We Blog ERP

The implementation of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution is a costly endeavor. Despite the promise of a worthwhile return on investment (ROI), companies that are looking for an inexpensive solution upfront could find a happy medium in open source ERP software. There’s no doubt that an ERP solution is essential in optimizing business efficiency. However, ERP solutions are typically shockingly expensive, especially to business owners in this day and age. Open source ERP solutions give business owners the benefits of ERP without the scary overhead costs.

ERP solutions help businesses manage their operations in one unified system. ERP is designed to improve efficiency, streamline operational costs, and increase overall productivity. Open souce ERP offers the same benefits of ERP but at a lower cost. Open source ERP is cheap ERP software.

There are several other benefits to open source ERP implementation that are worth discussing.  Aside from being inexpensive, Open Source ERP software is easy to implement with a shorter setup timeframe than traditional ERP solutions. With less downtime in the mix, companies can optimize their efficiency.

Cheap open source ERP solutions are becoming increasingly popular amongst the small to medium sized enterprises. SME’s have fewer resources than large companies, not to mention a significantly lower spending budget. SME’s need to rely on cheap ERP software, like open source options, to whip their businesses into shape while avoiding over-spending.

A few popular open source ERP vendors include: Openbravo, Consona Compiere, Apache, TinyERP and PostBooks.

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Selecting an ERP Solution is no easy task. There are countless enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions that consumers have access to today. ERP solutions are designed to help inter-departmental collaboration, optimize efficiency and facilitate access to vital information.

ERP systems are built to replace a discordant set of multiple business software solutions with a sleek, time-saving, money-saving, unified system. The benefits of ERP are numerous and worthy of discussion.

Why should you purchase an ERP solution?

• ERP systems help businesses integrate and collaborate across several locations.
• ERP systems help increase workplace transparency; giving employees easy access to company goals and leaving them more accountable for strategies on company-wide goal achievement
• ERP solutions help foster inter-departmental connectivity.
• ERP systems optimize the manufacturing process by automating procurement and production planning.
• Inventory turnover will also be optimized as a result of a streamlined ERP solution.
• The manufacturing product cycle will also benefit from ERP implementation, by speeding up the rate at which information flows.

The ERP selection process is a lengthy one and it is helpful to designate a project manager to oversee ERP implementation. Project managers will be in charge of interacting with ERP vendors, coordinating internal needs and creating an ERP selection team to represent the different business units in your company.

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Panorama Consulting Group has been hard at work creating a web-based ROI calculator for ERP investments. Hopefully all the hard work will pay off for users as well, as the product is finally being launched. Panorama designed the ROI calculator to assist website visitors who want to calculate the potential ROI on ERP software investments. So once you decide which ERP software solutions you plan on considering, Panorama’s ROI calculator can help with the next steps.

Panorama’s ERP ROI calculator is built on information collected from numerous research firms. The ROI calculator gives users a near accurate estimate based on data the user inputs into the platform. It’s ERP consulting made easy, thanks to Panorama. The calculator makes assessments based on a number of criteria including: estimates of tangible costs like inventory and labor, time-of-delivery, sales close-time, and order fill time. The ERP ROI calculator also considers employee number, license cost, project management and implementation cost. The final result gives users an ROI estimate and timeline for payback.

“In today’s volatile economy, companies need to know that their ERP software investments are delivering measurable value,” said President of Panorama, ERIc Kimberling. “Panorama helps clients select and implement in such a way, so we wanted to provide the ERP community with a high-level summary of what we do for clients on a daily basis.”

To check out the ROI calculator, visit: http://panorama-consulting.com/resource-center/erp-roi-calculator/.

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Are you a SMB owner? Looking for a great SMB ERP solution?

Zensar would like to meet you.

The software services provider, Zensar, has launched their SME enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution for domestic markets. Zensar ERP is powered by Microsoft Dynamics ERP. Microsoft Dynamics ERP was designed with midsized businesses with industry-specific functionality for their respective industries, in mind.

Zensar ERP offers a web-based model dedicated to meet the needs of SME in India. The SMEs in India typically share the same challenges of staggering growth countered by an overwhelming lack of IT support.

“SMEs play a vital role in the economy and need IT enablements that are world class, affordable and customized to the Indian environment. We have leveraged our software development, hosting and cloud computing expertise in collaboration with leading OEMs to provide best-in-class hosted ERP software to the SME Automotive cluster in the country. Our vision is to expand our offerings in the SME market segment to other clusters such as Leather, Textile”, said Assoc. VP of Zensar, Harsh Kohli.

Zensar has also been given the task of managing the Microsoft Navision ERP solution, as a loyal partner. Zensar ERP will drive Microsoft success by ensuring that the Dynamics suite is the best solution for SMEs in India by managing the cloud computing framework, company specific configuration and IT support.

Director of Microsoft India, Subhomoy Sengupta explains: “Microsoft Dynamics Navision provides and ERP platform that not only integrates all the critical business processes but is also fast to implement, easy to configure and simple to use. We continue to deliver innovative ERP solutions jointly with our partners to help these businesses increase their efficiency and effectiveness.”

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Epicor is fast becoming a cult favorite among businesses looking to streamline their operational processes. Cardboard Manufacturer, Carto Micro, has selected Epicor to drive their ERP success. Epicor is most specifically designed for midmarket and Global 1000 companies looking to streamline their enterprise management and resource planning.

Carto Micro which is short for Cartones Microcorrugados settled on Epicor ERP for its advanced technology, software infrastructure, support frame and promise of quick ROI. Epicor’s ERP solution was also provided the company with a reasonable implementation timeframe.

“Two years ago we started to see potential growth opportunities for our company and we wanted a new ERP solution, better suited to support Carto Micro’s future business requirements. After evaluating ten ERP providers, the decision was made to with Epicor,” said Juan Augusto Rivas of Carto Micro.

The cardboard manufacturer is based in Guanajuato Mexico and makes cardboard products for SMB distributors. Carto Micro is hoping that implementing Epicor ERP will help with managing operations in the most efficient way. “Epicor ERP gives us a technology solution that integrates all our business information, which will enable us to have a better control over our staffing and material resources,” said Rivas.

The company looks forward to experiencing an efficient and collaborative workflow with the help of Epicor ERP. Epicor ERP has business applications and the tools needed to help drive Carto Micro’s success.

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Cloud ERP vendor, Lawson, has launched a Disaster Recover service for Lawson customers that want coverage in the event of a technology-related disaster. Lawson Software is a global enterprise software provider whose software and services reach across 40 different countries. Lawson has launched Disaster Recovery for their ERP customers to help organizations resume business operations in the event of a tech-catastrophe. The new Lawson ERP Disaster Recovery is currently available to Lawson S3 customers with a Windows OS.

Disaster Recovery ERP was designed with the customer in mind, helping provide security for Lawson’s customers’ information. The delivery method for the Disaster Recovery technology is on demand, so Lawson customers can enjoy the flexible capacity of the ERP product. Lawson Data Recovery ERP will be able to pull customer data and restore software ERP functionality, giving businesses the ability to be back in operation in 12 hours or less.

“Currently, many organizations risk being down for days and losing significant amounts of data in the event of a disaster, and that can be devastating to their business. Our customers have asked for a reliable cost effective business continuity solution when it comes to their most time-sensitive business processes,” said Lawson VP, Terry Plath. “By taking advantage of the flexible capacity and rapid scalability of the Cloud, we can quickly restore the customers’ instance of the software along with their production data to minimize down time. This helps minimize the time it takes to get them back on track with their core business processes. Ultimately, this provides greater peace of mind when lost minutes and hours can make a tremendous impact on their business.”

Scott County Minnesota, a Lawson customer, has implemented cloud Lawson Disaster Recovery. With the help of Lawson ERP, the country has improved their recovery time by 36 hours. The cloud ERP provider and county administrators worked closely during the implementation process to ensure that industry best practices were being used. Lawson also helped the county test recovery time once the implementation phase was over.

“Our constituents, including county employees, need confidence that we can confidence that we can continue our business operations in the event of a disaster,” said CFO of Scott County, Kevin Ellsworth. “Our testing of Lawson Disaster Recovery has shown a significant reduction in the amount of time it can take us to restore many of our core significant reduction in the amount of time it can take us to restore many of our core business processes. We need to be able to make payroll, manage our financials and ensure that we have supplies needed to run efficiently. Extended downtime can cause considerable disruption in our services to residents of the county and our employees, which is not acceptable.”

The company hinted at creating disaster recovery software in early April and has since then made the software available for its S3 customers. “This product introduction underscores the fact that some of the best innovation in enterprise software comes from the collaboration we have with our customers,” said Plath. “By listening to their needs and working closely with them on innovative ideas, we’re able to deliver new products and services that address issues that directly affect their business. Now with Cloud computing as a reality in enterprise software we’re able to bring even greater innovation and speed to market with new products and services.”

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Novus, a biological products manufacturer, has selected Epicor 9 to streamline its ERP processes. Epicor provides ERP solutions for midmarket companies as well as Global 1000 conglomerates. Novus’ products are designed to organize and expedite scientific research processes in the biotechnology field. Novus has implemented Epicor ERP in the hopes of facilitating and sustaining profitable business growth.

Novus is based in Colorado with operations in the UK and over 170,000 products. Before settling on Epicor 9, the company used a legacy system. As Novus began to proliferate, the company realized they needed a more efficient ERP solution. Novus selected Epicor ERP to streamline their front and back end processes to optimize workplace efficiency. Novus Biologicals was keen on implementing Epicor ERP because it would provide the biotech company with a single system record and promote enterprise-wide visibility.

Scott Osgood, VP of IT for Novus explains: “Selecting Epicor’s highly scalable and flexible ERP solution was critical to supporting our expansion plans and consolidation strategies. As a result of our substantial product line growth, Novus Biologicals is expanding into new markets and geographies prompting us to invest in a modern enterprise-class system that can support our global business requirements. Epicor will automate tasks, streamline business processes and synchronize backend operations allowing us to focus on strategic activities that will help us facilitate profitable growth.”

Novus is keen on overseas expansion and leveraging Epicor 9’s ERP solution to make it happen. Unlike the legacy system, Epicor ERP helps businesses delegate resources in efficient ways. “The opening of our UK office was the tipping point which led us to search for a global business management solution,” said Osgood. Epicor 9 is equipped with multi-currency, country and language options, thereby making global expansion feasible.

Novus looks forward to leveraging Epicor 9 to decrease inventory costs as well, due to efficient planning. With Epicor ERP, Novus can better manage tracking, scheduling and supply chain management. “Understanding the position and availability of our products throughout the world allows us to deliver our products and services faster and at a lower cost to our customers,” said Osgood. Epicor ERP is also helping Novus improve their customer interactions by expediting and managing customer demands more efficiently.

“We are excited to provide Novus Biologicals with a flexible business solution that will scale with the company as they grow now and in the future,” said Epicor VP, James Norwood. “Epicor will allow Novus Biologicals to focus their attention on strategic growth activities by enabling them to be more efficient in the management of their business operations and responsivie to the needs of their customers on a global basis.”

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Today, Oracle is holding a webcast to show viewers how the integrated business software provider is going to integrate virtualization throughout its applications. Oracle is announcing its virtualization strategy because the company wants to expand its focus. Oracle hopes to show that its rivals, such as VMware, are narrowly focused and cannot offer as much as Oracle can.

Oracle has been pitching integrated application, database and hardware systems so the plan to offer virtualization is not a surprise. The Chief Corporate Architect at Oracle, Edward Screven, commented on Oracle’s intentions. He explained that Oracle intends to offer virtualization through its Internet Technology stack preconfigured. Screven said, “Enterprises have looked at virtualization more or less as a way to consolidate. But it’s more than just server virtualization.”

Oracle has a large collection of virtualized assets, including applications, databases and desktop virtualization tools. Oracle is selling virtualization software that offers rapid deployment, no installation or configuration costs and enterprise-class support for virtualization environments. Screven mentioned that Oracle has a broader focus as opposed to VMware which was “narrowly focused on server virtualization.” Other competitors, including Microsoft and Red Hat, have virtualization and an operating system but no applications.

Oracle wants to throw its hat in the virtualization ring. The company recognizes that the concept of the cloud and virtualization have taken off and it wants to keep up with the trend. Oracle’s virtualization Webcast today is only the beginning. Find out more about Oracle’s intentions to virtualize on Oracle’s website.

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Today, Oracle, an integrated business software provider, announced that its Oracle Database 11g Standard Edition One delivered a world record result with the TPC-C benchmark. This affordable and manageable solution demonstrated outstanding performance.

The Oracle Database 11g runs on an HP ProLiant ML350 G6 server with a single six-core Intel Zeon X5650 2.67 GHz processor. It is a high-performing database that provides solid security. The Oracle Database 11g is easy to manage, is scalable and it is compatible with other Oracle Database editions. It is reasonably priced and is a solid option for most companies.

Along with the Oracle Enterprise Linux, the Oracle Database 11g had a performance result of 290,040 tpmC at a TPC-C price of $0.39/tpmC. Oracle still holds the world record for both the performance and price/performance categories. In the TPC-C price/performance category, Oracle delivered the top three results. This demonstrates the strength of Oracle’s ERP solutions.

Oracle is very excited about the performance of its Database solution. Juan Loaiza, the Senior Vice President for Systems Technology at Oracle, commented. He said, “Oracle Database 11g Standard Edition One continues to demonstrate exceptional performance and price/performance, as showcased in this benchmark result. Along with its renowned performance and reliability, customers have the ability to easily upgrade as requirements grow, making Oracle Database 11g Standard Edition One an ideal solution for many cost-conscious organizations.”

Read more about the Oracle Database 11g on Oracle’s website.

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