IFS finds nearly half of A&D manufacturers polled believe legacy ERP platforms impede ability to

IFS, the global supplier of enterprise software solutions, has today shared research which reveals that A&D manufacturers would consider changing their Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software system due to the lack of flexibility it currently provides. In a poll taken at a recent webinar attended by a roll call of blue-chip aerospace manufacturers and aviation organisations, almost half of the respondents (46%) said that their current ERP platform was hindering their ability to adapt to changing market demands. During the webinar – which focused on the flexibility and agility that ERP platforms can give A&D manufacturers – manufacturers, consultants and industry bodies were asked to respond to a number of questions relating to their ability to cope during the COVID-19 crisis and the role their ERP platforms played. When asked about the effect of the pandemic, just 8% of respondents had been agile enough to effortlessly adapt operations to manufacture high demand items such as Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). In addition, 27% of the registered A&D decision makers said they had struggled to change operations to meet new market demand and 12% said they had found it extremely challenging to meet the timeline demands under the Defense Production Act in the US. Another key finding showed a limited appetite for fully cloud-based ERP deployments. Just 3% of respondents said they deploy their ERP software only using cloud technology—whereas 64% said they use their software either on-prem only or a mixture of on-prem and cloud-based deployments. “Success in the current climate and into the future will depend on an A&D manufacturing organisation’s ability to be agile in their operations and flex their business models—those who can’t adapt will quickly shift from leader to laggard,” said Matt Medley, IFS Senior Product Manager. “Ultimately, the choice of underlying enterprise software platform matters, this data shows it can either be your strategic enabler of change—or the Achilles heel.”