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Big Data and ERP for Manufacturing

Summary

Applying big data and ERP manufacturing processes can unlock major productivity and financial gains by providing organizations with accurate, timely data. Consider two hypothetical use cases to see how big data can work in action:

Big data for process optimization: Consider a manufacturer producing custom goods. Integrating data from customer orders, warehouse inventories and production lines uses structured data to optimize processes. This ensures that the right materials get where they need to be in a timely fashion. Big data and ERP for manufacturing can take this functionality to another level by collecting historic data from years' worth of inventory manifests, supply chain reports, sales orders and invoices and figure out underlying trends in that information. For example, you can identify key metrics like the average number of projects during different times of year - making it easier to schedule maintenance for periods that are less busy than others.

 

The right data can fuel huge gains in the manufacturing sector.

This is just a simple use case. You can dig deeper too, such as identifying how often an initial customer request coming through sales changes by the time an item is produced. With visibility into this data, you can identify when in the production cycles customers are most likely to adjust their order, making it easier to build workflows to allow for necessary flexibility. Big data can unlock vital insights into overarching operational trends that let you build more precise business processes.

Big data and ERP for manufacturing for long-term planning: Imagine that same custom manufacturer wants to get a better idea of how its products are actually used. It can track customers on social media sites and similar locations to capture images, videos, blog posts and other content that shows their products in action. Over time, insights into these use cases can help a manufacturer identify potential customer needs by getting a clearer idea of how they are using custom goods. This can inform production strategies moving forward, including making tactical upgrades to production capabilities based on usage trends.

You don't need to use big data for every possible function, but being intentional about applying big data analytics principles in strategic ways can help you derive value from information in a way that makes as much sense as possible for your business.

 

New data types central to big data - Big Data and ERP for Manufacturing

Businesses have been gathering surveys, financial reports and other forms of structured data for decades. This information can useful for many types of decisions, but it only paints a partial picture. Deeper analysis of what customers think of an organization, how employees work and how efficiently equipment operates can be gleaned from richer data sets. Big data delves into these sorts of information repositories. A few types of information taking hold in big data strategies include:

IoT data: Data gathered by Internet of Things technologies - like equipment monitoring devices and sensors - is an extremely popular tool in big data strategies. In manufacturing, for example, you can get real-time insights into how often different pieces of equipment are used, allowing you to optimize your asset management strategies.

Social content: Businesses can use data-mining tools to identify any time somebody mentions them on a social media site, forum or similar Web channel. This lets them not only respond directly to honest customer feedback, but also incorporate that information into their strategic planning moving forward. Take in consideration to use Big Data and ERP for Manufacturing.

Mobile data: Text messages, location data and other information types created by or on smartphones and tablets can provide vital insights for businesses. Similar to IoT data, these information sets are created in a wide range of formats and can be applied to diverse business practices.

These new data sets are only the tip of the iceberg. Unstructured data includes any type of information that doesn't naturally fit into a field on a form. As analytics tools become more capable of identifying keywords and trends within these data sets, companies are left with new opportunities to use data to create operational value. That is, ultimately, what big data is about - informing everyday and strategic business decisions through access to the best information possible, regardless of whether it comes from a structured or unstructured source.

Taking full advantage of big data

Big data presents challenges in terms of the amount of data organizations are dealing with and the need to make that information actionable. Solutions like business intelligence help here by identifying underlying trends in disparate data sets. At the same time, ERP software can empower companies to share data across business lines as users create it, letting different parties take advantage of that information.Take in consideration to use Big Data and ERP for Manufacturing.

Big data, as its name states, is big. You can use it for a huge range of purposes. Don't let its vastness get overwhelming. You don't need to use big data for every possible function, but being intentional about applying big data analytics principles in strategic ways can help you derive value from information in a way that makes as much sense as possible for your business. For manufacturers, this often means using data sets to gain a deeper understanding of everyday work practices to improve asset management, personnel utilization and production workflows. Take in consideration to use Big Data and ERP for Manufacturing.

If you're interested in big data you shoud check out our blog, Context holds the key to putting big data into action. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact an abas representative today.

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