ERP Systems Supporting Lean Manufacturing in SMEs

2011 ◽  
pp. 1121-1140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pritish Halgeri ◽  
Roger McHaney ◽  
Z. J. Pei

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs), more than ever, are being forced to compete in a global economy with increasingly complex challenges. This new economy has forced SMEs to become more responsive and agile in operational, tactical and strategic areas while requiring thoughtful integration between business functions and manufacturing/ production/ service operations. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Lean manufacturing are two production control methodologies that have been implemented in various ways. In early incarnations, ERP systems were considered a hindrance to Lean manufacturing efforts and were criticized for encouraging large inventories and slower production. The explosive growth of e-business methodologies and the resulting pressure to become nimble and embrace rapid change forced many SMEs to rethink their production approaches, particularly in regard to where they stand in relation to these two methodologies. Over time, ERP vendors recognized the power and advantages of Lean manufacturing and developed ways to incorporate Lean-related features into their software. The main objective of this chapter is to explore how ERP and Lean methodologies can coexist in SMEs. The chapter discusses misconceptions about the fit between ERP and Lean then summarizes differences and synergies between the two methodologies. The chapter emphasizes how linking ERP and Lean methods can lead to competitive advantage then explores key Lean toolsets available in leading ERP systems used by SMEs. Further focus is provided with additional insight on several leading ERP vendors offering Lean-enabled software modules. These include Oracle, TTW WinMan and Pelion Systems.

Author(s):  
Pritish Halgeri ◽  
Roger McHaney ◽  
Z. J. Pei

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs), more than ever, are being forced to compete in a global economy with increasingly complex challenges. This new economy has forced SMEs to become more responsive and agile in operational, tactical and strategic areas while requiring thoughtful integration between business functions and manufacturing/ production/ service operations. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Lean manufacturing are two production control methodologies that have been implemented in various ways. In early incarnations, ERP systems were considered a hindrance to Lean manufacturing efforts and were criticized for encouraging large inventories and slower production. The explosive growth of e-business methodologies and the resulting pressure to become nimble and embrace rapid change forced many SMEs to rethink their production approaches, particularly in regard to where they stand in relation to these two methodologies. Over time, ERP vendors recognized the power and advantages of Lean manufacturing and developed ways to incorporate Lean-related features into their software. The main objective of this chapter is to explore how ERP and Lean methodologies can coexist in SMEs. The chapter discusses misconceptions about the fit between ERP and Lean then summarizes differences and synergies between the two methodologies. The chapter emphasizes how linking ERP and Lean methods can lead to competitive advantage then explores key Lean toolsets available in leading ERP systems used by SMEs. Further focus is provided with additional insight on several leading ERP vendors offering Lean-enabled software modules. These include Oracle, TTW WinMan and Pelion Systems.


Author(s):  
Yousef Khaleel ◽  
Anmar Abuhamdah ◽  
Mutaz Abu Sara ◽  
Bassam Al-Tamimi

With the fast development of information technologies and enterprise software, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are increasingly adopted by more small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Based on this trend, it is necessary to develop ERP systems in a manner that meets and fits the SMEs requirements and needs. This paper proposes conceptual components of ERP requirements that are required for generating ERP system functions. In addition, it proposes an ERP requirements analysis method for ERP system developments in order to produce the proper ERP system functions for SMEs. The advantage of this analysis method is that it is easy to analyze and integrate the special requirements of the ERP development for distinguishing a sub-sector of SMEs. In this paper, by analyzing the components of requirements and the relationship of the business process modelling, several basic concepts are given and the method of the process analysis and modelling is also expressed.


This chapter further develops and generalises findings from the authors’ July 2008 paper in the International Journal of Enterprise Information Systems (IJEIS) by adding organisational issues such as business process reengineering (BPR). The authors argue that enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems are complex management tools that impose standard business processes from larger manufacturing firms. The authors test whether these systems can be adapted effectively to more simplified organisations such as small and medium enterprises (SMEs). The authors found that SMEs tend to have a high perceived level of satisfaction when using these complex tools, independent of size or sector. However, they cannot clearly establish that SMEs having applied BPR while implementing an ERP system are more satisfied than those that did not.


Author(s):  
Siti Aisyah Salim ◽  
◽  
Syammon Jaffar ◽  

The adoption of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) could offer significant benefits in terms of managing the resources and support business function. However, the traditional ERP systems are quite expensive and have complex procedures for the adoption especially for SMEs. With the introduction of cloud-based ERP systems that have similar functionalities with traditional ERP, SMEs are now able to adopt this system. However, the adoption of cloud ERP remains low and question arise on how to encourage SMEs to adopt this system. Drawing from management and Information Systems literature, this study proposes and conceptual framework for cloud ERP adoption among SMEs. Using archival analysis approach and technology-push and demand-pull as the theoretical background, this research has come out with six main themes namely: firm qualities, internal pressure, external pressure, technology features, organizational readiness and external support. This paper will give significant benefits to ERP vendors to understand their potential buyer’s behaviour towards the adoption of cloud ERP.


Author(s):  
Yousef Khaleel ◽  
Anmar Abuhamdah ◽  
Mutaz Abu Sara ◽  
Bassam Al-Tamimi

With the fast development of information technologies and enterprise software, Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are increasingly adopted by more small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Based on this trend, it is necessary to develop ERP systems in a manner that meets and fits the SMEs requirements and needs. This paper proposes conceptual components of ERP requirements that are required for generating ERP system functions. In addition, it proposes an ERP requirements analysis method for ERP system developments in order to produce the proper ERP system functions for SMEs. The advantage of this analysis method is that it is easy to analyze and integrate the special requirements of the ERP development for distinguishing a sub-sector of SMEs. In this paper, by analyzing the components of requirements and the relationship of the business process modelling, several basic concepts are given and the method of the process analysis and modelling is also expressed.


2000 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 305-316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frédéric Adam ◽  
Peter O'Doherty

The enterprise resource planning (ERP) software market has been growing at a very fast pace over the last few years and has been predicted to keep growing rapidly in the long term. This has led to an abundance of media reports on the subject of ERP and to managers wondering whether their companies should implement ERP systems. In order to separate the reality of the ERP phenomenon from the hype that surrounds it, we studied 14 ERP implementation projects in Irish organizations and focused on the key relationships between organizations which attempt to implement ERP systems and their implementing partners. We found that the ERP implementations that are going on in Ireland at the moment are different to the projects that have been reported elsewhere in two key respects. Firstly, the organizations interested in ERP software are, on average, far smaller than the case studies reported in the literature and the majority of the cases we reviewed were small and medium enterprises (SMEs). Secondly, the durations of implementation were far shorter than reported elsewhere. These results are not surprising if one considers the smaller average size of Irish organizations, but they indicate that the ERP movement is truly ready for an extension towards the SME market. They also indicate that the duration of the implementation of ERP software may be related to the size and complexity of the client organization and that SMEs can expect to have an easier time implementing ERPs than the current literature suggests. We also found that software implementers play a key role, not only in technical terms, but also in managerial and political terms, because they can help their clients in correcting their expectations and perceptions of ERP systems and ERP implementations.


Author(s):  
Pritish Halgeri ◽  
Z. J. Pei ◽  
Karthik S. Iyer ◽  
Kendal Bishop ◽  
Ahmad Shehadeh

ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) and Lean manufacturing are two production control methodologies. ERP systems were once considered as hindrance to Lean manufacturing efforts. The explosive growth of e-business is forcing many companies to revisit where they stand in relation to these two methodologies. Vendors of ERP systems begin to recognize the power and advantages of Lean manufacturing and then explore ways to build Lean-related features into their ERP systems. The main objective of this paper is to answer the question “Can ERP and Lean co-exist?” To accomplish this, the paper first discusses the misconception about ERP and Lean and then summarizes the differences between the two methodologies that led to the misconception. The paper discusses the importance of linking ERP and Lean methods and summarizes some of the key Lean toolsets that are offered in some ERP systems. From a list of ERP vendors offering Lean enabled modules three vendors are discussed in details. They are Oracle, TTW WinMan and Pelion systems.


2018 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 53-70 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir Hassan Zadeh ◽  
Bolaji Akinsola Akinyemi ◽  
Anand Jeyaraj ◽  
Hamed M. Zolbanin

Organizations recognize the need to adopt Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) in order to become more competitive, efficient, and productive, although the adoption and implementation of an ERP system is a costly and risky endeavor. Recently, cloud computing has become a viable and competitive means by which most organizations, especially Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), can implement an ERP system in a short time frame and cost-effective way. The authors' research examines the feasibility of cloud-based ERP systems for SMEs through a case study. The case emphasizes the potential of cloud-based ERP systems for SMEs as well as some of the challenges and peculiarities involved in their efforts to obtain an affordable and versatile ERP system. Their findings can potentially guide SMEs to make well-informed decisions throughout their cloud-based ERP adoption process.


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