1. What outcome needs to change?
Deadline met, reliable stock, visible load, explained cost, traceability or quality: choose a priority result and its current indicator.
2. What type of production?
Series, business, assembly, process, subcontracting and maintenance do not imply the same data or the same rules.
3. Where is the planning decided?
Identify schedules, capacities, priorities, dependencies, material constraints and human trade-offs.
4. What traceability is mandatory?
Lots, series, certificates, versions, parameters, operators, machines and documents must be linked at the correct level.
5. How is the cost constructed?
Separate material, time, position, subcontracting, scrap and costs, then define the reconciliation with accounting.
6. What data is reliable?
Products, bills of materials, routings, suppliers, inventory and history must be profiled before any data migration.
7. Which interfaces are essential?
CAD, MES, EDI, machinery, carriers and finance require data contracting and error management.
8. Who validates?
Assign a business owner to each flow and a decision maker for scope variances.
9. How to go back?
Prepare backup, restore, freeze, reconcile and return criteria before the cutover.
10. What proof before buying?
Demand a representative case, observed results, limitations and an updated budget.
Going further: our sourced comparison of industrial ERPs offers an identical scenario to run with each vendor.