Food Manufacturers - Essential Questions When Choosing an ERP Provider

Posted by Mark Ellis on Tue, Jan 10, 2017

For a food or drink manufacturer finding the best ERP software and the best provider is a major strategic project, so do your research by asking these tough questions.

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The food and drink marketplace is unfortunately mostly offering ERP solutions that originated for other industries, so your company must research six crucial areas to identify the best software - and the best provider - for your exact needs. Your chosen ERP provider must be able to guarantee:

1: Food sector-specific expertise backed by a clear track record of success in the UK.

2: Deep understanding of where your sector is heading - not just where it is today.

3: Solutions which are tested and proven to integrate each element of your food operation.

4: Flexibility for future changes to your target market and your product portfolio.

5: Certainty that your solution will meet at least 95% of your needs 'out of the box'.

6: The ability and commitment to become your company's long-term strategic partner within the food industry.

Identifying the correct ERP solution will be a major influence on how your business performs for years to come, so you need credible answers on each and every issue.

1: Sector-specific expertise with a clear track record of success in your country.

ERP solutions are used by manufacturers in all sectors beyond food, so it's tempting for a provider to focus on total customer numbers when attempting to demonstrate expertise.

However, you need a partner with significant expertise in devising and delivering solutions both for the UK food and drink industry and for companies of your size.

It's important to establish each provider's credentials first-hand, so you need visibility at a very early stage of their food and drink customers and clarity that those customers are actually in the UK. ERP resellers may offer third-hand case studies however these aren’t evidence of the reseller’s own solution or team being a proven choice.

2: Deep understanding of where your sector is heading - not just where it is today.

The right provider will be able to demonstrate an intimate knowledge of your sector, of the challenges you face and of the direction in which your industry is likely to travel.

You must be confident that the provider you select is capable of continually fine-tuning and upgrading its software, so your system can dovetail seamlessly into the practices and processes of tomorrow.

Weigh up how much of your provider’s customer base is in the food and drink sector and how much focus it has on the sector. Does it have a deep understanding of your needs already, or are you providing the guidance? How seriously is it committed to keeping its solution up-to-date off its own back?

3: Solutions which are tested and proven to integrate each element of your food operations.

If much of the food sector capabilities you’re being promised are being developed for the first time for you, the provider may claim to be putting you at the ‘cutting-edge’. Don’t fall for it: don't let your company be used as a test-bed for a ‘big bang’ experiment.

You need a system which is already in use by food industry peers and proven to be to the satisfaction of its users. The system must operate with demonstrable integrity, supporting a predictable modular implementation.

A quick test for the food sector is to ask to what extent the ERP system readily extends onto the factory floor, e.g. for weighing controls, or into the technical department for recipe management.

This can expose if your ‘food ERP’ package is not much more than a generic back-office system. This is a warning that the system is a long way off ever integrating what truly happens with your recipes as they’re made on your factory floor.

4: Flexibility for future changes to your target customers and your product portfolio.

Few sectors move at the sheer pace of food and drink, where TV chefs or social media campaigns, regulators and politicians can impact the industry overnight, and consumers can suddenly become fickle even to long-established brands and products.

If a customer requests the rapid development of a new recipe formulation, a different source for raw materials, or even a type of product, you need a system with built-in flexibility to manage this rapidly.

It's crucial that the processes which drive your recipe management and new product development, or your control of allergens and production traceability, are truly part of your ERP system. If your technical department or production processes do not have integrated support and automation within your ERP software, you are leaving gaps that will continue to inject mistakes, delays and risks.

5: Certainty that your solution will meet at least 95% of your needs 'out of the box'.

Your ideal food manufacturing and supply chain ERP system should offer many functions you don’t need yet, available as modules to be added as your needs expand.

For your current needs, 95% of the capabilities you require should be in use already by peers in the UK food industry. The remaining 5% will represent additions that you require to the system that are largely unique to you, or will be fast-tracking elements of the product’s roadmap into development to meet your project’s needs.

If you are not being offered a 95% fit by the ERP provider, with a go-to range of modules available to expand your capabilities in the future, then you are paying for – and injecting risks – with a lot of bespoke development.

In fact food manufacturers and drink makers are often offered generic ERP systems which will need substantial modifications, and multiple third-party add-ons, to offer a complete solution.

So if the core product being offered is in itself not ready for the needs of the food industry, does that make it the best choice? Regardless of whether it is a big brand name or favoured in other sectors, is it meant for your food business? Or will it sap growth by requiring constant manipulation and investment to work as you wish?

6: The ability and commitment to become your company's long-term strategic partner within the food industry.

Identifying the right provider isn't all about technology, it's equally important to work with people who add value to your business through innovative suggestions and guidance.

Their experience with other food and drink manufacturers, and their wider industry knowledge will both be important as your relationship evolves in the months and years ahead.

However, many providers employ consultants or freelancers, so you need guarantees that the specialists installing your system will be available whenever you might need them.

Takeaways:

  • Always talk to other food sector customers when you begin vetting an ERP provider.

  • The right ERP system for a food manufacturer should offer 95% of the desired functionality 'out of the box'.

  • Check that every potential provider has a deep understanding and commitment to the food industry.

  • Never consider installing a system which isn't fully tried and tested in the food market.


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Topics: Discrete Manufacturing Systems