Shopfloor Matters
All learning paths
Learning path: Choosing systems

Beyond ERP

ERP runs the business. These are the strategic systems that run the operation around it, from MES/MOM and connected worker to WMS, APS and CPQ, and how to decide what you need.

Start at station 1 10 articles, about 49 minutes
0/1049 min to go
Interactive

How the strategic applications connect

ERP Runs the business MES/MOM Runs the operation Machines, PLCs and people OPC UA, MQTT and a unified namespace PLMProduct definition CPQConfigure and quote APSDetailed scheduling LIMSLab and samples WMSWarehouse QMSEnterprise quality EAM / CMMSMaintenance Connected workerFrontline apps

Pick an application to see what flows where, and why.

  1. Station 1 / 5 min read / Not started

    What is ERP?

    ERP is the backbone of a manufacturing business: finance, orders, purchasing, planning and costing on one set of data. What it does well, and where specialist applications take over.

  2. Station 2 / 4 min read / Not started

    The smart factory tech stack

    ERP, PLM, APS, MES/MOM, WMS, CMMS, LIMS, historians and data platforms. What each system does, where the boundaries sit, and how they fit together.

  3. Station 3 / 11 min read / Not started

    MES vs ERP

    ERP was never built to run a shopfloor. Where the line between MES and ERP should sit, and how moving execution into MES simplifies both.

  4. Station 4 / 3 min read / Not started

    MES vs MOM

    MES and MOM are sometimes used interchangeably, but they describe different scopes. MES runs production; MOM runs the whole operation on the same data.

  5. Station 5 / 6 min read / Not started

    Connected worker

    Connected worker solves real frontline problems. Bought as a standalone tool, it creates new ones. Why it belongs inside your MES/MOM, not alongside it.

  6. Station 6 / 4 min read / Not started

    WMS vs MES inventory

    ERP, WMS and MES/MOM all track stock. Where the boundaries sit for warehouse, line-side and WIP inventory, and the integration options that work.

  7. Station 7 / 4 min read / Not started

    APS vs MES scheduling

    ERP plans, APS sequences and MES/MOM executes. Where scheduling belongs in each system, the options for connecting them, and how to keep the plan honest.

  8. Station 8 / 4 min read / Not started

    CPQ to shopfloor

    Configured and engineer-to-order products start in CPQ. How the configuration reaches the operator through ERP, and when PLM gets involved too.

  9. Station 9 / 4 min read / Not started

    PLM, ERP and MES

    How product data gets from PLM to the shopfloor. Why ERP usually sits in the middle, when a direct PLM to MES link makes sense, and how to choose.

  10. Station 10 / 4 min read / Not started

    The MES/MOM market

    The MES market is growing fast and most manufacturers haven't started. Why demand is rising, how the vendor landscape is splitting in three, and the trends to watch.

When you reach the end of the line

Keep learning after the last station

One practical article a week on the smart factory, shopfloor AI and MES/MOM, from real implementations. Free, and you can leave in one click.