When it comes to the manufacturing industry, many organizations are aware of the use of enterprise resource planning (ERP) software and adoption levels have been gaining steam. However, with new business technologies taking root, ERP systems can be complicated and challenging to install and maintain, especially as the IT landscape tightens its grip on daily operations.

A recent article from CRN recapped a white paper by IDC Manufacturing Insights. The goal of the report is to reveal barriers for high-tech manufacturing companies that are not using ERP solutions.

The study found that 35 percent of total companies and 80 percent of organizations with over 5,000 employees believe their ERP solution is vital to improve the customer experience. 

However, according to the numbers, 45 percent of companies run into struggles when it comes to integrating front and back office operations into a single solution. This is typically the fault of a rigid IT solution and a lack of flexibility.

The article features comments from John Hiraoka, the Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Epicor.

"We believe it is imperative for high-tech manufacturers to create an agile and flexible supply chain by investing in technologies that enable faster decision making, collaboration across the organization and with business partners resulting in superior customer experience," Hiraoka said. "Improving real-time access to data and sharing information with modern ERP solutions leveraging mobile, social and cloud concepts will bring greater competitive advantage and growth."

Implementing a manufacturing ERP software solution can be complicated. With the help of an IT consulting firm that specializes in these solutions, any business can deploy them more easily.