Dear Reader,
Every business at some point in time is forced to make a decision about the use of technology in their company. It is a generally accepted practice for even the smallest business to use some sort of computerized accounting or order fulfillment system. Generally speaking CIO's understand that several options or "Best Practices" exist for Technology planning today:
- Single-Source ERP type approach (such as SAP, Oracle and others)
- "Best-of-Breed" type approach (3rd Party software packages and services)
Each has its Pro's & Con's. It is not my intention in this issue of SMOKE SIGNAL to go into these details. Suffice it to say Single-Source works well where one common business process can be established across functional silos and divisions, and sufficient internal IT resources exist to keep the cost-of-ownership reasonable. These solutions tend to have stronger and weaker components so modifications are generally needed somewhere to meet a businesses requirements successfully.
Most mid-market businesses totally under-estimate the efforts and costs needed to successfully implement and support these type of solutions - which is always costly in terms of cash, time and blood/sweat.
A "Best-of-Breed" solution works well when a particular business function or requirement is needed and limited internal IT resources are available. These systems tend to be packages sold and implemented by 3rd Party Boutique firms and OEM's. Some IT Standardization is needed to enable lower cost-of-ownership and easily integrate/share data amongst disparate functional groups and systems. These types of solutions require IT diligence and can only be managed intelligently by establishing Standards that guide "Best-of-Breed" buying situations.
One very common area where mid-market businesses, those that deal with inventory, tend to use "Best-of-Breed" solutions is in Warehouse Management Systems (WMS). This SMOKE SIGNAL issue illustrates how Rainmakers Partner - Royal 4 Systems, helped deliver a "Best-of-Breed" WMS solution to Jel Sert Corporation. Founded in 1926, Jel Sert produces popular nationally distributed consumer food product - see www.jelsert.com for additional information.
I was originally introduced to Royal 4 Systems from two clients who purchased their offerings and raved about their satisfaction. One of those firms was Jel Sert Co. . This SMOKE SIGNAL issue is a Case Study that discusses how Jel Sert implemented the WISE WMS solution to;
- Improved distribution center employee productivity by over 30%
- In less than 1 year increased full pallet accuracy from about 80% to 99.93% and partial case accuracy from about 60% to 99.94%
These results were accomplished despite the addition of new products (acquisitions) and channels that increased the complexity of their warehousing operations. Jel Sert runs a "Best-of-Breed" manufacturing solution (QAD) and needed a 'seamless" "Best-of-Breed" solution for their warehouse. Royal 4 Systems WISE solution is designed to be easily integrated with almost any legacy ERP/MRP solution. Click on the Full Story below to read more.
One unique feature of Royal 4 Systems is they deliver “Best of Breed” WMS value plus a very robust ERP system that covers the full spectrum of what a mid-market distributor, manufacturer, 3PL and other complex business could want. (Click here to review detailed brochure ). The WMS system is modularized to be integrated with Legacy systems or the full-suite of WISE applications.
If your company is looking at (or plans to) WMS "Best-of-Breed" or ERP type solutions you may want to take a deeper look. Web-demo’s are available to substantiate these claims.
Thanks for your time. Please call me if I can be helpful or you wish to discuss "Best-of-Breed" type solutions for your firm.
Jon C. Liberman
Rainmakers
847/251-3327
jon@rainmkrs.com
www.rainmakers.us
[Full Story]
