Is Your Legacy ERP System Lacking MES Functionality? IQMS Can Help.

While the struggling economy has touched us all, it has especially affected the manufacturing industry. Difficult economic conditions have forced many consolidations through mergers and acquisitions, and while new partnerships are a common occurrence in the world today, there are some negatives that accompany the consolidation process.

For example, when companies merge or are acquired, they may be required to use a legacy ERP system that may not be manufacturing-specific, which creates additional challenges for the management team. But what if you discovered an option to gain the benefits of manufacturing-specific software, while still using your corporate ERP system? Would you think it was too good to be true?

Benefits of Integrating your Legacy ERP with an MES Solution

IQMS understands this problem that manufacturers face and has developed a solution. IQMS now offers a stand-alone Manufacturing Execution System (MES) package for companies with corporate mandated ERP systems that do not offer MES functionality. As the concept of a stand-alone MES solution is fairly new to the manufacturing industry, many people have different ideas of what it means:

First, a MES is not a full ERP system; A MES is designed to bring better shop floor awareness to the front office. A good MES packages focuses on the aspects that you consider most important to your manufacturing processes, such as how your work centers are running on the floor, how many parts are being produced and the quality of parts being manufactured. An MES solution takes the guesswork out of your shop floor.

Another significant benefit that an MES solution offers is the ability to view all of your production and process data and information in real time. That means no more waiting around until the end of a shift to see how many good parts have been made and estimating how your equipment performed on a job or noticing that a process was out of specification hours after it first went out. The MES application will give you real-time information and data analysis, allowing you to make proactive adjustments that ensure your manufacturing operations produce higher quality parts at optimum production levels.

Those benefits are just tip of the MES iceberg. An MES program such as IQMS’ allows companies the ability to immediately view how their equipment is performing on an individual work center basis or larger plant view. IQMS ensures this functionality of instantaneously capturing your information by tying directly to the machine’s controller, PLC or relays on the plant floor. Additionally, to ensure a successful integration with your plant floor, IQMS has teams ready to help you integrate your equipment to the MES application with no third party software.

At some point in this blog, you may have thought, “Is a system like this worth the money?” The answer is yes! After installing an MES solution, manufacturers have seen a return on investment (ROI) almost instantly due in large part to the real-time data that is delivered to them, allowing them to proactively make the best decisions possible with the most accurate information.

Stop thinking: “If my current ERP system could only give me more shop floor information, it would help me make the correct decisions!” Consider integrating a stand-alone MES solution, such as IQMS’ MES package, and take the guesswork out of the management of your shop floor. It is time to give your legacy ERP system a boost with an industry-specific MES application by IQMS.