Analyzing a planning or scheduling problem and developing a procedure for dealing with it on a regular basis is, in the real world, only part of the story. The procedure has to be embedded in a system that enables the decisionmaker to actually use it. The system has to be integrated into the information system of the organization, which can be a formidable task. This chapter deals with system design and implementation issues.
The next section presents an overview of the infrastructure of the information systems and the architecture of the decision support systems in an enterprise. We focus on planning and scheduling systems in particular. The third section covers database, object base, and knowledge-base issues. The fourth section describes the modules that generate the plans and schedules, while the fifth discusses user interface issues and interactive optimization. The sixth section describes the advantages and disadvantages of generic systems and application-specific systems, while the last section discusses implementation and maintenance issues.