Their unique position in the industry presents opportunities and challenges to midsized manufacturers. These firms are large enough to take advantage of advanced management methods and technologies, but small enough to maintain a consumer-focused operating strategy. However, on the other end of the spectrum, midsized manufacturing companies have traditionally struggled with finding optimized business management software and ERP solutions that meet their needs on both fronts. TEC recently released a report that could help firms overcome this struggle though.

According to the technology advisory firm, manufacturing ERP software has evolved due to advanced in related technology, such as mobility and the cloud. As such, midsized firms have broader opportunities to take advantage of higher-quality software for manufacturing, enabling more of the benefits that larger firms have often received from these tools. In the past, finding ERP solutions that fully met operating needs was difficult for midsized firms, causing companies to invest in ill-fitted or manual software, the firm reported.

ERP solutions are a standard for growth and profitability for manufacturers, and investing in the right back office software will provide significant advantages to firms that didn't have these tools in place before, or had solutions that didn't quite conform to the unique demands of these companies. Now, real-time computing environments, mobile monitoring and management of resources and the Internet of Things allows firms to adapt and optimize production while still retaining their focus on smaller consumer bases, maintaining focus on quality of quantity and the customer-centric philosophy that gives midsized manufacturers an edge.

Midsized firms have to compete with global scale challenges, growing pains and a demand for continuous innovation that can be costly over time. Optimizing ERP software to support these specific needs can boost efficiency, save resources and enable the necessary growth to continue improving.