Visual South Insights

What is an Application Process Review?

What we do in an Application Process Review (APR) is pretty straightforward, and we perform several for our clients over the course of a typical year. In the review, we observe how the ERP processes have been built to manage the business. Then, we make recommendations to streamline and improve the processes and procedures related to the flow of data in the company. For example, how to use the ERP to alert procurement of projected material shortages, as opposed to having them look for shortages in a spreadsheet – usually after it was manually updated. In essence, an ERP application process review is a gut check on how things are working, and what can be done to make them better.

It ain’t easy on the shop floor

Managing a shop floor is no easy task. Your employees make mistakes, equipment breaks, rush orders slip in, jobs ship late, and days are long. On top of that, there is the constant demand to reduce costs and increase quality. It’s a real pressure cooker.

An Exhaustive Look at Infor VISUAL's Functionality

Looking for information on Infor VISUAL ERP? You found the right blog. It's long, but it's thorough. Buckle up, it's going to be an interesting ride.

Why would any manufacturing company want VISUAL ERP?

Actually, that’s an easy question to answer. There are three reasons:

1. Value: You will not find an ERP product with more depth and breadth of functionality at the same price point.
2. Ease of use: VISUAL is built by software developers, but the interface was developed by designers to focus on ease of use. The screens are simple and intuitive, yet answers to your next question are in a secondary (child) window or are a simple click away.
3. Focus: VISUAL is designed for small-to-medium sized manufacturers who create work orders to make or repair items. If this doesn’t describe your company, Infor VISUAL will not be a fit for your manufacturing company. If this does describe your company, keep reading—VISUAL may be exactly what you're looking for. 

The difference between standard and actual cost

Before I get into the best costing methodology for a work-order-driven manufacturing company, let me define both methods. With standard cost versus actual cost, the discussion centers around how the ERP system values an inventory or labor transaction. Here is how the different costing methods calculate the value of the transactions.

We’re good, but are we the best?

Visual South sells ERP for manufacturing-centric companies. More specifically, we sell Infor CloudSuite Industrial (SyteLine) and Infor VISUAL ERP. My experience with VISUAL goes back decades: When I was a plant manager, I bought and implemented VISUAL; I was a VISUAL consultant for years; and I’ve taken deep dives into CloudSuite Industrial.

Emotion and data

I like a sense of order. If a picture is crooked, I straighten it. If there is a mess in the kitchen, I clean it up. I’m not obsessive about it, but it is part of my nature.

I also like data. Not data for data’s sake. Rather, data that brings clarity to a problem or situation, which brings me right back to my desire for a sense of order. Data helps me understand if a problem is fixed, or situation is under control. The data feeds my need for a sense of order.

Let’s figure this out

I like figuring things out. It’s a simple statement, but now that I’m older, and yes, a bit wiser, I see that this desire to figure things out has been the driving factor behind many of my traits. From an early age, I made stuff. I’d see something that looked cool and would figure out how to make it. Scrap wood, a saw, and some nails would result in some sort of toy. I completely disassembled and re-assembled my bike to see how it was put together. As I got older, I tackled bigger projects. My first car was free because it needed a transmission. I figured out how to remove the old transmission, bought one at a junkyard, and put the “new” one in. It worked! It was the ugliest car you ever saw, but to me it was a triumph. I drove it with pride.

Let’s break it down

I like to take big, complicated topics and break them down to their simplest form. This gives me the clarity to evaluate new ideas, propose changes, identify problems, and such. For example, this is how I explain what Visual South does: “We work with SMB manufacturers to help them become the best company they can be. The tools we use to do that are ERP, consulting, and change management (usually involving processes and procedures).”

Are you guilty of any of these data flow blockades?

A modern ERP system is an amazing thing to behold. A materials manager can look at a screen and know what to buy, and when. This can be achieved with confidence, without a spreadsheet and without a meeting. Someone in order entry can check on a realistic promise date for a product that hasn’t begun to be built yet. Again, there’s no spreadsheet and no meeting needed to accomplish this.

Spoiler: It could be both

There is an old saying in purchasing: You get yelled at for having too much inventory; you get fired for not having what you need. I think this perfectly describes the situation the purchasing department finds themselves in when they don’t have good data on what to buy. They do what any of us do when we must make a decision without having enough information – we guess. It may be an educated guess, but it is a guess nonetheless.