Many of the processes that go into making our food — from harvest to packing to shipping to seeing it on our shelves — are quite invisible to most people. As a food and beverage (F&B) manufacturer, you know how involved the entire production process is, and the technology solutions that support those processes have only gotten more advanced. Quality control applications are vital, manufacturing plants are increasingly incorporating AI-driven automation, the IoT is integrated into every machine, and all of this can be streamlined through food and beverage manufacturing software, aka a modern ERP solution.
That last part can be where it all breaks down, when an operation sits on dated software that doesn’t play nice with modern advancements. Moving into 2025, we’re seeing the new era, Industry 5.0, on the horizon, with a focus on enabling technology and human teamwork. Recent research projects 12.2% market growth specifically with manufacturing ERP by 2030, highlighting its growing importance. That’s why we go to bat for Acumatica as a stand out solution for F&B manufacturers
Why Get Acumatica Involved in Your Processes?
There are plenty of food and beverage manufacturing software solutions out there for you to choose from, and we at Arris can find different reasons to recommend any one of them. What sets Acumatica apart is how it is developed specifically for manufacturing and distribution first, instead of being a system that just happens to be able to support the industry through add-ons and custom setups. Out of the box, Acumatica gives you a modern solution that is relatively simple to implement. An ERP implementation is always a process, but this solution shines by being easy to use and learn.
Unlimited Room for Growth
As a cloud-based ERP solution, Acumatica can offer a SaaS pricing model. Their unlimited user pricing model brings down the cost-per-user as your team grows. That makes the solution more accessible for F&B manufacturers of any size, allowing them to give access to the entire team or grow affordably and generate revenue consistently. It’s a model that favors larger teams and rapid growth.
Augmented Production
With the increasing demand for connectivity on the assembly line and shop floor, Acumatica rises to the challenge. Open APIs allow for seamless integration with the Device Hub, letting you link in robotics, SCADA, wearables, and other modern devices that are making your life easier. The latest in block chain technology keeps all of this interconnected, internet-accessible machinery safe and protects your data. With Acumatica, you can keep your operations ahead of the curve.
Functions That Impact F&B Manufacturers
While it’s great for us to highlight all the above, you’re no doubt asking, “Right, but what specifically is Acumatica going to do for me?” Totally valid. As an ERP geared towards manufacturers, F&B included, it has features great for maintaining quality control, costing, and more that we’ll dive into.
Quality Matters to Your Clients
Acumatica knows that F&B manufacturers are almost always concerned with the quality of their product and how they can make it better. This ERP focuses on making that easier and more efficient for you with the natively integrated Quality Management Suite. It allows for full quality testing, control, and data collection throughout the entire production process. That ultimately meets and improves customer satisfaction, while adhering to industry regulations and compliance standards.
Keeping an Eye on Costs
Properly maintained inventory management equates to financial health. With access to real-time data from anywhere you can access the internet, you can minimize your carrying costs. Tracking ingredient prices and quality straight from the source automatically with lot-specific costing saves so much time.
Make a Plan That Works
Coupled with the robust inventory management, the production management analysis tools let you flexibly schedule and plan with better forecasting. Machine learning helps streamline the material requirements planning (MRP) application and your scheduling, so you can use resources more effectively. You’ll be able to figure out what you need to buy or when products are needed in less time.
Faster Data Collection
Manual data entry and collection is error-prone and time-consuming. Getting rid of the bulk of it makes life much easier and helps cut costs. Acumatica lets you tether barcode readers (and mobile devices) to the system, and scanning barcodes streamlines the data collection and tracking processes in a major way. You can even get more advanced with RFID tags linked into that IoT functionality Acumatica supports. With access to more data that is more accurate, you will have better reporting and analysis, improving your business’ decision-making.
When you look at all these powerful features, it’s clear what Acumatica offers F&B manufacturing: a light in the dark. Interlinked systems and machinery are giving you data at every step. Your key decision-makers can see all, talk to each other more effectively within the software, and bring you a game plan that will support growth or weather contraction as needed, keeping you agile in a fluctuating market.
How Arris Makes a Difference
Our team knows Acumatica inside and out and brings decades of manufacturing industry experience. Plus, when one of us demos the solution for you and discovers the ways it can help your operation specifically (with recommendations from all that industry experience), that same person will be on the implementation team. They then become the point of contact with Arris as your trusted ongoing partner.
Reports show that 77% of businesses have a technology partnership, ranking it as their “most important partner type”. Having that long-lasting partnership can make the difference for an F&B manufacturer. It’s a different feeling when you know your technology partner understands your business and not only watches it grow, but can make informed recommendations to support further growth.
If you’re looking for better food and beverage manufacturing software, to improve your automation, get better reporting & insight, streamline your financial management, we’ve found Acumatica hits all the must-haves for F&B manufacturers. Reach out with any questions you might have and let’s see if it matches your checklist.