第四章Technology Structure.ppt

Chapter 4 Technology Structure Text A. ERP Advances in technology are affecting every aspect of business, and operations management is no exception. [1] From robotics and automation on the factory floor to information technology in the form of enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and the internet, technology, and especially information technology(EDI), is dramatically changing the way in which both manufacturing and service operations are being designed and managed. [2] 1.1 Enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems In the last decade, there has emerged a new generation of software systems that link all of the various functional areas within an organization. The goal of these systems, which are known as enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems, is to provide a company with a single, uniform software platform and database that will facilitate transactions among the different functional areas within a firm, and in some cases, between firms and their customers and venders[3] ERP Systems didn’t just happen overnight. Rather, they are an outgrowth, or the next generation, of materials requirements planning (MRP) systems and manufacturing resources planning (MRPII). MRP systems provided the manufacturing function with a common database and software platform to link all of its areas, which included purchasing, planning, materials, and operations. Prior to the introduction of MRP systems, each of these individual areas was managed more or less as an independent operation, which often results in excessive inventories of materials and slow, inefficient, and often erroneous transactions. MRP II systems ware a first attempt to integrate operations, marketing, finance and engineering. Just as MRP systems provided a common software platform and database for the manufacturing function, ERP systems, as mentioned previously, now link all of the functional areas within an organization by providing a common software platform and shared database. When properly installed and