SAP recently announced that service update 12 will include a new “Dashboard” feature in the solution. In this release the ‘Dashboards’ are more for demonstration and testing purposes but it shows you what you will be able to do soon.
They recorded a webinar/video which I have posted in hi-def on youtube. To check out how the dashboard feature works, see below:
SAP recently announced that service update 12 will include a new “Cockpit” and a preview to the new “Dashboards” functionality in the solution. It also includes other features such as queues and high speed ‘google’ like search.
They recorded a webinar/video which I have posted in hi-def on youtube. To check out how the cockpit feature works, see below:
By: Donald Clark CFPIM, CSCP
Companies around the world implement ERP systems for a wide variety of reasons: some to eliminate manual efforts, some to run their businesses in an integrated environment, some for regulatory reasons, and on and on. I think that if you ask many people why they undertake an ERP implementation, you might get an answer like “So we can improve”.
True as it is that an integrated ERP system can help a company gain efficiencies, it seems like that improvement sought is not always clearly understood or realized.
There is an old saying that goes something like this: “When you automate a bad process, you can now produce junk at the speed of light”. I do not remember who originally said it and the first time I heard it, it was stated more colorfully. The point needs to be well taken though. (more…)
By: Donald Clark CFPIM, CSCP
Balancing demand with supply is the basic objective of every single enterprise. This is easy to state but as it turns out, not so simple in practice. Some organizations meet this balance well, while others survive through crisis management.
Those that do not bring supply and demand into balance suffer the consequences. Excess inventory, disrupted production schedules, missed deliveries, etc., become the norm. All of these conditions create a huge amount of waste and then the finger pointing begins, pitting departments against each other. Ultimately, it is our customers who suffer and sure enough, they will begin to go away.
On the other hand, a thorough understanding of demand, along with developing a comprehensive supply strategy to meet that demand, will allow organizations to effectively produce and deliver product, with greatly reduced waste. A vital tool to achieve this goal is the sales and operations planning process.
Sales and operations planning (S&OP) brings together all of the functions of an organization to create a companywide game plan. The output of this plan forms the basis for all of our short-term decisions and activities. Beyond the immediate result of creating this agreed upon plan, sales and operations planning helps in breaking down the barriers that exist between our departments and helps the company to move forward as a cohesive team.
Once a month, at least, the top people from each department work together to review actual performance since the last meeting, identify areas of improvement, determine the next period’s projected demand and then make sure the resources exist to meet that demand.
Dynamics AX 2009 provides users with the tools they need to perform the S&OP processes. It has item forecast capability, resource profiles to see how much work can be done and load profiles to see the effect of operations plans on existing capacity.
If you would like to take a look at it, let us know. Thanks and have a great day.
By: Donald Clark CFPIM, CSCP
By now, everyone has probably heard of, and many implemented, the concepts of “Lean”. You know – analyzing your processes, finding and eliminating waste, implementing Kanban methodology and pull systems, adopting Heijunka scheduling techniques and the like – these are what most people think of when they think of Lean.
There are the Lean purists in the world who will be happy to tell you that a company (I am thinking of a manufacturing company here) who is truly lean no longer needs an ERP system to do things like planning, scheduling and execution. I have heard from some folks that ERP becomes obsolete as a company becomes lean; that Lean and ERP are mutually exclusive and therefore calling any ERP system lean is an oxymoron.
I say that this is not true.
As a student of manufacturing practices for the past 26 years, I have seen many theories become popular, many companies adopt them, consultants make money teaching them, and then they get ditched by the side of the road for the new “flavor of the month”. Is Lean one of these fads? No.
However, to say that Lean will render ERP obsolete in manufacturing companies, just does not fly. Back in the 1970’s and 80’s when Just in Time (Lean’s father) was gaining acceptance, there were those who said that it would make MRP obsolete. True JIT practices, they said, would eliminate the need for detailed planning that MRP provides. This never happened. JIT practices were focused on execution and without MRP planning materials there would be nothing available to produce.
Just like in the JIT/MRP relationship of the past, the best planned and executed Lean program still requires the tightly integrated material planning engine that an ERP system gives us. In fact, an ERP system can help a company better manage their Lean initiatives. How so?
Take for example Lean Manufacturing in Dynamics AX 2009. In this module, users can automate many lean processes including:
I would not mind showing you how lean works in an ERP system if you have the time and inclination. Thanks and have a great day.
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