Home » The Role of Technology in Operations
Evolution of ERP Systems
ERP Systems didn't just happen overnight. Rather. they are an outgrowth. or the next generation, of materials requirements planning (MRP) sy tern and manufacturing resources planning (MRP II), which were developed and introduced within the manufacturing function in the late 1960s and 1970s, and which are discussed in detail in Chapter 18.
Evolution of ERP Systems
MRP systems provide
Defining ERP Systems
Prior to .the introduction of ERP systems, each functional area within an organization typically had its own software and database. These software packages often were incompatible with each other, which prevented transactions from taking place directly between systems. In addition with more than one database, there often were multiple records for the same piece of data, which, in turn, caus
Enterprise Resource: Planning (ERP) Systems
In the last decade, there has emerged a new generation of software systems that link all of the various functional areas within an organization. The goal of these systems, which are known as enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, is to provide a company with a single, uniform software platform and database that will facilitate transactions among the different fun
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
An ERP ) stem provides a firm with a common software infrastructure and database. These systems are discussed in detail in the next section of this chapter.
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
Supply Chain Management (SCM) These software systems primarily focus on how firms interact with the suppliers that are part of their overall supply chain. Depending on where the
Information Technology
As illustrated in Exhibit 4.2, the use of information technology in manufacturing operations can be divided into four major groups of software systems: (a) enterprise resource planning (ERP), (b) supply chain management (SCM), (c) new product development lNPD J. and (d) customer relationship management (CRM). These software packages. as the exhibit
suggests, have significant overlap in t
Automation
The term automation is familiar to all. but a commonly agreed-upon definition still eludes us Some authorities view automation as a totally new set of concepts that relate to the automatic operation of a production process: others view it simply as an evolutionary development in technology in which machinery performs some or all of the process control function. Automation is a set of concepts. but it
How Technology Affects Operations
Operations strategy defines the way in which a firm competes in the marketplace. Examples of these strategies include (a) low cost, (b) quality, (c) speed of delivery, and (d) customization. As we learned in Chapter 2, managers in the past had to decide which of these strategies was most applicable to the particular market segment they were serving. In so doing, they recognized
TECHNOLOGY IS ONLY A TOOL
After completing some business in the LA area, I returned my rental car to the Avis parking lot at Los Angeles International Airport (lAX) As I started to get out of the car and unload my bags, an Avis attendant greeted me with a handheld computer and asked me for a copy of my rental agreement I said to him, “Don’t bother. I need to go to the check-in desk anyway, as I
Chapter Objectives
• Introduce the different ways in which technology can add value to the operations function within an organization.
• Identify the various ways in which technology can be used in a manufacturing company.
• Describe enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems and how they impact an organization.
• Demonstrate the different ways in which technology can be integrated into service operatio
