4 Benefits of an ERP System for Manufacturers

Posted on: June 29, 2016 | By: Craig Thompson | QAD Business Process

To succeed in the manufacturing industry, manufacturers need both the agility and flexibility necessary to change processing, meet customer requirements, integrate acquisitions and comply with industry standards. Keeping up with this fast paced work environment can be tough, however thankfully with manufacturing minded ERP software, competing in this industry doesn't have to be such a headache. In a day and age where just about everyone in the industry is future minded, your manufacturing industry can't afford to be stuck in the past analyzing old data if you expect to grow.

 

Automated, real-time cloud ERP software systems are becoming the norm and can save your company money, allow for more flexibility, simplify analytics, improve workflow and help you keep up with your competition. Below are five surefire ways that your manufacturing business can benefit from an ERP system.

 

Reduced Overhead Costs

Although the original cost of implementing an ERP software system can be pricy, the long term cost cuts can save your manufacturing business a lot of money. ERP software systems are very simple to calculate the ROI and can actually help lower overhead costs over time. Sticking with an older legacy management system that makes daily operations more difficult for your users and requires significant IT support for your high volume integration can actually cost you money in the long run. If you notice that your current ERP system has a lack of transparency, makes creating compliance reports difficult, cause employees to work extensive hours manually computing adjustments and consolidations or gives an overall lack of flexibility that you need to grow, it may be time to switch to a more advanced model – or any model at all.

 

Often times the time and money spent manually processing operations or manually working to complete these day to day tasks can be significantly lowered with the use of an advanced ERP software system. Systems like QAD cloud ERP allow for real time analytics, automated operations and much more to simplify your work load and streamline business processes to both save time and increase productivity. Eliminate the need for users to be trained on different systems and get your whole team on the same page, and save a little money in the process.

 

Flexibility

Not every business is built the same, and ERP providers like QAD realize this. With their effective, automated ERP software, manufacturers will have the ability to choose whether they want to run discrete, process, repetitive, lean or mixed mode manufacturing according to their specific business model. Many ERP software systems are customizable, which allows you to have the flexibility to choose what processes are important for your individual business processing, allowing you to keep your unique processing that sets you apart from the competition. ERP doesn’t have to limit your business, in fact it actually does the opposite; cloud ERP empowers your manufacturing organization to grow.

 

Customer Management

The world of manufacturing isn't just all about the product. It is also heavily reliant on the customer, with automated ERP systems, users have the capability to optimize technician productivity, create custom configurations, check ATP and credit during the order entry process as well as make warrantee fulfillment easier than ever. Be prepared for an even deeper understanding of your customer profile with the integration of your ERP and CRM systems. With these systems combined, you will be able to view the whole picture, across all departments, so that everyone is on the same page. Not to mention the fact that integrating the two allows for an increased ROI within your organization.

 

Enterprise Asset Management

Keep your manufacturing plant running smoothly and your equipment at their lowest cost with Enterprise Asset Management capabilities from ERP software providers like QAD. With this feature, users have the ability to manage planned and unplanned equipment maintenance, including calibrations, manage inventory as well as capital asset project costs. Your manufacturing business can automatically schedule preventative maintenance based off of elapsed time or run hours, increase visibility within MRO inventory, and track project milestones to ensure that invoicing occurs according to contract terms. Analytics are significantly improved with the use of Enterprise Management Software, especially for those looking to grow their manufacturing business.

 

For more information on how an ERP system could benefit your manufacturing firm, contact Logan Consulting your Chicago based QAD partners for more information.

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