UK software systems lag behind the US

By Rick Pendrous

- Last updated on GMT

Related tags Enterprise resource planning

UK software systems lag behind the US
Britain's food and drink processors are failing to embrace the improved operational efficiencies provided by 'middleware' such as manufacturing executions systems (MES), says a leading vendor in the field.

According to Steven Hargreaves, group product director for enterprise software provider Solarsoft, the UK's use of MES is well behind economies such as the US, despite the quantifiable return on investment (ROI) they offer.

"In the UK small and medium-sized enterprise market, MES are probably not in more than about 10% of the addressable market [for all manufacturing sectors]," ​said Hargreaves.

While many firms have invested heavily in top-end enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, they still frequently use manual paper-based systems to collect information from the shopfloor, said Hargreaves. This blocks insight into the true costs associated with responding to fast-changing demands of the food supply chain.

The key to a responsive business is bridging the automation gap between production plant and ERP systems, said Hargreaves. This helps to monitor yields more closely and provide a measure of raw materials used, wastage and production.

"What we are selling most of and it seems to fit the economic climate [are systems] that fill the gap in shopfloor data collection,"​ he said. "That's where the action is right now: manufacturing and MES. It's a lot less disruptive to put in than a new ERP system. And, more importantly, the ROI and the payback will be less than two years."

"The manufacturing intelligence [MES] stuff that we have done in food and drink is strongest in the Americas,"​ reported Hargreaves. He cited clients such as Unilever, Cargill and Diageo. "In the UK we've done a lot in other sectors. The take-up [in food and drink] is not as advanced as it is in the US we have a couple of things [in UK food and drink] in the pipeline, but I can't talk about them."

Solarsoft has supplied its Tropos ERP systems to a variety of UK food businesses, including chilled food firm Uniq, which is being acquired by Greencore, bakery Bells of Lazonby, Scottish distillery Bruichladdich and Kettle Produce. However, pet food firm C&D Foods based in Ireland has taken Solarsoft's manufacturing intelligence and its ERP systems.

Last month Solarsoft also signed a deal with Unilever in the US for an extension to its Informance EMI real-time manufacturing intelligence system for use across all of its sites in the Americas. This aims to enhance Unilever's total productive maintenance activities when the Informance roll-out is completed within 35 plants across 13 countries this year.

Food Manufacture is organising a free IT Summit on October 20 in Warwickshire at which return on investment will be a core subject. Please call 01293 610433 for details. Or visit www.foodmanevents.co.uk​ or email foodmanevents@wrbm.com

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