A distribution business comprises a complex system for buying and selling products, fulfilling and shipping orders, managing inventory and providing customer support. All of these workflows have to operate efficiently and on time. Today, this is largely a matter of software. Having the right software, such as an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution, to support your distribution business allows you to manage inventory, streamline sales orders and enhance purchasing—all while knowing the true costs of doing business. With that in mind, here are seven features you should look for in ERP software for your distribution business.
#1 – Inventory Management
Staying on top of inventory is one of the main reasons distributors need an effective, reliable software. You need ERP with inventory management capabilities to manage all your inventory processes and provide real-time visibility of available inventory, inventory locations, inventory in transit and inventory costs. An ERP-based inventory management system can also minimize inventory by evaluating required stocking levels based on past and future projected sales. Inventory carrying costs come down when distributors can avoid unnecessary buying and holding of products.
#2 – Sales Order Management
As distribution businesses grow, sales order management becomes much more complex. There are many moving parts to keep track of and manage, from multiple warehouses and suppliers to returns, credit limits and drop shipments. A quality ERP system establishes rules to manage these complexities. Acumatica’s Distribution Edition, for instance, will reduce order times and minimize costs by streamlining and automating sales quotes, order entry and processing, fulfillment and shipping. Acumatica’s Distribution Edition also includes functionality for the automated fulfillment of large shipments, emailing customers when orders have shipped and providing tracking numbers through USPS integration.
#3 – Purchase Order Management
The right ERP solution should enable your business to optimize procurement. The ERP will generate purchase orders (PO’s) when inventory stock is low and determine order amounts based on algorithms that predict inventory replenishment needs. It automatically tees up orders with the vendor offering the best price and delivery times.
#4 – Requisition Management
Improving requisition management means simplifying and automating the traditionially onerous process of vendor bids, sales quotes and approvals. A distributor should look for an ERP system that automates the entire process from order collection and supplier bids to sending and approving quotes. It can also improve workflows by notifying the right people at the right time during the requestion process. An ERP system should even be able to simplify bidding processes by automatically sending requests to multiple vendors and automatically converting winning bids into purchase orders.
#5 – Warehouse Management System (WMS)
Human error emerges as a core problem in warehouse management. It’s unavoidable, but there are solutions. Acumatica’s Distribution Edition, for example, eliminates mistakes in order fulfillment through efficient barcode scanning and verification. Routine workflows such as picking, packing, putting away, transferring and physical counting of inventory can be automated to further reduce errors in management in a single location or multiple locations.
#6 – Order Management
Order management with an ERP system allows a central location to manage sales, procurement and order fulfillment. Automated processes such as sales order processing, purchase order generation, managing returns and credit limits eliminate delays in order times. The system provides real-time information to determine profitability and control costs.
#7 – Advanced Financials
Knowing one’s true costs is arguably the most critical aspect of managing a distribution business. Acumatica Distribution Edition offers data reporting and visualization for real-time profitability by warehouse, product line, location and business unit. With real-time information, costs can be managed more effectively across the entire supply and distribution chain. Managers can thus make better and smarter decisions.
To learn more about Acumatica Distribution Edition, Contact us for a demo.
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