Manufacturing
From quote to ship, an order passes through several teams and systems. We trace those handoffs, then help connect ERP, MRP (material requirements planning), shop-floor, and accounting systems so cost and order status are easier to see.
How the work runs
Orders wait between steps
An order moves from quoting to engineering, purchasing, the floor, quality, and shipping. When each step keeps its own system or spreadsheet, standard-versus-actual cost becomes a month-end calculation instead of a daily fact.
Systems we often see
- ERP
- MRP or MES (manufacturing execution system)
- Shop-floor data
- Accounting
Where the work gets stuck
- 01
Actual cost at month end
Standard versus actual cost arrives after the work is done, too late to adjust the job.
- 02
Slow quoting
Estimates for custom and make-to-order work built from spreadsheets and what a few people know.
- 03
Schedule out of step
Demand, capacity, and material availability drift apart on the floor.
- 04
Jobs waiting on parts
Raw material, work in process, and finished goods tracked apart tie up cash and stall jobs.
One handoff, step by step
Where does an order wait, and what is needed to move it forward?
- Step 1, Sales, in ERP: Releases the order with the quoted configuration.
- Step 2, Engineering, in Spreadsheet: Finalizes the bill of materials and routing.
- Step 3, Purchasing, in MRP: Confirms material on hand or places the order. Re-keyed by hand from the previous system. Then a check: Material on hand? If not, the order waits on a purchase.
- Step 4, Production, in MES: Schedules the job once material is available. Re-keyed by hand from the previous system.
- Ends with: Job on the schedule.
A typical sequence to show the kind of handoff we map. Not a client finding.
Recognize this handoff?
Walk us through one of yours.
Client results
Work we've done in this trade
How we help
- Digital Operations AssessmentMap quote to cash across ERP, MRP or MES, the floor, and accounting, and agree what to fix first.
- Software IntegrationConnect ERP, MES or MRP, and accounting so work orders, labor, material, and cost are entered once.
- AI EnablementTest AI on defined tasks, such as drafting quotes from past jobs, using only data you approve. Your estimators review every draft before it goes out.
Talk through your operations
Bring one order that took too long. We'll talk through where it waited and why.