The complex nature of textile and apparel supply chains mean software solutions that can integrate all business functions are an invaluable tool.
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) platforms integrate all business processes to automatically capture data, convert data into information, manage essential workflow, plan and optimise manufacturing capacity, and more.
Modules housed within ERP platforms range from business intelligence (customer services and sales), ecommerce (procurement and production), enterprise asset management (corporate performance, governance and human resources), accounting and distribution among others.
Within textile & apparel manufacturing, ERP systems can prove beneficial to the handling of raw materials and production capacity, simultaneously juggling purchase orders.
The use of these systems is not limited to large enterprises – small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are increasingly adopting ERP platforms. In 2019, the ERP market grew by 9% according to research and advisory company Gartner, while global interruptions to supply chains during the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic have arguably exacerbated the need for organisational and infrastructural software solutions.
Notably, ERP solutions are proposed as important investments within textile & apparel businesses. In a WTiN webinar titled ‘Building supply chain resilience in a Covid-19 world with ERP’ hosted by Yves-Simon Gloy, senior consultant at Gherzi, and Ronnie Hagin, CEO at Datatex, ERP is said to “build a smarter and [more] robust supply chain” in the wake of consistent disruption and economic hardship.
As such, WTiN’s Textile 4.0 channel will deep dive into ERP software. Now that these technologies are becoming more sophisticated and catered specifically to the textile industry, Textile 4.0 will explore available ERP features, how improvements can help add value and any potential risks to security that ERP poses.
The report will be available in July 2021.
