Sage is known for its robust yet easy to use software. The company recently acquired San Jose, California-based Intaact to provide Sage Intaact, financial management solutions that target growing businesses.

Sage Intaact will help small to mid-sized businesses improve their financial management. The software offers a sophisticated and powerful cloud-based infrastructure for financial management, operational insights, process automation, seamless integration, advanced features, and an updated user experience.

Moving Traditional ERP to the Cloud

Customers worldwide are moving rapidly to cloud-based ERP. Sage, always responsive to their customers’ needs, recognized this desire and sought to find or develop new cloud-based products that would exceed customer expectations.

According to a recent study, cloud adoption rates are soaring: 81% of organizations responding to the study have either completed or are in the process of adopting a cloud-based strategy. Cloud-based ERP adoption stands at 27% versus 56% for on-premises adoption, with the remaining respondents choosing SAS.

Benefits of Cloud Software

Cloud software offers greater flexibility, scalability, security. and cost savings.

Flexibility: Cloud-based software can expand to accommodate new lines of business, industries, or other areas of growth. Sage software products are easy to integrate and offer the ability to build out a flexible system based on your business needs, not the limitations of the software. Add modules to provide additional support for human resources, sales, marketing, distribution, and more.

Scalability: As your business grows, you need software that grows with it. Cloud software can easily scale up or down depending on your business needs. Since the cloud consists of many servers linked together through the internet, it’s easy to add more computing power when you need it.

Security: Cloud hosting companies provide the security for your data. You do not have to worry about securing your own servers. It’s all kept behind the walls of cloud-hosted security which tends to be much safer than other types.

Cost-Savings: Traditional site licenses required not just an estimate of how many users would access the software but an investment in hardware to run it. You had to purchase, install, and maintain extensive network servers. That’s all changed with cloud hosting. Now the hosting providers have to offer all of that. You simply need an internet-based device to access the software. It’s a tremendous saving for many companies.

How Sage Intaact Supports Business Growth

Sage Intaact isn’t just about financial management. Sage products seek to be a company’s one-stop shop for all business productivity and enterprise resource management (ERP) software needs.

With the acquisition of Sage Intaact, the company has added a flexible cloud solution that can adapt to changing business conditions and customer demands. With Sage Intaact, you can easily add more users, connect other Sage products to the basic suite, and build out the exact system you need.

Sage Intaact is also a great option for international growth. This is important to many manufacturers seeking to expand beyond the Canadian borders. It can accommodate business within provinces or across oceans with equal ease. It’s perfect for mid-market sized companies looking to grow beyond their existing boundaries, or even for large-scale manufacturers looking for a robust, cloud-based product.

Visionary in the Gartner Magic Quadrant – A Sign of Excellence

Sage Intaact is the only AICPA preferred partner in North America and has the honor of appearing in the Visionary area in the Gartner Magic Quadrant. Not only is it in the Visionary area, it is also cited as a Visionary for Cloud Core Financial Management Suites for Midsize, Large and Global Enterprises, and the fastest growing independent provider of cloud Financial Management solutions to the mid-market.

Gartner conducts extensive qualitative research before sharing their updated quadrants. Their review and placement of Sage Intaact underscore its potential to revolutionize the mid-market business management suite of software products.

Talk to IWI Consulting Today About Cloud-Based Sage Intaact

IWI Consulting is pleased to offer our customers Sage Intaact, part of the suite of Sage Business Cloud software products for business productivity, growth, and management. If you would like more information on Sage Intaact, please contact us today. Visit IWI Consulting Group or contact us today.

Sage ERP systems have helped many companies make great progress towards their revenue and productivity goals. Shared access to information, better data and reports, and integrated systems have helped companies use important information successfully to further their goals.

Now, cloud technology has been added to the mix. No, it’s not what’s drifting across the sky. Cloud technology refers to shared servers, linked through the internet, to form a richer, more robust resource of computing power.

New cloud-based ERP is helping companies in new and innovative ways. Let’s look at how Sage Business Cloud can improve customer service, an important part of the value proposition that businesses bring to their customers.

Cloud Applications Can Improve Your Customers’ Experience

Cloud applications make data accessible to all who need it.

Cloud ERP increases the ability to collaborate with all your stakeholders—from vendors to employees to customers—no matter where they are located. It allows you to give your customers access to information about their orders, services, and invoices. Not only does this increase customer satisfaction, but it also reduces the expense of support and improves efficiency. In fact, a great number of customer service calls can be avoided if the customer has a thorough and accessible portal.

Cloud computing enables companies to be more agile.

Cloud computing allows you to accelerate innovation and slash expenses. In order to truly engage your customer, you need to listen to them. Then, you need to provide innovative products and services that provide value to the customer. With the cloud, you can react quickly to changing customer expectations and build and test ideas faster. You can focus on what you do best and leave the technology to technology experts.

Cloud technology provides enhanced flexibility and scalability.

With your ERP, you can collect customer data, analyze it, and use it to create better products and build solid customer relationships. Cloud ERP gives you the flexibility you need to be responsive to changes in customer requirements. With a hosted cloud, you can harness the capabilities of top-caliber computing without having to build and maintain it. It enables you to quickly respond to increased demand by scaling up to handle additional volume.

Sage Business Cloud: ERP and More

As you can see, cloud-based software offers many advantages. Improved customer service through a scalable, faster business response is just one of them. Now, Sage offers new software that can help you improve productivity in many areas. Sage Business Cloud has all the business software you need in one convenient package.

Sage Business Cloud provides a core set of business services that includes:

• Accounting
• Financial management
• Payroll
• Payment
• Human Resources Management
• Banking Services

Additional applications are also available that connect easily to Sage Business Cloud so you can adapt the product to your unique business needs.

Sage Business Cloud offers a right-sized package for every business. It takes ERP to new levels and provides a comprehensive suite of business services that can be scaled as your needs change.

For more information about Sage Business Cloud, contact IWI Consulting Group.

IWI Consulting Group helps businesses gain insights into their operations, inventory, and profitability. We provide software and support for a wide range of industries throughout Canada. For more information, please visit IWI Consulting Group or contact us today.

It’s estimated that around 43% of all small to mid-sized businesses lack barcode tracking, a known way to improve inventory accuracy. If you are still using paper-based counts, spreadsheets, or worse still, aren’t tracking your inventory at all, then these inventory management tips and best practices will make a big improvement in your company.

An inventory tracker is an automated system of tracking items entering the warehouse from receiving, tracking their location and quantity while they are in the warehouse itself, and then tracking them as they leave inventory to fulfill customer orders.

Even though companies are manufacturing and moving goods at a faster rate, they still tend to hold onto too much and overstock their inventory (Source: Supply Chain News). As the number of days outstanding grows, the value of the inventory decreases. Your company ends up spending more money to maintain warehouse facilities and personnel to maintain an overabundance of goods that shrinks in value. Is there a way to improve inventory accuracy?

The answer lies in the software used throughout your company for inventory management, as well as the attention given to inventory management best practices. With a software upgrade and an adjustment in your warehouse management practices, you can improve your skills managing inventory and improve productivity and profitability.

Adding an Inventory Tracker

Inventory trackers such as Sage Inventory Advisor can help you keep tighter tabs on your inventory. Business intelligence software can also incorporate data from other inventory management tools such as barcode scanners and Sage Inventory Advisor and incorporate them into your system’s reporting capabilities.

Best Practices: Tighten Inventory Controls for Better Efficiency and Profitability

Ready for some best practices? Try one or all of the following to improve efficiency and profitability in your warehouse and distribution center.

1. Improve sales forecasting: Sales projections derived from your Sage Intelligence or Sage 300 ERP system can be used to develop a more accurate forecasting system. With better forecasts, you can fine-tune your manufacturing so you create enough outputs to satisfy customer demand without overstocking your warehouse.
2. Prioritize production: Prioritize manufacturing production around what you know has sold or is most likely to sell within a short period of time. Use just-in-time delivery and lean manufacturing processes to improve systems.
3. Use an inventory tracker. Inventory tracker systems can convert any handheld device such as a smartphone or tablet into a barcode scanner. The industry has moved beyond dedicated devices for inventory management. New inventory trackers are easier to use and portable. Many integrate into Sage products, too.
4. Phase out your spreadsheets: Spreadsheets require manual data entry, do not synchronize easily with other systems, and require a lot of time to manipulate and use. Newer, automated systems can make inventory tracking so much easier and efficient. ERP systems such as Sage 300cloud (formerly known as Sage 300) and Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) offer a robust software package for accounting, financial planning, operations, and inventory management.
5. Prevent spoilage: If you manage items that can spoil, such as ingredients, food products, chemicals, pharmaceutical inventory, or other items with a dated shelf life, be sure to use FIFO (first in, first out) inventory methods. Keep careful track of the expiration dates on your items to avoid spoilage.
6. Enact contingency planning: While your goal is to keep inventory levels at the right levels, there are going to be times when demand outstrips supply. Plan for emergencies. Line up extra suppliers now and budget for rush shipping charges, if necessary, to accommodate customer
7. Audit your inventory: Audit your inventory and reconcile records to actual inventory quarterly. The more frequently you audit your inventory, the better you will get at managing it for maximum efficiency.

Excess inventory can be avoided with a good inventory tracker, solid best practices in place, and an ERP system facilitating communications. With Sage 300cloud (formerly known as Sage 300) or Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3), you have more information and better control over your business data than ever before. Add an inventory tracker, and you’ll improve profitability by reducing excess inventory. It’s a winning strategy for smart business planning.

IWI Consulting Group

IWI Consulting Group helps businesses gain insights into their operations, inventory, and profitability. We provide software and support for a wide range of industries throughout Canada. For more information, please visit IWI Consulting Group or contact us today.

Technology is changing the procurement landscape. Are you ready?

Technology is a disruptive force, but manufacturing software solutions can ease the transition from one technological era into another.

Consider the changes happening throughout the procurement field. Technological advancements, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), cloud’s ability to enable the use of big data, and much more are all changing the procurement field. Manufacturing software solutions can make those changes much easier to integrate into your overall systems.

The world of procurement is undergoing a seismic shift, a radical change from what it was to what it will be. To get ready, let’s take a look at what is happening in the industry.

The Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the ability to add internet-linked devices to vehicles, pallets, and other objects. Data can be sent from the object to the internet and through a central resource such as your ERP system. Companies transporting perishable materials such as ingredients, chemicals, or other materials may use the IoT to monitor temperature fluctuations during transport. Companies who use geo-targeting get up to the minute information on the location of raw materials or customer orders. As the IoT grows, more data added to a company’s system lends itself to more reports, better analytics, and additional insights that can lead to profitable businesses. A business intelligence system may be necessary to utilize the amount of data flowing into a company, but it’s an investment in manufacturing software solutions that pays off in the ability to visualize data and use it for better business decisions.

Leveraging Big Data

The IoT feeds a great deal of data into your system, but data also flows from many other points. Warehouse inventory, supply chain analytics, production runs, sales CRM systems, and more provide constant data for your system.

To adequately leverage such data, you may need a data warehouse that will “talk” to all of the systems. Sage Business Intelligence can then turn that data into useful analytics and visualizations that will help you make better, faster decisions.

When your procurement area can access additional data, they can make better decisions, too. Evaluating suppliers, extending payment terms, and renegotiating credit with vendors can happen with better data. Big data is rapidly expanding the role of procurement and changing how it interacts with other departments such as accounting, finance, and sales.

Procurement Moves from Back Office to Front of the House

Procurement used to have a back-office role finding vendors, securing terms, and helping with tasks such as these behind the scenes. That’s all changed. Companies today rely upon procurement to find the lowest cost and best quality raw goods and materials; procurement is now an integral part of the sales process.

Manufacturers who recognize that procurement is now a “front of the house” venture rather than a back-office function and treat the procurement department as an integral part of the process will embrace the transformation taking place. The transformation seen today gets to the heart of procurement’s role in the big picture of the business, and the way in which a sound, well-managed procurement department, fueled by data and analytics, can add to a business’s bottom line.

IWI Consulting Group

IWI Consulting Group offers manufacturing software solutions that help businesses gain insights into their operations, inventory, and profitability. We provide software and support for a wide range of industries throughout Canada. For more information, please visit IWI Consulting Group or contact us today.

Some companies run on gut instinct. Others run on data. If your company falls into the latter camp, welcome to Sage X3 Data Management and Analytics, a comprehensive analytics solution for insights-driven organizations.

Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) Data Management and Analytics offers a comprehensive portfolio of analytics with the ease of an out of the box solution. Deep integration with other Sage software enables Sage X3 Data Management and Analytics to manage data and extra insights without cumbersome technical programming. It’s easier to set up than many other data analytics programs, making it a favorite for companies who crave data but have little time for custom programming.

Let’s take a look at some of the features Sage X3 Data Management and Analytics offers.

• One analytics solution: The software takes multiple data inputs and generates outputs through dynamic role-based dashboards, Sage BI dashboards and reporting, and other BI tools, as required. It’s one solution to the problem of multiple BI needs.
• Easy deployment: One pre-packaged solution makes deployment a snap. Various models include cloud, on-premise, and hybrid models. Pre-set data models for Sage X3 and other ERP and CRM applications offer better deployment options.
• Seamless integration: This tool is built to integrate with other products—especially Sage products—but other systems, as well. Out of the box integration with almost any data source makes it quick to set up without a glitch. You can also add additional data sources later.
• Data modeling: Powerful data modeling capabilities enable you to make customized data reports, automate data cube and warehousing, and much more.
• Data governance: Govern data carefully without intrusive systems through its built-in data governance tools. Enterprise-quality controls enable you to securely set permissions, adjust access and permissions, and control who sees and changes data.
• Fast analysis: Self-service reporting puts you in control of outputs. Role-based dashboards, industry-standard best practices and more are all built into the system.

These features make Sage X3 Data Management and Analytics a must-have tool for companies set on growth. You can’t manage what you can’t measure, and lack of available data makes it difficult for companies to set a course for growth. With Sage X3 Data Management and Analytics, you have what you need to set KPIs and measure progress towards them. More importantly, you are empowered with information and self-service capabilities that help you make the system what you need it to be. It’s flexible and offers exceptional data visualizations for better insights.

Transform Your Company

Many companies seek to become data-driven businesses but difficulty finding, accessing, and using data can make it hard to take the final step. If you can’t trust your data or you can’t find what you need, it becomes next to impossible to make decisions based on data.

Sage X3 Data Management and Analytics can shift this paradigm into one in which not only can you trust the data that you see, but you can make it your own. With customized dashboards, the CEO’s view is different from the Marketing Manager’s view, but each gets to see the metrics vital to their roles within the company. The result is a tool that not only supports better decisions but makes data the basis from which business decisions are made.

IWI Consulting Group

IWI Consulting Group helps businesses gain insights into their operations, inventory, and profitability. We provide software and support for a wide range of industries throughout Canada. For more information, please visit IWI Consulting Group or contact us today.

Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) offers unprecedented insight and business data for discrete manufacturers. Worldwide, there’s growing unease about the slowdown in demand. Nationalism is rising and sales are slowing. When there’s this confluence of global factors, the emphasis shifts from expansion to improving productivity. Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) can help you improve productivity and more.

There are several steps you can take to improve productivity and profitability as the global demand for discrete manufacturing slows. These include:

1. Leverage Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) data and analytics: Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) users know that the system provides excellent data and analytics. Condition-based monitoring, which helps discrete manufacturers monitor the condition of equipment and facilities, can be monitored and tracked. Warehouse management can be improved using data from Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3). Other areas of improvement include data-based marketing, sales, and operational decisions. Use all the data that you can from Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) and make sound, fact-based decisions. Monitor costs and expenses carefully and make better decisions about your operations.
2. Use pricing for competitive advantage: Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) can help you improve your supply chain management, which in turn can drive down the cost of goods. You can use lower wholesale costs to provide incentive pricing for good customers or to increase market share by aggressively pricing high demand goods. Price can be an effective marketing strategy if used judiciously.
3. Cultivate strategic partnerships: Consider whether strategic partnerships can be used to enhance your company’s abilities to reach new markets or produce innovative goods. A strategic partnership can be used to leverage industry knowledge, specific project-based innovations, or other areas where business growth outweighs concerns about sharing information.
4. Use data to make incremental improvements: Look at your company’s operation data in Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) to see where incremental gains can be made. For example, just a slight reduction in return rates can yield gains in profitability. Wasting less during the production process can increase profitability too. Spending more on routine maintenance for equipment may result in fewer costly emergency repairs. By using operational data, you can make choices about where to spend to save in the future or how to get more from using less.
5. Never stop recruiting: Hiring is probably the last thing on your mind when costs are rising and sales are declining. It takes top people to build a top company, and it’s often difficult to find mid- to senior-level manufacturing talent when you need it. Build a company-wide recruitment campaign to position your company as a great place to work. Include your sales, marketing, and communication teams in the movement to make your company number one. Always be open to new hires if the talent they bring can boost your company’s productivity, sales, or market share.

Building a Discrete Manufacturing Ecosystem

The buzzword now is “ecosystem”—an interrelated sequence of thoughts, ideas, and more that support growth and development. Discrete manufacturers can build their own ecosystem by considering:

1. Sharing specific intellectual property assets to build something better with a selected partner;
2. Collaborating with another manufacturer to create a highly desirable product;
3. Sharing supplier resources with other manufacturers to support an evolving industry;
4. Using systems such as Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) that support collaboration.

Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) can be used by discrete manufacturers to make improvements that can counteract the slowdown in the global market. While you may not be able to increase demand, you can certainly decrease costs and find new and innovative ways to build new products.

At some point in time, the manufacturing cycle will pick up again. It always does. Until then, smart manufacturers use Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) data to continue producing at profitable rates. Be one of the smart companies by learning more about Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) today.

IWI Consulting Group

IWI Consulting Group helps businesses gain insights into their operations, inventory, and profitability. We provide software and support for a wide range of industries throughout Canada. For more information, please visit IWI Consulting Group or contact us today.

Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) can help you overcome many of the challenges you face using outmoded legacy systems. Sure, legacy systems are as comfortable and familiar as a pair of broken-in sneakers, but staying comfortable comes with risks. The risk of lost data, lost productivity, and worst—lost customers and profits. Instead of staying with your legacy system, moving to a new enterprise resource planning system, such as Sage X3, can boost your business into new areas of profitability and efficiency.

Overcoming Team Inertia

One of the big challenges facing many companies is helping their employees understand the benefits of embracing a new system. Employees may be used to using an older legacy system. They don’t see the costs of continually updating and fixing an older system, nor do they see the areas ripe for improvement.

From an employee’s perspective, a legacy system may be just fine. Yet, you know that Sage X3 provides better insights, faster reports, and real-time data, all things that your team has said they want or need in an enterprises resource planning system.

To overcome resistance to change and what we’ve dubbed “team inertia,” it’s important to emphasize the benefits to your employees when you’re pitching them on embracing the new Sage X3 system. People respond best to information on what’s in it for them—what will help them do their jobs faster and better. Emphasizing the benefits to each department of using Sage X3 is what will help move teams out of inertia and into action.

Make People Part of the Change

Another way to overcome employee inertia is to make people part of the solution. Invite selected team members into the group. Teams sometimes invest a great deal of time and energy into making existing systems work, and it can be hard to break free from the mindset that, because they’ve invested so much in the current system, the company should keep it. They don’t understand the urgent need to replace an existing system with something better.

It’s important to express your appreciation to those who have kept the old system going. People need to understand that just because Sage X3 is replacing the existing system does not mean their help is no longer needed. On the contrary—the legacy system experts can now become the Sage X3 experts and help with the new ERP system.

When you include team members in the evaluation stages, you’re exposing them to the benefits of a new system early on. They’ll see firsthand during these meetings with your potential ERP system vendor just how much better a new system will be.

Offer Exceptional Training

To assist with the transition to Sage X3, be sure to schedule ample opportunity for training in the new system. You can schedule general group training, as well as specific training by department to help people learn more about functions in Sage X3 such as invoicing or CRM.

Another great training step is to identify so-called “super users” to become the go-to people in-house for questions about Sage X3. Such individuals don’t have to be people from the IT department, just employees willing to learn more about the system.

Lead by Example

Embracing a new system starts from the top down. Set a good example by holding yourself accountable for learning the new system and using it as soon as it’s ready. This way you’ll be both an expert on it and a good example for others!

Sage X3: An Enterprise Resource Planning System Made for Manufacturing

Once your employees begin using Sage X3, they’ll never want to go back to the legacy system again. That’s because Sage X3 is an enterprise resource planning system that’s made for the manufacturing industry. It contains multiple functions in one system so that everything from accounting to warehouse management is in one central location.

With Sage X3, you can monitor warehouse function; track shipments, bill your customers; and manage accounting, finance, inventory, operations and customer relationships. It’s made for manufacturers so it has intuitive navigation and workflows that match your business’ requirement.

IWI Consulting Group can also help you with migrating legacy systems into new systems such as Sage X3. Our migration services help you improve efficiency and get your new system running quickly. We can help with many legacy system migrations including QuickBooks, Intuit, and more.

Contact IWI Consulting for more information on Sage X3 and product migration support.

IWI Consulting Group

IWI Consulting Group helps businesses gain insights into their operations, inventory, and profitability. We provide software and support for a wide range of industries throughout Canada. For more information, please visit IWI Consulting Group or contact us today.

The data derived from Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) can be used for many things, including improving warehouse management. You’d think that it would take a lot of effort to improve warehouse management and productivity, but sometimes little efficiencies make a big impact.

It only takes a few errors to start leaking profits from your business. Case in point: even a half percent (0.05%) of mistakes in picking can lead to money lost processing returns, productivity, and dissatisfied customers. It may seem like a very small amount, but even a little bit is too much when it comes to losing money.

Use the data from Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) to review your current return statistics. Read through the reasons why people are returning products. If the wrong products are going out, then you need to take steps to improve picking and packing.

Ways to Improve Picking and Packing

1. Examine return information: Review all the information in Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) on your returns. If the number of items returned for incorrect products or reports of incomplete orders is high, it could mean problems in your picking and packing area.
2. Review the existing process: If you have written process and policy manuals, review them now to make sure they are in line with your current system. Sometimes processes are written down, but the actual process in use changes over time and the written method isn’t updated. New employees may not even know you have a written process for picking and packing. Take time now to update the process and schedule refresher training for your teams to make sure everyone is following the current protocol.
3. Ask for comments and feedback: Don’t be afraid to invite the warehouse team’s comments, feedback, and suggestions. A good way to do this is to host a round-table luncheon where the company provides sandwiches or pizza and creates an informal atmosphere. Allow people to open up and share thoughts for improving the process, feedback, and ideas.
4. Offer prizes: If you can monitor data on picking and packing, hold a contest to see which team can generate the lowest number of order mistakes. Give a special prize to the team with zero mistakes per month. Software that tracks return data can help you set the parameters for a contest. Monitor metrics such as returns for incorrect or incomplete orders, which leads straight back to the picking and packing process.
5. Recheck data each quarter: Start the process again each quarter by reviewing Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) data on returns. Compare previous quarters with your current stats and monitor improvement. Reward your warehouse team for improvements, no matter how small. Every little bit counts when it comes to improving warehouse management.

Make Little Things Count

Small items can be the most troublesome in the picking and packing process since they are easily dropped, miscounted, or missed during scanning. Consider hosting some additional training sessions with your team on handling small items. You may also want to consider teams dedicated to picking only small items.

Speaking of small, it’s also a good reminder that little mistakes can add up. One small mistake in shipping can lead to lost customers, canceled orders, and a drop in profits. Every incremental improvement you make in the picking and packing process can help the bottom line.

Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) with Warehouse Management

Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) offers a robust enterprise resource management system that includes warehouse management modules, as well as order processing, inventory management, accounting and financial management, CRM, and more. It’s one system that does so much for manufacturers. Whether your company is in food manufacturing or you manufacture cosmetics, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, or other materials, Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) can help you improve your business through better information management and communications.

IWI Consulting Group

IWI Consulting Group helps businesses gain insights into their operations, inventory, and profitability. We provide software and support for a wide range of industries throughout Canada. For more information, please visit IWI Consulting Group or contact us today.

ERP systems such as Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) have long played an important role in manufacturing operations. The capabilities of this software have helped manufacturers monitor costs, improve communications and teamwork, and enhance customer service. Now, a new study points to the many ways in which ERP systems are making an impact on supply chain management.

The Study: Three Surprising Results

The Delphi Group asked 23 global manufacturers about the impact of enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems on their supply chain and supply chain management. The answers can be grouped into three main findings that include the following impacts on supply chain management:

1. Integration of information across the entire supply chain between customers and suppliers
2. Increasing “mass customization” of products
3. Supply chains consisting of several independent entities, making the entire supply chain more complex to manage

The supply chain has been shifting over the past few years from a few large suppliers to a network of smaller, independent suppliers. This flexible approach has made it easier for small to mid-sized companies to offer lower prices, faster turnaround time, and newer services such as mass customization to their clients so that they can remain competitive in the global marketplace.

New Concepts in Supply Chain Management

Manufacturers have always worked hard to improve their operations. All improvements can lead to more sales, lower costs and happier customers. The last challenges that manufacturers are addressing are the challenges of improving supply chain management.

Improving supply chain management is one of the last frontiers for improving manufacturing processes. The supply chain is integral to all aspects of quality control, from the quality of raw materials to the timeliness of delivery. It’s also important for cost control. The better the suppliers, the lower the cost of raw goods. The cost differential can be used as part of a sales strategy of lower prices or to shore up profits.

Relying upon a broad, vast network of suppliers is becoming the norm instead of relying on a few chosen suppliers.  Changing marketplace conditions, lower costs, and faster shipping have put specific suppliers at the head of the list for future orders. This is creating a new dynamic among suppliers who recognize they need a flexible approach to ensure customer satisfaction. You can no longer rely on one or two companies for your main business: it’s beyond putting all your eggs in one, two, or even three baskets. Now, you need to be able to access every basket in the farmyard!

Information Integration in Sage EM

ERP is a natural extension of materials requirement planning (MRP) systems from past decades. An ERP system provides a comprehensive management system that integrates transactions, materials planning, and many other functions into one complete system.

Research has shown that fragmented information is the source of many delays across the supply chain, according to the Delphi report. With one seamlessly integrated ERP system, much of the fragmentation is removed and information becomes cohesive and shareable.

Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) fits the bill perfectly. It brings together many aspects of your business, including supply chain management and communications, for one powerful, seamless base of operations.

Demand for Mass Customization Increases

It’s no longer enough to keep plenty of basic items on hand and customize them as the need arises. The sunk cost of producing such excess inventory “just in case” as well as the cost of warehousing the items just doesn’t add up. Now, mass customization is the name of the game. Being able to respond to customer requests for customization on a large scale is a requirement for all size manufacturers.

Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) can help you meet the demands for mass customization. Its ability to manage multiple vendors, keep track of inventory, and track orders from start to finish make it easier to offer customization. It also offers great control of your costs and real-time views of orders, invoices, purchases and more, so you can keep tighter control over your costs.

Manage and Deploy Resources Efficiently

Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) also offers you the ability to manage and deploy resources from multiple vendors. Parts from a supplier in Toronto, raw goods from a Manitoba warehouse, it doesn’t matter where the resources are being deployed from; they can be deployed effectively. You can also manage the flow of goods from one central dashboard as well as manage prices, costs, and more.

Enhancing Your Supply Chain through ERP Systems

It’s time to enhance your supply chain management through a great ERP system. Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) offers a multi-faceted ERP system that’s flexible to meet the needs of many industries. Food manufacturing, pharmaceutical manufacturing, and many other manufacturers can all benefit from Sage EM (formerly known as Sage X3) integrated data. It’s the right way to manage your supply chain and improve operations.

IWI Consulting Group

IWI Consulting Group helps businesses gain insights into their operations, inventory, and profitability. We provide software and support for a wide range of industries throughout Canada. For more information, please visit IWI Consulting Group or contact us today.

Perhaps you’ve just purchased your first barcode scanner or you’ve realized how barcodes can make your business more efficient. It’s time to implement a barcode system that will help you manage inventory more easily and provide you with the business insight and information that you need to keep your warehouse humming and your customers satisfied. The following steps can be used in many industries for barcode implementation after the purchase of a new barcode scanner.

Step 1: Get a GS1 Prefix

Every barcode begins with a series of numbers known as a GS1 Prefix. This is a unique identifying number that is coded to your company and enables you to sell your products in stores and online. It can be used worldwide so that anyone scanning your products knows their origin and source. These numbers are followed by unique product identification numbers.

You can obtain a GS1 Prefix at gs1us.org.

Step 2: Decide what items will carry a barcode.

Next, you’ll need to organize and sort the items in your company that will carry a barcode. Most companies categorize their products as static or dynamic barcodes.

Static barcodes are used to consistently identify products. You’ve seen them hundreds of times on mass produced packaging ranging from milk cartons to wraps on reams of copy paper; these barcodes never change and the packaging can be printed in huge batches to use for multiple product runs.

Dynamic bar codes are typically used for a single purpose. Companies who use their barcode scanners and barcodes to track equipment such as forklifts, copies, and other machinery may choose dynamic barcodes because the use is limited to a handful of items.

You may wish to develop a list of how barcodes will be used in your company. Categorizing items by static and dynamic barcodes, product categories, and similar information will organize your inventory and make it easier for those programming and running barcodes to understand the logic undergirding the system.

Step 3: Choose your barcodes.

Each barcode must be accompanied by a specific symbol, which indicates how the items are scanned and distributed. IWI Consulting Group can help you choose your barcode system so that it works with your new software and with your company’s business needs.

Step 4: Select the size.

Barcodes can also be printed in many different sizes, so you’ll need to select the size you want for your products. The specific symbol chosen in Step 3 will also influence the size of your barcode, so make sure you complete Step 3 and seek assistance from IWI Consulting Group, if necessary, before setting the size for barcodes.

Step 5: Create the text.

Now it’s time to create, format, and proofread the text for your barcodes. The numbers below the actuals bars on a barcode are very important. If the barcode gets smudged, damaged, or is otherwise unreadable by barcodes scanners, the numbers act as a backup and can be manually typed into the system to identify your products.

You can use any size or font for the letters or numbers, but be sure they are easy to read. This isn’t a good time to use a script or calligraphy font. Instead, use a common font such as Arial or Verdana that is easy to read.

Step 6: Choose your colors.

Yes, you can print barcodes in many colors. They are easiest to read when printed in black ink on a white surface. That’s the standard for barcodes.

Step 7: Place the barcode.

Determine where on your packaging you will place the barcode. Again, you can put a barcode almost anywhere, but there are certain locations that are typical for product categories. Boxes tend to have barcodes on the bottom or on the back lower panel (left or right) so that they are easier to scan during checkout. Review products in your industry to find out what is typical or common for your product category.

Step 8: Test barcodes and barcode scanners.

Lastly, once your product is barcoded, the barcode is placed and printed, it’s time to test it. Use your barcode scanner to make sure that the code is accurate, is easily scanned, and that there are no other issues with your new barcodes.

IWI Consulting Group:  Barcode Scanning Made Easy

IWI Consulting Group can help you choose barcode scanners, set up your barcode process, and help you launch a barcoding project to manage your inventory and sell more products. We offer a Barcode Scanning Inventory Module for Sage 300 that lets you manage your inventory and warehouse with confidence. To learn more about IWI’s Barcode Scanning Inventory Module for Sage 300cloud (formerly known as Sage 300), or to discuss choosing and setting up a barcode scanning project, contact us today. Call 1-866-916-3851.