NetSuite
Discrete Manufacturing Software
Discrete manufacturing systems are designed to give organizations better control of and visibility into the manufacturing process. Discrete manufacturers focus on reducing costs by limiting waste and reducing the time to produce. A typical system will implement a lean manufacturing philosophy, matching the inflow of parts, materials and subassembli... read moreShowing 1 - 20 of 254 products
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abas ERP
abas ERP
Abas ERP is a solution geared towards small to midsize manufacturers and distributors. Abas has three main application offerings on the market today: Abas ERP, Abas Distribution and Abas eB, a line of e-business solutions that can...Read more about abas ERP
S2K Enterprise
S2K Enterprise
VAI’s is an independent software developer and the author of S2K Enterprise, an award winning cloud-based ERP solution utilized by customers operating across the distribution, manufacturing, specialty retail, and service sectors, ...Read more about S2K Enterprise
JOBSCOPE
JOBSCOPE
Jobscope is a cloud-based manufacturing solution that helps aerospace, electronics, industrial machinery, metals, automotive and high technology companies in enterprise resource planning (ERP) functions. Key modules of the solutio...Read more about JOBSCOPE
ShopVue
ShopVue
ShopVue is an on-premise shop floor control solution designed for job-centric discrete manufacturing businesses. It offers labor tracking production planning, machine monitoring, component control and time and attendance tracking ...Read more about ShopVue
IFS Cloud
IFS Cloud
IFS Cloud is a composable enterprise software application that orchestrates customers, people, and assets to reduce complexity, cost and risk as you plan, manage and optimize critical asset availability, strive for operational exc...Read more about IFS Cloud
Deacom ERP
Deacom ERP
Deacom, an ECI Software Solution, is a comprehensive ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) platform with a rich set of capabilities and extensibility designed for growing manufacturing and distribution businesses. All functionality s...Read more about Deacom ERP
Decision Builder
Decision Builder
Decision Builder ERP is an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution that serves companies in the manufacturing, distribution and service fields throughout the North American continent. Decision Builder is an integrated sy...Read more about Decision Builder
Infor LN
Infor LN
Infor LN is a powerful ERP solution for managing end to end processes with greater efficiency and data driven insights. It is available on premises or in the cloud and is core to industry-specific solutions: CloudSuite Aerospace &...Read more about Infor LN
BatchMaster ERP
BatchMaster ERP
BatchMaster Software offers process manufacturing software solutions for the food, chemical, nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries. Users can run the manufacturing application with QuickBooks, Sage 100&300, Microsoft Dynamic...Read more about BatchMaster ERP
Dynamics 365 Business Central
Dynamics 365 Business Central
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is a cloud-based enterprise resource planning (ERP) software solution designed for midsize organizations to streamline business operations and accelerate cash flow. This SaaS solution offers...Read more about Dynamics 365 Business Central
SCP 4.0
SCP 4.0
Jada vendor management inventory and demand planning system is suitable for businesses looking to manage inventory holding costs and track service levels. SCP is offered as a best of breed application that is ideal for both midsiz...Read more about SCP 4.0
Expandable ERP
Expandable ERP
Expandable by Expandable Software, Inc. is an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution designed for manufacturers of all sizes. It offers material requirement planning, production planning, accounting, business intelligence and...Read more about Expandable ERP
Manufacturing & SFC
Manufacturing & SFC
Transform your extensive manufacturing processes into easily accessible, efficient procedures. Geneva Systems offers GBMS-MRP & Manufacturing Execution software. bar code-based solution that enables you to electronically and ef...Read more about Manufacturing & SFC
E-Z-MRP
E-Z-MRP
E-Z-MRP is a manufacturing software solution for make-to-stock, make-to-order and batch process manufacturers. The system is used by a variety of manufacturers including automotive, aerospace, metals, electronics, industrial machi...Read more about E-Z-MRP
Aptean Industrial Manufacturing ERP Made2Manage Edition
Aptean Industrial Manufacturing ERP Made2Manage Edition
Aptean Industrial Manufacturing is designed for manufacturers in job shops and dynamic "to-order" and mixed-mode environments. It's suitable for SMB manufacturers in industries like industrial equipment, electronics and fabricated...Read more about Aptean Industrial Manufacturing ERP Made2Manage Edition
NetSuite
NetSuite
With an integrated system that includes ERP, financials, commerce, inventory management, HR, PSA, supply chain management, CRM and more – NetSuite enables fast-growing businesses across all industries to work more effectively by a...Read more about NetSuite
M1 ERP
M1 ERP
ECI M1 is a subscription-based enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, available on-premise or via the cloud, that automates financials, inventory, production, sales/quoting and production planning. The solution is suitable for...Read more about M1 ERP
PRIMS
PRIMS
PRIMS or "Product Recipe Ingredient Management System" is recipe management software for programmable logic controller-based ingredient batching systems. It offers recipe management, batch management, inventory control, lot tracki...Read more about PRIMS
ERP123
ERP123
ERP123 offers small and midsize manufacturers and distributors an ERP solution that automates and integrates business operations. This software allows the user to the organize their MRP, inventory management, picking and shipping,...Read more about ERP123
PBS Accounting
PBS Accounting
PBS Accounting is robust professional level accounting software that fits a wide range of businesses and grows with your company. The CashPoint version acts as back end accounting for NCR Counterpoint. Flexible, up to the minute r...Read more about PBS Accounting
Popular Discrete Manufacturing Software Comparisons
Buyers Guide
Last Updated: November 23, 2022Discrete manufacturing is a commonly used term in manufacturing that refers to a final product which can be divided up into its raw components. For example, in an automobile, each component can be separated, touched and seen. By contrast, in process manufacturing it isn’t possible to get the raw ingredients out of the final product. An example of process manufacturing is medications produced by pharmaceutical companies.
This guide is intended to help those who are looking for a software solution that will make the discrete manufacturing process more streamlined for their organization. Here’s what we’ll cover:
What Is Discrete Manufacturing Software?
Common Features of Discrete Manufacturing Software
Benefits of Discrete Manufacturing Software
What Is Discrete Manufacturing Software?
Discrete manufacturing systems are designed to give organizations better control of and visibility into the manufacturing process. Discrete manufacturers focus on reducing costs by limiting waste and reducing the time to produce. A typical system will implement a lean manufacturing philosophy, matching the inflow of parts, materials and subassemblies with the production of finished goods.
The key modules for discrete manufacturers are inventory (including purchasing and receiving), accounts receivable and customer relationship management (CRM), with a special emphasis on process control. Manufacturers of discrete goods can choose to implement a full enterprise resource planning (ERP) system or select best-of-breed components to integrate with their accounting system. Firms with automated shop floors will be interested in incorporating manufacturing execution systems (MES). Integration with project management is available on some manufacturing systems as well.
For most manufacturers of discrete goods, general ledger and accounts payable are standard. Payroll is standard, but some companies have bonus pay and overtime that must be charged against specific projects or products.
On-premises installations are the norm for discrete manufacturing software, but cloud-based options exist. The key driver of cloud-based installations is the existing information technology (IT) capabilities of the company, usually based on the complexity of the shop floor technology and integration.
Common Features of Discrete Manufacturing Software
In evaluating software, discrete manufacturers should consider the following functions to meet their unique requirements:
| Supply chain management | Discrete manufacturers need transparency into suppliers’ systems. Order status, supplier inventory, current pricing, order entry and payment can all be integrated between supplier and manufacturer. |
| Make/buy reporting | Products require subassemblies. Make/buy reporting applies job estimating to subassemblies to see if it is more profitable to make or buy components. Advanced systems will factor in time to build or buy, as well as the cost. |
| Process planning reporting | In order to estimate and track jobs, the process for each step of fabrication must be planned and documented. The process of planning reports tracks the development of the process plan for each product. |
| Material supplier planning | Part of the make/buy process, material supplier planning assigns a bill of materials to each subassembly. This also allows make/buy decisions to be based on current market prices for material and labor for each product and production run. |
| Component substitution | If a preferred component is not available, the inventory system should provide any alternative components. The production runs with alternative components should be tracked for recall management. |
| Bill of materials (BOM) management | The system should create BOMs directly from orders. It should allow revisions to the BOM to provide additional levels of detail. In advanced systems, a conceptual BOM is used as part of the process to develop a quote or new product. |
| Workload planning | As part of the manufacturing planning process, shop floor managers can adjust the workloads of employees and machines. Managers can use this feature to leverage the most expensive equipment to depreciate or minimize usage of the most expensive to run. Managers can also manage workloads of shop workers, taking into account workers’ preferences. |
| Engineering change management | The system should track engineering changes and their impact on time and cost per unit. It should also be easy to enter the changes into the system so that the adjustments can flow to other products and the overall production schedule. |
| Serial number management | If the products are serialized, the serial numbers must be managed. Numbers must be linked to specific products, including any variations, such as color options. Serial numbers must be tied to production runs as part of recall management. |
| Certified design management | If the manufacturer produces certified products, the system should provide compliance reports for the certification authority. It should also enforce the stipulations of the certification, such as no component substitutions or no changes in software. |
| Recall management | The system should support product recalls by identifying which runs are affected and which customers received them. |
Benefits of Discrete Manufacturing Software
Manufacturing businesses can see a variety of benefits with the implementation of discrete manufacturing software. Some of these benefits include:
- Creation of a collaborative environment in the organization. Discrete manufacturing tools allow for a collaborative environment that lets employees share information seamlessly with both internal and external stakeholders. They can retrieve a graphical view of processes and workflows that help in sharing and adopting best practices within the organization. Finance and other teams can also access the accurate costs of products and detailed reports once the software is integrated with other applications in use.
- Improved customer service. Integrating CRM functions with discrete manufacturing software allows users to generate a consolidated view of their customer information. Users can quickly access the order status, product details and progress report. This information helps users provide after-sales service by monitoring the equipment delivered to its customers. Businesses can further expand their customer base by sending competitive quotes and delivering customized products.
- Better visibility of work in progress. Users get up-to-date information of all product orders, which helps them plan their workflows more effectively. The software helps managers determine whether the order will be finished and delivered within the stipulated time frame. This feature helps floor managers take corrective actions and expedite the work on orders with the nearest deadlines.
- Increased efficiency. Discrete manufacturers require data about their providers, transportation expenses, the market demand and competitors. An efficient solution provides a consolidated view of data in a single platform, giving full visibility into all processes. Management can also use this real-time data to make better decisions.