Future-Proof Your Manufacturing Business with NetSuite

The manufacturing industry is at the cusp of a major change that can be termed as Industry 4.0.

The manufacturing industry is undergoing yet another major change that has been coined as Industry 4.0. This term refers to the fourth industrial revolution and refers to the integration of digital technologies in manufacturing, allowing systems to communicate with each other and make decisions without human involvement. Industry 4.0 is changing the way we do business, it’s changing how we manufacture, and it’s changing how we think about manufacturing.

How NetSuite is redefining manufacturing industry trends and transforming manufacturers in the process.

NetSuite is redefining manufacturing industry trends and transforming manufacturers in the process. With the arrival of Industry 4.0, savvy manufacturers are integrating their systems for real-time data flow between all departments and locations. With NetSuite’s enterprise business software being cloud-based and inclusive of all business departments and units, it natively allows for the integration capabilities and visibility required to thrive in Industry 4.0.

NetSuite’s cloud ERP solution has also seen a surge in demand from companies looking for ways to streamline their business processes and travel light with their IT infrastructure. NetSuite’s cloud ERP solution gives businesses access to best-in-class applications on an easy-to-use platform at any time or place, which simplifies data management while reducing costs associated with traditional software licenses and IT expenses.

Key benefits of adopting NetSuite for your manufacturing ERP include:

Flexible Capacity

NetSuite’s flexible manufacturing solution helps you forecast demand, optimize manufacturing resources and manage the production process. The ERP’s capacity planning capabilities help you to plan production and create accurate inventory forecasts. You can even create rule-based alerts that trigger additional actions based on your data. These actions could include sending an email to a supplier or saving the alert in a work queue for review by another team member.

With its capacity management solution, you can analyze current and historical data about each machine or resource so that you can make informed decisions about when it makes sense to reorder parts, hire new employees, undergo maintenance or purchase equipment upgrades.

Visibility

Another reason why NetSuite is considered the best ERP for manufacturing is its ability to provide you with a single view of your business, allowing you to monitor performance and make better decisions With cross-departmental data being updated in real-time, team members have the information they need when they need it, whether they are on the factory floor or in the back office.

You’ll be able to predict future trends and plan for growth by identifying areas of improvement which might have been overlooked with legacy systems. You’ll gain insight into all aspects of your business from financials to operations to customer relationship management. This allows you to make informed decisions about where you need to focus your energies in order to meet the needs of today’s competitive market while maintaining profitability.

Efficiency

Streamlining and automating your business processes is a key way to achieve optimal efficiency. NetSuite’s manufacturing ERP solution helps you do this by automating core activities such as:

• Processes such as personnel management, purchasing and materials management, inventory control and warehouse management.
• Enforcing business rules across multiple areas of the business (for example, product costing models).
• Key reports based on consolidation that allow for better decision-making

ScaleNorth’s NetSuite consultants are experts at automating and integrating NetSuite to improve your operations. This allows your manufacturing business to decrease data entry, reduce errors, save on overhead, and scale with ease.

Global Perspective

NetSuite is a global ERP solution that supports your operations wherever they are. Its global management features include:

• Available in over 200 countries.
• It supports 27 languages, enabling companies to communicate with customers, suppliers, and employees in their preferred language.
• Allows for the management of 190 different currencies.
• NetSuite offers a multitude of currency management capabilities, helping you manage currencies between locations and subsidiaries using real-time exchange rates.

Customer Experience

Customer experience is one of the most important aspects of any business. It’s the reason why your customers buy from your company, and it’s also the reason for their loyalty to you. In today’s world, where consumers have more choices than ever before and can easily switch gears at the drop of a hat (or click), customer experience is what keeps them coming back for more.

NetSuite allows you to boost the customer experience of your clients whether they’re individual consumers, businesses, or distributors of your products.

Its CRM functionality means you can stay on top of customer buying patterns, improve customer support, market to your brand evangelists, and provide valuable communication to your customers.

With NetSuite’s Warehouse Management System (WMS), you can quickly and accurately ship out finished products, coordinate with 3PLs, easily accept returns and more. Combined, these features result in happier customers, higher average order values, and increased market share.

NetSuite: Future-proofing the Manufacturing Industry

As a manufacturing company, future-proofing your business is essential to remaining competitive. Adopting a technology forward platform like NetSuite, which touches every corner of your business ranging from accounting & finance to shop floor control, is one of the easiest ways for your firm to embrace a technologically forward approach. From automating routine processes to utilizing intelligent production control, to improving visibility into KPIs, your manufacturing business will be able to run more lean and agile than ever before.

Here are some of the key features of NetSuite’s manufacturing ERP that bring your business into to the technological forefront:

• Built for the cloud, and able to be accessed anywhere in the world, including on mobile devices.
• Single view of your business from the shop floor to back-office to help improve decision making.
• NetSuite’s Manufacturing Execution System (MES) gives up to date information from the production line regarding downtime and labor, scrap, machine status and more.
• Mobile barcoding solution to streamline data collection on labor, work orders, material movements, shipping, and purchase order receipts.
• Supply Chain management with an end-to-end solution for purchasing and inventory management.
• Business analytics tools to analyze trends and gain insights into how changes in one area affect other areas of your business.
• Customizable workflows for your internal team members or third parties such as suppliers or distributors to easily collaborate on tasks like procurement requests or deliveries.
• Full visibility into all aspects of production planning with tools like Demand Planning.
• Production Control where users can monitor actual production against expected output levels.
• Intelligent inventory control based on sales demand forecasts generated through the Demand Planning module along with automations and real-time information
• Outsourced manufacturing management with real-time inventory visibility, vendor location management, and distribution requirement planning for multi-location operations
• Mobile/tablet application for monitoring the production processes and schedules from anywhere.
• Quality management capabilities for defining and maintaining inspection plans, collecting inspection results, and reporting on non-conformance.
• Advanced CRM and marketing capabilities such as marketing automation, customer service, customer support, partner management and more.
• Modular architecture that allows you to seamlessly add functionality as needed while keeping costs low.

NetSuite also recognizes the diversity of manufacturing operations, and offers three options to cater to your unique manufacturing needs: Work Orders & Assemblies, WIP & Routings, and Advanced Manufacturing. Each of these tiers provide different levels of functionality, so you only need to pay for what your organization needs. Key features of each include: