Min/Max management is one of the most important parts of inventory planning. These settings determine when to reorder and how much to order, balancing efficiency with cost. Recurrency uses EOQ (Economic Order Quantity) alongside lead time, safety stock, and forecast to dynamically calculate Maxes.
This article is paired with a video that walks you through the details. We recommend watching it to see these concepts in action.
Understanding Min vs. Max
Min is the reorder point—the level of stock at which you should place a new order.
Max is the target stock level—the quantity you should replenish to once stock reaches Min.
Both depend on lead time and safety stock, but they differ in one important way:
Min is based on the Order Cycle (how often you reorder).
Max is based on EOQ (the cost‑efficient order size).
Why Min and Max Sometimes Match
You may notice that for some items, Min and Max are set to the same value. This happens in two cases:
Sparse Items: Min and Max are always equal, ensuring a fixed number of months of demand.
Non-Sparse Items: Min and Max are equal if the calculated Max is lower than Min. In this case, Recurrency aligns them.
Example: If EOQ is small relative to your order cycle, Max can dip below Min—so Recurrency makes them equal.
Reordering Impacts
If you purchase within Recurrency: Min = Max has no effect on workflows. You’ll continue creating POs based on purchase targets or review cycles.
If you don’t purchase in Recurrency: Min = Max can lead to inefficiencies (e.g., replenishing one unit every time one is sold).
Automatic Min/Max Separation
To prevent those inefficiencies, Recurrency offers Automatic Min/Max Separation with EOQ Adjustments:
For non-sparse items, if Min = 10 and EOQ = 5, Max is adjusted to 15 (Min + EOQ).
If a Minimum Order Quantity (MOQ) is set, it overrides the EOQ adjustment.
Sparse items remain unaffected.
This ensures healthier replenishment cycles, even when purchasing outside of Recurrency.
Key Takeaways
Min = reorder point; Max = target stock level.
Sparse items always have Min = Max.
Non-sparse items may have Min = Max if EOQ falls below the order cycle.
Automatic Min/Max Separation prevents inefficiencies by adjusting Max with EOQ.
Watch this video for key configurations for Min/Max management in Recurrency: