Visual South Insights

This is part two of our series on on-time delivery. Here is part one on how to measure the on-time delivery KPI.

Measure what you want to improve

There are many opinions as to what key performance indicators (KPIs) should be monitored at a small to medium-sized manufacturing company, but the on-time delivery (OTD) KPI is on everyone’s list. It doesn’t matter if the company is build-to-stock, a job shop, or something in-between; there are many steps in coordinating the production of a product and OTD is a nice summation of manufacturing performance.

In manufacturing, access to timely, precise, and well-formatted data is essential for operational efficiency and informed decision-making. SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) is a powerful tool that helps all types of companies create and manage structured, detailed reports that have been tailored to their needs. Below, we’ll explore why SSRS is an excellent choice for manufacturers and how it can enhance your reporting capabilities.

The case for having manufacturing documentation

At Visual South, we always recommend that our customers have solid business, or application, process documentation templates. Companies often have written procedures for quality control, human resources, safety, and the like, but not always for enterprise resource planning. Not having processes documented for your ERP software creates risk that can have disruptive effects and negatively impact the bottom line.

Infor’s VISUAL 11 ERP introduces a range of new features and enhancements designed to streamline operations, improve user experience, and enhance overall system performance. Let’s dive into the highlights of this release and see how these updates can benefit your business.

CMMC compliance for DoD manufacturers

The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) is a Department of Defense (DoD) program that outlines the cybersecurity standards and best practices required for government contractors. CMMC compliance for manufacturers in the DoD supply chain involves meeting specific cybersecurity standards and best practices.

Tax compliance can be a tricky and time-consuming task, especially for manufacturing businesses operating across multiple jurisdictions. Most companies in the industry have an ERP system in place that helps streamline operations and internal processes, but these solutions don't always come with robust tax compliance features. To keep your business growing and avoid common tax pitfalls, here are a few options for handling tax compliance within your ERP system:

Every manufacturer knows that managing tax compliance can be a headache—especially when you’re dealing with multiple states, countries, and ever-changing regulations. Add in managing exemption certificates, and it’s enough to slow down your business.

Balance compliance and functionality

Government contractors have a unique set of requirements for their business systems, and that includes ERP. This article focuses specifically on ERP for government contractors that do production and service. Manufacturing-centric requirements will be part of any ERP evaluation, but the priority for those in the defense industrial base is to ensure the system provides an infrastructure for meeting Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) 2.0 compliancy and other government requirements.

What is production planning?

ERP production planning can mean many things to many people, so let’s start by explaining what it means to me and therefore, what I’ll be writing about. ERP production planning is the coordination of people, machine capacity, and raw materials, so you can make what you make when you need to. The key phrase of “…when you need to” is based on a customer demand or an internal demand (sub-assembly, forecast, etc.). The need for better production planning is usually a major driver for the search and purchase of an ERP system.