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ERP Customization. Two British firms B. Light, Journal of Software Maintenance and Evolution: Research and Practice (2001). Cable. International firm made and sold copper cable Inherited many legacy systems Late 1990s: 10 manufacturing systems 13 sales systems 15 purchasing systems
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ERP Customization Two British firms B. Light, Journal of Software Maintenance and Evolution: Research and Practice (2001)
Cable • International firm • made and sold copper cable • Inherited many legacy systems • Late 1990s: • 10 manufacturing systems • 13 sales systems • 15 purchasing systems • 5 planning systems • 18 finance systems • 18 personnel systems
Legacy Systems • Often conflicted • Incompatible platforms
Reasons Cable Customized Intended to be as close to vendor as possible • Cable lengths didn’t fit vendor setup • Delayed system delivery 5 months • Copper inventory price varied daily • Modified – future software upgrades would require customization • Shop floor control reporting screens cluttered • Had to develop interface tool • Each sales order required dispatch notes • Had to develop interface tool
Reasons Cable Customized 5. Sales order documents had to be customized • Subsequent acquisitions led to revisions 6. Changes in labels requested • Requests denied to avoid future customization • Inventory reports lacked key information • Considerable effort to create new reports
Cable • If adopt vendor system • Still can expect significant modifications • Sometimes users won (system modified) • Sometimes system won (users lived with limitations) • Impact of future upgrades always a threat • Reason not to modify
Home • British retailer • 20 outlets • Very fragmented legacy systems • Adopted ERP to: • Integrate systems • Avoid data entry duplication • Replace some manual systems
Maintenance Implications • Pricing based on travel distance – millions of prices • Customization not supported by service agreement • Addresses key – updates not easy to apply • Fixes caused future upgrade problems • Used many shipping firms, self-billing • Function not supported by ERP - customized • Embedded ERP dispatching led to data duplication • Customization not supported by service agreement
Home 5. Corporate documents modified • Upgrades would require heavy redevelopment 6. Many ERP screens modified • Required careful documentation for future upgrades 7. Many control reports (908) developed for exceptions • Upgrades would require future revision
Implications • Changes to ERP vendor system: • Time consuming • Have maintenance implications in future • Key performance indicators can be obtained • Lead to increased maintenance