Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012- ERP Software for Food and Beverage Industry

Food and beverage manufacturers know they have special requirements that standard ERP applications cannot readily meet. The Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Food and Beverage solution is a breakthrough solution that helps this industry save time and money. The Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Food and Beverage solution was designed with industry-specific functionality and capability that makes managing the processes in food and beverage companies a great deal easier and more effective.  Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage now meets the needs of process manufacturing businesses including dairy, non-durable Customer Packaged Goods (CPG) like toiletries, food and beverage, alcohol, meat, pork and poultry (proteins), and prepared foods.

Take a couple of minutes and check out this video on how Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage can help your business run more efficiently and profitably. This video can also be found under the "Try Microsoft Dynamics AX“ section of our website.

The following is a list of 9 valuable features incorporated in the Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Food and Beverage solution:

1) Recipe and Formula Management

Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage provides you with a flexible and powerful tool to manage your recipes and/or formulas. You can define produced items by ingredient percentage, standard batch size, or both. You can also associate a formula item to multiple finished container sizes without having to recreate the base formula each time. Formula and recipe management using Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage helps ensure accurate product costing and simplified product definitions.

2) Integrated Co-Product and By-Product Management

You can easily define co-products and by-products in Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage at the item definition level. Once defined, you can also determine how they will be handled from a cost perspective. For example, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage provides the flexibility if you need to allocate production costs across by-products, or expense their costs to a scrap account.

3) Yield Planning and Tracking

Users can define yields at the top level of the product, or for individual ingredients. This has a few benefits increasing efficiency and productivity. First, the system will allow users to calculate an accurate cost for the produced items and for their individual ingredient contributions. Second, when determining material requirements using MRP, users get the “real” requirements thus helping to eliminate material shortages. Fewer shortages results in increased scheduling reliability and reduced disruptions to your flow.

4) Flexible Scheduling

In Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage, you have a wide range of scheduling and loading production options. These include forward and backward scheduling as well as infinite and finite loading. You also have the ability to use any of the scheduling rules on a given job resulting in optimized resource utilization and increased efficiency.

5) Lot Tracking and Control

Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage tracks the lot numbers for items in every inventory transaction. Not only does it track these items, it provides the user with an easy-to use tool to quickly forward and backward track any item number to its source; where it was used or sold. This capability helps to make regulatory compliance easier and ultimately, your products safer.

6) Catch Weight

Many food and beverage manufacturers and distributors have to contend with catch weights which are stocking an item in more than one unit of measure at the same time.  This often requires the user to create a custom code to handle this requirement in a standard ERP system. The good news is now Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage can manage catch weights right out of the box, which results in more accurate inventory valuation and easier sales or purchase order entry.

7) Expiration and Shelf Date Management

The Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Food and Beverage solution can automatically track expiration and best-before dates for raw materials and produced items. The system also tells users that expiration dates are approaching so they can take appropriate action. Automated date tracking not only saves users the hassle of manual efforts, but also saves the company money through smarter inventory management and reduced waste.

8) Integrated Quality Assurance/Control

Users can design any needed quality control tests for incoming materials or produced items. Once created, users can associate those tests to production steps or receiving activities and define disposition codes for failed tests. With integrated quality control, users always know the test results and dispositions of tested materials.  With Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage, you get this all within the system and without mandating this information in spreadsheets or other external systems.

9) Rebate and Allowance Management

Users can setup rebates and allowances at the item, customer, or combination level in Microsoft  Dynamics AX 2012 for Food and Beverage. The system accurately tracks these amounts and eliminates the need for using spreadsheets or other manual methods. You also have the ability to create either credit notes or AP vouchers for the accumulated amounts. An automated way of tracking and paying rebates/allowances with increased accuracy helps to ensure the right amounts are determined.

Finally, food and beverage manufacturers have an industry specific ERP solution that fits their unique requirements for process manufacturing.  Microsoft Dynamics AX for Food and Beverage helps companies remain highly competitive and produce consistently quality goods while meeting government regulations, handling raw material variability and increasing profitability with better reporting and management of raw materials to the final packaged product.

If you are interested in further information, give us a call at 888-222-8827 and check out our Microsoft Dynamics AX Food Processing ERP solution brochure. We can show you how the Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Food and Beverage solution can help solve your issues effectively.