Managing Your Business in Manufacturing With an Integrated ERP
When you are running a complex business in the manufacturing or distribution sectors it is really helpful to have a system in place within which you can consolidate all your business processes. Gone are the days when having separate databases, spreadsheets and documents were good and efficient enough. Having all your processes integrated in one IT solution is pretty important, especially as businesses grow and evolve. Implementing a good quality manufacturing, distribution or specific industry such as food ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) is pretty essential.
Let’s focus on industrial equipment manufacturing as an example. Industrial equipment and machinery manufacturers produce some of the most complex products in the world, while faced with strict environmental regulations and tough global competition. An IT solution would need to not only be suited to general manufacturing processes, such as stock control etc, but would also need industry specific functionality.
Manufacturing software needs to be flexible, but reliable, which can be a balance which is hard to achieve. An example of a business who recently decided to take the plunge and update their systems to a better ERP solution are leading LED display manufacturers Hanover Displays. Hanover Displays is Europe’s leading manufacturer of electronic destination signs for the public transport industry. Established in 1985, the company has consistently grown and developed, continually refining its product range to meet the specific demands of their customers. The company decided they had outgrown their IT systems, and the inability to gain real insight into their business was beginning to cause increasing inefficiencies with in it.
Hanover chose Microsoft Dynamics AX as their ERP solution, and this ERP product in particular has a series of add-on modules which are industry specific. This suited Hanover to the ground. Microsoft Dynamics AX replaces the three disparate systems that the company was running for finance, manufacturing and repairs. The new 35 user system will include the Industrial Equipment Manufacturing module, which fits the needs of the business.
Utilising Manufacturing ERP software which is tailored to your business can really help towards improving operations and reducing costs, as well as enhancing collaboration and delivering superior customer service and support. It is also possible to shorten development cycles by integrating product development with manufacturing, accounting, purchasing, and suppliers. Another really useful feature is the ability to connect customer requirements directly to manufacturing, suppliers, and distribution operations; really handy as your customers are what drives action in these other departments. Information and analysis tools within an ERP solution enable informed decision making within a business, as you can create custom feeds and information for specific roles within an organisation.
Without an integrated solution, collaboration on this level just wouldn’t be possible. With an ERP solution, you can be confident your business management solution is relevant to the needs of your people and the demands of your industry and business.