Online community aids ERP software development; more process control planned, IQMS says
Manufacturing enterprise resource planning (ERP) software is getting more mobile, evolving more quickly, and integrating more tightly with manufacturing processes, IQMS told Manufacturing Business Technology. IQMS designs, develops, and implements manufacturing ERP software.
Mark T. Hoske -- Manufacturing Business Technology, 9/16/2009 1:35:14 PM
 IQMS expands ERP capabilities, service, development. |
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IQMS opens new channel partner program in India, following June UK expansion QMS launched a new channel partner, IQMS ERP India Pvt. Limited in Baroda in the state of Gujarat. The new program, announced Sept. 14, offers EnterpriseIQ ERP from IQMS to manufacturers and provides local resources for additional support and education, in addition to supporting growth of the extended ERP software in the Indian manufacturing market. The partnership growth follows a June opening of a U.K office to enhance local sales and support across Europe. Requests for EnterpriseIQ have been especially strong in India, IQMS says, where the manufacturing industry's demand for a cohesive software package has been growing. "IQMS is committed to providing the best ERP software to manufacturing markets," says Flamm, promising the "same high quality of service and support we provide all of our customers around the world." In recent years, IQMS has seen an upswing in requests for sales and support in India and had actively sought a channel partner to help. "Having used other ERP systems, I can truly say that IQMS has the most intuitive, comprehensive and user-friendly system available today," said Amit Sangvi, managing director of IQMS ERP India Pvt. Limited. "There is great interest for ERP systems in the region and IQMS has captured the attention of many manufacturers here. They're impressed with IQMS's single-source, industry specific extended ERP system and they've heard about IQMS's great reputation." About IQMS: Since 1989, IQMS has been designing and developing ERP software for the repetitive, process and discrete manufacturing industries. - Edited by Mark T. Hoske, electronic products editor, MBT www.mbtmag.com |
Manufacturing enterprise resource planning (ERP) software is getting more mobile, evolving more quickly, and integrating more tightly with manufacturing processes, according to IQMS. IQMS representatives spoke to Manufacturing Business Technology recently about how the company is expanding externally, developing software more quickly, and expanding services and support. IQMS designs, develops, and implements manufacturing ERP software.
"Even with the economic downturn in the U.S., we're doing well,' says Glenn Nowak, IQMS vice president. "We've partnered to better serve implementations and provide support in India. We've also opened an office in the U.K., where we had partnered to offer support previously."
More mobility: The need for increased mobility and greater immediacy lead IQMS to give its ERP software the ability to work on the Research in Motion Blackberry platform. Using available handheld devices allows companies to take advantage of existing resources, without purchasing anything additional, Nowak says. Electronic signature storage also is available.
Randy Flamm, president and CEO at IQMS, says the two-tiered IQMS architecture allows the system to have excellent performance because the Oracle database resides on the Oracle server, allowing the front end to be a thin client. The design makes it easy for plants in varied countries, languages, and currencies tie into one, scalable Oracle database, he says.
Online community advice heeded: Flamm says IQMS has been using a dedicated community server for group discussions, helping accelerate software development. It's been open for about three months, noted Daniele Fresca, director of marketing, and in beta prior to that. Such a direct connection to users, Flamm says, "streamlines and accelerates the development process. It's as if we added 1,000 new developers to the staff." A development environment based on agile teams quickly works through the suggestions from the IQMS online user community.
Tighter ties to plant-floor processes needed: Future efforts will continue to incorporate process monitoring, expand of statistical process control (SPC) with real-time trend charting data from programmable logic controllers (PLCs), to help with predictive monitoring and give alerts via email or text messages and on individual plant-floor machines. A library will help IQMS software connect to and interact with various PLCs. Robotics, packaging, stacking, palletizing, label printing, barcodes, and inventory updates are among applications, all aimed at getting the process right, every time, Nowack says. These advancements build on knowledge developed, in part, from the IQMS Automation Group, formed in mid-2008.
Also read from MBT: IQMS RackTruck inventory management increases Double H Plastics productivity 20%.
- Mark T. Hoske, electronic products editor, MBT www.mbtmag.com
