What To Look For When Choosing a Business Central Manufacturing Partner in the UK
At a Glance
Choosing the right Business Central manufacturing partner is critical to ERP success. Manufacturers should prioritise partners with proven production expertise, a business-first implementation approach and ongoing post-go-live support. The right partner will align Business Central with manufacturing processes, minimise disruption, improve operational efficiency and help you get more value from your ERP investment.
To find out if Brookland Solutions is the right partner for your business, book a free consultation with our team today.
How to Choose an ERP Partner for Manufacturing Business?
Selecting Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central for your manufacturing or engineering business is an important step, but choosing the right partner is equally important, if not more so.
The partner you work with will shape how your implementation process unfolds, how your system is configured to align with your factory processes and also influence how much value you will get from the investment.
Contrasting this, an inexperienced partner may configure the software without getting to the crux of the operational challenge you are trying to solve.
In this guide, find out what manufacturers should look for when choosing a Business Central ERP manufacturing partner, as well as the warning signs of an inexperienced partner. Also, explore the questions to ask to help you make an informed decision.
How Important is Choosing A Manufacturing ERP Partner?
Engineering and manufacturing businesses have unique requirements that differ significantly from those of retail, e-commerce, wholesale or service-led organisations. Processes such as production planning, materials requirement planning (MRP), inventory control and shop floor scheduling require specialist knowledge.
Implementing an ERP system can be transformative for your business. It can affect how your production teams, buyers, warehouse staff, finance and management teams work together day in and day out.
The best Business Central manufacturing partner can help:
- Identify processes that are holding you back
- Configure Business Central around your workflows and do not force-fit them
- Clean and migrate data smoothly
- Keep disruption to a minimum during implementation
- Recommend suitable manufacturing extensions if additional functionality is required
- Train staff based on their individual roles
- Keep improving the system even after go-live
A good ERP partner doesn’t end the relationship once the ERP goes live. They continue to support your business, whether through optimisation or introducing new functionality.
Manufacturing Experience vs General ERP Experience
Many ERP partners have extensive experience implementing Business Central across different sectors. While this technical knowledge is welcome, manufacturing introduces operational challenges that require a deeper understanding of the production environment.
A Business Central partner with relevant experience in manufacturing and engineering is more likely to understand concepts such as:
- Bills of Materials (BOMs)
- Materials Requirement Planning (MRP)
- Capacity planning
- Routings and work centres
- Tracing batch and serial numbers
- Work in Progress (WIP)
- Production costing
- Warehouse and inventory management
More importantly, these partners understand how these key manufacturing processes work together in practice.
For example, let’s say your precision engineering company often experiences production delays due to materials arriving later than expected. A general ERP consultant may focus on configuring purchase orders correctly. But a manufacturing ERP specialist is more likely to examine supplier lead times, MRP settings, inventory policies and production scheduling to identify the causes of material shortages.
Choosing a Business Central partner with manufacturing expertise and experience means conversations are centred on improving your production processes, not just on setting up software.
Get in touch with us today to learn how our team can help your manufacturing business.
6 Warning Signs of an Inexperienced Implementation Partner
Not every Business Central partner has the same level of expertise in manufacturing and engineering domains. Here are 6 potential warning signs in an ERP partner to identify early on, to avoid problems later.
1. Their Focus Is on the Software, Not Your Business
If you find that software demonstrations begin before even asking questions about your business, the implementation process may become more software-led than business-led.
2. They Use a Standard Approach to Suit All
No two manufacturing environments are the same. If every client receives the same implementation plan regardless of the industry or production approach, the ERP solution may not suit your specific business needs.
3. They Struggle to Explain Manufacturing Processes Clearly
An experienced manufacturing ERP consultant should be comfortable discussing MRP, production planning, batch tracing and shop floor scheduling. It could be a red flag if explanations are vague or overly technical.
4. They Promise Unrealistically Fast Implementations
Most ERP projects follow multiple stages of planning, implementation, testing, user training and validation. You may want to steer clear of extremely short implementation times when the partner doesn’t fully understand your business.
5. They Underestimate Data Cleansing
Data accuracy is important for an ERP project to succeed. If a Business Central partner suggests moving all data without reviewing duplicate, obsolete or inaccurate records, problems are more likely to continue even after migration.
6. They Offer Minimal Post-Implementation Support
ERP going live is the final stage of implementation, but not the end. You need a partner who provides support even after go-live and helps you make the most of the Business Central ERP.
Questions Every Manufacturing Business Should Ask Before Choosing a Partner
- Have you worked with manufacturing or production businesses like us before?
- How will you learn about our manufacturing process?
- Will standard Business Central be enough?
- How will you manage data migration?
- What support can we expect after go-live?
The best Business Central manufacturing partner will deliver more than just a software proposal. They should deliver a clear implementation plan that explains how Business Central can address existing challenges and accommodate your future business goals.
How Brookland Solutions Helps You Get More From Business Central for Manufacturing
At Brookland Solutions, we believe successful ERP projects begin with understanding your business. Our years of experience and in-depth knowledge of various industries, including the manufacturing and engineering industries, allow us to recommend Business Central solutions that reflect the way your production environment operates today while supporting plans for tomorrow.
Our Microsoft-certified consultants work closely with you to understand how your production, inventory, purchasing, finance and warehousing processes work.
Our approach includes:
- Reviewing existing processes
- Identifying improvement opportunities
- Cleaning and migrating data
- Configuring BC for your workflows
- Training your teams
- Supporting you beyond go-live
Because we know choosing a Business Central manufacturing partner is about finding a team that understands both how the ERP works and the realities of running a production business.
Find out how Brookland Solutions can do this for you. Book a consultation today.
