The UK’s automotive sector remains an economic powerhouse, contributing £16.5 billion in GVA. But these are testing times for an industry struggling to respond to shifting global forces. Be it below par productivity or pressure to reduce drivers’ carbon footprints, the sector must find ways of adapting. Help is at hand from our suite of ERP solutions designed to build resilience, drive efficiencies and tool up for Industry 4.0.
Challenging Times
Ever since the 2016 referendum, there has been a lot of bad press surrounding the UK’s automotive sector. Major car manufacturers including Ford and Honda announced plant closures and job cuts, whilst Nissan opted to build its new X‐Trail model in Japan rather than Sunderland.
UK car production fell by 20% in the first half of 2019 and the prospect of a no‐deal Brexit is impacting on the entire supply chain. The EU remains the UK’s most important export market, with 45% of automotive exports destined for the bloc. The entire sector is attempting to protect itself from the impact of crashing out of Europe and find ways to futureproof its operations.
At the same time, pressure is on to continue innovating and respond to environmental concerns. As drivers become more conscious of their carbon footprint, this factor is influencing their buying decisions. According to the SMMT, just 153,594 new diesel cars were registered in March 2018, down from 244,593 a year before. Amidst the economic uncertainty, OEMs are in a race to deliver affordable and useable electrified and autonomous vehicles.
Power of ERP
Despite the doom and gloom surrounding Brexit, there are huge opportunities for automotive manufacturers prepared to embrace innovation. According to Make UK’s latest Automotive Sector Bulletin, the industry spent £3.4 billion on R&D in 2016.
The government’s automotive sector deal looks to improve competitiveness, support sustainability and boost investment in emerging technologies. Central to that is an appetite to move into the digital age and exploit tools such as ERP to turbocharge the sector.
NexSys ERP is designed specifically to meet the needs of manufacturers. The toolbox of solutions builds greater digital resilience and provides the infrastructure necessary to help companies adapt to a changing climate.
One of the greatest challenges facing automotive manufacturers is the need to drive productivity. According to Make UK, the sector’s output per hour increased by 90% between 1995 and 2015. Yet we still lag behind many of our competitors, so technologies such as ERP will prove critical in helping manufacturers step up a gear.
With SYSPRO ERP, business leaders enjoy full visibility of their operation and have access to key data whenever and wherever they choose. That insight allows them to drive efficiencies, eliminate waste and reduce lead times. Employees are empowered to share knowledge, automate mundane tasks and focus on higher value work.
As manufacturers strive to build resilience, our centralised system helps everyone within the supply chain work more collaboratively. From production planning and scheduling to purchasing and invoicing, automotive ERP supports a more coherent approach to manufacturing which tracks jobs and materials at every stage of their journey.
The Blanket Sales Order and Releases module can be tailored for the specific needs of the sector, whilst sales quotas and smarter use of data mean that operational budgets are forecast far more accurately. Our inventory forecasting and serial tracking systems predict, record and replenish inventories; our engineering control applications offer the means to truly revolutionise your operation.
