What it does
A supply chain simulation plays a network forward in time. Demand draws stock, sites reorder when their position drops, suppliers fill what they can, and shipments take as long as their lanes take. Inventory levels and stockouts aren’t typed in. They come out of the run.
That makes it the tool for questions about a network that doesn’t exist yet: a new DC, a different sourcing split, another place to hold safety stock. You try the move on the model, watch how stock and shipments behave, and decide with that in hand. What supply chain simulation is covers the idea in full.
Why a spreadsheet can’t show it
A spreadsheet or a static network model works from averages: annual demand, average lead time, capacity that’s always there. Averages hide timing. A site can look fine on average and still run dry for two weeks because three replenishments landed late in a row.
A simulation keeps the clock and the randomness. The order of events decides the result, which is why the same average demand can produce very different stock curves. How supply chain simulation works walks through the event logic.
Questions you can put to it
Where should safety stock sit?
Compare holding stock at the plant, the DCs or both across a three-tier network. Safety stock demo
How does stock move day to day?
Watch orders, shipments and inventory play out across a plant and its DCs, not as a monthly average. Cookie Production demo
What happens when demand jumps?
Run a simple chain through a demand spike and see where stock runs short and how it recovers. Simple Supply Chain demo
Where should the DCs go?
Site DCs from demand, or choose which existing sites to keep. Greenfield demo · Brownfield demo
What does a tariff change?
Toggle the duty and watch sourcing move between an offshore and a reshored supplier. Tariff demo
Make it, or co-pack it?
Weigh a co-pack contract against in-house production across a range of fuel prices. Coffee co-pack demo
Simulation and optimization on one network
Optimization finds the best design on paper. Simulation checks whether that design holds up once demand and lead times vary. A redesign needs both, and the Networks tier has both kinds of demo on the same kinds of network. Supply chain network optimization explains the optimization side, and greenfield network design covers the first siting pass.
From the production line to the network
ReliaSim started on the plant floor, modeling high-speed lines where the stops drive the output. The playing field scales to the size of the decision, from one machine’s failure modes to the network of plants and DCs above it. A network plan built on a plant’s rated capacity inherits every stop that plant has, which is why the two levels belong in one conversation. Why simulation belongs in the capital plan makes the case for executives.
How a project runs
A supply chain study on your own network is scoped with you as a project. It starts from your question, builds the playing field from your sites, lanes and demand history, checks the model against what your network actually did, and then tests the moves you’re weighing. How a ReliaSim project runs lays out each step, what you bring and what you get.
The desktop tool runs on your own machine, so your network data stays with you. Security and deployment has the details for IT reviewers.
Frequently asked questions
What is supply chain simulation software?
It’s software that runs a model of your supply network through time, with demand, ordering, shipping and lead times playing out event by event. It shows how inventory and service behave under a design or policy before you put it in place.
Can I try it without installing anything?
Yes. The Networks tier of the ReliaSim Sandbox runs eleven sample network demos in your browser, covering network design, stock over time and cost shocks such as a tariff. There’s no download and no sign-up.
Does simulation replace network optimization?
No. Optimization searches for the best design under averaged assumptions. Simulation tests a design through time with variable demand and lead times. A good network redesign uses optimization to find candidates and simulation to check them.
Where does my network data live?
On your machine. ReliaSim is desktop software, models are local files, and model contents aren’t sent anywhere. The public Sandbox uses sample data only.
How do I get a model of my own network?
Talk to us. A supply chain study is scoped with you as a project, starting from the question you need answered and the data you already have.
Open a sample network now
Eleven network demos run in the Sandbox’s Networks tier, with nothing to install and no sign-up.
Open the Networks Sandbox →Want to see it on your own network? Schedule a call.