The Truth on ERP Integration for 3PLs

THE TRUTH ON ERP INTEGRATION FOR 3PLrsquoS

As software providers who have been working in the third party warehousing industry for over a decade we are frequently asked by prospective customers how our solution works with a particular ERP or financial system (meaning the ERP used by the 3PL and not of their customers ndash that is a different issue altogether) After the sheer number of times we have been asked this very question over the years and seeing no decline in the frequency at which we are asked we felt it necessary to finally write this eBook relating to this topic Hopefully this information can help others along their journey in qualifying a 3PL system effectively

The concept of integration to a 3PLrsquos ERP for a 3PL comes primarily from the warehousing industry as a whole and not from the 3PL industry Although there are a few rare exceptions when a 3PL takes title of their customerrsquos inventory this is not the norm for a 3PL The expectation actually comes from the buying and selling of owned inventory by manufacturers and distributors When buying and selling in that world the issue of purchase orders and sales orders requires inventory visibility within the ERP to know quantity on hand for selling and demand forecasting for purchasing All good things

However in the 3PL space there is typically no ownership of the goods by the 3PL itself There are no purchase or sales orders being issued by the 3PL The 3PL is simply issued a request to either receive goods or ship goods by their customer via their ERP but there

The Truth on ERP Integration for 3PLs

THE HIGHJUMP TEAM IS HERE TO HELP If you have any questions regarding HighJump or how our products can improve your business our passionate team is here for you

Call us today at 8003283271 or email infohighjumpcom

wwwhighjumpcom

ABOUT HIGHJUMPIn almost every industry buyers are becoming more fickle and more demanding For logistics executives effectively meeting buyer needs has become a relentless quest for speed and agility Traditional supply chain solutions ndash siloed complex and hard-to-implement ndash no longer suffice as competitors find ways to deliver goods faster and more profitably In todayrsquos ldquonowrdquo economy HighJump helps you stay agile with adaptable connected solutions that harness the power of your trading partner community From the warehouse to the storefront from the desktop to the driverrsquos cab we can help you achieve new levels of supply chain responsiveness performance and profitability HighJumprsquos suite of warehouse management business integration transportation management and retailDSD solutions form a complete powerful and adaptable platform that allow you to drive growth customer satisfaction and revenue HighJump supply chain accelerated

copy2016 HighJump All rights reserved HighJump is a trademark of HighJump Software Inc

is never any ownership of inventory by the 3PL As a result there is no requirement within the 3PLrsquos ERP to provide that level of integration Order management is handled entirely within the 3PL WMS be it manually or electronically When considering WMS solutions any interfacing of that nature (between the 3PLrsquos ERP and a WMS) means that the WMS was quite likely written within an ERP application and was made for distributors or manufacturers not 3PLs

The only two exceptions to this are1 Posting of service invoices from the 3PL WMS to the ERP After invoicing for services

provided from the 3PL WMS the results of that should be a file transfer of some type to get the invoicing details created in the WMS over to the ERP in support of standard financial processing (account and GL postings accounts receivable collection and payment application)

2 The second instance of integration for a 3PL with their ERP is for account status information in order to better manage the account when payment has not been received and to ensure that goods are not being received or shipped when the account is overdue beyond the standards of the 3PL

ERP integration is a layover from the manufacturing and distribution worlds that should not be a part of a 3PLrsquos criteria for qualification of WMS vendors In fact vendors who have such an integration are providing a key indicator that their solution was not crafted specifically for the 3PL industry but for the distribution industry in general This should raise serious questions about the vendorrsquos ability to understand and support the diverse complex multi-tenant requirements of a 3PL which are not found in manufacturing and distribution

The Truth on ERP Integration for 3PLs

THE HIGHJUMP TEAM IS HERE TO HELP If you have any questions regarding HighJump or how our products can improve your business our passionate team is here for you

Call us today at 8003283271 or email infohighjumpcom

wwwhighjumpcom

ABOUT HIGHJUMPIn almost every industry buyers are becoming more fickle and more demanding For logistics executives effectively meeting buyer needs has become a relentless quest for speed and agility Traditional supply chain solutions ndash siloed complex and hard-to-implement ndash no longer suffice as competitors find ways to deliver goods faster and more profitably In todayrsquos ldquonowrdquo economy HighJump helps you stay agile with adaptable connected solutions that harness the power of your trading partner community From the warehouse to the storefront from the desktop to the driverrsquos cab we can help you achieve new levels of supply chain responsiveness performance and profitability HighJumprsquos suite of warehouse management business integration transportation management and retailDSD solutions form a complete powerful and adaptable platform that allow you to drive growth customer satisfaction and revenue HighJump supply chain accelerated

copy2016 HighJump All rights reserved HighJump is a trademark of HighJump Software Inc

is never any ownership of inventory by the 3PL As a result there is no requirement within the 3PLrsquos ERP to provide that level of integration Order management is handled entirely within the 3PL WMS be it manually or electronically When considering WMS solutions any interfacing of that nature (between the 3PLrsquos ERP and a WMS) means that the WMS was quite likely written within an ERP application and was made for distributors or manufacturers not 3PLs

The only two exceptions to this are1 Posting of service invoices from the 3PL WMS to the ERP After invoicing for services

provided from the 3PL WMS the results of that should be a file transfer of some type to get the invoicing details created in the WMS over to the ERP in support of standard financial processing (account and GL postings accounts receivable collection and payment application)

2 The second instance of integration for a 3PL with their ERP is for account status information in order to better manage the account when payment has not been received and to ensure that goods are not being received or shipped when the account is overdue beyond the standards of the 3PL

ERP integration is a layover from the manufacturing and distribution worlds that should not be a part of a 3PLrsquos criteria for qualification of WMS vendors In fact vendors who have such an integration are providing a key indicator that their solution was not crafted specifically for the 3PL industry but for the distribution industry in general This should raise serious questions about the vendorrsquos ability to understand and support the diverse complex multi-tenant requirements of a 3PL which are not found in manufacturing and distribution