Janitorial and sanitation chemical manufacturers and distributors have unique needs when it comes to managing customer relationships. On top of keeping clients happy, there are strict standards and specifications to follow, and orders and pricing are highly complex. Tracking sales and communications requires the right software, but how do you know which system to choose?
Chemical and process manufacturing is a complex industry, and companies in this market have unique needs. MRP software — short for “material requirements planning,” “material resource planning” or “manufacturing resource planning” software — is a valuable tool for managing the complex processes of planning, scheduling and controlling the production, purchasing and distribution of manufactured goods.
Over the last few years, there has been increasing buzz around the digitization of supplier-customer relationships in the process manufacturing and chemical distribution industries. We wouldn't say that this trend comes as a total surprise to anyone – when you think about your personal life as a consumer, how do you prefer to interact with brands?
The Problem: "We accept credit cards today but we do it through an online portal or with a physical card reader."
Most process manufacturers and chemical distributors accept credit cards for some portion of their sales. Customers with poor or declining credit, slow payers, or small customers account for many of those charges. When these cases come up you find yourself jumping between your ERP system and an online processing portal or a physical card reader. You might not have a great way to save card numbers and associate them with the right customer profile in your ERP so you end up writing down or saving sensitive credit card information in non-secure locations. You then have the headache of having to reconcile payments between your bank, your merchant processing statements and your ERP. It can be a messy process and is ripe for errors and security issues.
