5 ways ERP
helps manage
a more agile
manufacturing
process
Manufacturing sector
Article
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Manufacturing agility is the
ability to respond quickly to
unpredictable changes in demand.
In today’s market, agility is not
only the hallmark of the most
competitive manufacturers, it’s
also a requirement for day-to-day
survival. With a few exceptions,
those manufacturers that survive in
this market must be able to change
directions at a moment’s notice,
without encountering signi cant
loss in production quality.
Enterprise resource planning (ERP)
applications can help small and
midsize manufacturers respond with
unprecedented agility no matter
what customers might demand. ERP
can help organizations reach lean
manufacturing capabilities and just-
in-time production principals, as well.
Clear, Cross-Organizational
Process Visibility
Many small and midsize manufacturers use
accounting software as their main method of
managing what’s going on in the organization.
The problem with this approach is that,
although valuable, accounting software won’t
provide the clear, cross-organizational view
necessary to help decision makers respond to
current and future demands. A well-integrated
ERP application, however, can provide insight
into customer purchasing history, real-time
sales order processes, and production levels
so decision makers can respond quickly to
changes in customer demand or in general
market conditions.
Flexible Production Scheduling
The trademark of an agile manufacturer is
the ability to switch gears quickly between
production runs, shortening or lengthening
the run or even changing products, as
necessary. An ERP application makes it
easier for organizations to adopt this type of
exibility by providing scheduling strategies
to handle unexpected orders or order changes
through features such as capacity planning,
work order management, and materials
requirements planning.
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Automating Manufacturing Capabilities
One area in which ERP can really pay o for
small and midsize manufacturers is in the
ability to automate processes and functions
that don’t require human interaction. Nearly
two-thirds of small and midsize manufacturers
still use manual tracking processes, which
can introduce errors and duplications that
interfere with the agility of the manufacturing
processes. By automating manufacturing
processes and transactions, those
manufacturers can free human resources
for more lucrative activities, such as product
design, innovation, and sales.
Improve Inventory Visibility
To be an agile manufacturer, companies must
have the ability to move from manufacturing
one product to another with minimal delay
and manufacturing time lost. Companies that
don’t have clear and accurate visibility into
the inventory necessary to manufacture a
product or ful ll customer orders will spend
more time making that switch. ERP provides
organizations with a single source for accurate
data about inventory availability across the
organization. Instead of trying to maintain
spreadsheets and paper logs of which
materials or products are available, an ERP
application can maintain that data in real-time,
making it more accurate and current than
manual inventory management.
ERP Can Contribute to Customization
The reason small and midsize manufacturers
often reach for agility is to be able to
serve more customers with customized,
short-run (and sometimes single-run)
manufacturing services. This customization
can be accomplished with an ERP application
that helps organizations streamline
the manufacturing process so that the
interchangeable components of the process
are monitored closely, and those components
that aren’t interchangeable can be switched to
create a custom product, when necessary.
Small and midsize manufacturers of the past
functioned perfectly ne without an ERP
system. Some used nancial applications in
place of ERP; others just used manual methods
for planning and resource management. In
today’s market, however, small and midsize
manufacturers need to have a solid ERP
application in place that will help to create
visibility, improve scheduling, and enable the
automation and customization that are the
true bene ts of being an agile manufacturer.
At Columbus, we help our customers digitally transform their businesses
and improve the value realization of their business application investments.
We mitigate the inherent risks associated with implementing, upgrading
and replacing legacy ERP systems. We lead our customers with best-practice
consulting services we have re ned over thousands of engagements. We take
care of our customers and aspire to keep them for life.
To learn more about how Columbus
can help you get the most out of your
Microsoft solution, contact your local
Columbus o ce.
www.columbusglobal.com
