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ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system is another Today, we cannot imagine management in
key milestone in the evolution of the manufacturing manufacturing unit without software applications such
industry. It came into the picture during the 1970s and as MES, SCADA, ERP, DCS and MRP. These are critical
1980s. ERP bought more management element into the tools for every leading manufacturing based
play. ERP has extensive functionality and areas of organization.
implementation. ERP integrates different functional
areas of an organization like accounting, inventory, Information Technology has made a huge changeover
in the manufacturing industry during past three
human resource, sales, marketing, purchase, finance,
decades. Today, manufacturing based leading
engineering/ production, supply chain management,
customer relationship management and much more organizations spend a major chunk of investments in
under the same umbrella. Even today ERP system is the field of computer applications. Many core hardware
based organizations B&R Automation, Siemens, LnT
considered as a key ingredient to manage
and Rockwell Automation have developed specialized
manufacturing or any other organization. A German
organization SAP SE is a well-known brand for ERP MES systems. Global MES market was valued $7.63
systems. While talking about ERP; we cannot ignore the billion in 2015 and it is projected to be worth $18.22
billion by the year 2022. This hybrid market is at peak
name SAP SE, which was established in 1972, playing a
of its growth today and considered as a major
vital role in the development of enterprise software
since then. contributor of the manufacturing industry in the
development of India and projected growth rate of this
But if we talk about the plant management, ERP fails in hybrid industry. It is very tempting field of work for any
certain aspects. Plant management demands project manager, who would like to explore new
instantaneous reporting and recording of every single horizons and to be a part of manufacturing evolution.
transaction on the shop floor. In the late 1980s,
manufacturing organizations started to customize It is in human nature to get more and more out of
everything. Bill Watterson in one of his comic strip of
niche ERP system from the perspective of plant
Calvin and Hobbes says “When you get something it’s
management. After many modifications in the early
1990s, we developed MES system. In 1992, AMR new and exciting. When you have something, you take
Research implemented first MES (Manufacturing it for granted and it’s boring. But everything you get
turns into everything you have.” Similar is the situation
Execution System). The MES bridges the gap between
with the manufacturing industry. We will always be
the planning system and the controlling system.
Continuous technological advancements in the field of looking for more efficient, better quality, less costly
SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition), ways to produce products and thus, the manufacturing
industry will be forever evolving.
DCS (Distributed Control System) and ERP have made
MES a very effective tool for plant management.

Comic Strip © Bill Watterson

Sachin Ghongade
M.Tech. Project Management, VJTI
spg.vjtipm2017@gmail.com

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