Tuesday, 14 August 2012




THE 6 MOST IMPORTANT ERP QUESTIONS FOR THE MINING MAGNATE.

I have been talking about ERP systems and the mining industry for some time now, I am pretty sure that a lot of my readers would hope I stop. No such luck, the more I research ERP systems and the mining industry the more I learn and the more I want to share this knowledge. A while back I finished my white paper on the perfect ERP system and the mining industry and through that I realised just how important it is in choosing the right ERP system for you and your business.

As with any major purchase, you ask numerous questions and even take it for a test drive if it is a car you are looking to buy. The same should apply when looking for an ERP system. You need to ask as many questions relevant to your business and maybe look at a few demonstrations while you are at it. Let me help you out here, these questions will get the ball rolling for sure.


Enterprise resource planning [ERP] is the complete system for your business that can run your company’s activities in one streamlined system. All applications are easily migrated into one system which makes it easier for your company to work more efficiently and more importantly to show a return on investment.


Yes, probably the most important question you will ever ask, your company’s financials should be your first and main concern, no business means no money and vice versa. It is crucial that you have a system in place that is clear and transparent in all the aspects of the business’ financial side. A clear view and indication of all the processes should be visible in the ERP system. Following are some of the key functions of an ERP system’s financial capabilities.

·         Financial accounting

·         Receivables and creditor accounting

·         Payment management

·         Cost accounting

·         Investment accounting

·         Controlling

·         Consolidation


In essence, production planning and production are the key components in any mining industry. Without any products being produced in the mine, can and will the mine not survive. Essential to this is the tracking of production and strategies on production. The secret to a successful production strategy is the transformation of resources to reserves and the managing of production units that in the end will contribute to a total production system. Following are some of the key production functionalities to look out for.

·         Work schedule management

·         MPS ( Master Production Schedule)

·         MRP ( Materials Requirement Planning)

·         Technical data configuration

·         Link to weighing scales

·         Cost calculation

·         Quality assurance

·         Capacity planning




ERP systems assist in managing the complete sales cycles from open pricing, invoicing up to the delivery planning, shipping and even the distribution of products. As a bonus it can even handle new offers and contracts.

The only way in knowing what is going on in your warehouse is if you have a transparent warehouse management system. A system that can track orders coming into the warehouse and leaving the warehouse, this will determine the rate by which your stock in your warehouse needs to be replenished by. Picking strategies, inventory tracking, inventory planning and stock tracking can be set up by the warehouse manager with the help of the right ERP system.


The all elusive and oh so difficult aspect of human resources, especially in a work environment such as a big mine, it is essential to have a system in place that can take care and manage all your staff and all the ‘baggage’ that comes with having a big work force.


Mining itself is made up of a number of departments that can be seen as industries on their own, but when it comes to mining all these departments should work together as a whole. That is why ERP systems were designed to handle all these departments in a single, transparent and all-encompassing system that will show you a return on your investment. What you as a business owner need to keep in mind is that the perfect ERP system can and will be able to grow your business and essentially grow with your business.

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