OptiPro Manufacturing Blogs
Get the latest insights, advice, tips and industry best practices in one place, all while empowering your manufacturing business at the same time.
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September 7, 2026
Improving Manufacturing Efficiency and Inventory Accuracy with OptiPro Manufacturing integrated with SAP Business One
A common production challenge: At 8:30 a.m., a production manager discovers that a machine scheduled for a priority order is waiting for a critical component....
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September 7, 2026
Discrete, Repetitive, or Mixed-Mode: Choosing the Right Production Approach
A production manager at a growing manufacturing facility faced a critical challenge: selecting the right production approach to support business growth, control operational complexity, and...
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September 7, 2026
7 Ways OptiProERP Improves Inventory Accuracy and Production Performance
Inventory accuracy affects nearly every aspect of a manufacturing operation. When inventory records are unreliable, purchasing may order materials the company already has; production may...
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June 29, 2026
What is Production Planning and Control (PPC)? A Complete Guide to Modern Manufacturing
Production planning and control manages and schedules the allocation of human resources, raw materials, work centers, machinery, and production processes. It finds the most efficient...
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June 18, 2026
Types of Bill of Materials (BOMs) Explained
In our last post, we focused on the advantages of automated BOMs vs. manual spreadsheet-based systems. Today, we’re going to drill down a little further...
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July 11, 2025
How SAP Business One Is Embracing AI – And Why That’s a Game-Changer for OptiPro Manufacturing Customers
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer a futuristic concept; it has become a business imperative. Companies of all sizes are turning to AI to work...
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December 12, 2024
SAP Business One: Roadmap Insights 2025
SAP Business One, in which OptiPro Manufacturing is natively embedded, continues to be at the forefront, offering an agile and scalable ERP solution tailored to...
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June 5, 2024
Outgrowing QuickBooks? Modern ERP Helps Manufacturers Maximize Productivity
For many small and mid-sized manufacturers, QuickBooks has been a lifesaver. It's a familiar, affordable solution that handles basic accounting needs. However, as your business...
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May 15, 2024
How ERP Improves Inventory Accuracy, Visibility, and Management
Inventory is a major current asset in business and should be maintained efficiently to avoid excess stock and unnecessary inventory-carrying costs. In this blog, you...
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May 15, 2024
Benefits of an ERP System for Manufacturers Over Disconnected Systems
When businesses use disparate systems that don’t “talk” to each other, it takes a lot of employee time to gather the data needed to see...
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April 15, 2024
What Are The Benefits of a Product Configurator in Manufacturing?
For manufacturers that offer their customers configurable products or made-to-order products, a product configurator helps speed and streamline order processing. It also creates automated BOMs...
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April 10, 2024
How to Track All Quote-to-Cash Steps to Produce a Final Product
From the moment a customer requests a quote to the final product delivery, a complex web of processes is in play. Managing these processes requires...
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February 14, 2024
What is Extended Reality, and How Does It Affect Manufacturing?
Digital transformation is aggressively scaling up across all sectors of the manufacturing industry. Technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, 3D printing, Virtual Reality, and Augmented...
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February 9, 2024
Additive Manufacturing and ERP: Enhancing Efficiency and Integration
Additive Manufacturing (AM), often called 3D printing, has emerged as a revolutionary technology potentially transforming traditional production processes. As this innovative approach gains traction across...
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January 25, 2023
The Difference Between Configuration and Customization in ERP Implementation
Selecting the right ERP system is a major decision for manufacturers. The greater challenge is determining whether the system can support modern manufacturing processes without...
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January 17, 2023
9 Critical ERP Features for Discrete Manufacturers
Manufacturers need specific functionality to run their businesses effectively. When looking for a solution, you need to find ERP software with features that will fully...
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November 3, 2022
8 Manufacturing ERP Use Cases That Can Help Your ERP Decision
It’s difficult to determine if an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system is right for your business. It provides many advantages, including a unified database with...
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October 26, 2022
Trends, Impacts, and Benefits of Industrial Connectivity for Shop Floor Machines
Remote monitoring and control of machines are growing, and according to Research and Markets, it should reach $31.7 Billion by 2026, up from $23 Billion...
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October 26, 2022
How Can Manufacturers Build Resilience and Become Sustainable?
Did you know: 90% of manufacturing leaders see a positive relationship between their performance and the sustainability transformation of their organization? 84% of consumers claim...
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August 19, 2022
7 Proven Methods to Increase Manufacturing Throughput
What is Throughput? Throughput is the time it takes for a product to pass through manufacturing processes on a machine-by-machine basis for a defined period. Throughput only...
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August 18, 2022
The 12 Most Important KPIs for Manufacturing Production
What’s covered in this blog: What KPIs are in manufacturing The difference between KPIs and metrics What determines a good KPI Why manufacturers should use...
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May 23, 2022
4 Hidden Costs of Using Outdated Technology Amid the Digital World
In the words of Henry Ford: “If you always do what you always did, you’ll always get what you always got.” The manufacturing sector is...
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April 19, 2022
How Advanced Planning and Scheduling Helps Manufacturers Streamline Production
30 Second Summary APS synchronizes thousands of resources to create accurate production schedules It lets you react fast to market changes and deviations in production...
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March 14, 2022
Juggle Better: 6 Ways Production Scheduling in ERP Helps Manufacturers
Before getting into production scheduling and how it helps manufacturers, let’s have a quick look at the functions of the production department in a manufacturing...
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November 14, 2019
How Shop Floor Execution Software Supports a Customer-first Focus
Many small and mid-size manufacturing businesses think of shop floor operations as an internal-facing process. As a result, the tendency is to view their shop floor...
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August 27, 2019
5 Ways ERP and MES Integration Makes Manufacturers Agile
In our last blog post, we explored the differences between Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) and how together they help provide...
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May 20, 2019
ABC Analysis of Inventory: Optimize Business Bottom Line
The most common concern supply chain management experts struggle with is accurately identifying the causes of inventory inconsistencies. If a discrepancy is identified when users...
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May 1, 2019
What is Material Requirements Planning and Manufacturing Resource Planning Software?
Manufacturing companies convert raw materials into a form that is of more value and use for the consumer. Developed in the 60s and 70s, material...
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April 10, 2019
MRP vs MRP II vs ERP: An Introduction for Manufacturers
Manufacturing is complex. There are many tasks involved in the manufacturing process, from maintaining accurate stock levels to controlling production functions. Manufacturers used to manually...
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March 27, 2019
What Is MRP? Why Is It Important for Manufacturing Businesses?
Recently OptiPro Manufacturing attended an international exhibition about manufacturers. Our marketing executive met Harper Sheldon, operations head of a leading manufacturing company and one of...
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January 15, 2019
How Does a Manufacturer Automate Logistics Operation in Their Warehouse?
Envision an automated forklift running down an aisle, stacking inventory into huge racks that tower 60 feet above the floor of your warehouse. Or an...
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November 27, 2018
What Is the Difference Between Manufacturing and Fabrication?
Manufacturing vs. Fabrication – Overview Just walk into a manufacturing facility on a Monday morning, and you will quickly see where the pressure comes from....
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November 16, 2018
Basic Modules of an ERP Solution in the Manufacturing Sector
ERP software provides some of the most up-to-date modules for manufacturing businesses today. ERP modules for manufacturing industry help you meet the business requirements by...
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October 29, 2018
What is a Manufacturing Execution System (MES)?
A Manufacturing Execution System (MES) is an information system that connects, monitors and controls complex manufacturing systems and data flows on the shop floor. The...
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October 15, 2018
Top 3 Benefits of Supply Chain Management
When looking for an ERP solution it’s important to find one that will take care of your entire supply chain management needs. The ultimate goal...
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October 4, 2018
7 Key Integrations for Manufacturing ERP Software
ERP, Enterprise Resource Planning software encompasses a set of tools that collects, organizes, and updates the business data in one system. Manufacturing ERP software offers...
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September 27, 2018
5 Must-have Features of a Warehouse Management System
A warehouse is the cornerstone of every manufacturing organization. It is simply a central location where goods are procured, stored, and distributed for further processing....
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June 15, 2018
7 Stock Control Methodologies Manufacturers Should Practice
“The most dangerous kind of waste is the waste we do not recognize.” – Shigeo Shingo, leading expert (Toyota Production System) In this dynamic manufacturing...
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May 3, 2018
Time to Take a Leap – Grow from MRP to ERP!
MRP, also known as Material Requirement Planning, is a business planning tool used by organizations to manage production planning, inventory control, and scheduling. It ensures...
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April 26, 2018
How Can Material Requirement Planning Create a Difference in Manufacturing?
In this modern world, every manufacturer is looking for ways to reduce costs and optimize business operations to the fullest. When we talk about the...
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January 25, 2018
4 Ways to Strategize Manufacturing Quality and Reduce Recalls
In this age of Industry 4.0, manufacturers seek an automated Quality Management System (QMS) that eliminates the need for hunting for a document in multiple...
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January 15, 2018
How Can a Warehouse Management System Drive Your Business Productivity?
Is your business still using spreadsheets to manage warehouse transactions and records? Or do you rely on manual processes for maintaining inventory and its data?...
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August 16, 2017
6 Ways to Reduce Inventory Levels
For any small to medium-sized manufacturer, the ability to effectively manage inventory can determine a company’s success or failure. Lean manufacturing principles identify inventory as one of...
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August 9, 2017
Improving Quality Assurance in Lean Manufacturing
Quality management is embedded within core lean manufacturing principles, however improving quality assurance even further for small and large manufacturers alike, can be achieved by...
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July 25, 2017
6 Warning Signs Your Manufacturing Business Needs An ERP System
Your salespeople are doing a great job drumming up business. But you are having a problem keeping up with demand and you can’t figure out...
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July 5, 2017
4 Lean Inventory Management Best Practices
The primary goal of lean manufacturing is to eliminate waste, (anything that doesn’t add value from a customer perspective), and inventory falls within that scope....
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June 26, 2017
Which Inventory Control Method Is Right For You?
Efficient inventory control is critical to the profitability of any manufacturing enterprise. However, with so many methods of inventory control available, it can be overwhelming...
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May 15, 2017
Quality Assurance & Quality Control Why You Need Both
In last week’s blog, we looked at quality assurance (QA) best practices for manufacturers. In that post, we touched on the fact that many use...
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May 8, 2017
5 Quality Assurance Best Practices for Manufacturers
In a manufacturing organization, quality management is an important process that ensures error-free and timely delivery of products to customers. When your products are not...
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May 3, 2017
Inventory Management 101 – The Master Production Schedule (MPS) Explained
Master production scheduling is the process that helps manufacturers plan which products and related quantities to produce during certain periods. It is proactive, driving the...
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April 10, 2017
How Automated BOMs Can Save You Time, Money and Eliminate Mistakes
A bill of materials (BOM) is a list of the raw materials, assemblies, sub-assemblies, components, sub-components, and associated quantities plus labor and equipment needed to...
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April 3, 2017
What Is Cycle Counting & Why Is It So Important?
Cycle counting is an efficient and cost-effective way to ensure the ongoing accuracy of your inventory counts and valuation. Usually, staff will perform cycle counts...
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March 28, 2017
5 Critical Inventory Management Best Practices
Any small- to mid-size manufacturing business knows that effective inventory management is critical to success. With inventory tying up working capital stock turn is paramount....
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March 6, 2017
EDI is Critical to Successful Supply Chain Management
EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) enables the electronic transfer of business information between trading partners (B2B) through a standardized format. EDI technology has been around for...
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February 6, 2017
6 Hidden Costs of Stockouts
Generally speaking, when a manufacturing/distribution enterprise experiences a stockout, the ramifications can be troubling on many fronts. A host of factors may be responsible for...
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July 31, 2016
Why Manufacturers Require 5 Degrees Of Connectedness
Analysts estimate that the Internet of Things (IoT) has already surpassed earlier projections, with over 15–18 billion connected devices globally as of 2025, and expectations...
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July 30, 2016
Simplify Complex Manufacturing For Greater Efficiencies
The manufacturing of large things – like aircraft, ships, or other complex, integrated assemblies – can take months or years to build. These products are...