How to choose the right ERP for your manufacturing business

Thursday, February 12, 2026

Worker in safety vest standing in a manufacturing facility with industrial machines, illustrating ERP selection for manufacturers

Key summary

Implementing new software can be a challenge because of the potential disruption and downtime.
The right ERP software will transform manufacturing operations, improving supplier communication, inventory control, and collaboration between teams.
Success depends on treating the transition with care, identifying the risks early on, involving the right people, and choosing a platform that is tailored to the needs of your organisation.

Researching and implementing a new ERP platform can feel like a full-time job in itself. With so many solutions on the market, and so much at stake if it goes wrong, you might be tempted to put it off and continue with the same ways of working at least for now. Or perhaps you’ve been stung by a previous software investment that ended up being a costly white elephant.

Manufacturers today need an ERP to stay competitive. This single platform handles orders, inventory, finance, communications and logistics – helping your business to run smoothly and profitably. It’s a way to modernise your operations, and enable you to take advantage of innovative new technologies like AI. So how do you make the decision-process easier?

In this blog, we’ll look at the challenges you might be facing and how you can overcome them with the right solution and support.

Why is choosing and implementing an ERP so challenging?

Implementing an ERP is challenging because it affects every aspect of your business, requiring you to balance lots of moving parts. Whether you’re migrating data from spreadsheets into a new ERP or transitioning from an old system to another, choosing a vendor and anticipating any technical and training issues can take months.

But, as we’ll see, the benefits of streamlining your business with an ERP are worth the time and resources. If you’re planning to make the switch, understanding the common challenges will help you prepare effectively.

Here are just some of the concerns you might have:

It’s a big financial investment

The first major challenge businesses face when considering a new ERP is the cost.

Whereas larger manufacturers have bigger IT budgets and teams, small and mid-sized firms don’t have the same resources. Unexpected or hidden costs can be an issue too, like data migration and staff training. But while it’s easy to get caught up on the initial investment, it’s important to think about how much time and money a streamlined system will save you in the long run. You can also control costs by prioritising the features you need, and the ones that are nice to have or a future investment.

It takes time, resources, and effort

Rolling out a new ERP system moves through a series of long and critical phases, all of which call for dedicated planning and committed resources. First you need to research both the requirements of your organisation and the credentials of potential vendors, then you will need to deploy the new system and train your employees to use it.

Any IT project takes time to implement so break it down into manageable sprints. Narrow down your list of vendors to ones that offer features for your area of manufacturing (e.g. discrete) as standard. Otherwise, you’ll have to pay for potentially expensive customisations.

Be realistic about the time it takes to implement the software and train up your staff, and then build in a buffer so you aren’t caught out by unexpected problems. Take advantage of quiet periods, like the summer, to test the software rather than waiting until peak season.

Mistakes can happen – and they are costly

Because ERP systems are designed to encompass so many areas of your business, implementing them poorly or choosing the wrong vendor can have big consequences.

There are some high-profile cautionary tales out there about failed ERP projects. They may go over budget or not have the functionality the business needs to achieve its goals. Again, these are challenges that can be overcome with proper planning, including choosing a vendor that understands your area of manufacturing.

It’s important to remember too that modern cloud-based ERP solutions like Ridder iQ are easier to install and run compared to the old on-premise solutions. So, even if you experienced problems with software migration in the past, your transition to a cloud-based system should be much smoother. Moreover, we often hear about the cases where implementation went wrong, but not the many more instances where everything ran to plan.

The benefits of investing in an ERP system for manufacturers

While transitioning to a new ERP might seem like a daunting prospect, the benefits far outweigh the challenges. Here are just a few of the ways an ERP can help you run your business:

Improving interactions with suppliers

The ability to track the movement, status and condition of goods across every stage of the manufacturing process is a huge advantage of ERPs.

With Ridder IQ, you can manage all supplier information, contracts, and pricing history in one place. It also handles purchases, invoices, and delivery details, making communication smoother and more efficient. By giving both your team and your suppliers real-time access to key data, you can reduce errors, speed up order processing, and respond quickly to any supply chain issues.

Keeping track of stock

ERP systems are extremely useful for inventory management. In an era of volatile global supply chains, it’s more important than ever to prevent stock shortages and keep production running smoothly.

Portsmouth-based manufacturer A2R Tooling previously used a burdensome combination of spreadsheets and pen and paper, which led to expensive stock and supply chain errors. Ridder IQ now allows them to track their inventory in one place and use mobile scanners to log new shipments for customers.

Sharing information between departments

ERP systems provide a centralised platform allowing different sections of the business to communicate with each other and access data from a single source of truth.

Instead of working in spreadsheets and relying on people to share updates with one another, ERPs allow different teams to access information for themselves, in one place. So, if the sales team needs a stock update or the production team wants information about a new order, they can check the system and coordinate their decisions effectively.

This is where structural engineering company Stressline benefitted most from launching a new ERP. Their sales team often couldn’t view the production schedule, while the production team couldn’t view the sales targets. But Ridder IQ offered a single, cloud-based platform for every team to access, ironing out the communication issues between them.

10 tips for choosing the right ERP system

If you’ve decided to update or implement a new ERP, check out our guidebook running you through how to choose the right software.

Here are 10 tips to get you started:

Identify your goals:
Assess the needs and weaknesses of your business. What problems would you like the software to solve?
Make sure the ERP vendor understands your industry.
Research vendors, arrange demonstrations and ask detailed questions. Does the vendor understand the specific needs of your sector?
Consult employees and stakeholders
Ensure you have buy-in from your team and any external stakeholders.
Build strong foundations
Fix any lingering operational issues that could hinder the implementation of your new ERP.
Set up a leadership team
Entrust a team or person with overseeing the project from start to finish.
Research ERP training
Consider what training and support the vendor can provide for your team.
Assign the right resources
Set aside time and staffing hours to complete the research, testing, training and implementation processes.
Focus on data migration
Determine what data needs to be migrated to the new system and develop a strategy to migrate it.
Check out testimonials
Reach out to businesses who have used any vendors you are considering - they will give you valuable feedback that will narrow down your options.
Determine your ROI
For each vendor, calculate the total cost of investing compared to the projected benefits.

FAQs

Why is choosing the right ERP such a big decision?

Because ERP impacts both customers and employees, and the wrong choice can be costly. Not just in software spend, but also in disruption and downtime. The guide recommends clearly defining what you need the system to achieve before selecting a vendor.

What should we do first before evaluating ERP vendors?

Start by identifying your goals, business objectives, and requirements across departments. Speak to everyone involved (users and implementation stakeholders) and consider needs like integration, data cleansing/migration, internal resources, license counts, and vendor compatibility early.

How do we choose an ERP vendor that’s right for manufacturing?

Shortlist vendors who understand your area of manufacturing and can support your processes out of the box. In demos, ask detailed questions about your workflows and watch whether the vendor can speak your language. The goal is to find a platform that’s tailored to your organisation, so you’re not forcing your business to fit the software.

How can we control ERP costs and avoid nasty surprises?

Look beyond the headline software cost and plan for the “hidden” areas that often catch teams out, especially data migration and staff training. Build a realistic implementation plan, budget for internal time and resources, and prioritise the features you need now versus what can be phased in later.

What makes ERP implementations go wrong and how do we reduce the risk?

Mistakes are costly because an ERP touches everything. The best way to reduce risk is to treat the transition with care: involve the right people early, fix operational issues that could derail implementation, set up clear ownership (a leadership team), and create a plan that includes training time plus buffer for surprises.

Why is data migration such a big deal, and how should we approach it?

This is because migrating data is often where complexity and delays show up. Especially if you’re moving away from spreadsheets or multiple systems. Decide what data needs to move, clean it up, and create a migration strategy before you switch anything on. It’s one of the most important steps for protecting continuity and avoiding downtime.