The functional scope, utilized technologies, and high quality allow the Epicor Kinetic system to effectively compete with the largest and most renowned ERP solutions on the market. On the other hand, the costs of purchasing licenses and implementation are significantly lower in this comparison, and the time required for implementation is much shorter. This is precisely why Kinetic ERP is the “sweet spot” of enterprise resource planning for many companies.
Granted, Kinetic ERP is not as extensive as the most advanced products offered by SAP or Oracle, but we still relatively often encounter and compete for clients against these very systems. Certainly, the Epicor solution can offer key functionalities from the perspective of large organizations that many mid-market systems lack.
Take, for example, the quality control module, which is an integral part of the Kinetic package. It allows for the construction of quality control forms, parameterization of various related activities, setting control gates in different locations, and data collection. Furthermore, the module is integrated with all related processes, such as incoming material quality control, inventory quality control, or production quality control.
Most “simple ERP solutions” cannot boast such a feature. Clients can secure access to such functions, but it usually requires purchasing an additional package or solution that must be implemented and integrated.
Another example is complaint handling. Epicor Kinetic ERP users receive a Case Management module in the package, which enables the creation of a custom workflow for complaints. Thanks to this, every issue a client brings to the company can be handled in a specific way. Or take the maintenance module for production machinery – this is a solution typical of truly large systems.
Moreover, you do not have to implement all of them at once, especially the most advanced functionalities. For example, the system supports various production processes – make-to-stock, configure-to-order, or make-to-order. It allows for the handling of subcontracting processes or project-based manufacturing. You don’t have to use all of this immediately. To start, you can launch one simple but complete process – quote-to-cash, from the offer to the customer paying the invoice. Later, as needs grow and requirements change, you can modify this process or launch another one.
What is very important in this case is that it does not take much time. At the same time, it does not require a large number of consultants, which naturally translates into costs. A small, ambitious company can implement basic processes relatively cheaply and add further functions as it develops. Ultimately, you can reach very advanced processes characteristic of the largest corporations in the world.
The time and costs of implementation in this case definitely speak in favor of Kinetic ERP. An Epicor system prototype, if the organization does not have a highly specialized business, can be ready in 2-3 months. Implementing the largest systems is much more complicated. In the case of each module, due to its level of complexity, a consultant is needed. This is also why it translates into a several times longer prototyping period, which is 9 months or more. In the case of Kinetic ERP, all functionalities needed by a medium-sized company are ready for implementation. And we are not talking about a small company here. Even in the case of developed ones that have a separate sales or quality control department, all these functions are covered in an advanced way. On top of that, there is a much lower cost of purchasing licenses. Kinetic ERP is simply cheaper.
What follows from all this? Epicor proposes an ERP system that combines the advantages of the largest systems with purchase and implementation costs typical of the mid-market. It is an extensive, advanced system both for a company that has previously used Excel or budget solutions, as well as for those that feel constrained by the more advanced enterprise resource planning systems currently in use and are looking toward the higher shelf, but do not want to incur high costs.
Kinetic ERP can reflect the structure of truly large organizations and cover all key functionalities. It is worth emphasizing here: this is not about general coverage of these functionalities just to check a box on a requirements list. Epicor avoids the simplifications that are usually the bane of small, cheap, simple business systems. At the same time, this does not come with the entire burden of handling a complex implementation and the subsequent maintenance of a large ERP.
A model organization that can derive the greatest benefits from choosing an Epicor system employs about 150 people, of which only a few or a dozen work in the office and must deal with a massive amount of data and documentation every day. These are companies that have grown out of small business but are not yet large, international organizations. Ultimately, however, Epicor is a system for dynamically developing, ambitious organizations that set the bar high for themselves and the solutions they use. Regardless of structure, industry, or the number of employees.
