How Has Manufacturing Changed in the last 10 Years

Over the past ten years, the manufacturing industry has been completely upgraded in their processes, standards and goals. The manufacturing plant has entirely overhauled and will continue to evolve thanks to huge advances in technology. The manufacturing industry is seeing huge shifts in increased automation in the factory and throughout the entirety of the manufacturing business. 

In order for a manufacturing business to be successful today, they must invest in an ERP (Enterprise-Resource Planning) System. An effective ERP System is a company database with diverse functions for all business units, particularly the manufacturing plant. It allows the user to track a finished product throughout all phases of the manufacturing process, see the raw materials in the product, the packaging, all via lot number, etc. For finance, it allows the user to see all account payable and receivables, all product costs, BOMs (Bill of Materials) for the products.

ERP systems can be costly depending on the company used, and the features of the program needed. However, for a manufacturing business to survive the next ten years it is imperative they invest in an ERP system. With the automation of processes, the ERP system streamlines the manufacturing process. It connects to all machinery in the plant for maintenance to be preventative, not reactive. Preventative maintenance on plant machinery decreases downtime of the machine, decreases product waste, therefore increasing revenue.

Over the next ten years, if a manufacturing business does not have an ERP system, you could expect to see them out of business, or consistently not hitting the company goals and not growing as a business.