Ever since the Industrial Revolution ushered in an age where we used engines and steam power to change the face of industry, mass manufacturing has relied on technological advancements in order to optimize its operations. And that’s even more so the case today when there exist a hundred and one different software options for pretty much every facet of a factory’s operations.
In this article, we’ll take a look at a few of the different types of manufacturing software that your business needs to consider implementing to optimize its operations.
1. Enterprise Resource Planning
The first tool that your business should be leveraging is an enterprise resource planning software option (ERP). An ERP is a very full-featured, multi-faceted tool that can take care of a whole host of business operations in one platform.
For one, it can house all of the financial information that you need to deal with. This includes the cost of manufacture, your margins, your profits, accounting statements, and the like. You can also manage human resource operations with the software, keeping track of your employees, and providing an onboarding platform. Learn more about what ERP can do for your business.
2. Machine Learning Tools
One of the biggest technological trends in recent years is that of machine learning. Machine learning has tremendous applications in the manufacturing industry.
This software type is all about reading massive amounts of data in order to recognize patterns within. The application for you is that a machine learning software will be able to read the inputs to and outputs from your manufacturing plant. Then, it can make recommendations on how to optimize operations in the long run. With the right software option, you can even have it automatically implement these recommendations while tracking their success.
3. Internet of Things
Internet of Things (IoT) is another big trend in the software for manufacturing business space. This technological concept refers to the connectivity of different machines. On a small scale, think of it as the relationship between the Google Home Minis and Amazon Alexas you have set up in your house.
On a large scale, think of it as the connectivity between all of the different manufacturing equipment in your plant. An IoT software can combine data from all of this equipment so that the data can be read by your machine learning tool.
4. Inventory
Any manufacturing manager knows just how hard it is to keep track of inventory when you’re producing and shipping as much as you are. Use a software option to make this tracking process far simpler.
5. Computer-Aided Drawing Platforms
Last but certainly not least, every manufacturing company that creates complex products will need some kind of computer-aided drawing platform. This platform will be used to view the parts that they are manufacturing.
Manufacturing Software to Help Optimize Operations
There you have it — now that you know the different manufacturing software types for your small business, you’re ready to start shopping around to find the right options to optimize your operations.
For more business advice, check out the rest of the articles on the website!
