Schedule optimization for ExcelExcel in. Optimized plans out.
We turn the spreadsheet your team already plans with into an optimized schedule: staff rosters, production plans, routes. You keep working in Excel.
Also from Picoduct: custom Excel add-ins for recurring tasks
Less shuffling cells. Better plans.
How optimization works
01 / Your Excel file
Start with the sheet
you already use.
Fill in demand, people or machines, and availability the way you do today, then upload the file to our web planner. No new system to learn and no data migration.
- Works with the spreadsheet your team already uses
- Runs in the browser, nothing to install
- Anonymised data is fine for a pilot
02 / Your rules
Your rules.
Not a template.
Every operation is different. We model the rules that really matter to you: hard limits that must never be broken, and softer goals you can weigh against each other.
- Hard rules such as rest times, skills and capacities
- Soft goals such as fairness, cost and preferences
- Transparent results that show why the plan looks the way it does
- Proven optimization solvers under the hood
03 / Your plan
Download the plan.
Re-run any time.
The planner builds a mathematical model, solves it, and returns an optimized plan as a clean Excel workbook you can check and adjust. When demand or availability changes, update the sheet and run it again.
- Results as a normal Excel file
- Re-run in minutes when demand or availability changes
- Before-and-after comparison with your current plan
Same team. Same week. A better plan.
Example: optimized weekly staff roster
Six people, seven days, a staffing need per day, at most five working days each, and one day-off request per person. Switch between a typical hand-made plan and the optimized one.
| Employee | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anna | 08–16 | 08–16 | 08–16 | 08–16 | off | 08–16 | 5 | |
| Ben | off | 08–16 | 08–16 | 08–16 | 08–16 | 08–16 | 5 | |
| Chiara | 08–16 | 08–16 | 08–16 | off | 08–16 | 4 | ||
| David | 08–16 | 08–16 | 08–16 | 08–16 | off | 4 | ||
| Elif | 08–16 | 08–16 | off | 08–16 | 08–16 | 4 | ||
| Farid | 08–16 | 08–16 | 08–16 | off | 08–16 | 4 | ||
| Staffed / need | 4/4 | 4/4 | 4/4 | 4/4 | 4/4 | 3/3 | 3/3 |
Simplified illustration. Real projects handle hundreds of people or jobs and many more rules.
Every industry runs on schedules
Scheduling use cases by industry
Wherever people, machines, vehicles or rooms are assigned under rules, there's a plan that can be optimized.
Rosters that respect people.
Nurse and care shift planning
Cover every shift with the right qualifications while respecting working-time rules, rest periods, part-time contracts and staff requests, and spread nights and weekends fairly.
- Nurse & carer shift planning
- On-call rotas
- Skill mix per ward
- Fair weekend rotation
Fewer changeovers. Orders on time.
Production scheduling and job sequencing
Sequence jobs across machines and lines to cut setup time, hit due dates and use your capacity well, and re-plan quickly when a rush order or breakdown hits.
- Job sequencing
- Machine assignment
- Batch sizing
- Shift-to-line planning
Shorter routes. Fuller vehicles.
Route and tour planning
Assign stops to vehicles and technicians, respect time windows and capacities, and order each tour to save kilometres, hours and late arrivals.
- Delivery tour planning
- Technician dispatch
- Time windows
- Pallet & truck loading
Timetables without clashes.
School and exam timetabling
Build timetables that fit teachers, rooms, groups and courses together, with no double bookings, sensible gaps and fair workloads, in minutes instead of days.
- Class timetabling
- Exam scheduling
- Room allocation
- Trainer planning
Staff where the demand is.
Demand-based staff scheduling
Match staffing to footfall and bookings hour by hour, mix full-time and part-time contracts sensibly, and keep labour costs in check without leaving the floor short.
- Demand-based shift planning
- Part-time & mini-job contracts
- Multi-store planning
- Order quantities
One dedicated problem. One focused pilot.
Optimization pilot on your own data
No big transformation, no long contract. We pick one painful planning problem, solve it on your real data, and you judge the result in your daily work.
- 1
Scoping call
We talk through the problem, the rules and what "better" means for you.
- 2
Your data
You share a sample of your current Excel file.
- 3
Prototype
We model your rules, set up the planner and test it against your real cases.
- 4
Pilot in use
Your team uses it in its normal routine while we refine it.
- 5
Decide
Scale it, extend it, or stop. You keep the results either way.
A working tool, not a slide deck.
Every pilot ends with something your team can actually use, plus a clear picture of what it improves compared with today.
- Small pilots are free, bigger ones have a price agreed before work starts
- Built on your real data and your real rules
- Before-and-after comparison with your current plan
- Short documentation and a handover session
Also from Picoduct
Custom Excel add-ins
Not every problem needs optimization. Many teams lose hours to the same manual step every week. We turn that step into a lean add-in that lives right inside Excel.
- A button in your Excel ribbon for one recurring task
- Check data or produce reports in one click
A little clarity before you start
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to install anything to use the planner?
No. The planner is a web app: you upload your Excel file in the browser and download the optimized plan as an Excel file. Only custom add-ins are installed in Excel.
How do you handle confidential data?
We are happy to sign an NDA, and during a pilot you can work with anonymised data.
What happens after the pilot?
If the pilot delivers, we turn it into a production setup, extend it to more sites or rules, and offer ongoing support. If not, there is no further commitment.
What does a pilot cost?
It depends on the size of the project. Very small pilots are free of charge. For bigger pilots, we agree on a fixed scope and price after the scoping call, before any work starts.
Our Excel file is messy. Is that a problem?
No, that is normal. During the pilot we agree on a clear input layout with you, based on the sheet your team already uses.
Do you only do optimization?
Optimization is our main service. We also build custom Excel add-ins that automate one recurring task, such as checking data or producing a report, with a button in your Excel ribbon.
Contact
Propose a pilot.
Describe the problem in a few sentences. No files needed yet; we'll ask for a sample once we know what you need.
- contact@picoduct.com
- Location
- Germany · working remotely across Europe
- Languages
- English · German