A single shipment late may halt production. A single stock-out will cost you a customer. A single order with your supplier will make your whole delivery schedule go back by weeks. These are not uncommon events. They occur on a daily basis to companies in Kerala as well as in India in general.

The good news? The majority of these issues can be avoided. This is precisely what an ERP software company in Kochi can be trusted to correct - to businesses of any size.

What is ERP Software and Why Should Supply Chains Care?

ERP is an acronym which means Enterprise Resource Planning. You can consider it to be the brain of your business.

It integrates your inventory, purchasing, sales, finance and logistics all into one system. When something in one department - such as a supplier who is delayed with a delivery – happens, the system will automatically alert all the departments that are connected to it.

Your team will be a team in a silo without ERP. The warehouse is not aware of what sales has engaged in. The buying team is not aware of the stock already at the way. That is where the supply chain issues become more and more tangible (and why the collaboration with an ERP software company in Kochi is worth a difference in supply chain problems.

Problem 1: You Run out of Stock without any Warning.

Imagine such a situation, a Kochi based distributor is given a huge order by a retail chain. However, when warehouse staff inspects, it will run out two days ago. Nobody noticed. Nobody was alerted.

There is a delay in the order. Client is dissatisfied. And the business is deprived of a repeat client.

How ERP fixes this:

 An excellent ERP software will monitor the inventory in real-time. It establishes automatic re order levels, that is, when the stock levels reduce to a certain level, this automatically triggers a purchase order, without someone having to remember. No manual checks. No last-minute panic.

Stockouts such as this have been eradicated by the businesses, who have a trusted ERP software company in Kochi to set smart inventory rules, which make the business operate even when the team is off-duty.

Problem 2: Supplier Delays You Didn't See Coming.

One supplier of a very important raw material was the sole supplier of a manufacturer in Ernakulam. Production halted 11 days in the event that that supplier had a logistics crisis. There was no contingency plan and alert system in place in the business.

This is common. And it can be completely avoided.

How ERP fixes this:

ERP software will trace supplier lead times, purchase order statuses and delivery histories. Patterns are also identified with the help of the system, i.e. when a supplier is always late, then the system will alert you before a crisis.

Even better, ERP allows you to deal with a number of vendors of the same material. So that when you fail you can easily switch to another. No 11-day shutdowns.

Problem 3: Lack of Visibility among Locations.

Most of the expanding businesses in Kerala are based in various locations - a warehouse in Thrissur, a sales office in Kochi and delivery hubs in Calicut. Manually coordinating stock between these locations is a formula that is bound to cause confusion.

The teams have the effect of over-ordering in one area and another area is stocked with excess inventory. That is money tied up that is not necessary.

How ERP fixes this:

With a cloud-based ERP, you can have real-time access to each branch. You can view what is in stock at where, move stock between locations and have orders fulfilled at the closest point all on a single screen.

• 

  A well established ERP software company in Kochi can set up multi location set-ups that fully resemble the way your business operates all over Kerala.

Problem 4 : Laggardly Reaction to Alterations in Customer Demand.

Demand shifts quickly. Whether it is a seasonal spike, a promotion campaign or a new bulk client, your inventory requirements could change overnight.

Without ERP businesses are slow to react, the time taken to make orders and have them delivered may be the time taken to place orders and have them filled.

How ERP fixes this:

ERP systems also have demand forecasting systems, which analyses the previous sales data and points to upcoming peaks. You are able to pre-plan purchases and production as opposed to planning it after the fact.

It is this type of forward-looking that will differentiate those businesses that are scaled and those businesses that are stagnant.

The reason why Businesses in Kochi are currently opting to use ERP.

Kerala's business landscape is changing fast. All the logistics companies, manufacturers, traders and retailers are under pressure of delivering faster and operating leaner.

Selecting an appropriate ERP software company in Kochi

implies one of getting a solution that is sensitive to local business issues - GST compliance, multi-location warehouse, supplier relationship and the rate at which business is expanding in a competitive environment.

The companies that invest on ERP today, are those that create an advantage that cannot be easily duplicated by its competitors.

Conclusion

Supply chain disruption is not a simple fortuitousness. The vast majority of challenges can be traced back to the clear root causes that can be directly addressed using the ERP software, be it the inability to monitor inventory, the lack of visibility into the suppliers or the inability to predict demand. When the management of these processes has been maintained in spreadsheets or disconnected systems, the risk just increases with time. 

The answer is not so difficult, the answer begins with selecting the appropriate ERP partner. A business can adopt a lean, integrated system that introduces clarity, control and long-term viability to supply chain operations with the expertise of ESight Solution.