Why Building Material Formers and Fabricators Need Integrated ERP

Changing customer demands are increasing pressure on building material formers and fabricators. It’s not enough to simply distribute raw materials. Customers are asking for more – more finishing services for components and products, faster processing, subassembly and the list goes on.

Download this eBook, “How Building Material Formers and Fabricators Can Thrive in the Digital Age,” to learn how modern business software will help satisfy customer demands while also protecting profits. In this digital era, building material formers and fabricators must have integrated ERP.

Do You Need One More Power Tool?

Building material formers and fabricators have many irons in the fire, often all at once. There’s a lot going on between the front office and the factory floor and it’s increasingly difficult to keep tabs on data in real time. As soon as your team loses control over processing activities, scrap, sheers and other key data, customer specifications could be off before you know it. Profits could just as easily run off the rails too. You actually do need one more power tool – the right ERP system.

6 Reasons Why RealSTEEL™ ERP is the Industry’s Answer

Even with business software or an ERP system in place, it may not be an ideal fit for your unique business needs. There are many different ERP options available in the marketplace today, but only one has been designed to specifically support the steel and metals industry. As we discuss in the eBook, the right ERP system will provide greater control and insight over operations, necessary for building material formers and fabricators to compete in the digital age.

Here’s how it works:

1. Fuel sales: Calculating costs for complicated customer jobs requires more than finesse. ERP delivers answers quickly and accurately. Sales reps will be able to check inventory, production schedules and calculate outsourced processes which is what closes deals fast. Let your system fuel sales as reps meet customers.
2. Boost productivity: Every machine, operator or process has the potential for either a big profit or a big loss. Use an ERP system that supports dynamic production schedules, automatically calculates materials usage, manages shortages and drops, monitors outsourced processing and adjusts schedules with change orders or unplanned machine downtime. The more you know in real time, the better you can boost productivity.
3. Streamline production: Margins are always tight in the steel and metals industry. A built-in MES provides added control over everything from materials usage to machine capacity, tools to operators and subcontractors. Time-saving automations route jobs, optimize resources, and delivers reliable data for actual production, break weights, sheers and scrap. The right ERP lets the data flow into the right hands so your team can streamline production.
4. Track jobs: Outsourced processing is occasionally needed, but you don’t have to relinquish control over the jobs that leave the shop. Track jobs using technology that will alert you when subcontractors run in to problems or require changes. Monitor materials received from subcontractors or customers and check processed goods to ensure quality control.
5. Capture decision-driving data: Current, accurate data is required to make the right decisions for your customers and your profits. Today’s ERP offers role-tailored data through user-friendly dashboards, integrates with a full suite of analytic tools and will calculate margins line-by-line for every order. Capture decision-driving data, then make the decisions that grow your business.
6. Increase profits: All the data in your organization will lead back to the bottom line. Our ERP highlights true costs, profitability at the line-item level, and delivers the KPIs needed to monitor every metric across your organization. Increase profits by monitoring every process from sales to delivery.

ERP Built for Building Material Formers and Fabricators

Gain unprecedented control over your business by deploying RealSTEEL™, the ERP system built for steel and metals businesses just like yours. This single, integrated solution offers enhanced functionality and benefits from planning, scheduling, purchasing and inventory management through production, quality control, sales and finance. Read our eBook and contact The Wolcott Group for more information or a personal demonstration.