Skip to content
IRP Information Requirements Planning

No more double work. Information exists only once.

Double work arises wherever the same information lives in several places: in Excel, in folders, in e-mails. With IRP in Lean ERP, every piece of data has one place, at the step where it is needed.

Plan an online demo →How IRP works →

Stop double work, stop duplicate information

Information exists onceData is entered once, on the file. Whoever needs it looks at that one place.
No more copy and pasteNo more retyping customer details from an e-mail into a spreadsheet into an order.
No old versionsWhoever opens the step sees the document attached to it now. A forgotten copy does not exist.
Inside and outside your companyColleagues work in the same file. Customers and partners follow along through a portal, only for their own file.

Why does double work arise?

Duplicate information is a common problem in companies that work with separate spreadsheets, folders and e-mails. Staff enter the same data again, in several documents. That takes time, and every copy is a chance for a mistake.

Then the second problem starts: the copies drift apart. The customer changes his address, sales knows, logistics does not. A plan is revised, but the previous version is lying on site. Whoever works with an old version makes the wrong decision, and you only notice later.

Whoever doubts whether he has the latest version goes and asks. Hence the e-mails and phone calls: who has it, where is it, is this the right one?

How IRP avoids double work

In Lean, information is entered once, on the file, and not again for every department. Customer details, choices, dimensions or a plan: everything is held centrally and visible to those who need it.

With IRP, that data is also linked to the process steps that need it. Sales, work preparation and invoicing look at the same piece of information, each from their own step. If it changes, it changes in that one place.

As a result, everyone works with the same version. You no longer update documents in three folders, and you no longer wonder whether you have the latest one.

**Real screen from the demo environment**, with fictitious data. The survey per opening is stored once on the file and reused for the quote. Click to enlarge.
Real screen from the demo environment, with fictitious data. The survey per opening is stored once on the file and reused for the quote. Click to enlarge.

An example: a new customer

A new customer signs up. Without IRP, his details go into a spreadsheet for sales, an e-mail for logistics and a file for invoicing. Three copies, three chances for a mistake.

In Lean, the details are entered once, on the customer and on the file. Sales prepares the quote, work preparation plans the delivery, invoicing raises the invoice, all from the same data. Nobody does the same work twice.

The same applies to a survey for windows and doors: the details per opening go onto the file, where the estimator reuses them for the quote. Nothing is retyped.

Always the current information

Because a piece of data exists only once, there is no outdated copy to work with. A changed schedule in a project is in the file's planning, and whoever opens it, from the project manager to the team on site, sees the schedule as it is now.

Customers and partners look at the same information through a portal, only for their own file. A buyer sees his documents with their status in his home portal, without anyone having to e-mail him a copy.

**Real screen from the demo environment**, with fictitious data. The planning of a file, with the steps and their dependencies. Click to enlarge.
Real screen from the demo environment, with fictitious data. The planning of a file, with the steps and their dependencies. Click to enlarge.

Frequently asked questions about double work

How does IRP avoid duplicate information?

Every piece of data is entered once, on the file, and linked to the process steps that need it. Everyone looks at that one place, instead of their own copy.

Do customers and partners work with the same information?

Yes, through a portal. They only see their own file, with the same documents and the same status as your staff.

Does everyone get a message when a document changes?

No. Whoever opens the step sees the document attached to it now. No message is sent when something changes.

More about IRP

Read on about how IRP works, or look at other practical situations.

How IRP works ›Information planning ›Knowledge loss ›IRP in practice ›Portals ›
Plan an online demo

Bring one bottleneck. See how Lean handles it.

We start from a situation in your work. You see what works in the software today, and we discuss how it fits your process.

Book an online demo