Boosting Manufacturers’ Digital IQ

Through ERP Implementation, Continuous Improvement, Digital Process Transformation, and Marketing Automation

Talk to a Manufacturing ERP Expert

Problems We Solve for Manufacturers

ElevatIQ consultants have deep expertise in implementing ERP systems for several manufacturing sub-sectors. This specific expertise reduces your digital transformation project’s time and costs, as we don’t need training on your industry and business processes. We already understand particular processes for your micro-industry.

If you are running your processes manually or through disconnected systems, you will struggle to track your inventory, which results in inventory losses, component shortages, or meeting customer expectations with delivery.

If you don’t have a manufacturing ERP system in place, you might struggle to maintain compliance standards such as ISO or industry-specific. You will also work in maintaining the quality standards required by your customers and regulatory bodies.

Without the devices installed on the shop floor, you will find it challenging to report labor hours accurately, manage schedules for your jobs, and gather accurate data to help with your planning.

If you don’t have a manufacturing ERP system in place, it’s hard to plan how much inventory you need to purchase to ensure production and how much stock you need to produce to avoid stock-outs.

The disconnected and on-prem systems are likely to have lagged in receiving critical business information in the form of reports, and you need the help of your IT to get essential data.

Without a manufacturing ERP system, you will find it challenging to get insight into accurate and detailed job costing, which leads to inaccurate pricing, lower profit margins, and incorrect tracking of costs.

Without a manufacturing ERP system, your warehouses are likely to be inefficient as it’s harder to implement efficient processes such as batch or ware picking. Without barcode readers, your manual methods will be highly slow and inefficient.

If your processes are currently manual or use siloed systems, you will be spending a significant amount of time resolving discrepancies. You will plan based on inaccurate data, and the information can’t be real-time.

Without a manufacturing ERP system, you will have challenges meeting schedules for your orders, estimating your production capacity, and optimizing production runs for optimum efficiency.

Without a global manufacturing ERP system that supports a multi-entity organization’s operations, your disconnected sites might prevent you from getting a centralized view of your customers, vendors, and inventory.

Manufacturers Enjoy These Benefits Through Us

Through our digital initiatives, manufacturers take advantage of several benefits resulting in financial gains of higher net new sales, retention of existing customers, and higher profit margin.

By connecting all your processes and streamlining them, you can predictably commit and deliver to your customers. Without manual intervention, your customers will receive consistent experience through automated processes.

A modern manufacturing ERP system will provide you the end-to-end traceability, whether you need a consolidated view of your sales or operations or debug a KPI through the process. You may need this traceability for your internal tracking or regulatory bodies.

By eliminating manual and inefficient processes, you can lower the costs to produce your products, which will help you with reduced product costs, higher profit margin, and increased sales.

Through a modern ERP system, you can plan your inventory and production better, which will help you plan your cash flow better. An ERP system will also ensure due notices to your customers for a timely collection of your revenues.

By eliminating manual and inefficient processes, you can lower the costs to produce your products, which will help you with reduced product costs, higher profit margins, and increased sales.

Enabling lean processes is nearly impossible unless you have a manufacturing ERP system that can support lean processes that you desire to reduce excessive stock levels and optimizing production runs..

Our Expertise with Types of Manufacturing

We are experts in most types of manufacturing processess, including make-to-order (MTO), make-to-stock (MTS), engineered-to-order (ETO), configure-to-order (CTO), project-based, job-shop, and process.

You have unique challenges in forecasting your demand and scheduling your volume runs. You also have unique distribution model, such as collaboration with your resellers or integration with e-commerce that adds to unique operational challenges.

Suppose you are a project-based manufacturer such as trade show management companies or lighting project installers. In that case, your operations require a system that can handle project-based manufacturing needs, including integrated financial and purchasing within the project.

Your operational challenges are unique, as you might need to design your expensive parts, collaborate with your customers more often, and plan your orders so that you don’t miss your delivery deadlines. These operational challenges are unique for MTO manufacturers.

If you are a job-shop manufacturer, you will require an ERP system that is strong in job costing functionality and can help you plan and schedule your jobs. Your needs are going to be different than your other counterparts, such as volume or precision manufacturers.

Your business model and operational needs are unique as you need to spend a significant amount of time in engineering and collaborating with your customers. Additionally, your BOMs could be more complex and require a system that can handle such complexity.

If you are a process manufacturer, your processes are entirely different from discrete manufacturers. They require a system that can support a process manufacturer’s needs, such as recipe management, version management, and process production.

You have highly configurable products, which increases the complexity of your quoting processes. These configurations also require your system to be able to support such needs throughout the process, which increases operational complexity and product design assumptions.

Best ERP Systems for Manufacturing

While there are several ERP systems robust in their capabilities, manufacturers require specialized ERP specially designed for manufacturers considering their specific business processes.

Infor CloudSuite Industrial (Syteline)

Infor CloudSuite Industrial (Syteline) is the most robust manufacturing solution, as it provides last-mile functionality for several industries, including Automotive, Electronics Manufacturing, Industrial Automation/Machinery, and Building Materials. With other solutions, you might have to pay to build this last-mile functionality.

Acumatica Cloud ERP

Acumatica is the fastest-growing cloud ERP system with the Industry edition for manufacturing. While Acumatica doesn’t have as deep and last-mile functionality as other more robust solutions, it has a modern cloud-native interface and is easier-to-use for smaller manufacturers.

Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP

Microsoft has two robust products for manufacturers in their recent D365 portfolio that are Business Central and Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations. Microsoft D365 BC is an excellent fit for smaller discrete manufacturers, while F&O could be a perfect, more extensive process and discrete manufacturers.

Our Popular Manufacturing ERP Blogs

Most Recent Questions Manufacturers Asked About Their Digital Journey

1. What is a manufacturing ERP system?
An ERP stands for "Enterprise Resource Planning. " It's a business management suite that can integrate all business processes of a manufacturer such as production management, BOM, and MRP in one software system. Read more here.
2. How do Manufacturing ERP systems work?
A manufacturing ERP is a management information system that helps automate your manufacturing processes such as production management, procurement, supply chain planning, and providing real-time insight across processes. Read more here.
3. How does manufacturing ERP systems differ from generalized ERP solutions?
While several ERP systems in the market could provide profound functionality for several businesses, manufacturers have unique needs with complex BOM management, outside processing management, in-process quality control, and shop floor automation. A non-manufacturing ERP solution would require significant customizations for manufacturers to use it productively and get the job costing accurately as manufacturing accounting requires.
4. Since the cloud is the new buzz word, should manufacturers include an on-prem option as part of their evaluation?
While the cloud provides several advantages, including mobile-friendly, subscription-model, and without the hassle of managing IT infrastructure, the cloud may not be suitable for every business. Some businesses, such as medical devices, may have validation needs on each software upgrade. If so, the cloud could be prohibitively expensive. You should evaluate all the options before deciding which model is the right fit for your needs.

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