What is Enterprise Resource Planning?
Enterprise Resource Planning (abbreviated: ERP) refers to a software solution for resource planning of a company. ERP integrates a variety of business applications and operational data that is processed and stored in a central database. It is the core of every company and always the central and leading system within the IT system landscape.
In manufacturing companies, a core function of ERP is material requirements planning (see also Material Requirements Planning and Manufacturing Resources Planning), which must ensure that all the materials required for the manufacture of products and components are available at the right place, at the right time and in the right quantity. The overall aim is to eliminate the previous conflicting goals and achieve the following as performance characteristics:
- High quality and high productivity
- High security of supply and low capital commitment
- Complexity reduction and flexibility
- High continuity and low lead time
Today, this task is mainly performed with the help of IT systems based on modern information and communication technology in the cloud or on premises