The challenges faced in project-based manufacturing are more complex than regular manufacturing. Projects often begin as a concept, which later transform to reality by combining several assemblies/sub-assemblies with several bills of materials and steering instructions. Project-based manufacturing entails taking the existing standard manufacturing process and segregating the value chain by control, execution, and planning.
Therefore, the specialized needs of every client means that every new assignment feels unique with its own set of challenges to solve, bringing in concerns such as:
- Difficulty in standardizing projects
- Inability to assign project ownership as different departments are involved at various stages of product development
- Cumbersome to track progress and monitor change requests from clients
- Challenges in identifying reasons for project delays and cost escalations
- Siloed approach to work with inadequate communication among different departments
- Limited control over processes leading to inefficient use of time and resources
While implementing an ERP for manufacturing addresses these issues by streamlining processes and giving you visibility into project areas, a project-based ERP system can handle more than just the scheduling and engineering planning associated with project management activities. You can also track areas such as earned value in support of revenue recognition and detailed tracking of costs by project and task.