Some manufacturers may still be recovering from past economic challenges, but the future is looking brighter, with new opportunities on the horizon. For industrial manufacturers and companies that make industrial machinery and equipment, the potential for growth is vast. Technological innovation, in both operations and IT, will be the key to making this growth a reality.

Over the last few years, much has happened in the historically conservative wholesale distribution industry. Distributors are realizing that what drove their success in the past is not necessarily going to drive their success going forward.

The industry has gone global, has become more competitive than ever, and has grown increasingly sophisticated. The rise of social collaboration, the explosion of mobile devices, and other technological trends are reshaping the industry as we know it. A new generation of vendors and customers now expect to work the way they live, with access to information from any place at any time.

Independent Computer Consulting Group (“ICCG”) is pleased to announce its strategic relationship with GapBridge Software Services (“GapBridge”). The partnership will extend market reach for each company’s offerings.

ICCG is an Enterprise Software focused consulting firm with global presence and track record of more than 2,000 business transformation project executions across ERP, Supply Chain Planning and Execution Systems, Warehouse Management Solutions and Product Life Cycle Management Solutions deployments.  

GapBridge is a Digital Transformation consulting and services company, providing consulting services and solutions around digital transformation for enterprise customers. GapBridge offers solutions extensively on SAP Digital Stack – S/4 HANA, Cloud Solutions (Hybris. SuccessFactors, Ariba, HANA Cloud Platform), Mobile (SAP UI5, SMP) and Analytics.

The food and beverage industry is driven by innovation—new products, flavors, packaging, markets, and sales channels. You must continually take a fresh approach to your business as you introduce new products, manage suppliers around the globe, and quickly respond to competitive activity. At the same time, you must flawlessly meet compliance requirements, while updating formulations, specifications, and labels to meet changing regulations. Your supply chain must be agile, so you can handle fluctuations in raw materials, production, and shipping, as you minimize shelf-life issues and reduce waste—while balancing seasonality and variability in demand.

Consumers today are more educated than ever, and that knowledge makes them far more demanding about what they purchase. They’re paying closer attention to labels, showing a growing preference for fresher products, and seeking information about the origin of those products.

According to Deloitte, “Empowered by the democratization of information, and the influence and reach of new media, many consumers are taking control of the conversation about food and beverages.” In addition to this added consumer pressure, food & beverage manufacturers are also under increasing regulatory constraints. A BMI Research study states, “Governments are adopting increasingly stringent food labeling laws, broadening their scope from nutritional content to country-of-origin or animal welfare considerations, which will be a key issue for the agribusiness and food and drink sectors.”

Independent Computer Consulting Group, Inc. (“ICCG”) is pleased to announce the addition of Infor Optiva PLM, a tool to help process manufacturers stay competitive. This best of breed solution enables new products to be developed quickly, using the best possible formula, all while maintaining full compliance with all regulatory requirements. These are a unique set of requirements that demand the tailored approach to product lifecycle management (PLM) that ICCG and Infor’s Optiva PLM can offer.

Infor Optiva PLM streamlines processes for product development, material selection, formulation, and new product introductions.

Independent Computer Consulting Group, Inc. (“ICCG”) is pleased to announce the addition of Infor PLM Accelerate, a product that streamlines product lifecycle management.

Creating and launching new products involves a multitude of internal and external teams. Infor PLM Accelerate provides functionality for EBOMs and MBOMs, change management, requirements and configuration management, and technical documents—which can all link together across electrical, mechanical, and software/firmware disciplines.

Additionally, the centralized database ensures that, no matter which department the data originates from, users have access to the correct, most current product information. Powerful Product Management capabilities ensure that everyone is accessing the right information, which helps to avoid errors in product design and eliminate delays in market launches. Distributed storage vaults make information quickly accessible anywhere, supporting global product development and supply chain collaboration strategies. Visual collaboration broadens and increases the pace of discussions, resulting in better products that can be brought to market faster.

Today’s fashion companies have an unprecedented opportunity to move their businesses closer to the consumer than ever before. As the fashion value chain continues its evolution into a collaborative global network, omni-channel insights are fueling business and manufacturing decisions. Information gathered from shoppers can flag everything from sourcing, to design, to distribution of products.

Successful companies must be flexible, adaptable to change, and able to respond quickly to consumer desires. With the right technology tools, they can. What are the top 4 concerns for the fashion industry?