Nowadays, the industrial sector - large groups as well as VSEs and SMEs - must think about its digital transformation to remain competitive. Among many tools at their disposal, business leaders and managers choose CAPM software or ERP software. What do these two tools have in common? What are their differences? Which of the two should decision-makers choose to improve the management of their related production lines and organizations? The corporate world is a mirror of our society. At a time when digital tools are invading every bit of our private space, professional collective structures are facing the same challenges. From production to marketing, including bookkeeping, all of the processes inherent in the life of the company are now digitized by software that makes it possible to optimize its various services. In this new area of technologies, the mysterious vocabulary of experts consists of acronyms that are often unfamiliar. For an uninitiated entrepreneur, the difference between an ERP and a CAPM remains unanswered while it potentially constitutes the key to optimizing its production chains. Many tools, whose functionality continues to expand, are the new weapons of companies that will find optimization, development, and growth, and all this in an automated way..
Computer-aided production engineering
CAPM is a production management tool that allows controlling all of a company's production processes in a connected and coherent way to fulfill several objectives. Complying with standards and regulations, producing more efficiently or meeting deadlines imposed by customers are central issues in the success of an entrepreneurial project. The role of CAPE is to optimize each of them through a global vision of the manufacturing processes. This is precisely the difference between an ERP and a CAPM. ERP is a comprehensive system while CAPM only serves the interests of production. Collecting, centralizing, and organizing information in real-time, CAPM helps follow the guidelines of the company's main action plans. First, it applies a long-term strategic vision by integrating the ICP (Industrial and Commercial Plan) into its operation. The PDP (Production Master Plan) aims to manage stocks and charges in a more localized manner over time, generally on a weekly basis. Finally, the PDC (Load Plan) constitutes the daily task of the CAPM which thus produces a plan capable of meeting production requirements according to orders, stocks, and available personnel.
ERP, a software package with broader functionalities
The difference between an ERP and a CAPM, therefore, lies in the ability to support various aspects of running a business. ERP is an integrated software package that optimizes the management of multiple facets of company life. The objective of an ERP is therefore to offer, in software and a single database, a powerful tool allowing to standardize information and communication between the various constituent modules of the company. Its action allows, for example, to automate the assignment of tasks, which greatly facilitates the organization and planning of work. A connecting element by nature, it can be implanted in a fractional way in the company. For example, we can consider acquiring an accounting software then a CAPM (Computer Assisted Management), and finally a CRM (customer relationship management tool) before interconnecting them thanks to the ERP which will take charge of their implementation. relation and the fluidification of priorities between different modules. Thus, the ERP centralizes information and redistributes it to optimize the operation of the company.
The difference between an ERP and a CAPM, how to choose your software?
The difference between an ERP and a CAPM leads to very different applications which must justify the use of one or the other depending on the nature of the business but also on its aspirations. First of all, know that CAPM is suitable for companies that want above all to optimize their production chains. Its action is limited to the management of human resources and that of stocks but will not take into account the evolution of the customer relationship or the optimization of the company's accounting.
ERP is a much more complete but also more expensive solution that requires planning the allocation of financial resources of the company to its overall operation. It is by nature flexible and can therefore be integrated into society gradually. It is also recommended to make it a central project that must be supported by all of the company's employees, providing the opportunity to unite the teams around a common objective for the development of a company oriented towards the future and the use of data for its development.