palletcentral

30 PalletCentral • January-February 2023 palletcentral.com "naming conventions" on part numbers, customer and vendor names is a game changer. "Just getting everyone calling everything by the same name was a huge win back then because it enabled us communicate clearly and cleaned up our reporting quite a bit," Wenner says. Ultimately, inventory management and visibility were one of the main reasons Wenner's team wanted the system, but accurate inventory is made possible by controlling all the transactions that affect inventory. "Just like anything else, what you get out of an ERP is a direct result of the time and effort you put into maintaining it," he explains. Reducing labor redundancy, streamlining processes, supply management and costs can all be tracked in the right software. NWPCA Connects the Dots As we have mentioned, ERP encompasses a wide array of business functions. Accounting, human resources, sales procurement production, inventory, and asset management, and more, can all be brought together under one platform as project management software. Members of the National Wooden Pallet & Container Association (NWPCA) may also be using the Pallet Design System™ (PDS) – an analysis, design, and marketing tool available exclusively NWPCA. Some companies reached out to NWPCA for an improvement in communication between the two systems, and the PDS team rose to the challenge. Pallet company ERP users more than likely utilize its asset management functions for inventory purposes – such as tracking materials and lumber supply, tracking inventory of pallets they've built, and distribution to their customers. When developing a new pallet order for a customer using the PDS system, they must enter the asset pieces of their design into the ERP system, again, where that data is tracked across the company. "Essentially, they are entering the same information twice, in each system, which leaves them exposed to errors that could be entered incorrectly or differently," says Kevin Richey, NWPCA Senior Software Engineer. Ultimately the PDS team has begun the process to eliminate this duplication. Just launched last month, it is a work in progress. "We have written the 'sending' part of the connection in PDS. We are currently in discussions with the ERP vendors who are coding the receiving part to provide functionality for the PDS and ERP to share information," says Richey. "I don't know of any companies who have put it into production at this time, but many are very interested utilizing the connection capabilities." e data between PDS and ERP is transferred with an XML file, which is a standard data format. "is data is critical to manage inventory and projects. A company might have a form for an employee to type in boards and fasteners needed for a job, for instance, and now they can just add PDS for that user who enters the data and it would track the asset inventory to complete the job in ERP," says Richey. More will be announced on this development in the near future. The Decision May Be the Hardest Part "e task may seem insurmountable," says Hachtman, "but it is well worth the effort. Once implemented, you will look back and wonder how you ever ran the business without an ERP system." "e single most important factor is 'will your staff use it?' Implementing a cumbersome and complex ERP system will be too daunting on your staff and will just take too long to accept. Your staff will do everything they can to avoid using it," says Alan Miceli, Pallet-Track®. "e key to success is any system must be simple to use. Simple to implement. Simple to train and works just like you would expect it to. A good ERP System should match your processes. You should not have to change the way you do business to fit into the ERP process." Take your time to decide what you want it to do, and what software is the right one for your organization. "Before jumping into an implementation, take the time to think about what the important milestones or deliverables are," adds Wenner. "Take an organized, stepped approach which will create clear expectations by creating alignment and focus on what matters for each step in the process." He suggests that you fight the urge to move too fast. "In the midst of trying to implement new processes, we still had customers to serve, bills to pay and a business to run. By moving at an appropriate pace for your organization, you allow time to troubleshoot issues as they arise, adapt processes and most importantly, get buy-in from the team." Caryn Smith serves as the editor and art director of PalletCentral. She is CEO of Driven By Design LLC, a communications agency specializing in association publications for over 20 years. We have written the 'sending' part of the connection in PDS. We are currently in discussions with the ERP vendors who are coding the receiving part to provide functionality for the PDS and ERP to share information. – Kevin Richey, NWPCA Senior Software Engineer

• Cover