Manufacturing software can be broken down into many types that are designed for manufacturing operations and businesses. Some of these include ERP software, computerized maintenance management software, quality control and inspection software, digital content management and automation software, enterprise resource planning systems, and digital workflow solutions.
Manufacturing software provides automation of various manufacturing processes and shop floor management. It helps in managing production operations and facilitates a company’s decision-making ability.
Here are the most important manufacturing software features.
So, this is a list of manufacturing software features from the Small Business User perspective.
Therefore, every module is exploded to the technical feature level.
As a result, you could easily understand the logic underneath.
Basically, features of manufacturing software could be easily grouped around these terms:
- Robust Inventory
- Management MRP (Manufacturing Resource Planning)
- Shop Floor Management / Shop Floor Control
- Good integration
- The mobile app
- Business Reporting (BI)
Robust Inventory Management
Generally, the heart of the manufacturing software system is based not only on efficiency but also on precise inventory management.
Therefore, Inventory management should be both robust and with high granularity.
Consequently, using this method you can guarantee great precision and future scalability.
So, here are some of the basic features of manufacturing software:
- Serials#, Lot#, SKU’s #, Part#.
- Track barcodes and enable label printing.
- Position tracking by warehouses, shelves.
- Current stock levels.
- Expiration dates.
MRP (Manufacturing Resource Planning)
To clarify, as a planning module, the MRP system allows your products to be scheduled and forecasted.
So, this manufacturing software feature produces a complete material plan. So, the Material plan consists of a list of all parts and items necessary to produce the finished products.
In other words, a material plan is used to determine the quantities and delivery schedules of needed components.
- Bill of materials
- Expected dates
- Material availability
- Book/reserve
- Reorder
- Backorder
- Service attached
- Dropship materials
- Contracting
Shop Floor Management / Shop Floor Control
Above all, this is a real-time database of shop floor activity including new work, current work–in–progress and completions.
For instance, as work moves through the plant and operations are completed, you receive instant feedback so you can respond effectively.
So, here is the list of time capture features:
- Time capture
- Material capture
- Worker capture
- Machine capture
- Scrap capture
- Location
Order management
Order management involves multiple steps that have to be processed for efficient order fulfillment.
Therefore, it is one of the critical features of manufacturing software.
So, Order management is required to speed up all phases of order fulfillment.
Most importantly it provides a quick solution to customers for order related queries.
In other words, Order management is designed to take care of the whole process of order fulfillment.
In short, here is the list of features:
- Source
- Availability
- Backordering (Manufacturing, Dropsiping, Contracting, Procurement)
- Multi-currency
- Omni-channel support
- Presales operations (easy quoting, estimates)
- Deadline
- Expected date
Business Reporting (BI) with a complete overview of your operations.
Straightaway, get a 360-degree overview of your manufacturing business.
In other words, this is like a crystal ball in manufacturing software features.
So, Good reporting should contain all of the basic methods to manipulate large datasets, like:
- Export to CSV, excel
- Data Drilling
- Grouping
- Sorting
- Filtering
- Charting
Good integration
Generally, this is another very important feature or module that is enabling great flexibility.
Therefore, good integration expands the limits of the system.
So, here are some of the most important integrations that you should expect or look for:
- Accounting e.g QuickBooks Online, Xero.
- Shipping supporting FedEx, UPS, USPS, etc.
- eCommerce
- Cloud drives like Google Drive or Microsoft one drive, Dropbox, etc
- Payment gateways like stripe, square, etc.
The mobile app that supports all modules
and enables you to segment the data entry process and data analysis.
Capturing data is extending manufacturing software features,
Most importantly, the MRP system function is to capture data at the moment when data is generated.
This is the best way to ensure system stability and precision.
Examples of Mobile app applications:
- The sales team in the filed
- Installation
- Time capturing (Stopwatch)
- Global positioning
Business Reporting
Business reporting, or BI, provides a complete overview of what’s happening in your business. This feature is essentially where all of the figures of your company come together to form up to date reports that you can share with the other management figures. This capability is also advantageous when it comes to planning for the future; you can look back at reports from the past to determine what trends to expect for an upcoming season, or you can plan a more accurate budget based on the spending within each department.
Your manufacturing software will likely contain a wide range of methods you can use to manipulate and analyse big sets of data, including, data drilling, grouping and sorting, charting, and filing. You should also have the ability to export your numbers to Excel or CSV for easy sharing.
Superior Integration
While manufacturing ERP is an incredible tool with tons of capabilities, it’s not the only tool you’ll be using in your business. That’s why your software should be able to integrate seamlessly with the other programs you’re using within your company. Good integration allows your business to stay flexible and ensure that all programs work together efficiently.
You’ll definitely want a manufacturing software that integrates with your accounting software, and many ERPs will connect with big names like Quickbooks and Xero. You can also look for integration with eCommerce platforms, Cloud drives like Dropbox or Google Drive, and payment options like Square and Stripe.
Shop Floor Control
Your shop floor is where all the major work is done in terms of actually getting your product built, so it’s vital that you know what’s going on at all times. Your manufacturing software should give you superior shop floor management so you can always see who and what is on your shop floor. You can even receive feedback to let you know how fast products are being made or if you’re running out of a certain element and need to reorder.
Your shop floor control feature should be able to show you what’s going on at any time you request. There should also be capabilities for scrap capture, machine capture, worker capture, and material capture. In general, you should be able to track anything or anyone that’s on your shop floor at a given time.
Management MRP
Management MRP, or Manufacturing Resource Planning, helps you plan out exactly what parts and pieces of equipment are needed to make your products. You can use this feature to determine what parts might need to be reordered, track the status of your orders, schedule deliveries, and more.
Some of the capabilities of your management MRP might include dropship materials, backorder and reorder, material availability, bill of materials, and more. Essentially, you’ll be able to track every element you need to make your product and ensure that you’re never running out of parts unexpectedly. Having all of this vital information in one place can save you tons of stress and hassle and will ensure your company continues to run like a well-oiled machine.
Expansive Inventory
Perhaps the most important feature of your manufacturing software is the ability to handle your expansive inventory. Every manufacturing business has a ton of moving parts, but if you’re not able to track them all, you’ll never be able to scale your company the way you want to. Inventory management is one of the most important elements of your business in general, and by adopting a manufacturing ERP that has this capability built-in, you reduce the risk of error and save tons of time when compared to tracking your inventory manually.
Your manufacturing ERP should be able to track an abundance of serial numbers, SKU’s, and part numbers, as well as track their barcodes and print labels. You should have position tracking by warehouse and by shelf, so no part or product ever goes unaccounted for. The best manufacturing ERP allows you to see current stock levels at a glance, as well as expiration dates so you always know when something needs to be reordered or replaced.
How to Choose the Ideal Solution
Picking the appropriate solution for your company is not a walk in the park. There are so many vendors out there that you’ll quickly get overwhelmed by every solution they offer you. If you follow SelectHub’s nine-step Lean Selection approach, you’ll quickly weed out the ideal programs that meet your business needs.
EmailFacebookLinkedInTwitterPrintShare
- Establish: Understand why you need a new solution and identify the errors in your current practices.
- Collaborate: Set up a selection committee with a project manager, internal and external stakeholders, department heads and more to get a clearer picture of what you’re looking for in a new solution.
- Define: Set the requirements and features list for your program with insights from your selection team during the previous step.
- Distribute: Review how potential vendors align with your requirements.
- Justify: Take time to consider whether you need a new solution, you’re looking for add-ons, or you’re willing to stick to your current solution/protocols.
- Prove: Ask vendors to show you how they perform your requirements with demos, proofs-of-concept (POCs) or use cases if you choose to invest in a new platform or buy add-on accessories to your current system.
- Rank: Rank potential vendors according to their demo and requirement scores and their total cost of ownership (TCO).
- Negotiate: Sit down with your top vendor to review and negotiate terms. If you require a legal perspective or something seems awry in the conditions, take the contract to a lawyer or law firm for review. If you’re satisfied with the vendor, you’re ready to sign the contract. If you’re not interested, repeat this step with the other vendors within your ranks from step 7.
- Sign: Proceed with signing the terms and conditions and set up a solid implementation plan.
Conclusion
Manufacturing software is an essential tool for maintaining order and providing critical information about the operation of a business. It can provide financial reports, schedules and much more. While all of these features might look complicated, making use of manufacturing software to simplify your job is actually quite easy.