A lot is involved in running a discreet manufacturing company, from sourcing quality materials to managing formulas. You’ll need a capable solution to effectively manage your operations and increase productivity. Enterprise Resource Planning or ERPs in the manufacturing industry provide your team with all the necessary tools to ensure quality and consistent products. Read on to understand the role of ERP in the pharma industry and the benefits of implementing a solution like GoldFinch ERP.
What Role Does ERP Play in the Pharmaceutical Industry?
Pharma ERP is among the several examples of digital transformation in production and distribution. Recent research shows that most pharmaceutical companies invest heavily in cybersecurity and cloud computing to streamline operations. However, it is through automation that they can streamline processes, comply with strict regulations, and effectively manage their formulas and recipes.
The following are three primary roles of ERP in a pharma company:
Formulation and Pre-Formulation
The government strictly monitors and regulates drug and food manufacturing industries since they directly affect the consumer’s health. These regulations start from raw materials processing to the handling of finished batches. You must also define the drug production process, schedule the production stages, and measure each unit’s quantities.
Having an ERP in your pharma company means you’ll automatically manage these formulations without compromising accuracy. The ERP also helps keep tabs on past and ongoing productions, enforcing productivity optimization in all processes.
Product Costing
ERPs tailored for the pharmaceutical industry also help define the cost of drug products. Although many considerations are involved, the system automates this function and makes product costing effortless. Some of the expenses considered include:
- Cost of raw materials
- The production process used
- The product’s packaging and marketing efforts
Not having an ERP in your operations makes the product costing more complex since the data is in different departments and typically isn’t current. ERPs provide your employees instant access to centralized company data. The data is also in real-time; any changes are immediately updated and shown in the system. Tracking variable costs across departments has never been easier for the finance department.
Inventory Management
Another reason most companies dealing with pharmaceuticals invest in ERP solutions is to streamline their inventory management. These companies must effectively manage their inventory to ensure the market has enough products.
ERPs help track and trace products in real time by using technology like serialization. This technology makes it easy to know how much inventory you have and also provides alerts when inventory levels are too low. Modern ERPs also use predictive analysis to forecast supply and demand, which helps manage the imbalance with minimal losses.
Why Manage Formulas and Recipes with ERP
It is crucial for companies dealing with chemicals and foods to manage their formulas and recipes effectively. However, this function becomes challenging, especially for companies dealing with various products and not forgetting the strict government regulations requiring pharma companies to have well-defined management and operations systems.
Here is why you need to implement ERP to help manage your formulas and recipes:
Improved Recipe Management
ERP in your company’s operations means you’ll enjoy improved recipe management. The platform helps ensure consistency in all batches produced by helping you identify and measure each ingredient used for a particular product. It has all the information on individual elements and the possible variations to create safe products for consumption.
ERPs use centralized storage, meaning the recipe and formula variations are enforced in every batch. Some platforms also automate the recipe correction function, making it easier to develop new products.
Traceability
Modern manufacturing is more complex, making it crucial to have an ERP that can effectively manage each step of the production process. An effective ERP can help trace a specific product, from the raw materials used to the consumer’s location. This feature proves valuable during a product recall.
Recalls require you to identify and isolate all products affected by the claim by focusing on the raw materials. By examining electronic batch records from the ERP, you can manage the recall more effectively and efficiently. It helps identify individual ingredients while providing the necessary information to quicken the process.
Improved Compliance
The government must heavily regulate these industries to ensure the safe production of food and drug products. Implementing an ERP means you’ll automate your workflows and gain more control over the procedures used in manufacturing and distribution. Most national and international laws check for system functionalities to ensure quality and safe-for-consumption products.
Improved Stock and Cost Control
Managing your formulas and recipes with ERP also results in greater stock and stock control. It helps measure, manage, and control inventory levels, improving productivity by reducing waste and inventory holding costs. The accurate oversight gained also helps management make more informed decisions when budgeting and forecasting costs.
Upholds Safety Standards
The customer always comes first, so manufacturers must prioritize product safety. Companies processing foods and drugs should invest heavily in systems to help guarantee consistency in production while adhering to strict industry regulations.
Implementing an ERP helps you gain more control over your company’s processing cycle. It monitors expiration dates, highlights critical information on allergens, and eliminates all the paperwork involved. You also enjoy accurate and consistent reporting to help keep up with the ever-evolving safety standards.
How GoldFinch Helps
GoldFinch is among the few ERPs with tools and features explicitly tailored for discreet manufacturing companies. It comes with a manufacturing management package designed to optimize your processes while improving efficiency and driving growth.
With GoldFinch, you get superior inventory management features to ensure consistent operations. It also helps with quality control by helping your team define, capture, and report quality-related data from raw materials to finished products.
To experience a comprehensive and user-focused manufacturing and distribution process, you’ll need an ERP like GoldFinch. It features advanced features like formula management, production planning, and batch tracking to provide more control over your operations.
Implement an ERP in your manufacturing firm and discover all that these platforms have to offer as you scale your business. Ready to learn more? Contact us today.
