Production planning – What scheduling tells you: In manufacturing scheduling for a chemical plant, which statement best captures the information scheduling provides?

Introduction / Context:
Scheduling allocates limited resources over time to meet demand and due dates. In the process industries, it coordinates equipment, utilities, and personnel to reduce bottlenecks and idle time.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• Finite equipment capacity and sequence-dependent setups may exist.
• Jobs or campaigns must meet due dates and quality constraints.
• Utilities and raw materials are available per plan.

Concept / Approach:
A good schedule defines what starts when, where, and how much progress should be made in each time window. This inherently supports high utilisation and low idle time, rather than addressing only one of these aspects in isolation.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Recognise scope: scheduling spans start/finish times and resource assignments.Infer outcomes: proper utilisation and minimal idle time arise from an effective schedule.Therefore, the comprehensive statement (d) is correct.

Verification / Alternative check:
Common scheduling tools (Gantt charts, finite-capacity schedulers) explicitly output start/finish times, resource loads, and expected completions per period.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:

• (a), (b), (c) each capture only a subset of scheduling information.

Common Pitfalls:
Confusing scheduling (time allocation) with loading (capacity allocation) or dispatching (issuing work orders).

Final Answer:
It specifies start times and required work completion within defined periods, thereby minimising idleness and aiding proper machine utilisation.