On the application of ARIMA and LSTM to predict order demand based on short lead time and on-time delivery requirements

Suppliers are adjusting from the order-to-order manufacturing production mode toward demand forecasting. In the meantime, customers have increased demand uncertainty due to their own considerations, such as end-product demand frustration, which leads to suppliers’ inaccurate demand forecasting and inventory wastes. Our research applies ARIMA and LSTM techniques to establish rolling forecast models, which greatly improve accuracy and efficiency of demand and inventory forecasting. The forecast models, developed through historical data, are evaluated and verified by the root mean squares and average absolute error percentages in the actual case application, i.e., the orders of IC trays for semiconductor production plants. The proposed ARIMA and LSTM are superior to the manufacturer’s empirical model prediction results, with LSTM exhibiting enhanced performance in terms of short-term forecasting. The inventory continued to decline significantly after two months of model implementation and application.