Plex Systems
The Food ERP Specialist

Today, consumers across the globe are increasingly concerned about the health and safety of their food supply chains. On the backdrop of product recalls and food safety alerts, it has become imperative for manufacturers in the food and beverage sector to be able to quickly track products on a granular level: from a specific ingredient’s point of origin, to other ingredients it may have come in contact with, and even where each batch resides in a warehouse or on a distributor’s shelves. Modern cloud-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems have emerged to meet these growing challenges of manufacturers, with intuitive solutions that connect the supply chain to the factory floor and management.

Enter Plex System’s Manufacturing Cloud—a robust solution that has been connecting manufacturing operations on the cloud, giving customers complete visibility and control over the entire manufacturing process. Built to meet the needs of companies in the food and beverage sector, the platform takes care of end to end manufacturing processes—from tracing information for ingredients and finished goods to isolating problems quickly and with precision, while providing detailed historical information related to supply chain, production, inspection, genealogy, and usage. “The Plex Manufacturing Cloud is the choice for industry leading manufacturing enterprises as they look for a platform for growth and innovation around the world,” says Jason Blessing, CEO of Plex Systems. The Plex Manufacturing Cloud delivers robust ERP solution developed by manufacturing experts obsessed with continuous innovation and customer success.

Serving the Entrée

Plex Manufacturing Cloud provides the foundational capabilities that uniquely combine centralized security, visibility, and collaboration along with flexibility to tailor application to processes and structures that are unique to every manufacturing organization. The platform collects granular information at every manufacturing moment and provides the ability to instantly track genealogy of any product, at any time and from anywhere with an Internet connection. Imagine being in a customer’s office and being asked to identify the source of a specific ingredient—and being able to log on and find the information immediately. Plex facilitates this, and with Plex Insight—the financial analytic application, customers can use the data to make faster, more informed business decisions.

Plex Manufacturing Cloud is the choice for industry leading manufacturing enterprises as they build a platform for growth and innovation around the world

Inventory accuracy is critical for food and beverage manufacturers, to ensure they are consuming the right inventory at the right time and for the right customer, while working with perishable raw materials and various customer and government compliance standards. By connecting directly to plant floor machines, equipment and providing integrated Manufacturing Execution System (MES) and ERP functionality, Plex maximizes efficiency and minimizes cost and risk for food and beverage companies. Legacy ERP systems are not well suited for MES and they essentially get the shop floor information post-production, which does not provide much opportunity to control the output. The Plex MES picks up where most ERP systems leave off, to deliver a unique synergy of real-time production management for up-to-the-minute manufacturing data that enables end-to-end visibility of inventory, intertwined with quality for closed-loop control.

For Steve Goodger, CFO of Green Flash Brewing Company, having on-point inventory accuracy by using Plex's ERP was a game changer. “We’ve drastically reduced the dumping of beer due to code date issues,” he says. The ERP system was able to track every aspect of the inventory— at the lot or container level—while keeping a detailed audit at every step of the manufacturing process. Using bar coding and labels, human error is greatly reduced or eliminated, and inventory is tracked at every stage of receiving, production and shipping.

While maintaining the inventory accuracy at one side, food and beverage companies must also be able to quickly track and manage quality– both from a government food safety perspective as well as individual customer quality standards. Plex Cloud ERP enables food and beverage manufacturers to track quality using tools that facilitate conformance/ corrective and preventative action and statistical process controls, and other best practices. With this industry-leading ERP system, the quality functions link with supply chain management functions to give manufacturers a complete view of their quality performance one step back and one step forward in the supply chain —from their suppliers’ operations through “next-step” customers.

Prior to moving to a cloud-based ERP, the biggest obstacle for Aaron Thomas Company (ATCO), specializing in warehouse club and food packaging services was ensuring proper quality checks at necessary intervals by the appropriate entities.

“Anyone can put whatever they want on paper,” he says. “Things could be fudged or changed.” Since implementing Plex ERP, the company has standardized quality control and compliance processes in the cloud. This has allowed them to instantly monitor and review which internal and external audits have been completed, when they were preformed and by whom. Mock recalls now happen in a matter of minutes, and customers can access their information 24/7 from anywhere, allowing Aaron Thomas to handle three times as many customers without adding headcount.

"Each and every member of the Plex team contributes to a unique culture that makes our company a great place to work"

“Our customers are at the core of Plex’s business model and we are proud to work with distinctive organizations that are transforming their businesses and driving innovation using the Plex Manufacturing Cloud,” says Blessing.

Menu for the Next Course

A flexible Internet-based solution like Plex Cloud ERP brings food and beverage manufacturers all the features they require to meet their health and safety requirements, produce the highest-quality products, operate efficiently, and maximize their profitability. As it utilizes the cloud delivery model, Plex enables the food and beverage manufacturing enterprises to avoid costly licenses and complex hardware and software infrastructures. Its customers use the Internet to access systems that are deployed and maintained off-premise. They enjoy ease of use as well as industry-leading security and connectivity. And perhaps best of all, they never need to suffer from using an outdated system, or fear losing customized functionality in the next upgrade. With Plex Cloud ERP, all users are always on the most up-to-date version of the software, and new features and functions are made available on a daily basis.

“Each and every member of the Plex team contributes to a unique culture that makes our company a great place to work,” asserts Blessing. “At Plex, we are honored to be part of a vibrant community of leaders on the cutting edge of manufacturing technology.” The company wants to continue making a difference in the food & beverage industry with turnkey solutions while constantly communicating with their clients and partners.