented and contextualized within eyewear industry, offering a comprehensive overview of its growth over last years and the key factors that have contributed to its success. Finally, the thesis delves into the fundamental concepts of order planning and supply chain management, focusing on the DRP implementation at EssilorLuxottica: the advantages, disadvantages, and its implementation phases are thoroughly examined to provide a comprehensive understanding of their operational dynamics. To conclude, the main benefits are analysed, together with the arising and future challenges that the company will have to address in the next project implementations in order to be able to gain all the possible advantages offered by this new DRP system.