How to Start Designing Your Digital Factory
When SMBs align manufacturing strategy with technology, they can quickly evolve from disrupted to disruptor.
By Exceptional Software Solutions, LLC.
The future belongs to digital factories.
The factory of the future isn’t just smart; it’s digital. In it, everyone from the shop floor and plant managers to sales teams and the CIO work together to drive out waste, eliminate downtime and capture data to illuminate machine utilization — every cut of every blade or scan of a barcode — to carefully execute the operation’s delicate dance.
What’s surprising (and alarming) is that far too many SMBs aren’t embracing the digital opportunities already right at their finger tips. For example, Wiikibon.org found that 85% of entrepreneurs see a future in mobility yet 50% haven’t invested in resources to make it happen. Oracle Global Research found that firms lose up to 20% of revenue due to poor customer experiences which digital technologies can address.
The research indicates that it’s time for SMBs to cozy up to digital so they can design smarter factories and facilities. But, the real takeaway from the research is what’s driving lack of digital adoption. If you think it’s technology, you’d be wrong. Technology isn’t the culprit. It’s alignment; aligning the business and its processes to use technology to its greatest good and most competitive advantage. So now that we know the problem, let’s fix it!
Don’t create a digital strategy. (Plus, that’s marketing’s job anyway!)
Create a manufacturing strategy that’s informed and enabled by digital technologies. How do you that? Start with the end in mind. Gather a team and cast a new vision for facility — a digital factory vision.
Doing so doesn’t have to be hard. Pull together a cross representative team of the best and brightest already inside the walls of your facility. It’s also a good idea to draft an expert in the field to infuse the conversation with innovative ideas that your team hasn’t considered.Then have a conversation.
Start with a few of these questions:
· How are you capturing the data your machines are trying to communicate? (With this information you could unlock a treasure trove of incredibly valuable data to grow and expand your business.)
· What does your quoting process look like? Can you track and follow up to a win or a loss? (Having predictability and reliability in the revenue forecast is critical. With a better line of sight into the quote process, you’ll be able to eliminate manual follow-up and add automatic communications to better influence cycle times.)
· Are you promising delivery dates — and meeting them? (This will shed light on process improvements. You’ll quickly be able to see where breakdowns are and how workflows can help you hit your on time goals.)
· Who’s spending more time on paperwork than making parts and shipping finished products? What’s the hourly cost of the employee(s) involved? (This will help you quickly uncover a list of tasks to automate. You’ll also see how much not automating processes is really costing you.)
Select an ERP solution (and a support team) fit for today’s business and tomorrow’s growth.
If you’re struggling to answer questions — such as what is the cost of labor and materials for a particular product or where an order is in the production line you’re not at all alone. The sheer speed and volume of transactions demand increasingly time-consuming research via email, voice mail, or walking to the shop floor. And, according to the Aberdeen Group, 97% of leading manufacturers are taking advantage of ERP solutions digitize their operations to over these issues and more.
Macola 10 is an ERP and business software that manufacturers and distributors use to automate, manage and grow their businesses. The software empowers companies to take control of cost and complexity at every critical stage from design through delivery and see all facets of their business from a single application.
But that’s not the only solution you might consider. Exact Globe is also a powerful ERP that is a fantastic choice for SMBs who have very specific ERP needs. Firms looking for an ERP with robust financial capabilities, that operate internationally using multiple currencies and/or who produce custom products are good candidates for Exact Globe.
Employ automation to help your team become an army.
No matter the size of your business, automation can allow it to do more at your current headcount. That’s because automation helps the business run the business. Besides reducing cost, saving time, and gaining critical insight. Automation can add increased capability, capacity and real-time communication to your business, making it finally possible for you to focus on what your company does best — make and distribute great products.
Think about it. Your customers already use auto-debit to pay bills, subscription-based delivery services like BlueApron and Amazon Prime to free up time grocery shopping and in the kitchen, and administrative services like Calendly to make meeting scheduling a breeze. These are awesome tasks that have been automated. Tt’s your turn to automate frustrating, mundane and manual processes in your operation. Both Macola 10 and Exact Globe help organizations stop the manual madness.
Challenge your team to automate the top 10 most frustrating processes in your facility.
Don’t forget the final yard — after sale support and customer care.
You’ve already captured your customer’s attention with your winning products, now put that good will to great use by ensuring great customer support and after-sale care.
Once the product is delivered on-time and free of any defects, the job isn’t done. Support and aftercare service is where you retain customer loyalty, and have the opportunity to capture the golden goose of business — referrals.
According to Business News Daily, customers are often impressed when they observe an organization using new technology, as they can see the changes in response times, customer service and sales support. And we all know what happier customers mean — more orders and growth. (Cha-ching!)
Doing it right — in today’s attention scare economy — means having a great system in place. Exact Synergy CRM inside Macola 10 delivers savvy service to keep customer smiling. With Exact Synergy CRM your firm can begin harnessing data to create a 360-degree overview of each customer and an amazing experience for all. Plus using the CRM features smartly, your brand, regardless of its size, can present itself with the same professionalism and polish as the big brands.
Barriers to Digital Entry Be Gone
Adopting advanced tech in a factory setting used to be like climbing Mt. Everest. That also means a host of excuses to not doing so are gone because the technology is far more accessible today than ever before. Products like Macola 10 and Exact Globe, along with companion solutions, are here to make the journey less taxing. Add to that phenomenal service from great software and business consulting experts, and firms are within striking distance of creating digital factories to ensure the future growth of their businesses.
No matter how unique or intricate your company’s ERP processes or desired workflows are, Exceptional Software Solutions LLC’s team of professionals are here to guide you every step of the way. With some of the world’s leading Exact Macola and Synergy experts on our team, we love to create solutions for your ERP technology problems. Learn more about us from our customers.
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Copyright 2017 Exceptional Software Solutions, LLC.
