Local master-plan functionalityMaster-plan functionality enables you to perform forecasting and inventory planning. To perform these activities not only on the central level, on nonclustered items, but also decentralized, on clustered items, LN provides master-plan functionality for clustered items. Aggregation and disaggregation of forecasts, plans, and orders between the central office and the regional distribution centers and sales offices is also enabled through the use of master plans. Of course, master plan maintenance is not mandatory for clustered items. Available-to-promise information (ATP), in that case, is still available for clustered plan items, because you can obtain ATP information without a master plan. The use of a master plan, which supports forecasting and inventory planning on clustered items, is depicted below: The following figure shows the sourcing possibilities for
clustered plan items: ![[...]](../images/tr_graph_cl_clusters_local_master_plan_functionality.png) Note You can maintain a master plan for an item without using master-based planning. Master-based planning is based on the bill of critical materials and the bill of critical capacities. You can use order-based planning instead of master-based planning.
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