KEVOS · Templates & Examples · Project Templates
Production Readiness and Launch Schedule Template
A production-handover schedule template covering BOM release, quality records, ERP/order setup, manufacture, freight and stock verification.
Executive summary
Production is not included in the blank schedule template, but it appears as a fifth phase in eleven of the fifteen individual project examples. A spreadsheet-format example also adds a separate launch phase. The recurring production tasks are final BOMs/kits, quality-control documentation, ERP setup and ordering, production, freight where relevant, and stock checking. This page turns those recurring items into a controlled handover template.
Production-readiness WBS
Recurring tasks from the source examples
| Activity | Purpose in the schedule | Key dependency |
|---|---|---|
| Finalise BOMs & kits | Convert development information into a usable production configuration. | Production gate / approved design and tooling. |
| Quality-control document | Define or release the production inspection/control information required by the project. | Final verification and known product configuration. |
| Add to ERP & order | Create the system record and purchase/production trigger. | Approved item/BOM/commercial information. |
| Production | Manufacture the required quantity or first production batch. | Released order and production-ready tool/process. |
| Freight | Move supplier-produced goods where logistics are part of the lead time. | Production completion and shipping readiness. |
| Checking stock | Confirm received stock/configuration before project closure or launch. | Receipt of goods or first production output. |
Production release is a configuration-control event
The project should enter production with a known product definition, not merely because the calendar reaches the production phase. The recurring source tasks for BOM finalisation, quality documentation and ERP/order creation show that technical release, quality release and system release are distinct pieces of work.
In practice, these tasks can run partly in parallel if the organisation allows it, but the schedule should make the release dependencies explicit. For example, ERP item creation may begin before tooling acceptance, yet the purchase or production release may remain blocked until the approved configuration is confirmed.
Air freight, sea freight and no freight
The examples contain both air- and sea-freight activities, while other schedules contain no explicit freight task. This is a useful reminder that logistics is conditional. Do not insert freight simply because another project used it. Add a logistics task only when physical movement materially affects the project completion or stock-availability date.
When freight matters, distinguish supplier completion from arrival. Otherwise the schedule may show “production complete” while the project objective—available stock—remains weeks away. The freight duration should come from the current route and service assumption, not from the historical example.
Production-readiness gate evidence
- Approved product and tooling configuration is identified.
- Final BOM and any kit structure are released or under controlled finalisation.
- Quality-control/inspection documentation required for first production is available.
- ERP item, routing, purchasing or order data is ready to support the chosen supply route.
- Supplier or production team has the current technical package.
- Open tooling corrections are closed or formally dispositioned.
- Required final test evidence is approved.
- First-production quantity and logistics assumptions are known.
- Receiving/stock-check responsibility is assigned.
- Any launch-specific tasks are added if the project objective extends beyond stock receipt.
Optional launch phase
One spreadsheet-based source example separates “Launch” from “Production” and uses stock checking as the launch activity. The other project schedules generally stop at checking stock within the production phase. Both structures are valid depending on the project objective.
Use a separate launch stage when launch includes additional work such as staged release, sales readiness, installation, customer rollout, training or post-launch monitoring. Do not create those tasks unless they are actually in scope; the supplied sources do not define them. If the project simply needs production stock available and verified, keeping stock checking as the last production task is sufficient.
Handover failure modes
- Approved design but unreleased BOM: manufacturing starts from informal information.
- Production started before quality documentation: first output arrives without an agreed inspection/control basis.
- ERP order created against the wrong revision: system data and engineering configuration diverge.
- Freight omitted: the project finish is reported at supplier completion instead of usable stock availability.
- Stock not checked: project closes without verifying received quantity/configuration or obvious transport/production issues.
- Open test actions hidden: production begins while conditional approval actions are not visible in the schedule.
Related KEVOS templates
Converting project approval into an operational handover
A production gate is useful only if it changes the control state of the product. Before release, identify which information is now authoritative: the released drawing/model, BOM or kit structure, quality-control information, supplier/production route and system master data. Where some records are prepared in advance, make the final release action conditional on the approved configuration so pre-work does not accidentally become an uncontrolled production order.
Plan the first production batch as both supply and learning. The team should know what will be checked when stock arrives, who owns discrepancies and whether the project remains open until those checks are complete. This is why “checking stock” appears as a recurring final activity in the source schedules: arrival alone does not prove that the intended product, quantity and configuration are usable.
Handover review
- Confirm released technical and BOM information matches the approved product/tool configuration.
- Verify quality-control instructions and any first-batch checks are available to the receiving/production team.
- Confirm system records and purchase/production orders use the current revision and supply route.
- Separate production completion from freight/arrival where logistics materially affects the completion date.
- Record received-stock discrepancies as actions and decide whether they block project closure.
- Capture final actual lead times and major causes of variance for future scheduling estimates.
Project closure should then distinguish residual operational issues from unresolved project deliverables. A minor improvement may transfer to continuous improvement or normal operations, but an unapproved configuration, missing quality record or unresolved first-batch nonconformance should not be hidden by declaring the development project complete.
Planning first-stock verification
Define the stock-check task before the goods arrive. Identify what must be confirmed—such as item identity, revision, quantity, packaging condition, critical dimensions or functional evidence required by the project—and where the result will be recorded. If the first batch is intentionally subject to enhanced inspection, make that expectation visible to the receiving and quality functions. A clear first-stock check prevents launch from becoming a passive calendar milestone and provides a controlled point for closing supplier, tooling or documentation actions.