Manufacturing ERP

In the world of manufacturing, ERP software has given rise to a revolutionary series of changes over the last two decades. Early manufacturing ERP software, originally known as MRP or manufacturing resource planning software, first appeared in the early 1990s as business managers in the manufacturing sector looked for ways to streamline shop floor functions and raw material delivery. The goals for the first manufacturing ERP platforms were relatively simple: clients needs ways to standardize lot tracking, warehousing and distribution, and they wanted to make sure that items were ordered and received at a pace that facilitated assembly and processing.

The first manufacturing ERP platforms experienced a high rate of failure, largely attributed to poor employee training and a misunderstanding of some specific client needs (sometimes on the part of the clients themselves.) But as the kinks were ironed out of these early systems, ERP integrated business solutions as we know them today began to emerge. Business owners who implemented these adjusted versions began to see rapid returns on their initial investments and rapid improvements in data sharing and other back and front office business functions. General business management tools like accounting, payroll, and human resource software could be run on a shared server using the new ERP models, and the appeal of integrated platforms began to take off in a wide variety of business sectors beyond manufacturing.

By the late 1990s, as the millennium drew to a close, many large enterprise level business owners decided to upgrade their outdated legacy software platforms and rushed to do so by implementing ERP solutions before any millennium related problems arose with their own infrastructures. The demand for ERP software solutions flooded the business world, but also took hold in large organizations like universities and government offices. Soon ERP implementations were occurring everywhere, with varying degrees of success. Some implementations were rushed and poorly managed, but in general, enough successes occurred to carry the trend into the current decade.

Since about 2005, ERP implementations have slowed at the large business level, mainly as a result of market saturation. Once an ERP system is in place, a business ideally won’t need a new one for many years. Now that the market climate is changing, large providers who made a name for themselves in the field of ERP implementation are turning their attention downstream to small and mid-sized business owners with more restrictive budgets. The future of general ERP systems and manufacturing ERP platforms now lies in the hands of these small businesses, and it remains to be seen whether they will meet the large providers halfway on scaled and customized solutions, or whether they will find other ways to integrate their business functions.

Written by :

Amy Cruz