In today's world, it is fairly common to come across a contractor that also manufactures some or all of the products that they install for their customers. Custom cabinets are a common example, as are some structural steel and low voltage products. Companies that fall in to this category that are looking for new software often have assembly job shops that design custom pieces and a separate installation department that installs the products at a customer's site. These companies especially can benefit from new construction software that allows for the most accurate estimating and quoting capabilities.
Unfortunately, finding a piece of construction accounting software that covers both sides of the business is not as easily done as it is said. Although both sides of the business deal with job cost, there are several issues that arise when trying to integrate the two sides with one piece of software.
For example, manufacturing jobs involve a separate set of constraints than construction jobs. In manufacturing, you often deal with work centers, machinery, and individuals that carry out the manufacturing process. These job shops often have to rush jobs, change schedules, or make other changes on the fly based on priority shifts. Having software that is flexible enough to deal with these sudden changes is imperative in a manufacturing situation. However, this is not the case with construction jobs. Construction projects generally involve longer lead times and have to consider variables such as subcontractor scheduling that make quick and extreme changes in plans very difficult, if not impossible to pull off.
Second, manufacturing and construction differ in the way that cost accounting works. Manufacturing projects track direct labor, materials, and a set overhead allocation when calculating job cost. These job costs are accumulated as the project moves forward from one work center to another. These costs are tracked on the balance sheet as assets until the job is shipped off, meaning that inventory costs constantly change as projects move along. Manufacturers also need to know the current progress of a job to tell customers when the project will be complete and delivered.
Construction projects, on the other hand, recognize revenue and costs on a percentage complete or job complete basis.
Most contractors do not record costs until they are actually billed for them, regardless of whether or not the labor has been completed. They are concerned with the cost to date of a project in relation to the estimated budget for the project and monitor under or over billing based on the percentage of the job complete and the percentage of the estimated cost incurred to date. This kind of cost break down simply does not work in a manufacturing environment.
Construction software will record costs in a linear fashion as the job moves along. These costs can be captured and tracked in real time with the right combination of software and processes.
Another difference between construction and manufacturing sides of a business is that the construction side often has to deal with project management issues such as RFIs, change orders, and submittals. These things are simply not relevant in manufacturing but must be accounted for in a construction accounting package. Construction software also allows for progress billing, which is not necessary in manufacturing.
Last of all, manufacturing jobs require quotes that involve a bill of materials which is not usually done in a construction job. Manufacturers like to use software to keep track of things such as change orders, revision histories, and drawings that are not covered by construction software.
Therefore, although manufacturing and construction companies both deal with 'job cost,' the term refers to different things in the two companies. As a result, it is necessary to separate construction software and manufacturing software.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Manufacturing Accounting Software Construction Software Is Not The Same As Manufacturing Software
Monday, September 27, 2010
Erp Hosting Plan Your Resources Via Erp Software
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) is a company-wide computer software system used to handle and synchronize all the resources, information, and functions of a business from shared information stores. An ERP arrangement has a service-oriented design with modular hardware and software units or "services" that communicate on a local area network.
The modular plan allows ecommerce to add or reconsider modules (perhaps from diverse vendors) while conserving data reliability in one shared database that may be centralized or dispersed. Some organizations, classically those with enough in-house IT skills put together manifold software products and choose to apply merely portions of an ERP arrangement and build up an external interface to other ERP or stand-alone systems for their other application needs.
For example, one may want to use human resource management system from one vendor, and the fiscal systems from another, and execute the combination between the systems themselves. This is widespread with retailers where even a mid-sized retailer will have a disconnected Point-of-Sale (POS) creation and financial requests, then a series of particular applications to grip ecommerce requirements such as warehouse organization, merchandising and logistics. Enterprise resource software or ERP delivers a single database that contains all data for the software modules. Some of them are Manufacturing, Supply chain management, financial aspect, Project management, Human resources etc.
Manufacturing includes engineering, bills of material, scheduling, capacity, workflow management, quality control, cost management, manufacturing process, manufacturing projects, manufacturing flow. The other aspect Supply chain management includes order to cash, inventory, order entry, purchasing, product configuration, supply chain planning, supplier scheduling, and inspection of goods, claim processing, and commission calculation. Financial aspect includes general ledger, cash management, accounts payable, accounts receivable, fixed assets, while project management includes costing, billing, time and expense, performance units, activity management. Human resource management is also a crucial part of the enterprise resource planning. It includes Human resources, payroll, training, time and attendance, roistering, benefits etc.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Manufacturing Accounting Software AS411.com Profiles Ultriva’s Lean Electronic Kanban As Central To Lean Bottom-Line
“Using solutions to synchronize production and material replenishment across the factory via a lean assessment produces impressive results. Order-to-ship lead times are reduced by over fifty percent, on-time delivery performance is improved by more than twenty percent, and work-in-progress (WIP) inventories are reduced up to forty percent,” according to Narayan Laksham, Founder and President of Ultriva, a lean solutions leader based in Cupertino, California.
Ultriva, the lean leader, with an electronic kanban focus, is featured in the current issue of Accounting Software 411. Manufacturing journalist, TR Cutler, profiled Ultriva in a feature article titled, Becoming Lean: The Bottom-Line.
Ultriva (www.Ultriva.com) is live at over 120 plants across 10 countries. Companies like Emerson, BE Aerospace, Trane, Ingersoll-Rand, McKesson, AO Smith, FRANKE and AGCO among others are using Ultriva to collaborate with over 4000 suppliers and transacting $1.5 billion of purchased parts every year.
Indeed a lean assessment impacts distribution, factories, and the supply chain. Lean distribution allows companies to manage finished goods inventory in a dynamic, efficient, and real-time environment. It provides the right product mix, visibility, stock, out alerts, and analytics to be fully streamlined. A lean factory process allows firms to orient production around customer demands instead of capacity optimization. Increased flexible scheduling allows adjustments to be made on the fly. Laksham insists that, “A lean supply chain allows for the replenishment system of choice including kanban, MRP orders, VMI, or 3PL, on a collaborative platform that seamless connects plants and suppliers.”
The lean supply chain is still largely controlled by MRP and ERP systems which use forecasted or planned demand to set up supplier replenishments. Every run generates changes to the existing demand while also creating new demands; the result is a series of inconsistencies across the supply chain, late shipments, costly expediting, and stock outs.
As manufacturing spreads horizontally, the global supply chain is becoming the most critical factor in determining customer demands. Laksham urges, “Managing this chain is no longer a matter of reducing costs but of optimizing a key process that is fueled by integration, trust, common metrics, and aligned goals.” One of the important methods utilized by Ultriva is the Supplier Portal for Purchase Order Execution which offers a platform to improve collaboration between plants and suppliers so they can interact and perform in synergy to deliver the right parts and the right time. This type of seamless integration between manufacturing plants and supply bases is best achieved through order visibility, exception alerts, inventory health, performance metrics, and analytics for continuous improvement. A single platform also allows for immaculate integration from kanban-based replenishment to MRP/forecast-driven supply.
Ultriva
Cindy McGowan
408.248.9803
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Onyx Crm Aqua Blue Gem Stones
Turquoise is a semi-precious gemstone regularly designed into some with the most modern day, attractive handmade jewelry within the planet. It is most frequently observed in teal and turquoise hues, and is particularly generally recognized since the December birthstone as nicely as the 11th anniversary gemstone. But past its modern-day uses and associations, aqua green holds a self-indulgent mythological, spiritual and etymological historical past that adds nostalgic value to its already strong aesthetic well worth. Study on for a lot more data that may assist you fall in adore together with your aqua blue necklaces ? or inspire you to buy some currently!
Turquoise can assortment from grey to natural to purple and yellows, frequently veined through the brown matrix with different textures, and is particularly only determined in dry, barren regions. As being a far back as 6000 many years ago, this stone is one of the oldest to become utilised by man, for both bracelets and ornamental requirements. Around 5500 BC, the ancient Egyptians found aqua blue within the Sinai Peninsula. Close to 1900, Queen Zer?s tomb was unearthed and she was discovered putting on a turquoise and silver bracelet close to her wrist. Aqua blue is stated to bring luck and fortune towards the wearer, and a feeling of calmness with its cool colour tones, moreover to wisdom, and it is usually well-known in Southwest, Native American, and Egyptian jewelry styles. Aqua blue gemstones appear greatest as components of formal evening jewellery when paired with dark onyx, pearls or sterling silver. A lot more casual combinations consist of softer contrasts with black pearls, carnelian and ruby. To see a assortment of handmade artisan bracelets featuring aqua blue, visit www.dashaboutique.com/shopbygemstone.Aqua green is normally regarded a superior gemstone that operates properly with any outfit. Chinese Aqua green comes in both environmentally friendly and teal colours, with a lot of subtle color variations throughout the stone, and has spider web veining. You can find four to 5 regions in China where they're mined. The Ma'ashan aqua blue mine is located close to Shanghai, additionally towards the Hubei Land, just to name a number of. As far back as around 1700 BC, Aqua blue was applied in China mostly for ornamental carvings and other artistic reasons. In Beijing, on the Academy of Social Sciences, there can be a bronze and turquoise plaque on display and that is believed to become from that era. Chinese aqua green is nearly constantly stabilized, and won't be as probably to become afflicted by lotions or perfumes when it's worn, protecting the colour of the turquoise from outside components. Sleeping Elegance Turquoise arrives from your Resting Elegance Mountain in World, Arizona, which is among the biggest mines as to date. Aqua blue is mostly found in the US, Mexico, and Iran. Aqua blue gets a score of 5-6, meaning that it's relatively scratch resistant and for that reason ideal like a element of daily jewellery. Aqua blue gemstones ought to be frequently cleaned by a expert or having a gentle rag and mild soap and drinking water. Other techniques, including ultra-sonic clenares, solvents and severe chemicals ought to be avoided when cleaning your handcrafted jewelry as exposure to these components can harm semi-precious and precious gemstones and pearls.
Find out extra about all semi-precious gemstones, including burgandy topaz, white topaz etc. blue topaz rings
Manufacturing Inventory Management Software Do You Need Inventory Management Software?
Where do you start when you know you want to improve efficiencies, and you have heard about barcode and inventory management software, but there are so many choices on the market and the prices range all over the board? Read on for more insight to selecting the right inventory management software for your business environment.
Well, we have tested many of these and have some answers for you. Many businesses work with small inventories or just need to manage a tool crib or a supply room. For businesses like this we suggest very simple and inexpensive inventory management software that can run on a standalone PC or on a network. Tool cribs either manage a check-in check-out process or they manage inventory reorder points and levels of consumables. For the consumable type tool cribs, we suggest the RedBeam Inventory Management Software.
This product is great for many of the following applications:
o Tool Cribs
o Supply Rooms
o Law Offices - Document Management
o Laboratories
o Small to Medium Distributors
o And many more situations.
The Redbeam inventory management software will provide the user with Reporting that includes Reorder Points and forecasting, as well as quantities on hand and reports on usage by individual. RedBeam Inventory Tracking allows you to streamline the tracking of inventory levels and item movements in your warehouse, distribution center, stock room or store.
The RedBeam inventory tracking application comes in two versions, standard and mobile. The standard editions of the software allow for data collection using cabled barcode scanners attached to PC workstations. The mobile editions allow for data collection using cabled barcode scanners attached to PC workstations as well as the ability to collect data on scanner-enabled mobile computers. RedBeam Inventory Tracking supports Windows XP, Server 2003 and Vista.
The drawbacks to this program are that it is not customizable. The program stands on its own, using a Sequel Database. There can be custom programs written to make this program interface with a flat file upload. But other than that, you get what is in the package here. This is a great program at a great price.
If your applications require a more robust solution, our recommendation is the Intelitrack Inventory Management software that can meet many needs and can be customized to your personal needs. IntelliTrack provides affordable, easy to use inventory management software packages. Depending upon the size and complexity of your business, IntelliTrack has software that's the right fit. Intellitrack offers tailored modules such as WMS (Warehouse Management System) software and ISRP (Inventory, Shipping Receiving and Picking) software both with a standard application interface for easy integration with accounting software, or enterprise resource planning systems (ERP).
IntelliTrack will also custom make modules that will work within your system. The inventory management software is built on an open source platform and can be easily customized with extensions and modifications.
The drawback on this package is that it can be expensive to have the custom modifications performed. The overall cost here is still much less then a complete custom application build though. A complete custom project requires a dedicated programmer to dive into the code of your current system and then figure out matching code to develop from scratch a inventory management program that must be beta tested, de-bugged and then launched into production. Imaging the cost and time in this project.
Both of the off the shelf inventory management software programs can be downloaded in demo mode for testing, so give them a ride and see for yourself before making the purchase. It is well worth the effort.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Erp System SIMPLE WAY TO CHOOSE YOUR ERP SYSTEM
In order to assure the IT integrity to your business and assuming you all know what is the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) System. The following points should be considered as a minimum requirements for you before you buy and implement the new ERP System:
Fundamentals:
- Ease of use.
- Cost effectiveness.
- Ability to cover all business process.
- Ability to share the data among different departments.
Technically:
- Ability to integrate with current Database.
- Ability to integrate with current reporting tools.
- The number of active users per session that system can serve at same time.
- Ability to have the SDK from the Company.
- Ability to schedule backup policy (usually depends on the database configuration).
- ERP client software should support different operating systems platform.
- The amount of information could be listed and displayed through the Log file (EX: Report Errors when occurs).
Security:
- Strong authentication procedure to assure the right user access the right data.
- Ability to create different groups and Menus for users.
- Administrative panel should contain monitoring tools.
- Ability to integrate with current Active Directory for more security.
And don’t forget to view the profile of the suggested ERP Company and ask their current customers about their level of support.
Also you should consider your business volume as to know your company falls under which category small business or medium or it’s a big company. As example if you are running a medium business then you should ask the ERP vendor about the possibility of migrate the data in the future to a big system.
Small companies tend to enable apart from the ERP system by implementing some modules, so if you are in such a case then you should grant that adding new modules in the future will not affect or cause data loss to the system.
Well defined business process and duties segregation is must in order to implement the ERP system. finally you need to have a well configured Network.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Made2manage Erp Software By Encompix Helps Oklahoma-based Axh
Air-x-hemphill (AXH) combines more than 40 years of experience and leadership in the air-cooled heat exchanger industry. This fast-growing company went form zero to 120 employees in less than six months, located at their corporate office in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and their plant in Claremore, Oklahoma. To cope with this explosive growth AXH needed ERP software to support their engineer-to-order business. After an extensive search, AXH selected Encompix. The company encompasses the entire spectrum of air-coolers from initial thermal design and application through mechanical engineering, design drafting, project management with a focus on quality. They provide a complete line of air-cooled heat exchangers in a wide range of sizes and models to fit virtually every application requirement in the industry.
Encompix (www.encompix.com) a business unit of Made2Manage Systems, has filled the manufacturing software requirements of engineer-to-order companies since 1992. The company name reflects a commitment to developing business application solutions that encompass the complex areas of project-based and job-based manufacturing. Encompix provides ETO manufacturers with a competitive advantage by improving bottom line results.
About Made2Manage Systems Inc.
With more than 2,150 customers worldwide, Made2Manage Systems Inc. has a 20-year track record of delivering enterprise resource planning software and a broad range of services that meet the unique market specifications of more than 30 manufacturing sectors, including industrial and commercial machinery, fabricated metals, rubber and plastics, electronics, analytical and measuring equipment, furniture and fixtures, durable goods, and metals, wire and cable. Made2Manage Systems' sustained leadership position in the ERP marketplace is built on a commitment to fostering productive, long-lasting customer relationships, developing a quality product line based on unique industry specifications, and providing excellence in customer support and professional services.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Crm Implementation Evaluating CRM – Does It Make Sense For Your Business?
So you think you need a CRM system? What kind of system would suit your sales process? What can you do to convince management to implement CRM? Many companies are asking these questions every single day. While some in senior management have embraced CRM, others are very cautious. Why? All companies want to increase sales, grow their company, increase profits, and stay ahead of the competition.
CRM is the core business strategy that manages all aspects of interaction a company has with its customers, including prospecting, sales and service. By integrating sales, marketing, and customer service functions, it is easier for team to work together and share critical information. Sales, marketing, and customer service teams gain the tools they need to find new customers, close sales faster, and build long lasting profitable relationships. CRM applications provide access to ‘customer-related data' and insight into company/customer relationship by combining all customer details, interaction, history, opportunities into one picture. It is grounded on high quality customer related data and enabled by information technology.
Some of the major modules within CRM are
Marketing automation
- Campaign management
- Event based trigger marketing
Sales force automation
- Account management
- Lead management
- Opportunity management
- Pipeline management
- Contact management
- Quotation and proposal generation
Customer Service automation
- Case (incident or issue) management
- Service level management
Marketing automation
Marketing automation applies technology to marketing processes. Campaign management modules allow marketers to use customer-related data in order to develop, execute and evaluate targeted campaigns.
Sales-force automation
SFA applies technology to the management of a company's selling activities. The selling process goes through number of stages, such as prospect identification, lead generation, lead qualification, needs identification, proposal generation, proposal presentation, negotiations and closing the sale. Automation of selling activities is often linked to efforts to improve and standardize the selling process.
Customer Service automation
Service automation allows companies to manage their service operations, whether delivered through call centre, contact centre, web or face-to-face. CRM software enables companies to handle and coordinate their service related inbound and outbound communications across all channels providing real-time access to relevant customer data including orders, call and escalation history, interactions, support cases, e-mail and documents sent and received, sales opportunities, and more.
Some of the benefits your company can derive
- Empower your staff with enterprise-wide access to vital customer, partner, and prospect information
- Manage and synchronize sales, marketing, and customer care activities across all points of interaction
- Automate key aspects of the sales cycle and analyze, forecast, and report on key sales data
- Create, schedule, and track marketing campaign activities, and measure the performance of every campaign
- Access critical customer data anytime, in the office, on the road, or from your mobile device
If you are finding it hard to make a decision to implement a CRM and at what stage of business lifecycle, then brainstorming on some of operational challenges might help to take a decision
- Are your company's revenues increasing according to projections?
- With the top five deals you lost last year, why did you lose these deals and who did you lose to?
- What are the top three reasons that customers stop doing business with you?
- Do you know how much it costs to attract a new customer as compared to keeping an existing customer loyal to you?
Basis the discussion, have an action plan in place, back this up with research and you should be well on your way in your CRM system evaluation.
For more information you can visit: - http://www.sagesoftware.co.in
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Erp Modules Small Business ERP And CRM Solutions
Every business needs good and portable software packages to run smoothly. This scenario was not there until many years ago. This surge can be owed to burgeoning competition as well as pressures from the global markets. However, implementing ERP for small businesses was considered a difficult proposition considering its cost and risks involved.
But there seems to be coming a sea change or rather a revolution in the business market lately. Many business consultants attribute growing demand of ERP to steady growth of entrepreneurship. Even the ERP software vendors are focusing more on small businesses or entrepreneurs these days. These vendors are now developing low cost ERP solutions especially for small business with a multi-dimensional approach.
This has proved to be an opportunity in disguise for smaller businesses with limited capital. But, these companies must pay a lot of attention while selecting their software vendor.
Similarly, a budding organization or business can’t ignore the importance of CRM software. After all, it helps document information abut current as well as prospective customers. And no company would want to lose its customer base as they are the true strength of a successful business venture. Today one can find a number of retailers as well as online portals offering CRM related solution. Meanwhile, if you have decide to buy one for your organization, ensure that you buy a authentic one which come with at least 10 years of warranty period.
Both ERP and CRM software package have become need of the hour for nay organization which aims to scale height of success.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Deacom Discrete Vs. Process In Erp
One of the saddest things is a manufacturer who chooses an ERP software system that does not a fit with what they do. For example, a chemical producer who selects and implements software designed for a type of company which manufactures solid objects such as furniture. There once was a company that provided consumer packaged goods to the convenience marketplace who selected fish disassembly software. These are obvious mismatches. But the specifics may not be clear.
There are two types of manufacturing. There is discrete manufacturing, or a company that assembles products from widgets. There is also process manufacturing, or companies that blend liquids. Process manufacturing companies process formulas or recipes. While the majority of manufacturing is discrete (automotive, aerospace, or anyone else who builds component parts), there are a select group of manufacturers who are process manufacturers. These include food processors, cosmetics, chemical producers, paints and coatings manufacturers, and anyone else who deal with liquid or batch produced products.
What makes process manufacturing different from discrete? Process manufacturing uses formulations or recipes. A discrete manufacturer uses Bills of Materials (BOMs). A discrete manufacturer assembles along a routing, whereas a process manufacturer blends in a batch.
There are companies who operate in both environments and are often called mixed mode manufacturers. These manufacturers need both a process and discrete manufacturing system.
So what sort of ERP system works with these types of manufacturing modes? This can only be answered by looking at the markets these software companies serve. There are certain products which are clearly process, such as BatchMaster Software or Ross Software. These software deal with formulations, batching, and the other specific issues around process manufacturing. There are other software systems that are clearly discrete such as DBA Software, Intuitive, or Made2manage. These handle Bills of Materials, Routings, and specific discrete requirements. These are all systems that serve their niche.
When you get into larger systems, there is not a clear cut solution as they operate in Mixed-Mode. For example QAD software can handle both discrete and process requirements. Others that can do the same are MS Dynamics AX, Deacom, Ramco, and of course the Tier 1 players SAP and Oracle.
So the real lesson is to understand what you do first before looking at software. Are you a processor of liquids, or do you assemble individual items to create an assembled product? Knowing this will go a long way to help you properly choose software that fits you like a glove.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Made2manage Boost Your Profits With Smart Accounting
Accounting is an important aspect of all business sectors. While small and medium sized companies have options of internal financial management, global companies have to set up a networked-system that can ably manage the financial aspects of different centers of a primary business organization. Adopting accountants software can ease the pressure on administrative works related to revenues, receivables, payables and payrolls. In fact, accounting software applications can help in cutting down the cost since they require lesser manpower and resources for quick and fast derivable.
Choosing the right software
Keeping afloat is not the only thing that keeps a company going, but also the annual turnover while reducing the capital investments. Creating new efficiencies and innovating breakthrough technology in accounting are some of the other aspects of starting a business. Formulated to cater to the requirements in two major fields-financial accounting and payroll accounting-the software can smoothen financial dealings in a systematized manner. Some of the major functions of these software include:
Updating the accountant with particular statutory reports
Generating MIS reports
Maintenance of data pertaining to general accounting, portfolio management, export documentation, sales, purchases and more
Payroll reports, return forms, graphical representations, transaction entries, Master entries
General ledger, account payable, account receivable, payroll, inventory, purchase orders, sales orders and billing.
Types of software
Financial accounting software, also known as accounting systems, business software, or enterprise resource planning (ERP), record and take care of various accounting transactions in a business organization. Apart from the usual features including ledger and billing, accounting software takes care of distribution of software as well as manufacturing different software functions. Software that are popularly used among accountants are:
Exact Globe: It has the capability of handling multiple currencies. The sales and PO modules have workflow capabilities that can streamline document management.
Epicor: Responsible for cost-effective expansion, Epicor boasts of rapid optimization, simple operating facilities, easy modifications, and low training costs.
Microsoft Dynamics: Customised for dynamic business needs, this software promises of maximized productivity with state-of-art financial and operational functionality. Intelligent accounting, budgeting, forecasting and reporting are some of the other features of this particular software.
Sage: This software helps in end-to-end business management application.
SAP: It is a user-friendly interface that helps in delivering sales, management, banking, finance related functionalities. Customer relationship management is another aspect of SAP.
Intacct: Highly compatible with other applications, this software cuts down the cost of ownership enabling impressive track records of client success.
Some of the other commonly used accounting software include Made2Manage, QuickBooks, Netsuite, Quicken, and Peachtree. AccountsIQ can advice you on the installation of different software that your business to a different level.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Knowledgestorm How White Papers Have Evolved
The term "white paper" arose early in the 20th century in Great Britain. It was used to distinguish shorter government briefs and position papers with white covers from longer reports and policy books with blue covers.
One of the earliest white papers on record is the so-called Churchill White Paper from 1922. A few months after this was published, Britain apparently backtracked and broke all the promises in this document. Just like today, not all white papers speak the truth!
White papers were often used in science and medicine during WWII, the 1950s and the 60s. With the rise of the PC in the 1980s, white papers started to become extremely popular in the IT industry. And in the 90s, the Web provided an inexpensive distribution channel that sparked today's ongoing explosion of white papers.
Where are white papers today?
One thing's for sure: The number of white papers is growing exponentially. In the summer of 2001, a Google search for the phrase "white papers" yielded 1.4 million hits. Nine years later, the same phrase yielded 19.6 million hits.
The Web is awash in documents called "white papers." And these have been become a standard part of the marketing toolkit in some sectors. That's because truly effective white papers are highly read and passed on from person to person. They have a major impact on buying decisions for billions of dollars worth of products and services every year.
Yet this label is applied indiscriminately to many documents that are not "classic" white papers. Too many are nothing but thinly veiled sales pitches. For this reason, the term "white paper" is becoming devalued. It may be better to find a more specific name for some documents, such as:
-Executive briefing
-Guide
-Handbook
-Research report
-ROI calculator
-Special report
-Technology backgrounder
What are today's hot white paper topics?
The hot topics for white papers tend to follow industry trends. So when a lot of people are talking about a certain technology, you can be sure a lot of white papers are being written about it.
The white paper syndicates want you to know what's hot, so they make it easy to get an instant snapshot of their most popular white paper downloads. Here are three easy ways to check on popular topics:
1. Go to www.knowledgestorm.com and notice the list of Top Requested Categories.
2. Go to www.bitpipe.com and notice the similar list of Popular Topics. Then click Most Popular Reports, to see the 50 most downloaded white papers for the day.
3. Go to www.itpapers.com and see the tab for "Most Popular."
Where are white papers going in the future?
For the near future, white papers will continue to be very popular with marketers and prospects. Over the longer term, many new formats for delivering information are being explored.
For the kind of content usually included in a white paper, these new formats include presentations, audio (podcasts) and video (recorded webinars or vlogs). Other mediums on the horizon include 3D immersive experiences and virtual trade shows. These white papers of the future will require more complex production methods and distribution platforms, but will offer a more engaging experience for audiences.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Mrp System Getting A Handle On Productivity
Your business is growing, you are hiring more people, everyone in your organization has gained responsibilities, you are working overtime, and yet, you are experiencing new problems that threaten to undermine your business plan. These growing pains are keeping you from your regular duties; you are running around putting out fires, forcing orders through your system, responding to customer inquiries about late or missed shipments, looking for solutions, and trying to determine how you are going to reorganize your business structure to better respond to this increased workload, but whatever you try you can’t seem to get out from behind the eight ball.
SEARCHING FOR CAUSE
As is often the case, you have probably assigned someone to monitor your production process and track your orders throughout the system so you can better balance the workload across shifts and across departments. You attribute these new problems to the increase in business, too heavy a workload, new employees who are not quite up to speed yet, and you are certain that with a bit more attention and a little more time these problems will go away. Perhaps you need to hire a few more people to handle the increased responsibilities and to help put those fires out.
The truth is, if you are like nearly every other business that has experienced these growth spurts for the first time, these problems will not simply go away, but will most likely get worse, and merely throwing more personnel at it is not going to help.
ADDRESSING THE SYMPTOMS
I have been in a great many facilities with this problem and in the vast majority of instances I see the same red flags: people running around franticly addressing the same recurring issues, manually tracking production in an attempt to head off log jams and smooth out production, hourly employees working overtime and moving from one production area to another to address the local production bottlenecks. But you are on top of it, you have assembled those cross-functional teams to look for a better way to deal with customer issues and backed up work cells, to address the need for even more employees, but odds are you are addressing the symptoms of a much larger problem and not the root cause. All the work you are doing is simply a band-aid on a gaping wound that is not going to heal.
THE ROOT CAUSE
Your real problem is labor, and not labor in the sense of the volume of labor, or the quality of your work force, but the means, or the lack thereof, as it applies to monitoring and managing the labor portion of your production processes. When you were smaller you could easily see the problems start to arise and you could quickly address these issues with a short term fix, but as your production increases dramatically, you find you are overburdened by these daily hiccups as they begin to snowball out of control. You are certain that the problem is not your workforce; they all work hard, they all work steady and they all work efficiently, but in nearly every case, once you actually start to manage your labor correctly, you will see that this misconception could not be farther from the truth.
There are four main components to your product sell price: overhead, raw materials, labor and profit. Of these four items the most volatile and usually the largest percentage of your costs will be labor, yet this is more often than not the most overlooked component of your process.
How can you verify your productivity and efficiency if you do not track and monitor your labor? How can you accurately estimate your costs if you do not monitor, measure and control the labor portion of your costs? How can you effectively address your production problems if you cannot accurately pin point where they are? How can you schedule your workload to meet your demand if you do not have a handle on what you demand is? And lastly, how can you determine if the time and money you spent on improvements actually made a positive impact if you cannot measure the results?
THE SOLUTION
You need to map your processes and measure the actual time spent on each and every activity within that process. You need to record those times on your routings or travelers and within your MRP system. You need to monitor and verify those times against your estimates. And most importantly, you need to control and adjust those times on a continuous basis. Only then will you be able to estimate accurately, plan accurately, and ship on time. Only then will be able to determine where and what your real problems are. Only then will you be able to verify your improvements and justify those new expenses. Only then will you truly know your capabilities.
Monitoring labor accurately:
Implementing a labor reporting system:
Automating a system to track labor
USEFUL TOOLS
The following are a few useful indices:
LABOR PRODUCTIVITY MEASUREMENT: Based on routed standards
PERFORMANCE: Performance = (Earned Hours) / (Actual Hours on Standards)
Earned Hours = (Standard Hours / 100*) X (QTY Produced) [ * or other quantity dependent on your volume]
Actual Hours on Standards = only hours clocked on Direct Labor which have established standards. They can be measured or estimates.
Measured Standards = must have documentation to back up the numbers through actual time studies, YTD data, or standards data.
Estimates are based on:
Cost Standards: can be measured or estimates.
Utilization:
Utilization = (Hours on Direct Labor) / (Hours at Work)
Hours to Produce (1) Standard Hour:
This index reflects the total labor hours, direct and indirect, expended at a plant, measured against the hours earned on cost standards. It is a useful index in that it allows you to benchmark your percentage of labor hours against your billable hours.
EXAMPLE: YTD / Weekly department performance analysis:
DL = Hours on Direct Labor
EH = Cost Standard Earned Hours
IL = Hours on Indirect Labor
Direct Labor Hours to produce (1) Cost Standard Hour = DL/EH
Indirect Labor Hours to produce (1) Cost Standard Hour = IL/EH
Total Labor Hours to produce (1) Cost Standard Hour = (DL/EH) + (IL/EH)
TAKE CONTROL
Avoid falling victim to the standard excuse that you cannot afford the time necessary to track your labor. The only way you will ever create time to get the job done is to monitor and control your labor. So don’t put it off. Embrace it and start increasing your productivity, lowering your costs, and satisfying your customers. You must fully understand what your earned hours are and what portions of labor make up those hours since it is the earned hours that produce your revenues, not the number of hours your employees are at work! Understand your labor, take control of your production, and start growing your profits, not just your business.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Epicor Software Infor Visual, Microsoft Dynamics AX And Epicor 9 ERP Software
Infor Visual, Microsoft Dynamics AX and Epicor 9 ERP softwares come with all the options and functions necessary and helpful for manufacturing companies. Infor Visual, Epicor 9 and Dynamics AX also provide options and functions for distribution thus these ERP solutions can be utilized by manufacturing companies for managing their warehouse more efficiently and also as a solution for wholesale distribution companies.
Infor Visual comes with complete solutions for CRM providing facilities for quoting and estimating, custom pricing and commissions, sales forecasting and e business and web store front. Dynamics AX also provide CRM function where business relations with customers, vendors and leads are maintained and contacted. Epicor 9 too comes loaded with CRM solution for better work efficiency.
Infor Visual, Dynamics AX and Epicor 9 ERP software are more inclined towards manufacturing companies so there an option encompasses all the aspects of production planning, execution and manufacturing control functions. Infor Visual ERP solution provide options for MRP- materials requirement planning, advanced material planning, shop floor controls, quality management, BOM, production scheduling and lean manufacturing. Shop floor controls are available in extended core of Dynamics AX, it also provide options for master planning where purchase and production planning is done, inventory management and production where BOM is defined and every step of manufacturing is tracked down. Epicor 9 manufacturing module contains real time production management, rule based product configuration, product life cycle management, advanced planning and scheduling and support for lean manufacturing. Infor Visual, Dynamics AX and Epicor 9 ERP softwares provide complete solution for manufacturing and give necessary control to the management to keep a track of every step and avoid redundancy.
Distribution is another feature incorporated in these ERP softwares for better management of finished products, raw material, multi dimensional inventory and shipping and receiving. Infor Visual comes with radio frequency enabled warehouse system. Dynamics AX provide the features of supply chain management through accounts receivables, inventory management and accounts payable with warehouse facility. Epicor 9 has features like supply chain management, planning and scheduling, product data management and production management, its sales management module covers the requirement of manufacturing or wholesale distribution companies for pending orders and shipping and logistics details.
Infor Visual provides features of financials and cost accounting in back office module these features contain general ledger, accounts receivable and payable with vendor and cash management. Cost accounting module covers the feature for human resource, time and attendance. Microsoft Dynamics and Epicor 9 too have similar facilities for finance and accounts. Dynamics AX contains expense management and environmental management as separate options as enhanced features for cost accounting. Epicor 9 comes with modules like financial management and enterprise performance management for better and in depth view of organizational performance in terms of profit and loss. Infor Visual, Dynamics AX and Epicor 9 ERP softwares come with handy features for improving the functionality of organization in an economic way to reduce cost and increase profit margins. It allows better inventory management and prevents dead and immovable stocks which increase operational margins of manufacturing as well as wholesale distribution companies.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Manufacturing Resource Planning Wholesale Distribution Software Solutions
According to Rebecca Gill, vice-president of Technology Group International (TGI), "Companies involved in wholesale distribution know there is an overwhelming need to reduce operational costs and expenses to improve overall revenues. Cost savings can be located in many different areas and TGI's Enterprise family of products help to identify those areas, improve processing, thus reducing costs." Return on investment (ROI) can be quickly achieved simply by utilizing the system tools available when implementing TGI's wholesale distribution software. Reviewing operational statistics and proactively engaging in change management is instrumental in correcting areas of waste. Gill acknowledges her staff: "TGI's knowledgeable personnel helps wholesale distributors obtain business goals by guiding corporations through business reengineering and lead to a leaner, more cost effective, working environment. Wholesale distributors improve fill rates; shipping accuracy's and invoice accuracy's while reducing product return rates and obsolescence."TGI Supply Chain Management & Wholesale Distribution Software Solutions include:• Advanced Inventory Control & Transportation Management • Fully Integrated Customer Relationship Management • Category Management & Advanced Customer Price Sheets • Rebate & Promotional Management • UPC Code Creation and Storage • Vendor Managed Inventory (VMI) • On-line Vendor Catalog Review and Processing without Actual Product Entry • Product Specifications and Data Sheets Storage, Printing and On-line Review • Central and Local Purchasing • Available to Promise & Capable to Promise On-line Visibility • Full WMS Functionality • Public and Private Warehousing • EDI Enabled • Barcode, Data Collection, RF, & RFID Enabled • Full Financials and Accounting • Fully Integrated and Personalized Dashboards About Technology Group International, Ltd.Founded in 1990 and headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, Technology Group International is a proven technology leader delivering Tier 1 application software functionality at a price performance level that can be readily accepted by organizations of all sizes. Specializing in software solutions for small and mid-market manufacturing and distribution companies, TGI's integrated Enterprise Series software suite is a complete business process management solution. The product offering includes Enterprise Resources Planning (ERP), Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP), Supply Chain Management (SCM), Warehouse Management System (WMS), Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS), Decision Support System (DSS), Business Intelligence, Manufacturing Execution System (MES), and eCommerce. TGI implements, maintains, enhances, and supports its packaged distribution and manufacturing software solutions directly and via its channel partners.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Process Manufacturing Software ERP Software For Manufacturing Company
Manufacturing is defined as the transformation of raw materials into finished goods or product for sale by using machines and processing systems. In order to manage manufacturing processes, a software based production, purchasing, shipment planning and inventory control system called Manufacturing Requirements Planning (MRP), has been developed. From this system, Manufacturing Resource Planning (MRP II), a method for the effective planning of all resources like men, machine and materials of a manufacturing company, has been derived. And from MRP II, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) has evolved.
ERP integrate all the business functions into one database. It supports business organization needs and improves the business processes including strategic planning, management control and operational control. It also operates across functional departments and their particular activities. Cross functional activity is very important part of ERP. It reduces paper work and job completion time with full control.
ERP is available for manufacturing and non-manufacturing companies. Initially, ERP software is intentionally made for manufacturing industries. It is known as manufacturing ERP software. Combination of MRP and ERP gives more established device and application in these industrial sectors than ERP software. It has integrated workflow processes that are designed specifically to optimize the use of the manufacturer’s resources. It minimizes the total costs and administers resources, entire life cycle, from raw material acquisition, production planning, production, marketing, sales to finance.
Manufacturing ERP software is ideally suited for minor, mid-sized, make-to-order, engineer-to-order, made-to-inventory, discrete manufacturing, small and large manufacturing industries around the world. Manufacturing ERP can be purchased from all small niche market and major ERP vendors offering ERP software solutions that meet your requirements.
Getting right manufacturing ERP software for your manufacturing enterprise will help you optimize your all resources, carefully planning, decision through information based and prepare for unexpected hitches along the business cycle. It will also help you to manage your organization and all its departments effectively. It will reduce your expenditures and improve your manufacturing capacity.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Epicor Software Dynamics GP Partner CA, IL: Next Step If Great Plains Implementation Fails
Microsoft Dynamics GP Corporate ERP, formerly known also as Great Plains Dynamics, eEnterprise (please note that Great Plains Accounting for DOS, Windows and Mac is different legacy ERP application), is designed for mid-size businesses and it has plenty of functionality and the whole stack of technologies: Dexterity, MS SQL Server, MS Office Integration, SSRS, Integration Manager, eConnect, etc. Having said that - we would like you to expect certain level of commitment to implementation project from your management, including IT department. Also, sometimes you may be exposed to the situation when your Dynamics GP Partner is sort of introducing new Great Plains Consultant, or simply doesn't have sufficient expertise in your industry or project scale might be too challenging. In other words, combinations of factors, and if you are reading these lines, you probably are trying to understand how to recover your investment into Dynamics GP licenses and move on to the second opinion and Great Plains Implementation recovery. Let's try to analyze the most typical scenarios of Dynamics GP project failures and how to get out of there:
1. Failures scenarios. Probably the most often is the one, when you are forcing 100% data conversion to GP from your legacy Corporate ERP (Oracle Financials, Lawson, Epicor, QuickBooks, Accpac, MYOB, etc) - please, know that moving transactions to Dynamics GP Open and Historical tables: Sales Invoices, Purchase Orders, GL Transactions, Payroll, Customer Payments, etc., if you are not doing it via GP Integration Manager, but instead trying direct SQL insertion, is source of huge data validation and following corruption problems. Second scenario is when you are trying to customize GP screens and business logic too heavily, or use too many Dynamics GP ISV add-ons (they might conflict to each other if you toss too many into implementation). The third scenario is when you are trying to build too complex eConnect or Integration Manager integration and move transactions to GP in real time or in scheduled batch processing - here you are rather in the trap of your Dynamics GP Reseller learning curve, as IM and eConnect are extremely powerful, but they require Great Plains Partner commitment to the technologies. The fourth most typical case if when your Dynamics GP consultant is not too familiar with GP module (Manufacturing, Project Accounting, Field Services, Grant Management, Analytical Accounting, Multicurrency, etc), required for your industry. Next scenario is when you are doing old Great Plains Dynamics version upgrade and it fails due to such archaic GP add-ons as Intellisol APOP and Project Accounting - APOP has migration tool to Great Plains Purchase Order Processing module, however Intellisol Project Accounting should be considered to be redeployed on GP Project Accounting module, where object match requires discussions and decisions
2. The way out. We assume that you already tried to discuss the options with your local Great Plains Dynamics GP VAR, and now you should look for better expertise USA nationwide. You new provider could likely have satellite office in your state or business metro, but in our opinion this is not critical, as remote training, support is very simple via web sessions and phone conferences and if visit onsite is required - travel is reasonably cheap in the United States. If your problem is failed data conversion, feel free to get second opinion from the Dynamics GP Partner with GP Software Development Factory. If your problem is ecommerce, or barcode real time or batch mode integration, we are here to help you
3. Dynamics GP Implementation in International Environment. If you are multinational firm with offices overseas, please note that GP is localized officially for English Speaking countries, Quebec in French and Spanish Latin America (with some restrictions). If your subsidiary is located in Unicode compliant language country (China, Korea, Japan, Thailand, etc) - Great Plains Dexterity doesn't support Unicode at this time (and likely will never support). Plus local tax legislation compliance is very important, if you are in such region as Brazil, we do not really recommend you to force your Brazilian Portuguese speaking employees to implement GP, as Brazilian tax code is complex. Better approach is to deploy Corporate ERP coming from another brand name, SAP Business One for example, or stay with local ERP legacy application and try to consolidate it to your Corporate ERP Great Plains
4. How to get help? Please, feel free to call us: 1-866-528-0577, outside of USA: 1-630-961-5918 or email us help@albaspectrum.com We are very technical and real Dynamics GP Dexterity, SAP Business One SDK programming gurus. We have Great Plains Software Development Factory and could support unlimited Dynamics GP Customization and Programming needs. Plus we speak English, Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian, and not only as native speaking sales folks, but as real technical consultants. If you prefer skype: albaspectrum
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Business Issues Facing Discrete Manufacturers
The general perception is that the worst of the recent economic difficulties are behind us but concerns still remain about the recovery of some economies. This ongoing uncertainty in the macro environment means it has never been more important to understand the specific business issues and concerns in your industry. This article provides an overview of the issues and concerns in relation to discrete manufacturers and discusses some potential strategies and specifically reviews the role of IT and particularly, how well equipped with IT are manufacturers today to deliver improvements in operational excellence. The catalyst for this article is a recent report by IDC Manufacturing Insights sponsored by Infor and IBM.
IDC has recently undertaken the largest worldwide study of the SMB discrete manufacturing sector to discover the immediate concerns, the strategies used to address those concerns and the role of IT in those strategies. The scope of the research encompassed multiple discrete manufacturing industries including: Automotive, Metal Fabrication, Industrial Machinery as well as High-tech in eight countries. The research was responded to by over seven hundred CEOs, COOs and CFOs from regions including: Western Europe, U.S., Japan, Brazil and China.
Business concerns
The current situation is one of business transformation with more than 50% of the respondents indicating that operations are more complex because of consumer demands and the change from local to global economies. Not to mention supply chain complexity, compliance demands and quality demands. Interestingly, complexity appeared to have no boundaries in that it was on the increase irrespective of the size of company. Unsurprisingly, competition was in there, too.
At the business level, among the top four concerns over the next couple of years were: revenues, profitability, raw material costs and manufacturing costs. Driving the concern about revenue targets were whether the markets would return to pre-recession sales levels or if the current levels are the new baseline – sometimes known as the "new norm".
The depth and breadth of this Infor sponsored research shows some real insights into the differences in approach on a regional basis. For example, China is more concerned about demand volatility, demand management and raw materials costs than revenue targets.
Strategies
The top three strategies for discrete manufacturers were: customer retention, productivity improvements and reducing operational costs. However, differences occur here too. Europe and the U.S. are intending to adopt the three aforementioned "holding ground" strategies where as China, perhaps because of its expected GDP to be around 10% is free to target higher innovation.
Strategies need initiatives and just some highlighted in the report are: optimisation of internal assets, reducing supply chain costs and improved customer fulfillment.
Operational excellence
One revealing set of data in the Infor sponsored report are the comparisons of where companies believe they demonstrate excellence today and where they believe they need to pursue excellence over the coming two years. Customer fulfillment stands out as first today and the next two years for excellence and demand planning being last today and third over the coming two years. Demand forecasting is predicted to be an area of excellence.
Some companies by region are more focused on customers, such as UK and Benelux with Japan being more willing to be a technology leader. Germany and France will be focusing on operational excellence. Project bidding and project profitability are also specific areas where excellence is required.
Barriers to for achieving operational excellence
One of the barriers to achieving excellence, particularly for China, is ineffective IT. To deliver the right information to the fingertips of the right people so that they can adapt to change and use the right resources at the right time is crucial – so the role of IT, then, is to deliver the competitive edge. In fact, a differentiator for the western world is IT. To support this move towards a greater customer orientation the additional integration of Business Analytics (BI), budgeting & forecasting and Customer Relationship (CRM) is inevitable.
Summary
Many companies are looking to protect existing customers rather than look to new markets or new clients. Significant changes in costs are always a priority with uncertainty of achieving revenue targets and adapting to the new norms being prevalent.
Where accounting, some customer ordering and supplier ordering would be the typical use of IT; today, there is much more to it. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) can and will be the orchestrator of these existing and newer applications to deliver the competitive edge.
Investments in IT are seen as a key contributor for benefits. Customers demand more value from their IT and faster deployment as well as different ways to use and pay for it. Specifically to address one finding of the Infor sponsored IDC report that complexity will increase over time and that technology acquired today must be adaptable: Infor solutions are adaptable.
This article barely scrapes the surface of the essential information available in the IDC report so I urge you to visit www.erpformanufacturers.co.uk to download the first in a series of reports developed from the largest worldwide study of the SMB discrete manufacturing sector.
That is why Infor Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Software will help you to optimisation of internal assets, reducing supply chain costs and improved customer fulfillment. For more information about Infor visit www.infor.co.uk.