Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Explained for Equipment Manufacturers

Businesses throw around acronyms all the time, with the assumption that people know and understand them. Sometimes an acronym is so overused that the person saying it doesn’t even understand it! ERP is a great example. It gets spoken a lot, but have you ever tried to explain it to your kids? Have you ever tried to explain it to yourself?

What is ERP?

At its core, Enterprise Resource Planning is technology for your business.

It’s a digital platform that companies use to manage various parts of their business. The point of ERP is to make businesses better by:

1. Maximizing efficiency. ERP provides information anywhere there’s Internet access. It stores data so that at any time, different teams can analyze it and make adjustments. And most importantly, it automates and systematizes many important functions of the business. All of this allows companies to do more informed work in less time.
2. Getting essential things in one place. ERP not only manages multiple tools across all aspects of your business, it connects them seamlessly. It’s the flow between all business functions. For example, ERP can help with the following:
   • Tracking of Supplies and raw materials
   • Inventory management
   • Warehouse management
   • Financials, accounting, and payroll
   • Customer relationship management
   • Vendors
   • Supply chain
   • Point of sale
   • Purchase orders

Think of ERP like a DJ at a dance club. Music sets the tone for the entire place, and he or she controls it.

• Some people dance. Some don’t.
• Some people drink. Some don’t.
• Some people are with a big group. Some are there solo.

But everybody listens to the music. It’s everywhere!

ERP For Equipment Manufacturers

When it comes to ERP, different industries obviously have different needs. For example, automation and systematization looks different for restaurants than it does for schools. The same is true for equipment and machine manufacturers and distributors—they have specific technology needs. That’s where Sikich comes in.

Sikich customizes ERP for equipment and machine manufacturers and distributors.

It’s called HEADSTART. It’s a working model of Microsoft Dynamics 365 that’s preconfigured right out of the box! Sikich has invested thousands of hours to create a working model that is tailored for this industry.

Pre-configured Solution

Think about the power of pre-configuration. Have you ever set parental controls on your child’s device? The parameters are pre-configured. You can do things like limit screen time and set content and privacy restrictions with the click of a button. You can easily customize the restrictions to match your priorities as a parent. That’s the power of pre-configuration, and that’s what HEADSTART does for equipment and machine manufacturers and distributors.

In the past, business applications like ERP could take years to deploy, disrupting team productivity and business operations. And then, systems might only last 10 to 15 years or more, with their complexity increasing because of things like add-ons, modifications, and additional systems that were supported by disconnected databases. The cost of maintaining and upgrading was high.

Agile Solution

HEADSTART, on the other hand, is agile. It evolves and keeps pace as clients’ needs change and software updates, saving you time and money.

The philosophy of HEADSTART is that the faster you can get your hands on the system, the faster you can make it work for you. And the sooner you can achieve results such as:

• Lower implementation cost.
• Quicker comprehension and application.
• Higher functionality and flexibility.
• More consistent, reliable, repeatable, and predictable success.
• Happier clients and working teams.

Let the power of pre-configuration and HEADSTART work for your equipment manufacturer business. Contact our experts today to see what HEADSTART can do for your ERP implementation.