Success in the manufacturing industry requires producing the right products, in the right quantities, at the right time, with good quality, and at a price the customer is willing to pay. The flexibility to respond to compliance standards and the ever-changing needs of customers, such as providing real-time visibility into global operations, is also imperative for success. Meeting these demands requires the ability to make quick decisions based on accurate data.
Microsoft Dynamics ERP and CRM solutions work like and with familiar Microsoft software. They automate and improve financial, customer relationship, and supply-chain management.
Integrate collaboration and communication
Deliver a single, real-time view of data from multiple facilities and departments
Synchronize communication between engineering, manufacturing, and subcontractors
Optimize planning to minimize inventory while meeting customer requirements
Share information within your systems through the Web
Efficiently manage projects
Provide an accurate overview of project status
Track activities and resources at many levels of detail
Leverage knowledge and content from existing or prior projects
Deliver superior customer service
Gain a comprehensive view of customer information
Eliminate isolated silos of information
Create customer self-service opportunities
Coordinate multichannel communications with customers
Collaborate with customers on new product designs
Estimate and quote accurately
Provide accurate quotations based on a real-time view into operations
Align customer requirements with your capabilities
Record customer requirements accurately
Provide flexible production planning
Use data from the entire supply chain to respond effectively to changes and problems
Access data through familiar desktop tools
Support various manufacturing modes, such as engineer-to-order, make-to-order, make-to-stock, and mixed/hybrid
Lean manufacturing
Maintaining efficient operations in today's manufacturing environment isn’t easy, but putting into practice the principles of lean manufacturing can further hone your organization’s competitive edge. Typical manufacturing plants have multiple vendors, multiple interfaces, complex information flows, and asynchronous processing, all of which can lead to limited visibility into orders, materials, and production. To achieve peak performance, manufacturers must systematically identify and eliminate plant floor inefficiencies.
This lean manufacturing strategy requires a four-step cycle of continuous improvement:
Value-stream-mapping documents each step in the process, its inputs and outputs, across the entire supply chain.
Analysis and modeling identify tasks that could be simplified or cut altogether.
Implementation and continuous improvement actualize change on the plant floor.
Management and reporting evaluates the results and begins the cycle again.
Learn more about lean manufacturing functionality in Microsoft Dynamics ERP.