The benefits and reduction in costs when using an ERP

How Using an ERP System: Will Benefit Your Business & Reduce Costs

In a fast-paced marketplace, companies must embrace change to manage growth and remain competitive. SMEs face multiple challenges every day, but keeping on top of your business operations is essential if you want to be successful.

This includes creating a robust manufacturing management process which links each job flow to various other business functions. Adopting an MRP (Material Requirements Planning) or ERP system (Enterprise Resource Planning) can provide businesses with a simple, sustainable solution for increasing efficiency in a cost-effective way.

An ERP system transforms your business functions by combining them in one central place.

This includes accountancy functions, personnel and the full production process from initial quotation through to final payment. By streamlining your processes, you’ll completely organise your manufacturing operations across the company, leading to increased productivity and reduced costs.

Our unique ERP software is simple, easy to use and was developed by manufacturers for manufacturers. Our wealth of experience and dedication to improvement sees us continually developing the software so you can stay competitive.

The Importance of Organisation in Manufacturing

Maintaining production at desired levels is essential in the manufacturing industry. This includes meeting product orders on time and keeping track of each aspect of the manufacturing workflow. There are various ways manufacturing companies choose to organise their processes, and this can depend on factors such as company size and the complexity of operations.

If you feel like your business could be performing better, it’s time to look for a solution to these challenges.

Many manufacturing companies choose to use an MRP system (Material Requirements Planning). MRP systems involves software which combines the various elements of controlling the materials used in the manufacturing process.

When an order is placed, the software will understand the composition required to produce the product and use factors such as availability, volumes needed and the inventory records to create a schedule for its manufacture. This helps companies to see an overall picture of the input required to create the finished products. This type of planning software is essential for any manufacturing businesses to keep up with their competitors.

Improving Workplace Efficiency

Unfortunately, many businesses face challenges with keeping their processes as efficient as possible which can have negative consequences on the business such as loss of trade, reputation and customers. Reasons for this include:

• Creating a clear, accurate manufacturing workflow
• Centralising live data to create a true picture of your business position
• Eliminating the duplication of tasks
• Reducing administration and operational costs
• Increasing productivity
• Fewer errors and wastage costs
• Maintaining stock at lowest possible levels
• Easily managing business growth & measuring success
• Enhancing customer service

What is an ERP System?

The manufacturing process isn’t just about the materials involved in creating the final products and getting them delivered in a timely manner. There are further factors which contribute towards manufacturing success including the people involved and administrative factors.

Over time, MRP software has evolved to incorporate these other organisational requirements such as finances, supply chains and human resources functions.

This type of software is known as ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and covers a much broader spectrum of a company’s functions.

The ERP software provides a single database for every function involved in the manufacturing process. ERP software takes the elements of MRP and integrates them with the roles of various other departments across the organisation such as Human Resources and Accounts.

This makes for easier collaborations across the business and enhanced information sharing in order to function as a whole.

The ERP system’s increased functionality and integrations with other systems, resulted in this type of software spreading into different industries, not just manufacturing. The systems can be tailored to your needs as a business and be adapted as you grow.

The Benefits of ERP

ERP is a type of management software system which aims to integrate all the various parts of your business, helping you to coordinate processes, information and resources from the same place. This includes:

• stock inventory
• customers & suppliers
• quotations
• purchase orders, delivery notes & invoices
• sales
• production planning
• scheduling & diary
• workflow
• shop floor data
• personnel
  

Benefits of ERP Systems for Manufacturing Companies

Manufacturers and other businesses can gain a variety of benefits from implementing an ERP system.

1. Manage Growth – As your company grows, keeping your business functions and operations simplified will become the key to successfully taking on such growth with ease. Business growth can be proactively managed by enabling the user to make fast and accurate decisions, preventing delays. This allows businesses to protect their reputation by continuing to deliver on customer expectations. ERP also provides opportunities to forecast software where you’re going by giving a clear overview of the company’s position while analysing areas of success. You can also measure estimated profit against actuals.
2. Centralise Data – Real-time information is crucial if you want to see an accurate overview of the manufacturing workflow happening at any given time. For example, manufacturers can easily track the progress of a job from quote right through to order, scheduling, production, delivery and invoice payment. It also allows for greater across-team communication and information sharing, as well as keeping track of outstanding issues and tasks.
3. Automate Processes – Traditional methods for managing business operations often results in users having to navigate complex operations, repeat data entry and spend time finding information and tying it together. Some companies are even using paper filing systems with no form of digital workflow other than spreadsheets. ERP software eliminates the need for this by creating an efficient system which links appropriate information together and automating many of the processes, saving time and increasing productivity.
4. Reduce Costs – There will always be costs of investing in an ERP system, but all your functions will be in one place, eliminating the need for integration with costly third party applications. Time is money, so creating streamlined processes results in reduced costs for your administrative and operational duties. The enhanced information sharing permitted by ERP systems also stops the need for various departments to repeat analysis, creating a cohesive organisation that acts as one body. The enhanced efficiency of MRP and ERP systems maintains the lowest possible material and product levels resulting in fewer capital costs and reduces wastage.
5. Enhance Customer Service – Customers have high expectations of manufacturing services, so if you can’t deliver on your promises, they’ll go elsewhere. In other words, they’ll switch to your competitors. Having such an efficient manufacturing management system in place is ideal for enhancing customer service. The formulation of accurate timescales and scheduling plans results in timely product delivery and promises being fulfilled successfully. In turn, customer satisfaction levels will be higher, enhancing your business’ reputation and secures repeat orders.

Why Choose Statii Software?

UNIQUE
Our innovative ERP software breaks the boundaries of conventional systems. There’s no complicated IT infrastructure involved, no hidden support costs and no significant upfront investment. Our sustainable long-term ERP solutions are here for you to tailor to your changing needs, meaning there aren’t unnecessary features that you’ll never use. We take each piece of feedback we receive from our hundreds of customers across the UK and abroad and feed this into the ongoing development and improvement of the software. This ensures our ERP system is a sustainable solution for providing continuous measurable improvements to a company’s bottom line.

EASY TO USE
Our simple but sophisticated software is incredibly easy to use. It provides a common interface across the company, reducing the training required to understand each function. Each function is interlinked with each other, giving you the information you need at the click of a button while creating an overall picture of your company’s position. We even provide a video demo, online training and a seven-day test drive. Online and phone support is also available.

EXPERTISE
Too often, MRP and ERP systems are created by software developers, rather than those who understand the manufacturing industry. Statii software was developed by manufacturers, and we have customers across the globe. Our wealth of hands-on experience in the manufacturing and engineering industries ensures we completely understand the challenges you’re facing and can knowledgably answer your queries. Being specifically designed for SMEs, our software can be suited to your needs perfectly.

FLEXIBILITY
As well as being budget-friendly for smaller businesses, we have a free version of our ERP software, Statii Liite. This powerful tool provides some of the basic features of our other ERP packages.

You’ll be able to ease into using our ERP system completely free of charge, gaining some of the benefits while getting acquainted with its functions. Our range of packages means that you can choose the right functions for your setup, tailoring the service to your business needs. This also allows room for scalability so you can effectively manage business growth.

IMPROVE BUSINESS PERFORMANCE

Our software enables users to work smarter by providing access to all the key information users need at any time, allowing companies to unlock their full potential. Comprising both MRP and ERP software, our unique system combines multiple functionalities. These include:

• The Dashboard – a quick, live snapshot of your business position
• Customers & Suppliers – collating information such as details, contracts and spend
• Enquiry/Quotations – consistent, accurate method of creating and archiving quotations
• Sales Orders – manage and measure delivery commitments
• Works Orders – production planning support
• Purchase Orders – control goods coming in
• Route Cards – operational instructions for the shop floor
• Shop Floor Data Collection – manage employee’s time, attendance and efficiency
• Inventory – overall stock levels with automated adjustments
• Scheduling – monitor workload against capacity
• Diary – communication tool for outstanding matters
• Personnel – works with the Shop Floor Data Collection feature to record data, trends and records of employees
• Delivery Notes – view all delivery records within a given period
• Invoicing – invoice issuing & integration with accountancy software

SECURE
All your data is completely secure, with the safety levels being higher than you could provide in-house. Hosted by a world class leading server provider, your company information is secure from being stolen, lost or seen by others.

Next Steps

You’ll need an open mind to embrace the positive changes and make a commitment to the initial time is takes to implement the ERP system. Our application process is always quick and simple to follow, and we’ll give you the support you need to make the changes.

Centralise your operations today to create the perfect place for all your manufacturing business functions.