ERP and automation technologies have grown by leaps and bounds to address small business’ need for efficiency, productivity, and profitability. Modern process automation and efficiency increases are essential to departments like finance, accounting, human resources, production, material management, quality management, distribution, and sales. Without a proper framework to bring these departments together and working in harmony, a business of any size risks catastrophic failure. ERP supply chain management solutions deliver focused tools to businesses, providing better overall performance, accountability, and customer satisfaction.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) And Supply Chain Management (SCM)

Affordable Enterprise Resource Planning software for manufacturers and accessible automation technologies for manufacturers enable competitiveness in an industry that is constantly evolving. Supply chain automation technology is in higher demand with each passing day. Built to increase the efficiency of operations that extend beyond the four walls of the factory, supply chain management software holds suppliers accountable, builds stronger trading partnerships, and delivers increased customer satisfaction that earns businesses brand loyalty.

How ERP Software Enables Better Supply Chain Management

When a business considers all the parties involved in the supply chain, from manufacturers, suppliers, distributors, retailers, and customers, it can be difficult to control. The process of keeping everything in line requires careful and diligent planning, execution, control, and ongoing monitoring of supply chain activities.

Businesses will find that an ERP system built with the supply chain in mind will be more than effective in handling the storing, transporting, managing demand for manufactured goods. From procurement to product delivery, the integration of material, information, and financial information flow cement ERP as an essential tool for efficient supply chain management.

The Roles Of ERP In Supply Chain Management Processes

From the global conglomerate the mom-and-pop job shop, ERP and SCM software may seem intimidating. However, their viability for businesses at any size cannot be overstated. It simply becomes a matter of size and scope of the software. Placing a focus on efficient supply chain activities and strategy going forward will enhance facility productivity, product quality, and cost-efficiency.

ERP software scales businesses, plain and simple. With growth, the subject of Supply Chain Management demands greater emphasis. Mixed-mode, make-to-order, make-to-stock, Engineered -to-order, and configured-to-order manufacturing operations all have a need for these advanced technologies. This doesn’t even consider the supply chain automation opportunities that arise when ERP systems in place. Replenishment, communications between partners, manufacturers, and customers, even automated profiling of suppliers to get the next replenishment from your favored vendors are possible with automated supply chain management software embedded within ERP.

ERP software doesn’t just enable supply chain management strategies, it informs your teams and keeps them running at peak efficiency. This ensures your business runs smoothly in the face of supply chain disruption. We can break down the role of Epicor ERP alongside supply chain management into eight main categories:

  • Purchase Management
  • Demand Management
  • Inventory Management
  • Shipping And Receiving
  • Warehouse Management
  • Advanced Material Management
  • Supplier Relationship Management
  • Supplier Connect

ERP Supply Chain Purchasing Management

Collaboration is key during the purchasing process to ensure orders move smoothly in and out of an ERP system. Tracking the performance of collaborative activities becomes more difficult as an organization grows. ERP fills the gap, providing businesses with the means to track, control, and comply with regulation and governance standards of their given industry. The result is accuracy, compliance, and security in supplier relationships.

  • Automated purchasing tools improve supplier collaboration, order accuracy, and negotiating while streamlining purchase order writing and tracking of supplier performance.
  • Improved on-time delivery reduces inventory levels, which improves cash flow and enables cross-referencing, mass purchase order receipts, requisition tracking, and more.

an image of a purchasing manager in a warehouse as part of ERP Supply Chain Management solutions

ERP Supply Chain Demand Management

Convert demand into sales orders and forecasts thanks to the efficient management of short- and long-term customer demand contracts. As a result, fulfillment decisions become second nature.

  • inventory management is made easy with statistical forecasting and planning tools that enable collaboration, consolidation, and aggregation.
  • Leverage invaluable insights to decrease on-the-shelf inventory, enhance flexibility, improve fill rates, and deliver a better customer experience overall.
  • Visual tools make interacting with supply chain demand data efficient and easy.

ERP Supply Chain Inventory Management

Digitize, automate, and simplify your processes for greater profitability at any scale, all while minimizing the inventory costs and risks associated with conforming to industry standards.

  • Meeting customer expectations becomes easy with superior visibility into costing, tracking, and country of origin.
  • From purchase order through manufacturing and shipping, material flow management becomes easy with an extensive suite of analysis tools, including shortage monitoring, reorder analysis, stock status, and many more.
  • Reduce annual audit costs significantly by leveraging automated control and regular inventory counting tools provided by ERP solutions for the supply chain.

an image of a full warehouse as part of ERP Supply Chain Management solutions

 

ERP Supply Chain Shipping And Receiving Management

Ensuring accuracy and customer satisfaction becomes easy with the shipping and receiving logistics solutions provided by ERP. The ability to monitor incoming and outgoing items for orders, subcontract parts being sent to a supplier, raw materials being received, or filling an order from stock all contribute to the enhanced shipping and receiving tools found in a robust ERP solution.

  • Efficiency, speed, and a consistent interface promote the rapid processing of shipments and receipts to provide reliable tracking at every stage of the journey.
  • By tracking container shipments and regularly updating purchase orders with enhanced accuracy and information visibility, your business can improve reliability and deliver on expectations without sacrificing time, money, or customer goodwill.
  • By driving out the cost of freight, insurance, and import duties with landed cost processing functionality margins improve significantly.

an image of shipping and receiving workers as part of ERP Supply Chain Management solutions

ERP Supply Chain Warehouse Management

ERP systems link warehouses with order processing and manufacturing operations seamlessly to optimize pick, pack, ship, and receiving processes.

  • Drive out errors and wasted resources by automating pick-and-pack, mobile-driven, and pre-pack fulfillment processes.
  • Leverage greater visibility into resource utilization throughout your warehouse to optimize processes and improve efficiency.
  • Rapid fulfillment capability enables businesses to better compete not just on cost and quality but on speed, as well.

an image of two warehouse management workers as part of ERP Supply Chain Management solutions

ERP Supply Chain Advanced Material Management

Track materials with real-time visibility and control with an advanced material management module, like that found with Epicor ERP. This function enables the monitoring of raw materials and work in process (WIP) activities throughout an entire enterprise using mobile devices and bar-coding technology.

  • By simply scanning a bar code tag you can produce accurate and timely electronic requests for materials.
  • Ensure that the right parts are delivered to the right resource at the right time utilizing an online queue of raw material and WIP parts
  • Track movement of raw materials and WIP to continuously improve efficiency

ERP Supply Chain Supplier Relationship Management

Supplier relationship management is a critical and ongoing process for manufacturers. Identifying the best partners to work with and improving supplier collaboration is easier with ERP supply chain management tools that enable buyers, procurement staff, and purchasing agents or those providing quotes, to request quotes for raw materials or subcontract services from one or multiple suppliers.

  • Make smarter and more informed sourcing decisions thanks to greater visibility and insight into supplier communications
  • Create centralized records for buyers, parts, and suppliers to maintain accuracy, simplify workflows, and eliminate redundant data entry
  • Reduce transaction times with automated tools that quickly convert supplier responses into actionable purchase orders

Epicor Supplier Connect For ERP Supply Chain management

Supplier Connect is unique to Epicor ERP and a feature of Epicor Commerce Connect. It is specifically tailored for suppliers It delivers an intuitive environment use to update their information via the supplier portal, answer requests for information, and confirm changes to purchase orders.

  • Enable business partners and customers transact with your brand online for a competitive advantage.
  • Improve collaboration by offering supplier self-service on open orders, part information, and access to invoice history.
  • Reduce staff time spent answering email, phone, or fax inquiries and increase efficiencies of your sales team.

The Competitive Benefits Of ERP Supply Chain Management

It’s a cutthroat world and businesses need every legitimate advantage they can get to ensure competitiveness. ERP competitive benefits are about as integral to the success of an enterprise as it gets.  Providing visibility and efficiency across departments, automating workflows with ERP from procurement to product delivery leads to lower overhead and operational costs.

By streamlining the path materials, financial information, and operational data take from source to destination, Epicor ERP delivers SCM that results in better control over performance, costs, and customer satisfaction. Here’s how:

  • The cost of inventory is minimized through effective demand forecasting lean inventory levels. This ensures just-in-time production methods can be effectively put into practice to bring down production costs while maintaining supply chain flexibility.
  • Epicor ERP supply chain management reduces production bottlenecks between internal processes and your external supplier. By enabling procurement best practices, the supply of goods, services, and other resources throughout the supply chain are more readily accessible and more easily leveraged.
  • Whether production revolves around children’s toys or Aerospace and Defense, transparency throughout the supply chain is key to ensure quality, accountability, and safety. Epicor ERP supply chain management delivers that transparency alongside the consolidated supply chain visibility that a business needs to thrive.

How ERP Supply Chain Management Contributes To Organizational Growth

ERP and SCM software go hand-in-hand to contribute to the overall growth of an organization. By tying in all the essential components of the procurement process, warehousing, and sales, Epicor ERP supply chain management module informs the business to a much greater degree. As a result, businesses of every size using Epicor ERP gain greater insight and operational capability.

  • The Small Business – Take advantage of an agile, cost-effective supply chain management solution that scales rapidly, effectively future-proofing your business for long-term innovation and growth.
  • The Midsize Business – Accelerate entry into new markets, quickly add new product lines and engagement with customers more easily and effectively.
  • The Enterprise – Enable team flexibility and responsiveness across verticals, whether B2B, B2C or B2X, at a global scale.

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.


The latest release of Epicor Advanced Requisition Management (ARM), v10.3 SP5, is here! In addition to features incorporated as part of Epicor ERP’s scheduled product roadmap, the updates in this release have been influenced by requests received from Epicor ARM customers. Email notification enhancements, mandatory attachments and updates to standing orders are just some of the features incorporated in this release to enhance the overall ARM experience.

What is Epicor Advanced Requisition Management?

Epicor Advanced Requisitions Management (ARM) is an online workflow and purchase requisition tool which enables organizations to gain visibility and control over their procurement spending and reduce their purchasing costs.

Epicor ARM automates and streamlines the procurement process, utilizing a web browser to integrate with and extend the Epicor Purchasing module. Multiple approval methods provide a flexible framework that can be configured to meet the requirements of any organization.

New Features And Enhancements In Epicor ARM 10.3 SP5

  • Multiple Approver Node ‘Require All’ Function (E7/10) – A new checkbox option is now available when editing a node that allows for the selection of multiple approvers in an approval tree. When ticked, the submitted document will require all approvers configured on the node to approve it in order to progress up to the next approval node. A single rejection will result in a rejected outcome.
  • AP Location and Category Approval Trees (E10) – Epicor ARM now supports ‘Location’ and ‘Category’ approval trees for AP (Accounts Payable).
  • Email Approvals (E7/10) – Epicor ARM approvals have been enhanced to allow users to approve/reject directly from the notification email.
  • New Validation Rule: Mandatory Attachment (E7/10) – A new validation rule has been added which (when activated) requires a user to upload an attachment to the requisition before it can be submitted for approval.
  • Catalogue Default View (E7/10) – A new setting has been introduced which defaults the Catalogue search view to either Grid, List or Table format.
  • Auto Purchase Order for New Vendors (E10) – By default, purchase Orders are now automatically created upon approval of requisitions, for new vendors. This setting can be changed via vendor settings.
  • Project Budget calculation in Standard Epicor Project/Non-APM Setup (E10) – Epicor ARM now supports the ability to calculate project budgets using either WBS (work breakdown structure) Phases or Project Costs analysis in a Non-APM setup.
  • Standing Order Due Date (E10) – The due date for orders that are generated from a standing order is now configurable in Epicor ARM.
  • Support for Vendor ID Changes in Epicor (E10) – When a Vendor ID in Epicor is changed, Epicor ARM automatically updates with the new Vendor ID.
  • Auto-Email Failure Notifications (E7/10) – Epicor ARM now provides email bounce back notifications for the auto-email functionality.
  • Auto Email Notifications Supported on Auto-Approve Nodes (E7/10) – A new setting has been introduced allowing email notifications to be sent to Approvers whose approval tree nodes are flagged with the ‘Auto-Approve’ option.

Contact Your Encompass CAM for further details on all these updated features.

Epicor Advanced Requisition Management 10.3 SP5 Upgrade eligibility

Epicor ARM 10.3 SP5 is compatible with Epicor 10 and 7.4 SP7. Existing ARM customers have the option to upgrade to ARM 10.3 SP5 at any time, and while many of the features of the latest releases cater predominantly to Epicor 10 users, customers do not necessarily need to be on the latest version of Epicor to implement ARM now. Contact your Encompass Customer Account Manager for more information.

Users upgrading to Epicor ARM 10.3 SP5 should note the following: If you are upgrading from ARM versions 10.0 SP6, ARM 10.1.0, ARM 10.1 SP1 – SP4, you must run the Upgrade Manager to migrate data so that it will be compatible with the enhanced Approvals Process that was introduced in ARM 10.1 SP6.

If you are upgrading from ARM 10.1 SP5 you do not need to run the Upgrade Manager to migrate your data. It will already be compatible with the enhanced Approvals Process (introduced in ARM 10.1 SP6).

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.


Epicor Kinetic (formerly Epicor ERP) is a robust and intuitive solution designed to meet the demanding requirements of manufacturers across the globe in addressing the challenges of corporate and operational growth. The platform is available on-premise, hosted, and in the cloud. By unifying a business’ internal systems and integrations, users can easily access things like critical KPIs, product profitability monitoring, and invaluable visibility into essential data from operations to customer satisfaction. An established ERP solution with more than 40 years of in-depth industry experience, Epicor ERP enables you to make informed decisions with predictive analytics to impact change and optimization at every level of your enterprise. The complete Epicor ERP overview below will give you the info on every aspect of the Epicor ERP software. Keep in mind that some features are cloud-based and not available to on-premise customers.

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.

Complete Epicor ERP Overview Table Of Contents

  • General Data
  • Architecture
  • Upgrades
  • Cost
  • Licenses And User Profiles
  • Multi-Site And Multi-National Functionality
  • Multi-Language, Multi-Currency, And Multi-Tax Code Compliance
  • Supported Database Platforms
  • Server Operating Systems
  • Supported Browsers
  • Deployment options
  • Independent Software Vendors
  • Epicor Integration Cloud
  • Release Guides

Human Capital Management

  • Core HR
  • Analytics
  • Global HR
  • Candidate self-service
  • Employee self-service
  • Talent management
  • Training and development
  • Position control
  • Timesheets

Financial Management

  • Global Engines
  • General ledger
  • Tax connect
  • Financial planning
  • Cash management
  • Asset management
  • Advanced financial reporting
  • Accounts receivable
  • Accounts payable
  • Rebates
  • Credit and collections

Service and Asset Management

  • Service Management
  • Returned Material Authorization
  • Service Contract and Warranty Management
  • Case Management
  • Social Service Management
  • Maintenance Management
  • Field Service Automation
  • Field Service Automation Mobile Experience

Customer Relationship Management

  • Contact Management
  • Customer Connect
  • Marketing Management
  • Mobile CRM
  • Epicor ERP Integration to Salesforce.com®

Sales Management

  • Estimating and Quotation Management
  • Estimating Management
  • Order Management
  • Point of Sale
  • Commerce Connect
  • Customer Connect
  • Dealer Network Portal

Product Data Management

  • Methods of Manufacturing
  • Bill of Materials (BOM)
  • Routings
  • Engineering Change and Revision Control
  • Document Management
  • CAD Integration
  • Product Lifecycle Management
  • Product Costing
  • Product Configuration

Project Management

  • Project Planning and Analysis
  • Project Billing
  • Resource Management
  • Time Management
  • Expense Management
  • Mobile Time & Expense Management

Production Management

  • Job management
  • Advanced production
  • Kanban lean production
  • Manufacturing Execution System (MES)
  • Advanced MES
  • Quality Management
  • Enhanced Quality Management

Supply Chain Management

  • Purchase Management
  • Advanced Requisition Management
  • Purchase Contracts
  • Supplier Connect
  • Supplier relationship management
  • Inventory management
  • Epicor Smart Inventory Optimization
  • Epicor Smart Operational Analytics
  • Advanced Material Management
  • Package Control
  • Manifesting And Freight Management
  • Shipping And Receiving
  • Warehouse Management
  • Mobile Warehouse

Planning and Scheduling

  • Forecasting and Master Production Scheduling
  • Epicor Smart Demand Planner
  • Material Requirements Planning
  • Scheduling and Resource Management
  • Advanced Planning and Scheduling
  • Multi-site Management
  • Forecast Pro for Epicor

Business Intelligence and Analytics

  • Operational Reports/Dashboards
  • Descriptive Analytics (Business and Financial User Reporting/Dashboards)
  • Diagnostic Analytics (Scorecards/KPIs, Financial Planning)
  • Predictive Analytics (Forecasting).
  • Smart Demand Planner
  • Smart Inventory Optimization
  • Smart Operational Analytics
  • Mobile Business Intelligence
  • Role-Based Analytics and Business Intelligence

Global Business Management

  • Multicompany Management
  • Multicurrency Management
  • Global Multisite Management
  • Multilingual Data Management
  • Master Data Management
  • Scalable Deployment
  • Global Engines

Governance, Risk, and Compliance

  • Corporate Governance
  • Risk Management
  • Security Management
  • Business Process Management
  • Global Trade Compliance
  • Electronic Compliance Reporting Tool
  • Environmental and Energy Management

Business Architecture

  • Epicor ICE
  • Flexible Deployment Options
  • Enterprise Experience
  • Web Access Framework
  • Information Worker
  • Epicor Mobile Framework
  • Business Activity Query
  • Enterprise Query and Application Search
  • Business Process Management
  • Social Collaboration Platform
  • Enterprise Content Management
  • Advanced Print Routing
  • Epicor DocStar ECM
  • Electronic Commerce Platform
  • Security Management
  • Automation Tool For Epicor
  • Service Architecture
  • REST Services
  • Compliance and Structured Reporting Framework
  • Epicor Education and Content Delivery
  • Embedded Education
  • Epicor Learning Center
  • Documentation

Scroll to top

The Complete Epicor ERP Overview

An in-depth overview will give prospective enterprises essential insight into the capabilities and components of Epicor ERP that can be utilized by every facet of a business. The following is an extensive overview of the software solution from the time of writing this article.

an image of the complete epicor erp overview. including a complete system diagram of all core modules and components

Epicor ERP General Data

Below, we’ve compiled an overview of general attributes and capabilities of the Epicor ERP platform. This section includes topical information that details the available integrations, architecture, database platforms and server OS utilized by Epicor ERP.

Epicor ERP Architecture

Epicor ERP operates as a 100% service-oriented architecture (SOA) and is based on Microsoft .NET technologies. The platform can be accessed by users via a web browser and desktop application. The Epicor ERP platform is modular, enabling enterprises to implement the tools needed now, while additional modules can be added or deactivated as time goes on.

Epicor ERP Upgrades

Maintaining an up-to-date version of ERP software is something that Epicor encourages users to endeavor toward. However, the vendor does not require users to use the most recent version of Epicor ERP in their day-to-day operations. That said, users who fall far behind on their software versions will find support services reduced as resources cannot facilitate full coverage for Epicor ERP so many versions older than the current iteration of Epicor ERP. Users can upgrade their current version of Epicor at any time.

Cost

Epicor is a subscription-based service. Users pay for implementation services along with annual license fees depending on how many users they need to have access to the system at any given time. The overall costs associated with Epicor will vary depending on the size and needs of your enterprise.

Licenses And User Profiles

Epicor licenses, or profiles, are purchased on a per-seat basis. Whether your business needs 10 users or 1,000, your access is not tied to any individual within your organization. Rather, concurrent users accessing the system at any given time are allowed up to the amount you have paid for. For instance, if 50 users are currently logged into the system and a 51st attempts to log in, they will be denied access. If any individual logs out, that 51st individual can then log in to complete their tasks in the Epicor ERP environment.

Multi-Site And Multi-National Functionality

Epicor is a solution appropriate for enterprises of every size. For larger entities that operate more than one facility, in more than one location, or in more than one country, Epicor has many management tools designed to keep operations running smoothly around the world. Permissions, access, and visibility are assigned in accordance with the company’s needs. This means everyone who needs access to multi-site and multi-national data or operations will have it.

Multi-Language, Multi-Currency, And Multi-Tax Code Compliance

Epicor is a platform that facilitates your enterprise’s use of multiple languages and currencies out of the box. If you are growing, the platform can scale with your business and new languages and currencies can be added to your system as needed. As you expand further from an original base of operations new tax code and regulatory compliance will be necessary. Epicor Multilingual Management, alongside Epicor Global Configurable Engines, facilitates this growth with resources that can manage your business wherever you take it. This includes support for country-specific requirements around tax, currency, and languages.

Supported Database Platforms

Epicor ERP is an SQL-exclusive platform.

Server Operating Systems

Epicor servers operate on Windows Server Edition.

Supported Browsers

As a browser-based software solution, users can log into their Epicor account from:

  • Internet Explorer 5+
  • Safari
  • Chrome
  • Netscape 7+
  • Any other Mozilla-based browsers on any desktop or mobile device

Deployment options

  • Cloud (Microsoft Azure)
  • Hosted
  • On-premise

Independent Software Vendor (ISV) Integrations

The list of ISV partners which provide their purpose-built solutions directly through integrations with Epicor software systems can be found HERE.

Beyond this list, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of bespoke industry solutions that can be integrated with Epicor software systems through customization and developing connectors through the Epicor development architecture.

Epicor Integration Cloud

Rapidly connect all of your cloud, SaaS, and on-premises business applications to your system of record—Epicor ERP. Epicor Integration Cloud, Powered by Jitterbit, provides a scalable solution for rapid integration, implementation and easy expansion.

  • Jitterbit’s API Integration Platform provides a seamless way to connect Epicor to any in-house, on-premises, or cloud-based system.
  • Enables companies to build and automate workflows across critical business applications.
  • Connect CRM, E-Commerce, Analytics, 3PL/Logistics and HR with Epicor to provide a complete, data-driven view across all your applications.

Thousands of endpoints are able to connect to an Epicor ERP system, a comprehensive list of those endpoints, databases, and more can be found HERE.

Release Guides

Epicor ERP 10.2.100 Release Guide (PDF – 1.3MB)

Epicor ERP 10.2.200 Release Guide (PDF – 2.1MB)

Epicor ERP 10.2.300 Release Guide (PDF – 1.6MB)

Epicor ERP 10.2.400 Release Guide (PDF – 5.3MB)

Epicor ERP 10.2.500 Release Guide (PDF – 3.5MB)

Epicor ERP 10.2.600 Release Guide (PDF -5MB)

Epicor ERP 10.2.700 Release Guide (PDF – 5.9MB)

Scroll to top

 

Human Capital Management (HCM)

Epicor HCM is designed to empower enterprises that want to engage, align, and lead their workforce.  By providing a feature-rich and dynamic Human-Resource Management Solution (HRMS), Epicor HCM provides an on-premise or cloud-based solution that helps manage your workforce more efficiently. This enables your enterprise and HR team to focus on growth, rather than tedious tasks and minor administration tasks.

an image of Epicor HCM on a tablet as part of the complete epicor erp overview

As employee expectations of their employers rise, enterprises need to provide more powerful tools that offer visibility and management of internal processes, such as benefits selection and retirement contributions. The HCM self-service portal provides fulfilling user experiences and greater control. When it comes to growth strategy, HCM facilitates opportunities to better align talent with corporate goals. The result is an increased ROI on HR efforts to hire, train, and retain talent based on company needs. Data visibility and analytics tools further drive the efficiencies that Epicor HCM provides. The complete Epicor HCM module includes:

Core HR

HR professionals increase their value to the organization by helping decision-makers navigate workforce change. Access to accurate information is essential. The Epicor Human Capital Management software maintains your employee-related data in a single database—a true HR system of record that enables you to support your organization’s strategic initiatives.

Usability – Epicor HCM offers a highly intuitive user experience, which enables users across all roles—including candidates, applicants, HR professionals, employees, and management—to quickly learn and adopt the system throughout the organization. Inspired by consumer software, Epicor HCM allows you to instantly navigate anywhere within the solution—you can launch new activities worry-free with the Epicor HCM auto-save feature, and the software notifies you if you miss a field in a task. Epicor HCM has a powerful home page that serves as the launchpad for everything you and your users regularly do in the system. HR department users and administrators, business managers, and employees can personalize their home pages with their favorite data fields and tasks. With the Epicor HCM home page, everyone can securely and quickly complete their assigned tasks—improving overall efficiency.

Reporting – Through graphs and charts, you can analyze applicant and employee data to better manage your workforce and improve strategic planning. You can analyze costs of turnover and hires, predict effects of salary increases, monitor salary increases against performance ratings, keep tabs on equal employment data, compare benefit programs, and much more. Epicor HCM provides a complete picture of your company’s workforce for better strategic planning. Epicor HCM offers over 150 standard reports, including:

  • Absence accrued cost by department
  • Annual recruiting budget
  • Applicant requisitions
  • Qualification match
  • Cost per hire
  • Benefit statement
  • Benefit enrollment by person
  • EEO
  • Drug test history
  • Total compensation statement
  • X Audit report

U.S. Compliance includes:

  • Affordable Care Act (ACA)
  • Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)
  • Affirmative Action Plan (AAP)
  • Veterans Employment and Training Service (VETS)
  • Family Medical Leave Assistance (FMLA)
  • OSHA Logs
  • COBRA

Integrations to Epicor ERP – Epicor HCM is integrated with Epicor ERP to help you collaborate on critical employee information through a more expedient and secure process. This integration simplifies your technology landscape by maintaining a single source of truth for employee leave, Approved requests for paid time off (PTO) can be shared from Epicor HCM to Epicor ERP to give managers visibility to employee availability directly from within the ERP scheduler. Managers have the ability to create rules around PTO requests using workflows to ensure they have appropriate coverage for any given period of time. An employee’s actual time worked flows back into the HCM solution from Epicor ERP, allowing HR to run scheduling, payroll, and ultimately close the loop.

Absence Points System – Support your absence and tardiness policies digitally with the absence points system in Epicor HCM. This system provides an integrated means to correlate absences with points and corrective action thresholds, making it easier to track and enforce on-time employee attendance.

Analytics

Epicor HCM integrates with Epicor Data Analytics (EDA) for a modern view of workforce insights to drive more informed decision-making for HR professionals. EDA provides interactive dashboards of HR information so you can easily review, understand, and act upon data. Its reports, graphs, charts, and filters are designed to be very user-friendly so that any team member can build and modify dashboards to fit their role. Types of HCM data that can be viewed as a dashboard with Epicor Data Analytics include:

  • Absences
  • Benefits
  • Applications
  • Requisitions
  • Recruitment
  • Qualifications
  • Health and Safety
  • Terminations
  • Compensations

Global HR

Empower your enterprise to manage a global workforce with a robust Human-Resource Management Solution. Epicor HCM is available via web-based access worldwide, automatically configuring data fields to reflect the appropriate format based on an employee location. Location-specific home pages deliver a blend of relevant communication and corporate standards at each site. The system can accommodate variable grades, different benefit and absence plans, multiple currencies, additional compensation types, and potentially different data tracking and reporting requirements. Epicor HCM enables employees to see their compensation in local currency or split payments into multiple currencies while maintaining the same information in the corporate currency for ease of reporting and analysis.

Candidate self-service

Epicor HCM gives you the tools you need to help you make the best possible hiring decisions and eliminate paper processes. Intuitive tools assist HR and hiring managers with workflows that walk you through the most common recruiting tasks—opening a requisition, interviewing, and hiring. Candidate Self Service allows individuals to submit online applications which are automatically connected to your HCM system and flow seamlessly to HR and hiring managers. Coupled with Core HR, .this solution helps recruiters approve requisitions, filter applications through qualification matches and knockout questions, keep statuses updated, and record comments throughout the hiring process, shorten your recruiting process and control costs. Recruitment functionality includes:

  • Requisition management
  • Job board integrations
  • Skills search
  • Job-opening cost tracking
  • Evaluation tracking
  • Drug-test tracking
  • Onboarding

Mobile Candidate – Today’s workforce is on the move and increasingly digital-first, so you need pragmatic tools that will attract tech-savvy talent. One of the mobile offerings in Epicor HCM, Epicor Mobile Candidate extends recruiting to reach more applicants for less through an innovative mobile portal.

Employee self-service

Adding employee self-service capabilities to your HR delivery methods is key to employee engagement, streamlining processes, and increasing service responsiveness across the organization. Epicor HCM Employee Self Service creates a dynamic HR communication portal with easy-to-access information for employees at all levels of your organization. Allow employees to access their personal information whenever they like, find answers to common HR questions, manage benefits, view openings, and more.

Benefits Management – With Epicor HCM, administering your benefit plans is easy and efficient. You can track an unlimited number of benefit plans and manage complex benefit plans with ease. The Epicor HCM intuitive interface enables benefit administrators to easily input your organization’s plans, options, and costs. Key features include:

  • Online open enrollment
  • Online enrollment for life events
  • Unlimited benefit plans and options
  • Electronic signatures for benefit changes
  • Rules and eligibility criteria
  • Premium payment and employee contribution tracking
  • Benefit cost and usage tracking
  • Separations and continuation of coverage

Absences – The impact and cost of employee absences to the organization can be very high, which presents an opportunity for driving out costs and demonstrating the return on investment (ROI) of HR programs. The absence-tracking features in Epicor HCM enable you to manage employee absences online to help control those costs.

Talent management

Organizations are increasingly focused on retaining valuable employees through skills development, rewards, and employee satisfaction initiatives. Epicor HCM helps HR leaders define and leverage competency models that jumpstart talent management initiatives as part of a comprehensive HCM strategy. Functionality includes:

  • Goal management
  • Cascading goals
  • Journaling
  • Configurable appraisal documents
  • Skills gap analysis
  • Job Needs
  • Competencies and certifications

Performance Management – Performance management can be a powerful method to motivate employees, prioritize objectives, and focus organizational efforts on common strategic initiatives. With Epicor HCM, you can align corporate goals with employee performance while empowering managers to consistently monitor employee performance throughout the year. The 360-degree or traditional performance reviews facilitate the process of evaluating employees and reduce the cost of tedious paper-based appraisals.

Talent Assessment – Epicor HCM offers a highly visual and detailed method for exploring the talent potential of your employees. The Employee 9-Box Talent Matrix allows you to evaluate your employees in terms of current contribution to the organization and their potential, as mapped out in a matrix format. This 9-box matrix is an especially useful tool to quickly evaluate your organization’s talent pool, track an employee’s career trajectory, identify potential leaders, and determine top candidates for coaching or mentoring.

Compensation – Compensation expenses typically account for a significant portion of an organization’s annual budget, so managing them optimally is vital. Proper planning and management of compensation strategies can help you retain the talent you need and ensure your overall success. With Epicor HCM, you can manage all types of pay and an unlimited number of grades and ranges—even allowing for different grade scales at different locations within your organization.

Salary Planning and Administration – The Epicor HCM salary planning and modeling tools enable HR to create plans on a defined budget, which managers can use to model various salary distributions among their employees. Upon submission, HR can route plans through the proper channels. Once plans take effect, HR can create a single view of your compensation strategy for the executive team. Empower managers to directly request salary changes for their employees through Epicor HCM. Requests can be routed through the proper channels for approval, and use electronic signatures for documentation. Routed requests can even be conditional (e.g., if a change is more than 3%, it requires executive approval; if it is less than 3%, it only requires department head approval) and requests may be edited by the approving authorities during the process.

an image of Epicor HCM on a tablet as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Training and development

The Epicor HCM Training and Development module allows you to track a comprehensive training history on your employees so you gain a better understanding of the knowledge, skills, and abilities employees have added to their personal profiles, as well as any additional learning opportunities that may interest them. Encourage a culture of growth and opportunity among employees by empowering them to take control of their own career development.

Position control

The Epicor HCM Position Control module lets you manage headcount and monitor funding allocations to better control the “people” budget. Whether it’s creating a new position and submitting a request for approval or measuring resources against budgeted headcounts, Position Control allows HR professionals to refine the attributes of a position for better administration of open, filled, and new positions while maintaining tight control on costs.

Timesheets

Managing an employee’s work hours or time off can be overlooked as an area with potential cost savings. Reduce data entry time by empowering employees to be responsible for their own accurate time reporting with the Epicor HCM Timesheet module. Managers can filter the timesheets by those submitted, not submitted, or waiting for approval to make the time worked approval process more efficient. Afterwards, managers can send the time records to payroll electronically, which drives efficiency to the payroll process and reduces administrative costs. With integrated absence functionality, even the requested time off is added to the employee’s timesheet to further support workforce planning and scheduling.

Scroll to top

Financial Management

Epicor Financial Management adds greater value to a business, increasing efficiency and insight through access to real-time fiscal information anywhere and on any device. Robust reporting and analytics enable more sound and faster decisions. This paves the way to grow business with expansive functionality that supports multiple locations, currencies, companies, and tax codes. The capabilities of the Epicor Financial Management are expansive and offer flexible accounting and finance tools that improve insight, automation, and compliance within organizations. Reporting and analytics tools enable managers to make the right decision and drill down deep into the details for a better understanding on how to best leverage business intelligence to achieve optimal fiscal performance.

The complete Epicor ERP overview of Financial management includes:

Global engines

Epicor Financial Management is built around a series of unique global engines, which in turn support the global nature of business today, enabling effective operations in existing and new markets—as necessary. At the heart of the Epicor solution, Epicor global engines are designed to add accounting agility and flexibility to your business while simultaneously allowing you to meet the local financial and legal compliance requirements of individual markets. Complete functionality includes:

  • Rules-based posting engine
  • Configurable tax engine
  • Legal numbering engine
  • Multicurrency engine
  • Rounding engine

General ledger

Epicor General Ledger (GL) is the heart of Epicor Financial Management, processing and posting all accounting transactions created throughout Epicor applications, as well as entries made directly within the ledger. The information and controls which flow from the General Ledger system enable an organization to operate efficiently, comply with fiscal regulations, underpin strong corporate governance, and drive enterprise performance. This powerful GL application provides the accounting controls and system security necessary to help ensure the integrity of your company’s financial data. Complete functionality includes:

Multiple Books at the core of the General Ledger

Epicor Financial Management provides flexible financial accounting representations through multiple book functionality, which flows all the way through to financial reports and statements. “Multiple Books“ allows the establishment of unlimited financial books to support a wide variety of financial requirements, such as budgeting and forecasting, statutory and government accounting versus management accounting (for example, US GAAP and non- GAAP, etc.), and comprehensive consolidations. Epicor Financial Management provides the tools to seamlessly handle the accounting representations from your various subsidiaries while at the same time giving you a consolidated view of the one version of the financial truth for your organization.

Key highlights and benefits of using Multiple Books within your company:

Chart of Accounts – Create a different chart of accounts by book, post transactions to different accounts within different books simultaneously using the posting engine.

Reporting Currency – Have a different reporting currency tied to each book and even, if ever needed, assign a different period calendar to each book. This flexibility allows users with a single journal to process both the management accounts and the statutory accounts at the same time without the need for multiple transaction entry.

Multiple Closing Calendars – As businesses acquire new businesses there is often a need to maintain different calendars for “stub“ periods or for example up to 18 months to bring the acquired company in line with the fiscal calendar of the acquiring business. Each established book can operate a completely independent fiscal calendar as applicable.

Calendar Adjustment Period – General Ledger has built-in support for an additional year-end period to be defined as a part of your calendar that will be used for year-end adjusting entries.

Chart of Accounts –  Epicor Financial Management allows up to 20 user-definable segments within the chart of accounts (COA). These can be used for accounting and reference purposes providing the ability to record, store, allocate and report on important financial data at a highly granular level. With a total of 200 characters available, Epicor gives you the flexibility to manage your financial operations exactly as you need.

Balance Controls – Epicor Financial Management allows users to define the frequency at which balances on accounts are captured and stored. Often used to facilitate the calculation of Average Daily Balances, this flexibility enables the user to update account balances as frequently as required by the organization: by the hour, by day, by week, or by month.

Consolidations and Eliminations – Epicor Financial Management meets the needs of businesses today through integral financial consolidation at either a summary or detailed transaction level, providing the flexibility to consolidate from different books and/or companies within a defined relationship.

  • Merge balances (and underlying transactions) from one or more books into a single consolidated view of financial information, from which financial reports may be prepared, while at the same time creating the supporting elimination journal entries as a result of the process.
  • Re-measure accounting transactions and financial results based on the differences in the consolidated currencies using differing rates types (e.g., spot fixed, etc.).

Advanced Allocations

Automation and control of repetitive processes are two of the major benefits of using a Financial Management Suite. Manual processes such as monthly allocation and accrual entries slow down closing cycles and introduce multiple points of inaccuracy or error. Epicor Advanced Allocations automatically computes cost and revenue allocations and the resulting 5 Financial Management journal calculations, streamlining processes, increasing relevance and improving accuracy. This results in shorter close cycles and more accurate financial statements. Advanced Allocations allows for the sophisticated allocation of cost and revenue to multiple projects or departments or locations— ultimately to any entity represented in your corporate financial accounting structure. GL Allocations helps your finance staff to create, execute, retain, and reuse allocations to greatly simplify what can be an otherwise time-consuming and error-prone task.

An Allocation History Tracker keeps a detailed history of allocation runs which provides a comprehensive view of each Allocation run and all GL transactions created grouped by batches and tiers. The application allows for allocation reversal directly from the Allocation History Tracker. Advanced Allocations allows you to:

  • Allocate an amount in a single account to one or more accounts.
  • Allocate balances or transactions using static or dynamic calculations.
  • Pool accounts for allocation using a direct update or offset account.
  • Make allocations based on statistical data X Base allocations on Business Activity Query (BAQ)- derived dynamic data such as monthly revenue, help desk service calls per month, etc.
  • Structure hierarchical or tiered allocations to run sequentially.
  • Create and post allocation journals or simply use the output of the calculations elsewhere within the system.
  • Maintain allocation history for reuse, review, and analysis.
  • Reverse allocations where required by simply selecting the original allocation and flagging it for reversal with a user-defined apply date.

Accounts receivable

Accounts Receivable (AR) provides a comprehensive set of tools to manage your invoicing, credit, cash management, and customer management needs. With Accounts Receivable, you know who is buying what and who is paying their bills on time.

Invoice Entry – Enter multiple shipments for an order on a single invoice, and write unlimited comments. Invoice entry supports advance/ progress billing deposits, credit memos, and standard invoices.

Debit Notes – Ability to record Debit Notes (Chargebacks) sent from the customer. Debit Notes may now be entered as part of the AR cash receiving process, and will then have their value applied as part of the settlement process. The Debit Notes may be related to specific invoices or remain unassigned.

The new Debit Note will remain as an open receivable until matched to a credit memo or subsequently paid. In addition, Debit Notes sent by customers can be recorded independently of the cash receipt process – for example, electronically received payments. They can then either be applied or produce an unapplied cash value.

Interest Invoices – Create and apply interest invoices to manually charge an interest amount to an overdue or late-paid invoice. Select a customer and choose the single or multiple invoice lines against which to generate the interest invoice. Additionally, finance charges on invoices can be generated against a customer’s overdue invoice balance. Users have the ability to include or exclude the impact of credit memos when calculating finance charges.

Multiple Payment Instruments – Track the different types of credit instruments such as Promissory Notes and post-dated checks and their corresponding status, from initial generation or receipt through to clearance/ settlement. Track the movements of the payment instruments and generate status change updates within the Accounts Payable and Receivable applications, these changes can be reflected in the General Ledger to properly record to the financial status of the asset or liability. You can track how your customer credit is maintained through the life of the payment instrument reflecting the available credit based on the status and final settlement of the payment instrument. By using this functionality, you can be assured that complex, settlement-related taxes are correctly handled when payment is made via payment instruments.

Invoice Logging and Numbering – Logging allows the recording of invoice details with applicable input tax while the invoice is in the process of review and approval. This allows you to reclaim the input tax in a timely fashion, where such practices are allowed. When an invoice is created, users have the flexibility to allow the system to automatically generate invoice numbers or you can manually enter numeric or alphanumeric invoice numbering schemes at the invoice type level.

Ageing Information and Customer Reminder – View ageing information on the screen or print it in one of several formats. Accounts Receivable offers Customer Reminder features that allow companies to track the history of their customers’ AR balances together with the option to issue them user-defined reminder letters.

Automatic Finance Charges – Finance charge invoices can now be generated against a customer’s overdue invoice balance. These finance charges are automatically calculated based on rules defined within the Finance Charge Maintenance program. The charges can also be reviewed before they are posted.

Bill-To Customer – Provides the ability for a customer to maintain a list of allowed Alternate Bill-to (Alt-BT) customers, optionally with one set as a default. This will default onto the Quote/Order/Direct Invoice and can be changed by the user to a different authorized bill-to customer prior to posting the invoice. If no alternates have been set up then the Alt-BT customer is the sold-to customer (but using the ‘Bill-to address’ on that customer).

Manual Selection of Invoices – A manual selection option to get Invoices and Recurring Invoices is available within Invoice Entry. This allows the selection of particular or multiple invoices or recurring invoices for posting instead of selecting all available items at once.

Credit Manager Workbench – Easily view all credit-related information surrounding a customer. The credit manager workbench provides a single point from which to manage credit status, order credit status and account management, with drill-down to all associated information.

National Accounts (HQ Accounts) – The National Accounts (HQ Accounts) feature provides the ability to create customer relationships, either hierarchical or the more traditional parent/child type, within Accounts Receivable. This functionality allows customers within a National Account group to accept invoice payments from any customer within the relationship. The functionality also permits extensive credit checking across the National Account group with credit available to be split across levels with or without variable pooling.

Flexible Tax Engine – Epicor Financial Management contains a feature-rich flexible Tax Engine which allows businesses to configure Epicor applications for local and international financial reporting standards, as well as unique local tax jurisdictions. Tax tables within the Tax Engine include the ability to define or override rate effective dates. The Sales Tax Register lists invoice totals and tax amounts by customer for codes on file.

Settlement Currencies – You can record currency gains and losses at the time of settlement. Through this functionality, you post amounts correctly when invoicing in one currency but are paid by the customer in another currency.

Settlement Discounts – The application contains two methods for handling early settlement discounts on sales and tax values. The settlement amount is taken by the customer on the AR invoice. The potential discount is then included in the tax values calculated for VAT.

Terms and Conditions – Epicor supports all of the most common business practice terms and conditions within Accounts Payable and Receivable. This feature also affords great flexibility for the definition of creative receipt and payments terms within countries where this functionality is not necessarily demanded but may offer a competitive advantage. Terms and Conditions are user-defined, but typically include; End of the month plus n days, End of the following month, Specific due dates in a month, 2% 10 days and Net 20 days.

Electronic Report Formats and Transmission – Submit various legal reports electronically, which are based on existing reports such as the EU Sales List, Intrastat and Tax Reporting. You can then reformat generic reports to meet your local requirements. Complete functionality includes:

  • Cash receipts
  • Interest invoices
  • Invoice GL account definition
  • AR transaction adjustments
  • Deferred revenue
  • Consolidated invoicing
  • Automatic credit holds
  • Invoice/statement forms
  • Invoice-based sales commission payment
  • Multi-format sales analysis
  • Credit card management and authorization
  • Settlement currencies
  • Settlement discounts
  • User-friendly invoice and customer tracker
  • General Ledger interface
  • Cash management interface
  • Reconciliation report

a concept image of epicor financial management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Credit Card Processing

The Epicor ERP Credit Card Processing module gives access to several components that cover credit card processing 7 Financial Management needs–available directly with Epicor ERP. These components are:

  • Cloud Retail Environment (CRE)
  • Epicor Payment Gateway
  • Epicor Payment Exchange (EPX)

Cloud Retail Environment (CRE) is a new payment application. It provides a service that receives the transaction information from Epicor and then sends the request to the Epicor Payment Gateway.

The Epicor Payment Gateway service connects Epicor ERP to the credit card processing network in the cloud and transmits the requests of a credit card payment transaction to the gateway.

Epicor Payment Exchange (EPX) connects to full merchant services and credit processing businesses to perform credit card authorization, settlement and reporting, as well as credit, debit and PIN debit operations. American Express and Discover cards are supported and it is PCI Compliant. EPX is fully integrated with Epicor ERP and offers higher security, easier compliance, daily batch reconciliation, and streamlined processes.

CRE combined with the Epicor Payment Gateway stores all of the credit card data encrypted securely in the cloud, therefore the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) scope for Epicor ERP users is reduced.

For processing transactions in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, the Epicor Payment Gateway connects with PayFlow Pro (PayPal). The EPX service is only available to U.S. customers.

Credit and Collections

Accounts Receivable is one of the largest assets of any company, and it’s typically one of its most fluid. Most businesses, however, have to write-off four percent of this asset every year. This is a substantial cost to the business that can be greatly reduced with better management. Take control of your outstanding receivables and reduce days sales outstanding (DSO) through automated AR management. Complete functionality includes:

  • Collection management
  • Centralized activities
  • Collection templates

Accounts Payable

Accounts Payable (AP) allows you to enter supplier invoices for purchases that you make, and then create payments for the invoices you want to pay. The system can generate payments for all invoices due, those for a particular supplier, or only for specific invoices. If a supplier calls you to discuss an invoice, you will have complete information at your fingertips, and that history can be kept indefinitely.

AP allows you to update both purchase orders in Purchase Management as well as actual job costs. Adjustments are created if the purchase price does not match the invoiced price. With AP, you will know how much you owe and when it is due.

Invoices, Debit Memos, Payments – Record and post all payables instruments easily, including supplier or vendor vouchers and invoices, debit memos, automated check runs, and manual payments.

Payment Instruments – Track the different types of credit instruments such as Promissory Notes and post-dated checks and their corresponding status, from initial generation or receipt through to clearance/ settlement. Track the movements of the payment instruments and generate status change updates within the Accounts Payable and Receivable applications, these changes can be reflected in the General Ledger to properly record to the financial status of the asset or liability. You can track how your customer credit is maintained through the life of the payment instrument reflecting the available credit based on the status and final settlement of the payment instrument. By using this functionality, you can be assured that complex, settlement-related taxes are correctly handled when payment is made via payment instruments.

Bank Electronic Payments – The ACH functionality in Epicor ERP helps to automate cash flow between your bank and the banks of strategic suppliers and main customers. Electronic Fund Transfers (EFT) through ACH contribute to eliminating check fraud to a great extent.

The ACH functionality is currently only available in the U.S. and Canada. The standard (domestic and international) and the Wells Fargo formats are not licensed and available for all users. It works with the Positive Pay capability in Epicor ERP, supporting the Bank of Boston, Chase, Fleet, Union Bank, and Wells Fargo systems.

By customizing the standard formats, it is possible for any Epicor ERP users to maintain and update the automated payment mechanism easily and quickly, decreasing the time and cost needed for professional services. Multiple banks are supported, allowing to further reduce costs by using different banks for the domestic and international transactions.

The ECH functionality supports direct debit operations that allow your company to collect either single or recurring payments from your customers in an automated way.

ACH is compatible with the Epicor ERP Payroll module, so transfers to employees, such as expense reimbursements, government benefits, tax refunds, interest payments it’s fully automated.

AP Terms and Conditions – Epicor supports all of the most common business practice terms and conditions within Accounts Payable and Receivable. This feature also affords great flexibility for the definition of creative receipt and payments terms within countries where this functionality is not necessarily demanded but may offer a competitive advantage. Complete functionality includes:

  • Recurring entries
  • Deferred expenses
  • Voided numbers
  • Online cost updates
  • The exchange rate at payment entry
  • Supplier tracker X Supplier statements
  • General Ledger interface
  • Cash management interface
  • Checks X Electronic funds transfer (EFT)
  • Multiple remit-to
  • Three-way match

a concept image of epicor service and asset management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Rebates

The optional Rebates module provides you with a way to enter, update, and review any rebate program that your company runs with your customers. Use this module to define the active rebate programs for your company, generate rebate transactions, and pay rebate amounts to your customers through either an invoice check or a credit memo. Complete functionality includes:

  • Rebate transaction process generation
  • Get rebates
  • Rebate-to-AP invoices/memo
  • Rebate contract entry
  • Rebate transaction adjustment
  • Tracker programs

Tax Connect and Tax Global

Collecting and remitting sales and use tax is a government-required, compulsory activity. It doesn’t drive revenue, and it doesn’t reduce expenses, so any time or money spent on tax compliance is—by nature—non-profitable. There are more than 14,500 United States and Canadian tax jurisdictions alone, and the rates, rules, and boundaries change relentlessly. Keeping up with all of the tax changes is an operational Figure 10.1 Cash Management—Manage, report, and distribute financial information securely. 9 Financial Management distraction and a drag on the efficiency of your organization. Epicor Tax Connect gives Epicor ERP the option of determining sales taxes automatically based on the origin and destination of the sales transaction. It integrates to a constantly updated, comprehensive, online database of tax rules where each tax transaction can also be stored for historical and reporting purposes.

Tax Connect Global helps to determine sales tax in international business relations. Transactions in all directions between the United States and the European Union member states can take advantage of tax determination thus making business easier and making tax compliance less taxing. Tax Connect Global also runs in a number of other geographies.

Cash Management

Improve cash management through the automatic handling and reporting of discounts available, payment due dates, and payment selection methods. This module also allows you to specify the number and type of bank for each of your accounts— including currency—and reconcile your bank statement with entries generated in AR, AP, and payroll. Upload electronic bank statements and automatically reconcile them with transitions in the ERP system as well as performing manual allocations. Complete Cash Management functionality includes:

  • Bank statement processing
  • Fuzzy logic automated reconciliation
  • Soft formats for EFT
  • Petty cash management
  • Cash flow dashboards
  • Credit card processing
  • Integration with industry-leading providers
  • Supports industry standards to reduce fraud
  • Flexible configuration X Transaction flexibility
  • Reauthorize reservation transactions
  • Transaction reports

Asset Management

Asset Management helps you record, track, and depreciate your fixed assets for optimal utilization. Asset Management also automates the tracking and management of the asset throughout its useful life— from acquisition to disposition. Using a unified source of asset data, standard asset management tasks—such as asset transfers, disposals, reclassifications, and adjustments—can be streamlined. Complete Asset Management functionality includes:

  • Mass maintenance management
  • Asset registers
  • Asset valuations
  • Asset relationships
  • Maintenance
  • Multicurrency management
  • Asset depreciation methods
  • Asset integrations
  • Grants
  • Asset locations
  • Asset import
  • Retroactive adjustments

Advanced Financial Reporting

Epicor Advanced Financial Reporting (AFR) allows the creation and distribution of professional financial reports to company stakeholders. AFR fully supports both cloud and on-premises Epicor ERP deployments and works natively with Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS). It allows the management and viewing of financial data in a user-friendly environment. Financial reports are different from other reports, because each line has to be defined in terms of account ranges or sets for which a certain total needs to be calculated— versus other types of reports which do not require definitions of such complex groups. AFR simplifies report creation by exposing an intuitive interface which speaks to the user in familiar financial terms. Because the reports are parameter driven, the viewer can generate the report at any time by selecting the parameters of time, company, book or organizational element as required without the need for intervention by the financial team. Complete Advanced Financial Reporting functionality includes:

  • Flexible graphical report designer
  • Easily tailor vertical and horizontal report elements
  • Visual representation of reporting hierarchy is available with the reporting tree
  • Report against single book or multiple books
  • Consolidation of enterprise-wide data
  • Drill down into operational summarizations of key business units; drill down all the way to the transaction level
  • Report viewer
  • Non-financial data support

Note: No new enhancements will be developed for Epicor Advanced Financial Reporting (AFR). Fortunately, there are many alternatives that will continue to add value for your business. You can review the available options HERE.

Scroll to top

Service And Asset Management

Epicor® Service and Asset Management capabilities are designed to help manufacturers and service organizations maintain equipment, optimize customer service, and keep all technicians and customer-support personnel informed. We understand that your business needs to provide quick responses to customer incidents, keep your field operations informed and productive, and process returns quickly. The Epicor Service Management and Field Service Automation solutions provide the visibility and accountability that your business needs. Effective enterprise maintenance management solutions for monitoring and managing the deployment, performance, and maintenance of company and customer assets may be the most important tools for preventing operational surprises. Epicor solutions enable manufacturers, distributors, and service organizations to save time and money by optimizing maintenance resources—improving equipment uptime and maintenance and field staff productivity.

an image of service and asset management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Service Management

Epicor Service Management is primarily designed for manufacturers who bring customer assets in-house for repair or have light requirements for service or installations offsite that do not require purpose-built mobile access for field technicians. You can centralize all processes related to dispatching technicians and reporting costs of service calls in the field with support for drop shipment of service parts directly to the customer site.

Returned Material Authorization

Enhanced return processing offers enterprise-wide tracking of pending returns and disposition of these parts by a unique returned materials authorization (RMA) number. Enter information about returns and transfer that information to the different groups that may need to take action—like inspection, billing, and order processing.

Service Contract and Warranty Management

Epicor Contract Management—used in conjunction with Epicor Service Management—allows for the timely and accurate execution of service contracts—including the ability to generate service-level agreements with automatic billing options. Service contracts can be established for specific products, customers, and service-level agreements—each with an expiration date that is automatically tracked for easy manual look-up. The Service Call Center Workbench allows you to add or update service orders, schedule services, execute purchase and material planning, and manage warranty and service contracts.

Case Management

Fully integrated with Service Management, Epicor Case Management lets you easily access dispatching field activities and provide field service representatives with access to online knowledge bases, existing customer field service calls, warranty information, and service contracts. Comprehensive contact management, communication, and traceability capabilities allow you to efficiently manage and record all customer and staff interactions across the enterprise. You can also link documents and communication events like emails and calls.

Social Service Management

Epicor Social Enterprise brings together contributions from across the organization and the value chain. This information can be collected in a single location with or without the user needing to interact with the ERP. Recommendation or endorsement of content supports the creation of knowledge bases and reusable content that can be referenced easily using powerful search capabilities. Issue resolution or frequently asked questions (FAQs) can be linked to a specific service job, asset, or serial number for the life of the object.

Maintenance Management

Epicor Maintenance Management provides a comprehensive toolset for critical production and facilities equipment maintenance. It was designed to address maintenance request processing, planned preventative maintenance—according to predefined schedules—and ad hoc break/fix maintenance processing for a single piece of equipment. Facilities and production equipment can be scheduled for maintenance based on a predefined service interval, usage, time, or via manual requests. This can include internal capital equipment, tools, gauges, and fixtures—such as air conditioning units, forklifts, shelving, and shop floor tools. Eliminate manual input by creating maintenance work orders automatically from templates for routine maintenance—like oil changes, filter replacements, or belt changes—to eliminate, and then complete preventative maintenance work plans. Automatically create maintenance work orders when preventative maintenance is due. Base maintenance plans on timing or meter frequencies. Once a preventative or regular maintenance work order is established, the maintenance planner can schedule equipment downtime and trade resources and materials as needed. Include scheduled maintenance events—such as resource requirements—in the production schedule for better capacity planning. When maintenance has been performed on equipment, the operators can record their hours, materials used, and closing remarks regarding the repair or service. The Maintenance Management module maintains all equipment, material, and work histories.

Produce complete repair histories for each piece of equipment—including parts and labor cost.

Standardized reports—such as the Maintenance Work Order Request Report, Maintenance Work Order Report, and Equipment List—help maintenance technicians and managers organize and communicate maintenance events and review histories.

Field Service Automation

Enhance the productivity of field operations with mobile automation and integrated information flow. Connect your office and field staff with the information and processes they need to satisfy customers more efficiently. Epicor Field Service Automation (FSA) can help you drive field productivity for individuals and crews, shrinks response times, lowers costs, improves first-time completion ratios, and increases customer satisfaction to build a competitive advantage. Integrate people and information to empower your workforce to enhance the flow of business and technical information while connecting dispersed employees with convenient mobile devices. Automate manual processes, share best practices and procedural checklists, and track service inventory in real-time. Speed up and optimize scheduling and dispatch. Quickly understand service urgency and resource status, and easily match the best resources for each task using best-fit assignment.

Streamline the work order life cycle with rapid-response call taking, and speed work order creation, assignment, dispatch, closure, and billing. Integrated information and automated processes eliminate manual tasks and redundant data entry. Manage contracts, warranties, and assets more efficiently. Track asset histories and automate work order generation and billing. Manage terms, rates, and timeframes. Gain real-time insight for improvement, and access operational and resource information at a glance. Track trends and understand costs, so you can manage performance and make better decisions for enhanced profitability. Provide customers with self-service capabilities—including work order status and new work requests.

Track service stock accurately at mobile and fixed locations to reduce write-offs. Automatically adjust inventory records based on field use or in-route purchasing. Forecast materials requirements, and take advantage of bulk and just-in-time ordering. Check inventory locations and order materials directly from the field.

Take advantage of Bing® Maps integration to provide office and field staff with street-level mapping, route visibility, and turn-by-turn directions. Use any supported GPS tracking system in the field to quickly locate resources geographically from the office and optimize work assignment.

Field Service Automation Mobile experience

Field service technicians are able to access and input information in real-time with the use of a smart mobile device—whenever and wherever they need—to increase productivity, efficiency, and customer satisfaction. Complete work tickets, review service history, manage inventory, access customer pricing, and obtain electronic signatures—all with automated real-time capture. Our intuitive, user-friendly, and multiplatform HTML5 mobility solution runs on a variety of devices. Use smartphones, tablets, and laptops for both online and offline communications with the back office.

If you’re looking to truly automate your field service organization, a mobile app with offline functionality needs to be a priority for your technicians. With your serviceable assets located at countless types of job sites, it is imperative to have a mobile app that allows you to access the information you need to manage your inspections, work orders, and signatures without a cellular or Internet connection. For those organizations that service remote sites or equipment in a distant field, you cannot afford to arrive at the job site without access to your information. In order to truly streamline your field service organization, you need to go paperless with a mobile device, and equip your technicians with the right information—anywhere, anytime.

Scroll to top

Customer Relationship Management

Customer relationship management (CRM) strategies are as important to businesses today as they have ever been. We’ve designed Epicor CRM to help you stay ahead of the curve and successfully meet the challenges that the market brings—helping you to effectively manage your entire customer life cycle, improve operational efficiency, and accelerate growth both internally and externally.

CRM can control every aspect of a company’s interaction with its customers and prospects including generating the lead, developing the opportunity, taking the order, producing and shipping or supplying the goods or services, payment, and ongoing support of the customer. Epicor CRM provides a 360-degree view of the complete customer, supplier, or partner relationship. Epicor CRM broadens the scope of customer information to everyone within and across the organization and to stakeholders beyond.

Epicor Social Enterprise (ESE) further enhances Epicor CRM, delivering up-to-date contextual information to key stakeholders for the life of the customer relationship. Using ESE, customers, prospects, and partners can collaborate with internal information workers to target high customer satisfaction.

an image of customer service management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Contact Management

Comprehensive contact management is at the core of any effective CRM solution and makes keeping in touch with your customers and prospects easy by promoting responsive, respectful, and proactive communications. Contact Management enhances your customer service by documenting and sharing customer communication with the entire organization and helps manage contact interactions through task management. With Epicor CRM Contact Management you can improve overall focus and responsiveness by putting your contacts at the center of your business.

Customer Connect

Epicor Commerce Connect provides interactive customer-facing content over the Web. Today’s customer expects thorough access to information. Requirements such as being able to view special promotions and pricelists, make repeat purchases and pay on account are standards to improved customer loyalty and online commerce.

Marketing Management

With Epicor eMarketing, effectively distribute important communications to your employees, partners, prospects, and customers. Manage the entire campaign cycle through a highly flexible, easy-to-use web user interface that integrates with Epicor CRM. You can import contacts, create targeted emails, and measure the success of your campaigns.

Mobile CRM

Keeping your customers at the focus of your business today means that you need to be able to respond to their requests in a fast and efficient way. To achieve this, it is crucial that you take advantage of the latest technologies by providing your salesforce with easy-to-use tools designed to increase productivity and improve employee engagement. Epicor Mobile CRM empowers your salesforce by providing mobile access to the entire CRM suite of capabilities on iOS™ and Android™ devices. Through our next-generation mobile application, you can manage leads, customers and contacts, as well as quotes, from opportunity to order shipment. Create activity-based workflows like call and email logging, notes, “to do” lists and appointments, and implement your back-office task workflow. Access data related to competitors, cases, projects, and order history—even without Internet connectivity. Also, visualize your customers and prospects on a map while in the area, and then get travel time and directions to the selected location.

Never miss a sales opportunity again. With Mobile CRM, you can search your inventory to verify product availability, create Sales Orders (even from Opportunities), and finally ship them to your customers—all from your mobile device.

Epicor ERP Integration to Salesforce.com®

Ensure that your contact management system and your Epicor ERP CRM solution are in sync. This module directly integrates Epicor ERP to your Salesforce.com software and does not rely on middleware or another tool. Create and manage customer records, contacts, and Epicor parts bi-directionally in either the CRM module in

Epicor ERP or in Salesforce.com software. Therefore, any time you alter any of these records in either system, it is designed to synchronize automatically, saving you time and preventing potential data entry inconsistencies. Flag a “won” opportunity in your Salesforce.com software and it can automatically create a quote in Epicor ERP. It will validate parts and alert you if any of the inventory items from the won opportunity are not loaded in Epicor ERP. You can then maintain the rest of the sales process in Epicor ERP, saving you time and helping to ensure accuracy between the opportunity and the quote.

Scroll to top

Sales Management

The Epicor Sales Management module delivers a comprehensive suite that enables you to produce accurate estimates, streamline your order-to-cash cycle, and fulfill perfect orders that ensure world-class customer satisfaction. Epicor Sales Management automates and improves labor-intensive processes for quoting, proposal generation, configuration, and order entry—enabling you to improve sales productivity by increasing accuracy during the quote and order process and identifying the right solution to meet customers’ needs.

an image of sales management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Estimating and Quotation Management

Easily generate and track all customer or prospect requests for quotation (RFQs)—from the time of receipt until an order is placed. Create estimates and get quotes out more quickly with more accurate pricing and lead times with a wide range of powerful tools.

Estimating Management

Generate estimates easily utilizing the tree interface to drag-and-drop components, operations or materials from another quote, Bill of Materials (BOM) or previous job. Pull same-as-except type parts into the estimate, then modify them quickly and easily to create a new one. Calculate material, subcontract, labor, and burden costs for multiple quantities of a part. Perform realistic cost estimating with the ability to add any special charges (e.g., tooling or design), minimum lot charges, price breaks, and scrap factors on materials and subcontracting. Specify and store individual markups for material class, subcontracting, operations, and special costs. Create RFQ requests to trigger buyers to solicit suppliers for pricing of materials required in the estimating process. Review responses once submitted for inclusion in the estimate. When the order arrives, punch a few keys and the detailed routing will be ready to go to the floor or to make additional changes.

Social Estimating

Connect with engineers and other subject matter experts from the field. Epicor Social Enterprise helps to drive more accurate and timely estimates by enabling engineers to be part of a group that sales and estimators can collaborate electronically. Share knowledge and discuss the best options for customers leveraging up-to-date ERP information.

Quotation Management

Manage the sales cycle with dynamic task lists that ensure the right people are working on the quote at the right time. Use the Part Advisor to drill down into the quote/job/part status and history to answer critical questions related to a part:

  • Have I quoted it before?
  • Are there current orders for it?
  • Have I run it before?
  • Am I currently running it?
  • Do I have any in inventory?
  • Is part profitability available?

Instantly query summary and detailed information on an estimate/quote. Check inventory availability and easily cross-reference customer part numbers to your part numbers automatically during the quoting process. Send quotes to prospects, even if they don’t exist in the customer file. Quotation management capabilities include;

  • Standard Routings
  • Drag-And-Drop Interface
  • Realistic cost estimates with minimum lot charges, price breaks, and scrap factors on materials and subcontracting
  • Inventory Availability
  • Request Supplier RFQ
  • Markups by Category

Pipeline Management

Accurately predict pipeline activity by tracking the confidence levels (e.g., best, worst, most likely) by quote line with the ability to perform management overrides to optimize forecast accuracy. Track all competitors to find out where you are winning and why you may be losing.

Order/Job Integration

Increase efficiency and accuracy with the ability to quickly transfer quote information to a sales order or job. Built with tremendous flexibility, there are multiple ways to process an order and job from an existing quote such as:

  • Push to an order by the line item
  • Flag as won, automatically generating an order
  • Pull from Order Management with the capability to define specific lines and quantities desired

Order Management

Order Management drives the Epicor system. From the time an order is entered, its progress is tracked through final shipment, producing perfect order fulfillment on demand for maximum customer satisfaction. The Order Job Wizard generates appropriate jobs for new orders in a single step that enables the user to create, plan, schedule, and release jobs against multiple lines and multiple releases. Effectively manage orders with the ability to apply order-based discounts on an order value or product quantity basis. Optionally override and lock pricing. Check customer credit status online at quote entry, order entry, and shipment entry. Using blanket orders establish multiple releases (either firm or not firm) for each sales order line and pull parts directly from inventory. Optionally lock the order line quantity allowing new releases to decrement the final delivery quantity on the final delivery date, keeping the total line quantity in balance with the release. Simplify repeat orders with the Copy Order function including the ability to optionally build a new order from history or see previous orders and enter the quantity on the order form. Use Available-To-Promise to view running balances during order entry. Enter a quantity, and the system will find the earliest date that quantity will be available. Enter a date, and see how many parts are available on that day. Counter Sales allow you to automate the pick-up, shipment, and generation of sales invoices for walk-in customers. Additional capabilities include:

  • Tax calculations and fields are available at the sales order, line, and release levels.
  • Application for payment may be required from a different customer than the customer order/receiving the goods or bill third-parties, such as a customer of your distributor.
  • Manage sales commission calculations for direct and indirect sales teams. Allocate commission percentage over multiple sales entities per order line.
  • Generate customer, product group, warehouse, and products specific pricing hierarchies, while matching the end-user currency. For global enterprises, company, plant, and warehouse pricing offers flexibility in pricing products.
  • Enter unlimited miscellaneous charges or credits on each order header or order line. These charges will then print on the order and carry over to invoicing.
  • Link sales orders to Projects.

Epicor sales management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Sales Kits

Flexibility in selling items in kits includes configured item kits, optional price rollup and item substitution, mandatory ship complete, and optional printing of kit components on the packing slip and invoice. Use the answers from the kit master to “on the fly” configure individual kit components, automating kit instructions for features like style, color, and size. Configure a Kit within a Kit functionality support the ability to define multilevel configured sales kits that include non-stock components generated on a job or purchased direct for the kit, alongside stocked components.

Up-Sell, Cross-Sell, and Down-Sell

Improve order accuracy and ability to enhance sales with Up-sell, Cross-sell, and Down-sell capabilities. At the time of sales order entry, users are prompted with suggestions for “Upgrades,“ “Downgrades,“ “Substitutes,“ and “Complements.“ Whether substituting the original part with an upgrade or downgrade or adding complementary products; improved customer satisfaction alongside enhanced sales is the return.

Capable-To-Promise

Provide accurate, real-time delivery dates to customers when using Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS). Furnish a realistic promise date to your customer by finding out how a quote would fit into your current schedule. For multilevel structured products, Capable-To-Promise can be configured to create the sublevel assembly structures in addition to the top-level assembly.

Fulfillment and Allocation Processing

Use the Fulfillment Workbench for allocation or reservation and distribution processing, and plan for sales, transfers and job order types. Various fulfillment techniques, such as pick and pack, console-driven, and pre-pack processes may be performed through the use of templates to automate the fulfillment process. Hard allocation to finite level, versus reservations processing, may be launched directly from the order, line, and release areas as well. In conjunction with the fulfillment process, cross-docking provides the ability to directly link future inbound supply of items from purchase orders or jobs directly to demand from sales orders, transfer orders, or jobs. When the cross-docked items are received, they are immediately directed to the demand they are linked to, minimizing the time and task to fulfill the order or job.

Order Shipment Parameters

With Order Management, all orders and change orders will be effectively managed online, perfecting the order-to-delivery process for maximum customer satisfaction. Set up the appropriate shipping parameters including the ability to manage:

  • Track multiple ship-to addresses per order release.
  • Ship an order from multiple plants and multiple warehouses.
  • Do a one-time shipment to an address in Order Entry.
  • Drop Ship and Buy to Order provides the ability from within a sales order to define a part as being “Buy-to-Order. This may or may not be defined as a drop-ship item. In both cases, the purchase order will be linked to the sales order directly.
  • Automatically create backorders for lines shipped incomplete. Flexibility enables customer-specific backorder parameters for complete order lines or complete orders to be set.

Credit Card Processing

Epicor Credit Card Processing includes easy to use maintenance for initial setup along with a variety of integration points to bring an easily deployable solution to your business that meets the security guidelines as specified in the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard including securely encrypted account numbers and key management. Epicor Sales Management uses Epicor Credit Card Processing to support authorization with the sales order, reauthorization with the sales order before picking and shipping, and complete or partial funds collected with the sales order.

Order Monitoring

Use order tracker to see a summarized view of the order, drill down on selected items to see greater details (e.g. lines, releases, shipments, charges, bookings, audit, and payment information). Monitor and track changes to orders using Social Enterprise. Easily subscribe to notifications about changes to orders without building Business Process Management (BPM) controls. View a summary of all the changes to the order in an activity stream inside or outside Epicor ERP or receive social media style updates via Email or directly in your browser.

EDI/Demand Management

Today, all suppliers large and small are facing increased expectations from their customers to have systems in place for immediate response to changes in their demand such as forecast and shipping schedule changes. Epicor EDI/Demand Management secures your competitive edge by incorporating electronic data interchange (EDI) with demand scheduling. The EDI/Demand Management framework leverages the SOA business architecture of Epicor ERP and deep industry experience in EDI to lower the cost of EDI deployment. The framework provides full flexibility and control for setting up customer contracts and handling their schedules once inside the Epicor ERP system, whether entered manually in Demand Management or contained in EDI messages. This helps your company reduce lead time and effort for planning and procurement, thus enabling you to respond on the production floor faster. A wide range of EDI implementation choices are available to match your company’s needs, making it possible to preserve much of your investment in EDI setup and existing staff.

Demand Management

A component of the embedded EDI/ Demand Management module, Demand Management starts with a “contract” set up per customer with such agreed-upon parameters as pricing, initial demand schedule, and contract end date. The contract is then linked to incoming purchase orders, forecasts, and shipping schedules. These contracts can be managed, and schedules produced, automatically with set periodicities or schedule constraints that match each customer’s unique shipping needs. Additionally, as changes happen, the schedules can be updated, and changes matched to existing sales orders, which are then updated accordingly. You can use Demand Management without EDI, and if EDI is deployed, your customers’ electronic demand changes are brought in automatically for system review and acceptance into sales orders or forecasts in your Epicor ERP system, according to parameters and tolerances you specify. This is especially important for companies doing business in automotive as well as other industries such as industrial, consumer products, retail, and aerospace and defense. Demand Management capabilities include:

  • Demand Contract structure provides the ability to have many sales orders/ lines attached to the contract.
  • Demand Entry Management Console supports one inbound purchase order at a time, or options can be tuned for more automated entry into the Epicor ERP system.
  • Establish demand settings per trading partner to include tolerances, such as for allowable time windows when schedule lines can be added or deleted or changed, tolerances for price variations, parameters for matching changes against existing sales orders, and functions for reconciling shipped quantities between you and your trading partner. Automated Demand Management processing can be set to always process in spite of tolerance errors, process with warnings, or stop when an error is encountered.
  • Use Demand Mass Review to manually match incoming forecast and shipping schedule changes to existing forecasts and sales order lines in the Epicor ERP System. Configurable matching algorithms help to speed up the matching process.
  • Manually generate sales order release schedules based on defaulted customer periodicity (interval setup) and release quantity. Automatically close rejected schedules from the customer record.
  • Review balances as well as proposed quantity of proposed schedule.
  • Manage and reconcile the cumulative shipped quantity. Validate cumulative quantity discrepancies by customer and choose to “Stop” or “Warn” and then allow the received demand to be turned into a valid sales order—this feature includes Cumulative Variances Reporting. The Demand Reconciliation screen helps in the cumulative matching process with the ability to easily make reconciled quantity adjustments. Cumulative quantities are tracked at the order and shipment levels over the life of the contract.
  • Schedule forecasted deliveries that can be utilized with MRP to predict demand for resources and provide guidance on pending demand for materials.
  • Periodicity (Interval Setup) – Specify rules by plant or plant/supplier for automatic purchase schedule suggestions. Periodicity rules can be specified as Daily, Monthly Forward, Weekly Forward, and Nth Day of Week.
  • Capable-to-Promise – Set up the system to review open contracts and capacity requirements for a product and automatically adjust the new demand requirements after reviewing against open contracts as well as available capacity.
  • Support for Allowance and Charge Codes – Optionally receive and process allowances and miscellaneous charges within EDI transmissions from trading partners. Both flat amounts and percentage based charges are available.
  • Automated Order Match Validation – Automatically cancel demand releases received that are not matched to a specific order release.
  • Close and Process Schedules – Use a single step to automatically close and process all schedules within Demand Management.
  • Contract Start and End – Manage contracts effectively with contract start and end date.

EDI Standard Transactions

The Epicor ERP system framework readily supports the following listed standard ANSI X12 and EDIFACT documents. Many more are available from the Epicor EDI Solutions Team, who are experienced in making EDI work in various environments and can offer enhanced functionality that is tailored to the EDI needs of your business. For example:

Inbound Documents

  • Purchase Order (ORDERS, 850)
  • Planning Schedule (DELFOR, 830)
  • Shipping Schedule (DELJIT, 862)
  • Change Order (ORDCHG, 860)

Outbound Documents

  • Purchase Order Acknowledgement (ORDRSP, 855)
  • Advanced Ship Notice (DESADV, 856)
  • Invoice (INVOIC, 810)
  • Purchase Order Change Acknowledgement (865)

Point of Sale

Epicor Point of Sale (POS) extends the power of your Epicor ERP solution to a customer-facing sales environment— whether you’re an organization with a single POS station or a large, multinational chain with hundreds of stores. Epicor POS provides a feature-rich system that empowers store personnel to provide an enhanced customer experience. Comprehensive functionality includes electronic gift cards, gift receipting, customized receipt per transaction type, coupon redemption/issuance, layaways, special orders, suspend and resume, item marking for various functions, additional input fields, multicurrency, start/end of day functions, cash management, and more.

Commerce Connect

The increasing proliferation of eCommerce likely means that more of your customers are looking online to solve their business problems, which means that providing customers with the ability to buy online from you is just a start. Your Web site must provide an experience that truly does solve problems, or better yet, inspires them in some way to keep coming back. Whether your Web site serves Business-to-Consumer (B2C), Business-to-Business (B2B), or both needs, it requires strong functionality and must use the latest technology to deliver customers the best possible online experience. Epicor Commerce Connect provides everything your Web site needs to deliver a rich customer experience, throughout the customer’s entire order life cycle—from quote to fulfilment to service.

The key advantage of Epicor Commerce Connect (ECC) is its deep integration to Epicor ERP. Epicor Commerce Connect negates much of the risk that goes with using a nonintegrated eCommerce solution by getting all of its information direct from Epicor ERP. All transactional data flows seamlessly between Epicor Commerce Connect and Epicor ERP: product information, customer specific pricing, inventory levels, and more, can be viewed online via Epicor Commerce Connect. While many companies can provide eCommerce services, very few are able to deliver the value and rapid results the way that Epicor Commerce Connect can.

A Modular Approach to a Better Web site

Whether you are selling to the general public, or to other businesses, Epicor Commerce Connect has been designed to help you provide all visitors to your site(s) with the same high levels of user experience they have come to expect in today’s online environment. Browsing tools such as configurable search, suggested items and automatically updated listings of popular products on your site are able to help your customers very quickly get to the items they wish to purchase, while at the same time ensuring that they are exposed to as much of your product range as possible—all in ways that are relevant and tailored to customer interests.

You can also provide tools to help your customers make better purchasing decisions including the ability for customers:

  • To see related products
  • Compare different products
  • View the product up close using the product image zoom-in capability.
  • Tools such as these allow the customer to make better purchase decisions, which in turn lead to much higher levels of customer satisfaction and a lower rate of product returns.

Configurator

Many businesses sell products that can be customized – for example by color, size, material and much more. With products such as these, the number of possible combinations the customer could choose can rapidly rise to the thousands, or more. To help manage this complexity, Epicor Commerce Connect includes a configurator module that provides a fast and efficient mechanism to display all product options on one page—allowing your customers to simply and easily choose their own product specifications without the stress of having to navigate through multiple different pages to find the combination that best meets their needs.

Fully integrated with Commerce Connect, Epicor Product Configurator enables Web-based configurations that can be used for quoting and pricing within the Epicor Commerce Connect solution. Once configurations are accepted by your customer, the instant flow to Epicor ERP enables not only price, but also product build to be delivered for more rapid response to new orders. Use the robust configuration capabilities and extend them to your customers and channel to ensure customer requirements are met. Parametric capabilities enable visual confirmation of configuration results.

Epicor sales management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Customer Connect

The Epicor Customer Connect portal provides interactive, customer-facing content over the web. Today’s customers want new access to information. Being able to view special promotions and pricelists, make repeat purchases, and pay on account are standards to improved customer loyalty and online commerce.

Dealer Network Portal

Epicor Dealer Network Portal is an innovative enterprise solution designed for manufacturers who sell or service products through dealers. Powered by Epicor Commerce Connect (ECC) and tightly integrated with your Epicor ERP system, Epicor Dealer Network Portal creates a modern online experience for your dealers to rapidly configure, price, and quote orders, as well as manage service and warranty needs for your products.

By capturing all dealer activity through a single easy-to-use portal, you establish a single thread of data that connects all transactions at the dealer with your back-end ERP. You gain full visibility into the business making it simpler for dealers, which enables you to drive business growth as a preferred innovative brand.

Scroll to top

Product Data Management

Epicor Product Management serves as the central hub for your process and product data and history. It provides collaboration and data exchange among enterprise users who interact with your products—including product managers, engineers, salespeople, buyers, and quality assurance representatives. Epicor Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) provides a comprehensive end-to-end solution to manage all aspects of a product’s lifecycle, enabling enterprises to control the enormous number of electronic documents produced. With Epicor Product Management, you can optimize the product lifecycle processes to increase the efficiency of your staff, create better quality products, launch new products in less time at a lower cost, and maximize profits.

an image of product data management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Methods of Manufacturing

Manage product bill of materials (BOM) and routings in one central location. The part-specific method of manufacturing is controlled through engineering and offers drill-down functionality to lower level subcomponents—along with material and routing components required for each. Streamline engineering by modifying existing methods for same-as except quotations and production runs. Enable engineers to begin with an existing method of manufacture from the methods master, a quote, or a job, and then easily modify it for the project at hand.

Bill of Materials (BOM)

Epicor supports traditional BOM management with single-level part formats that recognize the materials and components required to build end parts. In addition, Epicor supports multilevel BOM management that incorporates not only single-level components and material requirements, but also internal and external routing steps for complete end to end assembly visibility, planning, scheduling, and costing. Epicor supports visual engineering technology with indented tree structures and drag-and-drop BOM management. Easily create new BOMs with functionality that enables the user to pull an existing method of manufacturing for a product and make modifications for future runs or similar products. Use alternate BOMs to predefine multiple BOM structures for the same part with material or component substitutions. In a multi-plant environment, BOMs at the plant level facilitate choices of where to build the part using plant appropriate methods. Optionally have several BOMs within a plant, allowing the planner to choose the most cost-effective build. Gain the ability to store multiple reference designators on BOMs. You can also obtain explosion reports by component and by reference designator from quotes, jobs, and the engineering workbench.

Routings

Detailed routings facilitate planning, scheduling, and costing of products more efficiently. Everything needed to produce a product is managed in one central location. Managing changes to routings is simplified. Changes are automatically communicated to the plant floor execution system and operators have online visibility of the latest routing production notes, as well as standards and resource requirements. Easily understand, navigate, and revise even the most complex, multilevel routing in the tree structure of the engineering workbench. Free up engineers to focus on constructing the most cost-effective build. Quickly build new routings and easily modify existing routings using the Epicor drag-and-drop engineering tools. Alternate routings allows the definition and maintenance of multiple routings or material substitutions under a single part number. In a multi-plant environment, alternate routings at the plant level facilitate choosing where to build the part using plant appropriate methods. Manage and measure jobs with flexible production standards using traditional time-based production standards—including pieces per hour, hours per piece, pieces per minute, minutes per piece, operations per hour, fixed hours, and operations per minute. You also have the ability to allow planning by volume and quantity using dimensional planning that is not time-constrained.

Engineering Change and Revision Control

Achieve control and consistency in your engineering change and revision process. Engineering Change and Revision Control is designed to enable engineering change management, multiple revision control of products, and engineering workflow management, and it offers detailed cost analysis of products during the engineering process. The engineering workbench gives engineers an area to manage all engineering tasks related to the modification, review, and approval of assemblies—including full revision updating and control, check-out procedures, security, engineering change orders, BOM maintenance, what-if BOM maintenance, what-if cost rollups, adding parts, placing parts on hold, and product routing maintenance. The engineering workbench also enables engineers to drill into all related information, like jobs, inventories, sales orders, and quotes.

Document Management

Epicor drag-and-drop attachments support the ability to manage and view attachments against any record or application process. With respect to BOMs, additional functionality exists to allow attachments linked to end products and components to automatically flow to production planning and— eventually—the production floor, ensuring strong control of product and process documentation at each product revision and production run. Attachments at the record level would typically provide information, drawings, documentation, or context specific to that record. All attachments can be secured using standard role-based security. Microsoft SharePoint® repository document management and attachments capability also offers the use of a Microsoft SharePoint document repository.This provides document versioning, check-out and check-in support, and facilitates integration to other document management systems.

CAD Integration

For companies who do not require the full product lifecycle management solution, CADLink for Epicor increases the speed of engineering data flowing from the engineer’s desktop to the rest of the business—in particular procurement and manufacturing. The CADLink for Epicor solution is designed to streamline the entire product development process, letting engineers push forward BOM revisions to Epicor ERP with a click of a button without leaving their familiar CAD environment. CADLink for Epicor eliminates all the burdens of disparate systems, allowing engineers to focus more on what they do best—engineering.

Product Lifecycle Management

Epicor Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) solutions provide you with CAD data management, product data management (PDM), and technical document management system capabilities that can be expanded to deliver a fully-featured, collaborative product lifecycle management solution that is designed to seamlessly integrate into your Epicor ERP. Epicor PLM serves as a central knowledge repository for process and product history and promotes integration and data exchange among all enterprise users who interact with a product. Epicor PLM manages all documentation associated with a product throughout its entire product lifecycle and includes full integration with numerous computer aided design (CAD) systems and various electronic design automation (EDA) systems. Epicor PLM is particularly useful for companies that design what they manufacture, want standardized methodologies around workflow, use CAD or EDA systems, or use drawings to produce a quote or an order. Epicor PLM provides an electronic vault where documents can be securely stored and where access and versioning can be tightly controlled. The type of sophisticated document management that PLM offers is critical for those organizations that need excellent audit tracking and control of all documents across the enterprise. PLM also provides advanced document search and retrieval functionality. Increase your productivity by more efficiently managing the product life cycle—from design to end-of-life. Engineering change order (ECO) processes are supported—including the ability to have as many 3D models as desired and any number of derived technical drawings from one or more CAD systems assigned to each part.

Epicor PLM supports the entire product change order management. All changes to CAD models or drawings are documented in a change history. History entries include date, change reason, and user. Additionally, processes defined using Epicor PLM Workflow assures change order control— from the beginning of the modification to the final release. All part master data, characteristics, and the change history journal are transferred and documented in the title block of the respective drawings. Upon further modifications, this data is updated automatically. Additionally, the BOM can be inserted into the drawing.

Epicor product data management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Product Costing

As a manufacturer or distributor, you consistently monitor product cost and analyze profitability as a way to pass cost savings on to customers while staying competitive. Epicor offers the flexibility and accuracy needed to analyze product cost on a customer-by-customer, part-by-part, and job-by-job basis. Maintain elements of product cost in separate buckets—including material, labor, burden, subcontracting, and material burden cost. Costing methods include average, lot, last, first in/first out, and standard. The costing workbench supports the management of part costs in a single location. Specialized tools pull in the most recent costs and automatically perform cost rollups. Designed with full audit capabilities, the workbench offers variance analysis prior to posting new cost tables along with the effective dates of the costing changes. The costing workbench offers easy manipulation of resource, resource group, and operation cost.

Product Configuration

Product Configuration enables on-the-fly configuration of highly customizable and dimensional products via a straightforward question and answer evaluation. It is web-enabled and you can mark configurators as Epicor Web Configurator (EWC) and deploy them to Epicor Web.

When you enter a configurator record and set it to EWC, all Client processing is moved to the web and the existing server-side logic remains in the Epicor ERP application. It is also available to users employing Commerce Connect including the Dealer Network Portal. This simple-to-use module gives you the ability to formalize all configurations prior to circulation and approval and includes detailed audit trail logs noting ID and approval date. In addition, you can tie a configuration to a BOM structure containing multiple options—each with its own set of rules—and optimally create unique configurations and rules for each revision. Configuration responses are stored with other product information for historical auditing and accuracy.

ConfiguratorLink for Epicor is a powerful tool that extends the native functions of the Epicor Configurator to allow it to become a Parametric Configurator. ConfiguratorLink automatically rebuilds 3D models according to Epicor Configurator parameters defined and mapped to CAD models, allowing users to produce 3D models and drawings quickly in sales and production processes. Helping employees and customers visualize the configured product is a few clicks away. ConfiguratorLink also has the ability to search and pull configuration parameters and automatically create CAD files for production processes such as burn table or CNC lathe. Quote integration produces 3D CAD files that are ideal for customer approval and signoff. Finally, ConfiguratorLink can push parameter data back to Epicor. Any parameter changes made in CAD will be saved back to the configuration parameters in Epicor—no need to jump back and forth between CAD and ERP.

Scroll to top

Project Management

A comprehensive solution for project managers, Epicor Project Management enables planning and execution simple. Even if the project is complex and requires intricate multilevel phases, strict costing, and complex billing, this powerful tool utilizes the detailed estimation, planning, scheduling, costing, and supply chain logistics of Epicor to deliver complete control and analysis of any sized project. Leveraging resource management offers users a detailed and accurate picture of current resource capabilities and accuracy. Managing time and expenses are additional benefits of the Epicor Project Management Module. Review, recognition, and approval are all accurately represented by true cost, comprehensive billing and revenue data, as well as compliance, contract and accounting standards.

Designed to support the needs of industries with a project orientation; Epicor Project Management provides flexible Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) capabilities including multilevel phases within a project. Built using a true service-oriented architecture (SOA), the solution also enables continuous performance initiatives, real-time connectivity and intuitive business intelligence all the way through to your supply-chain partners, providing greater business agility. Scalable, flexible, configurable—Epicor provides a modern approach to complex project management.

Epicor project management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Project Planning and Analysis

Supporting the needs of industries with a project orientation, Epicor Project Planning provides flexible Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) capabilities—including multilevel phases within a project. Fully embedded within Epicor, Project Management offers the robust Epicor scheduling engine for complete visibility and management of the project schedule. The Project Planning module also includes the ability to accumulate and roll up costs for a WBS Phase to the main project—supporting budgets, estimated completion values, and calculated, estimated, and actual costs accumulated at the WBS Phase or project level. For complete visibility, all costs are rolled up through the project structure, with added analysis capabilities offering cross-project scrutiny of material class, burden, or labor type.

Project Billing

Project Management allows you to generate progress and milestone billing, so you can invoice your customer and optionally defer the revenue and cost of sale—recognizing them at various stages in the project. Invoices can be generated based on a fixed date, fixed amount, user-defined stage of project completion, or user-defined cost-to date. More complex contract arrangements can be defined using the sophisticated options available in Epicor Project Billing. The advanced invoicing methods available in Epicor Project Billing provide the capability required to handle the commercial terms negotiated during the project bid process. This flexibility enables project managers to focus on managing project delivery in the most efficient way while also handling accurate billing in accordance with a customer-defined schedule—including comprehensive contract management, multiple invoicing methods, time and materials billing, milestone billing, and more.

Resource Management

Epicor Resource Management provides the ability to define all resources available— whether they are employees, contractors, equipment, or machinery. Comprehensive calendars, resource capabilities, roles, and capacities can be defined, which are then referenced throughout Epicor. Resource Management additionally provides the comprehensive costing and default burden and billing data used throughout the application—from planning and scheduling to labor bookings. Contractual role requirements and a clear separation of direct and indirect labor are supported in accordance with the specifications of the most demanding contract requirements.

Time Management

Time Management in Epicor provides a highly configurable environment for the recording and management of time across projects, jobs, service orders, and internal codes. A range of entry options are available, each reflecting the nature of a particular transaction. Time can be entered via web browser when employees are on the go, on the shop floor, or in the office—resulting in quick and accurate. Time Management—Calendar provides clear visibility of missing timesheets entries. The colored blocks indicate the approval status of each time transaction. recording. Time recording reliability is reinforced through an array of task-centric entry options, which focus on the critical data required in each context. Additional configuration options ensure that users only have access to authorized jobs and booking codes, with a clear separation between direct and indirect labor entry. Additionally, the flexible approvals process provides the security to ensure that transactions are properly authorized and backed up by a comprehensive audit trail.

Expense Management

Expense Management in Epicor helps eliminate administrative effort and increase efficiency by providing a secure environment for recording and managing multicurrency expenses across projects, jobs, and service orders, as well as purely internal expenses. The flexible approval process of Expense Management also provides the security to ensure expenses are properly authorized and backed up by a comprehensive audit trail, with approved transactions flowing directly into Accounts Payable for fast, efficient processing and reimbursement. Expenses can be entered on mobile devices via web browser when employees are on the go.

Mobile Time & Expense Management

Enter, track and approve time and expenses on the go with Epicor Mobile Time and Expense Management, one of the first applications built on the Epicor Kinetic Design System for Epicor ERP. The apps extend the capabilities of the Epicor Time and Expense Management modules, giving users the mobility they need to be more productive. Get full control and visibility into your time and expense tracking process. Provide your project managers and their teams, production managers, frequent travelers, and your salesforce with the ability to capture time and expense entries and approvals—anytime, anywhere— through a modern and easy to user interface. Epicor Mobile Time and Expense Management apps are compatible with Apple and Android devices. Simply go to your Google Play or Apple Store and download the applications. There is no separate licensing needed to access them, since they use the Time and Expense Management module concurrent licenses.

Scroll to top

Production Management

Whether you manufacture complex solutions or simple products, you need strong production control in order to build a competitive advantage. As the global marketplace continues to shrink profit margins and customers become more demanding, businesses are looking for agile solutions that can provide the infrastructure they need to respond quickly and efficiently. Epicor offers a comprehensive solution for make-to-order, mixed-mode, make-to-stock, engineer-to-order, and configure-to-order manufacturers; including light assembly features for distribution businesses. Modular in design, the production control suite of modules includes Job Management, Advanced Production, Lean Manufacturing, Manufacturing Execution System (MES), Advanced MES, Quality Assurance, Enhanced Quality Assurance, and Advanced Quality Management.

Epicor production management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Job management

The Job Management module, in the Operations Core Package, is a comprehensive production control solution designed specifically for the planning, routing, scheduling, costing, and tracking of goods—including assembled, manufactured, and semi-finished products. It includes innovative tools for better planning and costing with historical run analysis that compares estimates to actuals on a run-by-run basis. Job Management functionality includes:

  • Planning Workbench
  • Job Manager
  • Production Planners Workbench
  • Job Costing
  • Order-to-Job Linking
  • New/Change Order Notifications
  • Drag-and-Drop Interface
  • Planned Overproduction of Assemblies
  • Yield Scrap
  • Assemblies
  • Scheduling
  • Backflush
  • Job Tracker
  • Productivity
  • Quality Control

Advanced production

Advanced Production deploys batching technology that enables users to group multiple parts or operations together for key production processes. The result of this batching process is a single reporting entity or job for simplified scheduling, tracking, and reporting of labor and materials on the plant floor. This functionality is available in the job planning and resource scheduling functions within Epicor, with both planned and “on-the-fly“ grouping flexibility to end-users. Additionally, users can select to plan operations sequentially—one operation after another or concurrently—to be complete at the same time for nested operations. Advanced Production functionality includes:

  • Support For Co-Product Production
  • Support for Nested Product Production
  • Part and Operation Batching
  • Visibility of Production Batching
  • Accurate Cost Control
  • Simplified Plant Floor Interface
  • Concurrent or Subsequent Flexibility
  • Single or Multiple Operations

Kanban lean production

With increased global competition and the demands of an online supply chain, customers more than ever before are demanding greater product flexibility, smaller and more frequent deliveries, and higher product quality—all at the lowest price. A component of the Job Management module, in the Operations Core Package, Lean Production provides you with the specific functionality your organization needs to meet these challenges and optimize your plant floor operations, including the adoption of Lean Manufacturing Kanban functionality to pull rather than push products through the manufacturing process. Lean Production functionality includes:

  • Manufacturing Without Work Orders (Kanban Flow)
  • Cell-based Inventory
  • Real-time Manufacturing Kanban
  • Manufacturing Flow Kanban
  • Real-time Stock Replenishment Kanban
  • Real-time Purchase Kanban
  • Automated Material Flow
  • Measurement of Production Activity Against Lean Performance Metrics
  • Lean Metrics
  • Support for Hybrid Approaches to Lean

Manufacturing execution system: MES is an easy-to-use, online system for the plant floor that allows plant-based transactions real-time visibility throughout the Epicor solution. Epicor MES enables accurate labor reporting, as well as online transaction tracking, which provides management with a real-time picture of what is occurring on the plant floor by employee and job. Integration with Epicor Job Management, Scheduling, Quality Assurance, and Advanced Material Management eliminates dual entry and provides online, real-time views of the latest plant floor scheduling priorities. In addition, integration with the Epicor Document Attach Tool allows plant floor access to needed documentation, such as product drawings, process documents, and multimedia videos. Complete module functionality includes:

  • Flexible Data Entry Technology
  • Work Queue
  • Multiple Languages
  • Distributed Hours
  • Quality Reporting
  • Shop Warnings
  • Grace Periods/Multiple Shifts
  • Trackers in the Plant
  • Shipping and Receiving
  • Inventory Management
  • Material Handling

Advanced MES (Epicor Mattec): Advanced MES (Epicor Mattec® Manufacturing System) extends your Epicor system to provide automatic production monitoring and process monitoring, empowering manufacturers with production data and the ability to eliminate inaccurate and time-consuming manual data collection; so, operators can stop measuring and monitoring, and focus on making quality products. You can achieve informed lights out manufacturing and get the powerful metrics you need to improve performance– Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE), run rates, scrap, yield, energy consumption, material consumption, and much more. Accurate machine-related data, along with operator depth and dimension helps you pinpoint critical issues, reduce waste, and improve quality and customer service. Advanced MES functionality includes:

  • Deployment Your Way
  • Enhanced Usability
  • Automated Plant Notification
  • Office, Mobile, and Global Support
  • Schedule Optimization
  • Advanced MES Integration to Epicor ERP

Enhanced integration improves the efficiency and ease-of-use for Advanced MES with Epicor ERP software. Key integration points include:

  • The Epicor ERP user interface includes the Pieces per Cycle operation standards used in Mattec MES.
  • Epicor ERP offers support for machine parameters that can be used by production planners to keep track of machine parameters in both Epicor ERP and Advanced MES. This offers a single point of engineering definition that resides in Epicor ERP. Some examples include:
    • Injection pressures
    • Opening/closing speeds
    • Barrel/mold temperatures
    • Multiple locations/zones
  • Users can clear the Advanced MES schedule from Epicor ERP.
  • Support for Advanced MES Resource Groups in the process sheet simplifies part engineering for users. To better control information going to Advanced MES, users can limit the number of operations exported to Advanced MES.

Quality Management

Extending your solution with the Quality Assurance module ensures that you gain complete visibility into your quality operations from a top-down view down to the individual item level, allowing you to tie together all quality functions, whether it’s scrapping end parts, rejecting raw materials or tracking first article inspections. Accurate costing demands that products moved through quality accurately reflect their value and are removed from the appropriate work in progress. Additionally, Quality Assurance includes processes for supplier returns with links to Accounts Payable for automated debit processing—closing the loop on traceability of products in and out of quality within the plant. Inspectors have queues of items to inspect with full disposition and corrective action follow-up, while plant floor employees can easily flag parts as nonconformant. Quality Assurance functionality includes:

  • Social Quality
  • Mobile Quality
  • Inspection Workbench
  • Nonconformant Records
  • Non-Netting Bins
  • Discrepant Material Report Processing
  • Corrective Action
  • Material Review Board
  • Cost of Quality
  • Packing Slips
  • Debit Memos
  • Audit Trails
  • Certificates of Compliance

Epicor production management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Enhanced Quality Management

Traceability and audit of quality data drives businesses to develop “systems,” many times paper-based, to support the collection and use of quality testing data. Enhanced Quality Assurance is designed to extend base Quality Assurance with support for the management of controlled test plans and the results for products, groups of products, processes, and other testing. It offers the ability to define testing elements or attributes as well as lists of attributes to test which can be used to measure against testing results for pass/fail decision criteria. It includes the data used for Statistical Process Control (SPC) and is easily accessed to build SPC analysis. Enhanced Quality Assurance gathers the data and makes it available to ensure that your next audit goes smoothly.

Scroll to top

Supply Chain Management

A highly effective supply chain is critical to the success of your strategic growth initiatives. Top-performing manufacturers are empowering supply chain processes with innovative technology that is best-fit for unique operational needs, easy to use, and informed by industry best practices. Drive out costs, increase velocity, and enhance your customer experience with a strong supply chain that is ready for the future of manufacturing. Offering rich visibility and digital prowess, Epicor provides effective coordination from initial raw materials to the ultimate delivery of the finished product, transforming your supply chain into a results-driven value chain. Epicor Supply Chain Management (SCM) is a full suite of enterprise application capabilities—including purchase management, sourcing and procurement, inventory management, advanced material management, shipping and receiving, and warehouse management—and is complemented by forecasting, order management, and analytics capabilities. Combined, you have the solution you need to meet—and even exceed—customer expectations in today’s increasingly global market place.

Purchase management

Purchase Management handles purchase order writing and the tracking of supplier performance to optimize results and improve negotiations. Multiple detailed line items indicate planned receipts to inventory or a job, direct receipts to a sales order, or direct receipts to a manufacturing job, although their destination may be changed at the time of actual receipt entry. Purchase order receipt processing updates suggested supplier and detailed purchase history files, which provides continual reference to aid in making purchasing decisions. With Purchase Management, you can reduce inventory levels, improve on-time deliveries, enhance your cash flow, and increase your profit levels. Purchase Management capabilities include:

  • Automated purchasing tools
  • Supplier cross-referencing
  • Supplier approval capability
  • Mass purchase order receipt
  • Multiple location receipts
  • Part master price breaks
  • Purchase requisition
  • Purchase history
  • Purchase order tracker
  • Supplier tracker

Epicor supply chain management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Advanced requisition Management

High-performing supply chains maintain a budget and control over items requisitioned for each stocking location for greater efficiency. Epicor Advanced Requisition Management (ARM) enables organizations to gain visibility and regulate procurement spending by providing an online workflow and purchase requisition tool. It gains information on spending to supports negotiation of bulk purchase discounts from suppliers, assigns preferred suppliers for products, sets the right spend limits for individuals, and assigns the chain of authority for approving purchase orders.

Purchase Contracts

Epicor Purchase Contracts is designed to automate the process of purchasing inventory items on a recurring basis—including the establishment of recurring delivery schedules. Contract line items can be assigned to purchase orders, which automates your delivery schedules with delivery dates, prices, and corresponding quantities. Automatic requirement calculations— based on generated PO suggestions—are factored into delivery schedules, which you can adjust automatically to conform to supplier requirements or help with inventory control, production efficiency, and business expediency. Complete functionality includes part schedule maintenance for establishing the combination of part, plant, and calendar that makes up the part schedule, as well as periodicity code maintenance to establish the rules and terms under which orders periodically arrive from suppliers.

Supplier Connect

Strengthen your competitiveness by offering customers and business partners the ability to interact with your brand online. Supplier Connect is a supply-chain-focused feature of Epicor Commerce Connect—a complete, connected, and customer-proven business solution for modern digital commerce and omnichannel enablement commerce and omnichannel enablement. By providing the means for customer and supplier self-service on a whole range of inquiries—such as open orders, part information, and access to old invoices—Epicor Commerce Connect eliminates the need for inquiries to come in via email, phone, or fax to significantly reduce the amount of time staff need to spend answering them. Supplier Connect is specifically tailored for suppliers to update their information via their own supplier portal, answer requests for information, and confirm changes to purchasing orders. It can deliver performance metrics and also allows user-defined fields to flexibly extend your data storage options and send custom messages between your online store-front and your centralized back-office. This not only provides for a more seamless relationship between you and your suppliers, but it also allows for your business to react much more quickly and accurately to any change of circumstances with supply.

Supplier relationship management

Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) provides tools for buyers, procurement staff, and purchasing agents, to request quotes for raw materials or subcontract services from one or multiple suppliers. Request for quotes (RFQs) are generated with one or more lines, allowing you to evaluate the responses from suppliers to decide which businesses can provide your company with the quantities, price points, and delivery dates you need for your manufacturing and servicing business flow. Supplier RFQ responses automatically build or add to existing part price-break tables with current effectivity dates to be used in other Epicor applications.

Inventory management

Inventory Management provides the key functions necessary to update and maintain raw materials, work in process (WIP), finished goods inventory quantities, costs, and on-hand requirements. Issued inventory reduces quantities on hand, which are continually replenished through the processing of purchased or manufactured item receipts into inventory. Receipt processing provides a continual update of inventory average, FIFO, lot, or last costs for every item. A variety of screen inquiries provide management analysis of Materials Requirements Planning (MRP), shortage monitoring, reorder analysis, stock status, valuation, and critical items. Functionality also includes:

  • Alternate parts maintenance
  • Costing management
  • Country of origin tracking
  • Cycle counting
  • Global trade standards
  • Manufacturers part
  • Part cross-referencing
  • Part master price breaks
  • Physical and perpetual inventory
  • RoHS compliance
  • Time-phased material inquiry/report
  • Unit of measure definitions

Additional Inventory management tools include:

  • Lot Tracking and Attributes – Improve supply chain efficiency with full visibility of parts by lot throughout your system. Record material received, keep traceable material on-hand, and maintain detailed usage information by lot with the option to auto-generate lot numbers based on part-specific rules. Additional lot attributes can also be stored for each part lot, which include Batch, Manufacture Lot, Heat Number, Manufacture Date, Expiration Date, Firmware Version, Cure Date, Best Before Date, etc.
  • Serial Tracking – Serial tracking helps to ensure product traceability, allowing for greater control over parts within the facility. Comprehensive functionality ranges from no serial tracking to full serial traceability of each recorded move of a part and its components. Optionally, you can record serial numbers at the outbound stage only. This is particularly useful for companies that must record what serial numbers have been shipped to which customers and when, but have no need to undertake the overhead costs of recording serial numbers as inventory moves around the warehouse or internal production facilities.
  • Customer-Managed Inventory – Lower business risk by enhancing control over customer-managed inventory that you store but never own. These items can be used in the production of products for a customer or shipped by you directly to your customer’s customer.
  • Supplier-Managed Inventory – Epicor SCM allows you to designate material purchased as inventory you are storing as consignment inventory from the supplier. You can also use these part quantities on jobs, and once you consume it, your company legally owns the items

Epicor Smart Inventory Optimization

Epicor Smart Inventory Optimization delivers cloud-based inventory policy decision support and the means to share, collaborate, and track the impact of your inventory planning policy. Reconcile holding costs, ordering costs, and stock-out costs in order to prescribe the inventory policy and service levels that can help you yield the total lowest cost. To determine the right plan for your organization, assign service-level constraints and targets, evaluate proposed policies, and perform “what if” scenarios. Share proposed policies and agree on a plan that best meets the company’s objectives. Epicor Smart Inventory Optimization will automatically upload the optimal planning parameters back to Epicor ERP, and works with a variety of replenishment policies including reordering point/order quantity, min./max., safety stock planning, and order up to levels.

Epicor Smart Operational Analytics

Epicor Smart Operational Analytics is a cloud-based reporting platform that provides a fast, easily understood, current perspective on the state of your inventory. It performs against critical metrics, actual supplier lead times, and opportunities to rebalance stocks across facilities to help uncover operational inefficiencies. Inventory analytics offers a 360-degree view of your inventory to identify value, stocking trends, overstocks, understocks, potential order cancellations, and root causes of inventory issues. Supplier analysis provides comprehensive insight into your suppliers by measuring historical performance and lead times, which allows you to rank suppliers and identify trends. Operational performance analysis helps you continuously improve your operation by measuring and reporting on key performance indicators (KPIs) such as service level and fill rate performance, time to ship, number of stock-out events, and more.

Advanced material management

Advanced Material Management (AMM) enables businesses to produce electronic requests for materials, dispatch those materials, and track inventory movements of all inventory—including raw materials and work in process. Using wireless terminals and bar-coding technology, you are able to track inventory in real-time with complete control and visibility of raw materials and work in process as it travels throughout the enterprise. Complete functionality includes:

  • Bar coding on demand
  • Material handler interface
  • Material movement
  • Order prioritization
  • Sales order allocation
  • Bar code tag scanning
  • Handheld capability

Package Control

Package Control functionality allows you to track, manage, or transact a group of items via a unique identifier, the Package Control ID (PCID). Track any item from receipt into a site, the movement of an item throughout the site, and eventually the shipment of that item to the customer. Also supporting the inbound generation of PCIDs, Epicor ERP allows you to reserve and allocate PCIDs for sales orders, issue material to jobs, produce PCIDs from jobs, and receive PCID finished goods in inventory to complete processing transactions. Perform pick transactions, shipping transactions, and job receipt to inventory transactions—among others— against a unique PCID. PCIDs have an associated set of predetermined or user-defined physical and controlling characteristics, which comprise the package itself (properties and contents) and the label. Each can have its own rules of control, process flow, and status to give you greater control and visibility into your supply chain.

Epicor supply chain management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Manifesting And Freight Management

Today’s customers have many different shipping options. Epicor Manifest, a multi-carrier shipping software for Epicor ERP, streamlines domestic and international shipping processes to help you meet your customers’ demands. From rate shopping at order entry to manifesting your domestic or international shipments, Epicor Manifest communicates with various carriers and provides the information about that shipment back to Epicor ERP. As part of the shipping function, Epicor Manifest prints labels, bill of ladings, and export documents to be included with your shipment. Capabilities include:

  • International shipments and documentation
  • Multi-account support
  • Electronic Export Information (EEI) submittal and retrieval processing
  • Configurable handling fees
  • Automated hazmat paperwork
  • Rate shopping
  • Routing guide and best way
  • Automated blind shipping
  • Print or email return labels
  • Order consolidations

Shipping And Receiving

The Shipping and Receiving module is designed to promote increased efficiency and accuracy by allowing you to perform and track all activity relating to shipments and receipts. This flexible module gives you the ability to auto-invoice in Accounts Receivable following customer shipment; print customizable bill of lading forms to your shipments; track container shipments and update the status and due dates of all purchase orders; track customer shipments; track landed costs against applicable parts, which reflects the true costs of materials, parts, or finished goods, and more. Complete functionality also includes:

  • Mass ship
  • Subcontract parts tracking
  • Miscellaneous shipment tracking
  • Miscellaneous receipts management
  • Pack and ship/pack out processing
  • Master pack tracking
  • Phantom pack shipping
  • Shipping performance reporting

Warehouse Management: The Epicor Warehouse Management System (WMS) leverages Epicor ERP, mobile ID data collection, and wireless communications to seamlessly link your warehouse with your order processing and manufacturing operations—optimizing your pick, pack, ship, and receiving processes. Functionality includes:

  • Bin management
  • Warehouse team creation
  • Fulfillment workbench
  • Allocation template
  • Wave picking
  • Cross-dock tracking
  • Paperless picking
  • Queue management
  • Handheld Support: Whether doing physical inventory or material moves, or looking up serialized part information, the Epicor Handheld application offers an easy-to-use interface that is designed for plant and distribution employees. The Epicor Handheld module allows you to track your inventory as it moves throughout your enterprise with real-time data capture to improve inventory accuracy and speed up the order-to-ship cycle. Providing your users with event-based directing and routing of all managed tasks in real-time, the Handheld module not only helps you maintain complete transaction event history for analysis and reporting purposes, but when coupled with Advanced Material Management, it also provides detailed tracking of material requirements and WIP information through mobile access to the material and pick orders queue. Complete functionality also includes:
    • Auto-print-control support
    • Seagull Scientific, Inc. BarTender® labeling support
    • Auto put away processing

Mobile Warehouse

Designed and fully-integrated into Epicor ERP, the Epicor Mobile Warehouse is the next generation of handheld applications for the warehouse environment. A modern and intuitive application, Epicor mobile warehouse provides complex sort and filter options for users that include both part level and bin level validation. Scan validation is a configurable feature as well. Shortcuts to favorites and the frequently visited, as well as automated workflows triggered by scan event, improve the user experience. Epicor Mobile Warehouse optimizes workflow for fast and accurate scanning, improves time to process transactions, increases accuracy, and reduces errors. It is compatible with the latest scanning devices running on Android® 5 or higher from Honeywell® and Zebra®. Simply download the application from the Google Play™ store into your device and start using it with minimal setup. Features include:

  • Receiving – Provides complete functionality to process an inbound container or purchase order, as well as intercompany and transfer order receipts. It provides users with effective and efficient serial and lot processing and multiple UOM scanning. Users can search for all open PO’s for a part by scanning parts barcode.
  • Material management – Provides core warehousing functions allowing users to initiate adjustments and movements from the warehouse floor. Offers an increased efficiency with cycle counts and stock takes. Enables efficient entry with automated workflows triggered by scan events.
  • Material queue – Users can efficiently pick items assigned to their queue, grab items from the available queue, or return items back to the queue. Users can select an outbound order and select all material queue transactions related to the order, to the users’ queue. Advanced sort and filter functionality allows users to save to a named query and dynamically add to the sub-menu. Unpicking sales or transfer orders functionality is also included.
  • Shipping – Scan pick validation option included. Process outbound shipments direct from the device. Functions include creating Master Packs and standard Pick Lists for customers not licensed for Advanced Material Management (AMM).
  • Trackers – Trackers help the shop/warehouse users in completing their daily routine. Powered by BISCIT Since its establishment in 2002, BISCIT has formed a strong relationship with Epicor and as a certified Partner are proud experts in delivering successful Epicor ERP projects Australia wide and overseas. BISCIT specializes in Epicor ERP services to deliver flexible, comprehensive and value-driven business solutions.

Scroll to top

Planning And Scheduling

Performance-driven companies have mastered the art of predicting and responding quickly to changes in customer demand with minimal business interruption. Whether you are a global, multisite enterprise or a single site manufacturer or distributor, precise and flexible planning and scheduling is imperative to efficient and profitable operation. Epicor offers a comprehensive solution for forecasting, material requirements planning (MRP), scheduling, and advanced planning and scheduling to meet the needs of today’s agile businesses.

Forecasting and Master Production Scheduling

Forecasting and Master Production Scheduling (MPS) in Epicor are included with the Material Requirements Planning module and are designed to assist manufacturers and distributors with both day-to-day control and long-range planning and decision making. Forecasting and MPS support businesses that operate multiple, mixed-mode strategies simultaneously. Forecasting & Master Production Scheduling functionality includes:

  • Forecasting – Forecasts can be generated from multiple historical sources (e.g., sales, invoice, and inventory usage history). Users can also manually enter forecasts for companies, plants, customers, dates, and parts, cut-and-paste from other applications into the forecast system, or generate forecasts from multiple historical sources (e.g., sales, invoice, and inventory usage history). Another option is to export and import forecasts to and from other applications or customers. Import options allow forecasts to be broken down by part, customer, plant, date, and company. This import can update the existing forecast, be a new forecast, or be a complete clear and re-load.
  • Forecast Buckets – Bucket forecasts for variable periods: daily, weekly, monthly, yearly, etc.
  • Forecast Analysis – Forecast any number of variables (e.g., revenue) rather than just forecasting product units. Forecasting allows any number of tiers to be forecast and analyzed (e.g., forecasting product units by company, state, city, and customer).
  • Inter-Company – Trading Dynamically accept forecasts from other companies within the enterprise. This allows companies to give visibility to the supply company of future demand without needing to raise a firm intercompany order.
  • Master Production Schedule – Enter production forecasts for specific end parts using the MPS function. Perform an iterative process of entering a planned schedule, viewing the effect on your resources, then modifying the plan until you have achieved an optimal schedule. Manually enter or cut-and-paste MPS from other applications or automatically generate the MPS from the forecast.
  • Driving Capacity and Raw Material Procurement – Make and alter MPS decisions based on constraints. Both forecasting and MPS can independently drive future demand.

Epicor Smart Demand Planner

Epicor Smart Demand Planner provides cloud-based statistical forecasting that automatically selects the right forecast model for each item—accounting for trend, seasonality, and promotion/event-driven demand. For companies that manage many items like component parts, service parts, material requirements planning, or high-tech equipment, it includes an intermittent demand model so you can accurately forecast the inventory needed to hit desired service levels. Once the baseline forecast is produced, it is available for collaborative review and consensus planning by authorized stakeholders. In addition, forecast accuracy can be measured to ensure the best possible forecast is delivered to the business at both the aggregate and item-mix levels. Epicor Smart Demand Planner seamlessly integrates with Epicor ERP software using an “out of the box” connector that simplifies implementation and support.

Material Requirements Planning

Built for the needs of a single site as a well as extended enterprise, MRP offers cross-plant and cross-company planning. Enhanced to offer plant source as well as product group sourcing of materials and assemblies, MRP automatically and visually extends the enterprise to efficiently manage supply and demand, from forecasting and MPS to MRP generation, and more. Material Requirements Planning functionality includes:

  • Sourcing By Plant – Define a unique source per part or plant— whether its default sourcing is purchased, produced, or transferred. What is produced in one location may be purchased—or transferred in—from another.
  • Available-to-Promise – View running balances with the available-to-promise function. Enter a quantity, and the system will find the earliest date that quantity will be available. Enter a date, and see how many parts are available on that day. MPS, forecast, order, and planned receipt quantities are visible to help you in your production planning tasks.
  • Planning Types – Maximize your planning accuracy with multiple types of inventory planning, including minimum/maximum/multiple, days of supply and run out.
  • Rough Cut Horizon – Enable MRP to process more efficiently by removing the time spent scheduling beyond a specified threshold or rough cut horizon.
  • Recycle Jobs – MRP reuses un-firm jobs for optimum MRP performance.
  • Short Horizon Days of Supply – To optimize MRP performance, a Short Horizon Days of Supply field is included within the Part Maintenance program on the Plant Detail sheet. This field defines a material value that will be used when MRP determines that the needed materials fall within the Short Horizon.
  • Calculate Manufacturing Lead Time – Plan for part components lower down in the assembly structure for accurate MRP scheduling.
  • Start Minimum Quantity – Account for partial material availability in MRP calculations to get started earlier with available material and improve delivery performance.
  • Bill of Materials Check – MRP checks the revision level and verifies approvals before pulling in a standard BOM and routing. For parts that do not have a current approved revision, a job suggestion is created in the new/change order queue to help ensure requirements are not lost.

Epicor planning and scheduling as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Scheduling and Resource Management

Multiple resource views and online scheduling tools such as the change impact informer offer the master scheduler and manager the ability to visually locate overload problems and slack conditions, then perform cost and throughput analysis on schedule changes before they are firmly committed. Scheduling & Resource Management functionality includes:

  • Production Scheduling Board – Easily manipulate the schedule with drag-and-drop and drill-down techniques for multilevel assemblies and operation details. The main control center for scheduling resources graphically displays schedules by job, resource, resource group, or the entire plant. Dynamically change the timeline of the view to see short-run operations and quickly analyze the impact of long-running operations.
  • Alerts – View indicators, such as late status and material availability, to proactively alert the master scheduler to potential problems in the schedule. Optionally customize colors to denote actual, what-if, or delinquent load by job or operation.
  • Finite Scheduling – Schedule and reschedule with flexible, finite real-time schedule capabilities for a single job and plant-wide global finite capacity. Features include job locking for key operations or jobs, user-defined priority, and capacity load levelling by resource and resource group.
  • Drag-and-Drop – Drag-and-drop scheduled load hours forward or backwards to effectively alleviate fall overload conditions at critical resources or resource groups.
  • Operation Complete Quantity and Complete Time Displayed – The Job Scheduling Board, Resource Scheduling Board, and Multi-Resource Scheduling Board all have an Operation Complete Quantity field on their Detail sheets. This field displays the number of parts that have been completed on the current operation. Both the Job Scheduling Board and Resource Scheduling Board display the Operation Complete Time value after you move an operation. This shows you the amount of time that is left to complete the operation.
  • Overload Informer – Display each date and resource/resource group, where scheduled hours exceed capacity based on what-if or actual job schedules. Access resource, resource group, and job scheduling information to review the causes of an overload and make schedule changes as needed.
  • Multilevel Assemblies – Manage complex assemblies by matching the schedule to actual production output. From branch- and component-level rescheduling to final assembly, Epicor helps to ensure that all components are on time and that nothing slips through the cracks. Visually explore high-level components to view lower-level component schedules.
  • Schedule Multi-Job – The Scheduling Multi-Job option allows you to schedule a group of associated jobs as if it were a single job. Jobs are associated via make-to-job relationships. This makes it possible to schedule and re-arrange manufacturing jobs for a parent assembly and its child subassemblies (called predecessor and successor jobs) all at the same time. This allows the scheduling planner to easily manage linked jobs to ensure that they are scheduled together so that all demands were met to meet customer requirements.
  • What-If and Change Impact – Schedule jobs in a what-if mode, with the ability to analyze potential bottlenecks before finalizing the actual schedule. View the potential changes for cost and throughput to the schedule after creating what-if scenarios.
  • Setup Grouping – Use setup groups to streamline your setup processes. Dynamically assign grouping based on the criteria you define.
  • Capabilities with Zero Priority – When you schedule by capability, the Scheduling Engine selects resources by the priority value defined for each capability. You can assign a zero value to a capability’s priority. Any resource that is defined by this zero priority will not be selected by the Scheduling Engine. It will, however, be available to use as a resource on the Start Activity or Labor Entry windows.
  • Dual Resource Constraints – Use a secondary resource constraint (e.g., a tool or employee) in addition to the primary resource in finite capacity scheduling.
  • Conditional Forward Schedule – Optionally allow the system to perform a forward schedule based on a start date of today when performing a backward schedule if a current date is encountered.
  • Resource Group – Define an unlimited number of resources within a resource group. Resource groups can be used in the planning process with the actual resource assigned automatically based on availability of individual resources. Resources may have unique calendars, and values for hourly/daily capacity, queue- and move-time.
  • Finite Load Horizon – Prevent the schedule from making adjustments too far into the future— potentially impacting material purchases and resource allocations—with finite load horizons (e.g., time fences or cutoff dates) for finitely scheduling load on the resource.
  • Resource-Based Schedule – Develop a schedule for each individual resource deployed in the schedule.
  • Reschedule Delta – Optionally automate the system’s response to parts that are planned to be early or late by a threshold number of days.
  • Rough Cut Scheduling – Keep an eye on the future with Rough Cut Scheduling which shows future production without taxing system resources.
  • Scheduling Factor Send Ahead – Start-to-start scheduled operations or operations scheduled to begin at the same time can be staggered based on an offset factor that is calculated by number of pieces or a percentage of time allocated.
  • Scheduling Blocks – Account for periodic processes with scheduling blocks. Scheduling blocks define periodic setup needs such as tool changes or other processes.
  • Material Constraints Displayed – Both the Multi-Resource Scheduling Board and the Job Scheduling Board indicate which materials are constrained. On both scheduling boards, the Related Materials grid contains columns that display this information. One column indicates whether or not the material is constrained. The other columns define the purchase order, job, and lead time linked to the constrained material.

Advanced Planning and Scheduling

Available as an extension to Scheduling, Epicor Advanced Planning and Scheduling incorporates the strength of the Scheduling engine and enhances it with advanced functionality such as multiple constraint scheduling, a wide range of scheduling methods, visual drag-and-drop scheduling, capability and dependent capability-based scheduling, real-time capable-to-promise functionality, and advanced material planning functionality. Epicor Advanced Planning and Scheduling includes:

  • Capable-to-Promise – Easily manage customer expectations with real-time capable-to-promise functionality in Order Management. Epicor capableto-promise uses the scheduling engine to determine accurate promise dates and offers order processing single-click confirmation or order cancellation based on the projected due date.
  • Multiple Resource Scheduling Board – Easily manipulate the schedule with dragand-drop manipulation and drill-down techniques for multilevel assemblies and operation details. A main control center for scheduling resources graphically displays schedules for a group of resources in one screen. Dynamically change the timeline of the view to see minute operations and quickly analyze the impact of long running operations. Add memos to a schedule on the Multi-Resource Scheduling Board about any aspect of a current schedule.
  • Multiple Constraints – Set up every operation with multiple constraints or resources (e.g., machines, tools, skilled labor, raw materials, or available subassemblies)
  • Resource Eligibility – Define resources within a specific resource group with individual characteristics to improve scheduling accuracy.
  • Automated Scheduling by Capability – Define a capability or skill level that can be tied to multiple resources rather than a resource group or individual resource in the planning process. The APS engine then determines, based on the available resources, which individual resource to schedule for the operation.
  • Dependent Capabilities – Link dependent capabilities that the scheduling engine schedules along with the primary capability when operations require dependent skills to perform the operation.
  • Finite or Infinite Capacity – Define each resource with either finite or infinite capacity. When a piece of the schedule is moved, the resource is rescheduled according to its type.
  • Minimum WIP Scheduling – Use a unique scheduling algorithm designed to minimize work in process by scheduling a job to ship as early as possible. APS then back schedules to start working on the job as late as possible.
  • Dimensional Planning – Schedule by volume and quantity using dimensional planning that is not time-constrained.
  • Rate-Based Scheduling – Schedule cells based on production throughput rates rather than time.
  • Material Constraints – Consider material availability as a scheduling constraint. Integrated directly with Inventory and Purchasing, the APS system knows when material is due and schedules accordingly.
  • Advanced Material Planning – Increase throughput by considering material and component availability as a constraint. Advanced material planning, an integral feature of APS, facilitates intelligent stocking and procurement of material requirements. The schedule function recognizes materials earmarked as constraints, gives the master scheduler material availability, and considers supplier calendars for a more realistic schedule.
  • Change Impact Analysis – See the immediate impact of proposed changes on other orders to make informed decisions about desired changes.
  • Time Adjustment – Automatically take into account resource utilization and resource group efficiency for more accurate load calculation.
  • Optimization Rules – Generate a schedule based on rules assigned to individual resources.
  • Balanced Optimization – Concurrently consider priority, slack time, and setup time when determining load balance.
  • Single Cell Scheduling – Schedule an entire job or assembly within a single work cell.
  • Unlimited What-If – Create unlimited what-if scenarios to view the effect of changes on your shop floor.
  • Multi-Plant Communication – Help to ensure that interdependent plant schedules are coordinated.

Multi-site Management

Not only are manufacturers and distributors looking for new tools to oversee multi-plant operations, but they’re also looking to maximize the use of existing resources. Alternative production methods management helps optimize the production processes for specific parts in each plant, based on the resources available. Another optimization tool includes the transfer of material or semi-finished components to another plant for completion.

Forecast Pro for Epicor

Forecast Pro is designed to support large-scale forecasting jobs, collaborative forecasting, working with complex hierarchies, maintaining multiple forecast overrides, documenting your forecasting sessions and integrating with historical data from your ERP and other systems. With Forecast Pro you can create accurate forecasts quickly and easily using proven statistical forecasting methods such as Exponential Smoothing, Box-Jenkins, Event Models, Multiple-level Models, Seasonal Simplification, Low Volume Models, Intermittent Demand Models, Moving Averages, Curve Fitting, and Simple Methods.

Scroll to top

Business Intelligence And Analytics

Business Intelligence and Analytics for the Epicor ERP system help you answer four essential questions—what happened, why did it happen, what is happening now, and what will happen next? Dashboards, trackers, and data visualization tools built into the core ERP platform help you get a better understanding of what is happening in your company right now. Additional modules also provide you with deeper trending, diagnostic, and predictive analytics to bring the future into focus. The Epicor ERP Business Intelligence and Analytics module contains several tools that deliver critical insights for fast, informed decision making, including:

Operational Reports/Dashboards

To gain insight into everything happening enterprise-wide, look to the operational reports and dashboards available in every area of the Epicor ERP system. It all starts with Business Activity Queries—SQL queries throughout the Epicor ERP system made with a visual drag-and-drop wizard. The dashboards provided with the Epicor Mattec Manufacturing Execution System (MES) also keep you up to date with what is happening with your machines on the production floor. The complete list of operational reports and dashboards features:

  • Epicor ERP Business Activity Queries – Every business needs an intuitive and easyto-use query engine, which is why Epicor created Business Activity Query (BAQ) in the core platform of the Epicor ERP system— allowing you to create personalized or copy standard SQL queries. Once created, queries can be used throughout the application to generate SSRS reports for quick searches, view results in a Dashboard or Epicor Data Discovery, and much more. Complete functionality includes:
    • BAQ design wizards
    • Graphical table links
    • Embedded calculations
    • Multiple data views
    • Analyze/test query tabs
    • Updatable BAQs
    • External BAQs
    • Configurable dashboard applications
  • Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services – Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) underpins the Epicor ERP system and provides a flexible reporting structure for delivering professional reports and analysis to business stakeholders in a format that business users can easily consume. It is also used with Epicor ERP Advanced Print Routing for forms printing and routing. SSRS easily utilizes many types of data and can deliver it in a variety of formats. Because SSRS works with other applications and products in the Microsoft platform—such as Microsoft SharePoint, Microsoft SQL Server Analysis Services™, Microsoft Office, and Microsoft SQL Server Report Builder®—SSRS is an invaluable tool for improved analysis and decision making in the enterprise.
  • Epicor ERP Trackers and Dashboards – Epicor dashboards permit the combination of multiple capabilities like inquiries, ad hoc reports, workbenches, graphical analyses, tactical business intelligence, alerts, and business monitoring—all in a single dashboard. They provide a robust, one-stop interface that replaces traditional menu systems with personalized role or contextbased views and links into core transactions of the system—including real-time, exception-driven indicator flags. Tooled with unique flexibility, dashboards enable users to develop their own workbenches using a series of online views of information. From monitoring your employee intranet site, to live access to industry-related websites, each dashboard contains the information you and your employees need to more proactively run your business. Complete functionality includes:
    • Role-based home page
    • Real-time exception-driven management
    • Real-time access to up-to-date information
    • User/function-specific workbenches
    • Drill-down trackers
    • User-level personalized components
    • Custom component generation
    • Personalized functionality
    • Open to related functionality
    • A fully-secured web interface
    • Web deployable components
    • Predefined dashboards
    • Dashboard style sheets
    • Dashboard charting
    • Executive dashboards
    • Dashboard assemblies
    • Self-contained dashboards
  • Epicor Mattec MES – The Epicor Mattec MES collects data directly from equipment and operators on the shop floor in real-time, minimizing inaccurate and time-consuming manual data collection. Get the powerful metrics you need to improve performance—including Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE), run rates, scrap, yield, energy consumption, material consumption, and much more. Keep a unified picture of production planning and data with full integration into Epicor ERP.

Descriptive Analytics (Business and Financial User Reporting/Dashboards)

Let every department learn from its data with self-service summaries, animated and interactive data visualization, and tools to simplify report creation and sharing. Most of the products that fit this category support analyzing larger amounts of data for more historical trending analysis. These products include:

  • Epicor Data Discovery – Epicor Data Discovery (EDD) is a data visualization tool for the Epicor ERP system. With EDD, staff can use their natural visual abilities to quickly spot areas of interest in real-time production data that they might have otherwise missed by just looking at rows and columns of numbers. In the Data Discovery view, users can set filters and drag and drop measures and dimensions to produce rich visualizations—a process like manipulating a pivot table in a spreadsheet. They can then focus on a data point or area and drill down into the underlying ERP transactional detail. They can also combine views to create BI dashboards with shared filters and shared dimensions. Driven by real-time BAQs in the Epicor ERP system, EDD complements Epicor Data Analytics (EDA) by visualizing short-term, up-to-the-second enterprise data, whereas EDA provides for longer-term data exploration running in a data warehouse. EDD is accessible via SmartClient, web browsers, tablets, and modern smartphones. The application is designed to work just as well on low-powered touch devices as it does on a powerful desktop with large screen real estate. EDD automatically adjusts its layout and behavior to the browser and device accessing it. Resizable data cards can be animated to cycle through multiple values like a stock ticker, providing a live feed of production data for applications such as Epicor Homepage. Advanced EDD gives access to Active Directory users who are outside of Epicor ERP, with data-level security set for the user or role. Advanced EDD also enables connection to cubes built-in Microsoft SQL Server Analysis Services.
  • Epicor XL Connect 7 – Epicor XL Connect 7 is a self-service reporting and analytics add-in for Microsoft Excel that provides out-of-the-box functions for pulling Epicor ERP data directly into Excel. It saves you data extraction time and effort by downloading summarized data that you can analyze in-memory without further downloads. Imagine using functions like month-to-date beginning balance or year-to-date net budget to pull in just the data you need based on cell-based parameters like year, period, currency, segments, and reference codes. Dozens of functions combine with drag-and-drop, drill-down analysis sets that already know your data to make report creation a snap. XL Connect 7 is an all-inclusive product that comes with:
    • Pre-built content for financials, sales, materials, and production
    • Multi-currency capability
    • Access to any field in Epicor ERP—as permitted by ERP user security
    • PackNGo—lets report recipients analyze a subset of data without a connection to Epicor ERP
  • Advanced Financial Reporting – Epicor Advanced Financial Reporting (AFR) allows the creation and distribution of professional financial reports to company stakeholders. AFR simplifies report creation through an intuitive interface, which allows for the creation of reports using elements familiar to accountants or financial professionals. It also provides an additional element of reporting hierarchy or trees, allowing the viewer to generate the report for a specific business segment. Viewers can generate these parameter-driven reports as needed by selecting the time, company, book, or organizational element as required without the need for financial team intervention.
  • Executive Dashboard – Executive Dashboard comes with a series of graphical components designed to give you summarized, cubed data inside the Epicor ERP system—enabling you to quickly make critical short- and long-term decisions. Executive Dashboard includes Plant Performance, Supplier Performance, Order Backlog, Scheduled Shipments, Shipping Performance, and Cash Flow.

Diagnostic Analytics (Scorecards/KPIs, Financial Planning)

Quickly and easily discover why certain product outcomes happened and perform what-if analysis with diagnostic analytics, including:

  • Epicor Data Analytics – Powered by Phocas, Epicor Data Analytics (EDA) helps companies turn their data stored in the Epicor ERP system into actionable insights. EDA is an easy-to-use service in the cloud that takes a unique, intuitive approach to lead you on a journey of discovery through large cubed data sets contained in your data warehouse. With deeper insights, companies can grow by reducing cost, identifying new opportunities, supporting specific programs, and speeding up decision making. EDA provides customizable and interactive dashboards to make it easy to analyze the data inside your business systems. The dashboards contain visual KPIs, graphs, charts, and tables, so you can quickly review important information about your business performance and make informed strategic decisions. Once you have spotted an area of interest in the visual metrics, the EDA grid is where you conduct most of your analysis, and unlike a spreadsheet, you can “drill down” into the data with a simple click to reveal additional levels of detail—all the way down to the ERP transactions—and find your answers. EDA includes all Epicor ERP and Mattec (Advanced MES) content packs, and you can easily augment them with any other ERP fields or other data sources like historical databases or spreadsheets. These content packs include:
    • Sales Management
    • Production Management
    • Material Management
    • Financial Management
    • Mattec MES (Advanced MES)
  • Epicor Financial Planner – The budgeting and forecasting process is a complex, time-consuming, and error-prone task for many organizations. Managing the processes and people and collating all of the information using tools that are not designed for this purpose can exacerbate an already challenging task. Epicor Financial Planner takes away this pain by giving back control and providing an oversight of the entire process—including approval workflow, creating multiple versions of plans, and defining templates to be used. Add to that a Microsoft Excel user interface—something nearly everyone in the workforce is familiar with—and you have the complete solution to relieve your budgeting headache. Key features include:
    • Integration with the Epicor ERP system to bring in actuals for comparison, forecasting, and spreading purposes
      • SQL Server storage for one version of the business model and data
      • Modeling and what-if analysis
      • Multiple budgets and budget versioning
      • Sophisticated approval workflow
    • Epicor Performance Management (EPM) – Epicor Enterprise Performance Management is an end-to-end solution that removes the barriers to better business insight through a combination of intuitive user experiences, user-driven key performance indicators (KPI), and pre-packaged analytics that have real meaning to the business. Epicor EPM leverages the advanced analytic capabilities of the Microsoft platform and incorporates modern web application concepts for unprecedented ease of use and ultimately business results. Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) underpins the Epicor EPM offering and provides a flexible reporting structure for delivery professional reports and analysis to business stakeholders in a format that business users can easily consume. SSRS easily utilizes many types of data and can deliver it in a variety of formats. Because SSRS works with other applications and products in the Microsoft platform, such as Microsoft SharePoint, Microsoft SQL Server Analysis Services™, Microsoft Office, and Microsoft SQL Server Report Builder® is an invaluable tool for improved analysis and decision making in the enterprise.

Predictive Analytics (Forecasting)

What will happen next? Plan for success using demand planning and inventory optimization tools in the Epicor Smart Inventory Planning and Optimization Platform.

Epicor business intelligence and analytics as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Smart Demand Planner

Epicor Smart Demand Planner provides cloud-based statistical forecasting that automatically selects the right forecast model for each item—accounting for trend, seasonality, and promotion-/event-driven demand. Once the baseline forecast is produced, it is available for collaborative review and consensus planning by authorized stakeholders. Forecast accuracy can be measured to ensure the best possible forecast is delivered to the business at both the aggregate and item mix levels.

Smart Inventory Optimization

Safety stock levels, reorder points, lead times, and order quantity directly influence the service vs. cost relationship. Epicor Smart Inventory Optimization helps you maintain the balance between service and cost by providing inventory policy decision support and the means to share, collaborate, and track the impact of your inventory planning policy. Inventory Optimization reconciles holding costs, ordering costs, and stock out costs in order to prescribe the inventory policy and service levels that yield the total lowest cost. Users can optionally assign service level constraints and targets and propose multiple policies for consideration. Then, they can share proposed policies and agree on a consensus plan that best meets the company’s objectives.

Smart Operational Analytics

Epicor Smart Operational Analytics is a native cloud-based reporting platform that provides a fast, easily understood, and up-to-date perspective on the state of your inventory and its performance against critical metrics, actual supplier lead times, and opportunities to rebalance stocks across facilities—helping to uncover root causes of operational inefficiencies. Get a 360-degree view of your inventory to identify value, stocking trends, overstocks, understocks, and potential order cancellations. Also identify root causes of stock outs, excess inventory, and late deliveries.

Mobile Business Intelligence

You need to make the best use of advanced analytics and Business Intelligence tools to make informed decisions and keep the pulse on your organization whether you are in the office or on the go. Access the Epicor robust business intelligence and analytics anywhere, anytime with the ability to pro-actively push this insight to any device so that you can turn data into decisions and take timely actions to help grow your business.

Role-Based Analytics and Business Intelligence

Role-based charts and graphs can be customized and displayed on the Epicor ERP active Homepage for real-time insights. These tools allow users to save time and effort with the ability to create reports directly in Microsoft Excel using Epicor XL Connect.

Scroll to top

Global Business Management

Whether through acquisition or organic growth, more and more companies are wrestling with the complexities of managing multiple business entities. Epicor Global Business Management helps to ensure that no matter how distributed your organization becomes, you can maximize efficiency and drive business results. To support the needs of today’s increasingly distributed business, Epicor offers robust global business functionality. You can perform transactional functions between systems and entities—including intercompany transactions such as intercompany orders, transfer orders, and shipments between plants and warehouses. Epicor facilitates these scenarios within a single application that is flexible enough to grow with you as you expand your business. Epicor Global Business Management offers organizations the essential tools needed to create and maintain a single version of the truth.

Multicompany Management

Streamline your business with Epicor Multicompany Management by consolidating operations such as procurement and accounts payable and improve operational visibility across companies with advanced tools. Automation and recognition of intercompany financial transactions can optimize enterprise performance to shorten lead times on key product lines. Additionally, from a financial perspective, multicompany organizations may choose to not only report as individual entities, but also consolidate multiple currencies and report across business entities to a single consolidation company. Underpinning this functionality is a comprehensive, scalable technology framework to support global enterprises that offers development choice and includes a set of productivity-enhancing tools designed to support global business operations. Multicompany Management functionality includes:

  • Easy multicompany navigation
  • Global management of customers, parts, and suppliers
  • Comprehensive global credit management
  • Flexible account management
  • Centralized payments
  • Consolidated purchasing
  • Multicompany consolidation
  • Global supplier price agreement
  • Multicompany journal entry
  • Intercompany trading and eliminations
  • Multicompany views and dashboards
  • Flexible company hierarchy

Multicurrency Management

Multicurrency Management automates the process of both buying and selling in foreign currencies, including tracking of default currencies and extensive exchange rate tables. Lock transactions in at a specified rate with automatic gain or loss reporting, reducing the guesswork from handling foreign transactions. Throughout the Epicor system, the currency symbol is displayed to notify the user of the currency being used. Multicurrency Management functionality includes:

  • Revaluation options
  • Multiple currency tables
  • Updatable exchange rate tables
  • Gain/loss reporting
  • Base currency reporting
  • Flexible currency capabilities including price lists, quotations, orders, service contracts, invoices and vouchers, cash receipts, supplier pricing, and purchase orders

Global Multisite Management

Supply chains demand synchronization of production with distribution and logistics. This is most effectively accomplished with a single system providing visibility and consolidation of resources in multiple facilities. Companies may also prefer to run business functions centralized with separate production and distribution functions, or they may run them separately with the ability to consolidate financials at month or quarter-end. Epicor supports both scenarios within Global Multisite Management, providing support for centralized accounting and purchasing, while allowing separation of production and distribution facilities. Manufacturing and distribution organizations can also leverage the planning and scheduling efficiencies with robust multi-plant functionality. Complete functionality includes:

  • Sourcing by plant
  • Comprehensive production plant visibility
  • Virtual plant support
  • Shared warehouses
  • Costing by plant
  • Alternate BOMs and routings per plant
  • Multi-plant scheduling functions

Epicor global management as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Multilingual Data Management

Corporate growth and expansion inevitably leads to new markets and new geographies. Epicor Multilingual Management—alongside Epicor Global Configurable Engines— facilitates this growth with resources that can manage your business wherever you take it, with support for country-specific requirements around tax, currency, and languages. Complete functionality includes Epicor Layered Client Framework, which separates the language of the business logic from the language of the end-user interface, so your organization can operate seamlessly.

Master Data Management

The recent emphasis on regulatory compliance, the advent of service-oriented architecture (SOA), and mergers and acquisitions has made the creation, stewardship, and maintenance of accurate and complete master data a business imperative. Epicor Master Data Management (MDM) can help to ensure that your Multicompany and Multisite data meets regulatory requirements and also provides the consistency needed for real-time distributed operations—leading to greater customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and business performance.

Scalable Deployment

Deploy your companies on a single server/ single database, or on multiple databases and multiple servers around the world. Many enterprises require their companies’ data management systems to be geographically dispersed on different servers and different databases, to protect against site downtime.

  • Multiple companies within a single database
  • Single server with multiple databases
  • Multiple servers with single or multiple databases
  • Communication across databases and servers in all directions

Global Engines: Epicor ERP delivers extensible functionality and flexible options that can help you minimize your organization’s exposure to regulatory changes and mandates that can subject your business to financial penalties that adversely affect corporate credibility and compromise brand reputation. With a series of interlocking global engines, you can easily configure the rules that determine how transactions are posted, where they are posted how tax is calculated, how currency is handled, and how data is stored. These Epicor ERP global engines include tax, currency, rounding, legal, posting, compliance, and book engines.

Scroll to top

Governance, Risk, And Compliance

Effective Governance, Risk, and Compliance (GRC) initiatives help companies and their employees stay compliant and ensure that employees and partners at all levels of the organization are aware of the associated risks of noncompliance. GRC can touch every person and every function in an organization in some way. Whether GRC becomes an intolerable burden that increases company overhead or an enabler of efficiency and success depends upon its actual, day-to-day impact on the employees’ work and whether that impact is enabling or debilitating.

Corporate Governance

Organizations are under increased pressure to file accurate financial results in a timely manner. Epicor GRC can help organizations meet these shortened deadlines in a variety of ways—from consolidating financial information, to providing drill-down and drill-across access from financial reports, to transactional detail. Ultimately, when companies adequately report, plan, budget, forecast, and periodically review and update budgets and forecasts, they exhibit a more mature level of internal control. Integrated enterprise software applications go a long way in helping organizations document their internal controls, remove manual processes, and achieve greater visibility to their financial data. Complete Corporate Governance functionality includes:

  • Epicor Financial Report Writer
  • Financial planner
  • Advanced financial reporting

Risk Management

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems control the majority of corporate information that could potentially be at risk from piracy, fraud, and sabotage concerns. The only way to truly manage and mitigate risk across the organization is to have a fully integrated, end-to-end solution providing a single, verifiable set of financial and operational metrics. Epicor GRC provides an integrated enterprise solution with built-in, application-level risk mitigation tools and Business Process Management (BPM) to audit trails and secure workflow automation—key elements of data integrity and security. It also incorporates the ability to infuse business insight through Epicor Business Intelligence and Analytics, as well as allows organizations to embrace data governance and data protection strategies, help control risk, and handle regulatory compliance.

Epicor governance, risk, and compliance as part of the complete epicor erp overview

Security Management

Epicor GRC provides comprehensive user and group security to restrict data and application accessibility as needed. Security can be granted at user and group levels for all security objects including forms, fields, reports, menus, and method calls. There is also an option to use Microsoft® Windows® Authentication to support a Windows single sign-on and password policy. Complete functionality includes:

  • Product security
  • Application security
  • Access security
  • Business security
  • Automated change logs
  • Audit logs
  • Automation Tool for Epicor (ATE)
  • Credit card authorization and encryption

Business Process Management

Epicor BPM in combination with Epicor Service Connect—supports the ability to identify and mitigate risks to your organization through business-defined workflow by identifying and improving processes to make your business more efficient, more disciplined, and better able to adapt to change. Together, they provide a framework for building GRC process-driven integration points that give companies seamless integration capabilities with other applications and businesses. BPM also automates delivery of information to employees in your organization that are responsible for managing and monitoring internal controls. Complete functionality includes the ability to build and execute workflow throughout the system for your unique business rules, as well as invoke and require electronic signatures for processes with secure authorization and password.

Global Trade Compliance

In order to conduct business globally, you need enterprise business software that enables compliance with local laws, satisfies international security measures, and meets the myriad local and regional documentation requirements. Epicor Global Trade Compliance applications provide a comprehensive platform for managing these trade compliance necessities. Complete functionality includes:

  • Global trade standards—items
  • Landed cost management
  • Country of origin tracking
  • RoHS/WEEE Compliance
  • Product lifecycle management
  • International shipping and documentation
  • Quality management X Audit trail visibility
  • Turnkey ISO, automotive (TS), aerospace (AS), and FDA (cGMP, FDA 21 CFR Part 11) support

Electronic Compliance Reporting Tool

Reporting legislation is constantly evolving, and many tax authorities around the world are now starting to require comprehensive data submissions on a regular basis. Companies are increasingly expected to provide tax authorities with real-time visibility into all transactions—on top of existing requirements for regular submissions. A growing number of countries either have adopted or are planning to adopt tax reporting—such as Standard Audit File for Tax (SAF-T)—and others are introducing new e-invoicing requirements. To help you meet these new and evolving requirements in a timely and efficient way, the Electronic Compliance Reporting Tool can help you facilitate ongoing management of your electronic reporting and compliance requirements. Using this, you can create or adjust custom electronic reporting or e-invoicing solutions in a timely manner.

Environmental and Energy Management

As the world continues to analyze energy availability, businesses are also turning their attention to areas of opportunity—reduction of carbon emissions, energy conservation, and supply chain sustainability. Companies will look to IT and software solutions to help them find opportunities to extend the tangible benefits of corporate social responsibility (CSR) through the extended supply chain. Some of the more notable areas that corporations are emphasizing when deciding on a path to good environmental and energy management include strategic sourcing and procurement, logistics, application of lean principles, and virtualization.

  • Energy Monitoring – Energy Monitoring from Epicor Mattec MES, is a real-time, web-based application to monitor and analyze energy use in the manufacturing plant. This can help businesses reduce energy consumption and pinpoint energy savings opportunities right at the source—by monitoring energy use on equipment. Energy Monitoring analyzes load patterns, production requirements, and resource energy demands, giving you the power to reduce peak demand and capture energy savings. Easily capture and analyze energy performance indicators (EPIs) to reduce consumption and cut costs.

Scroll to top

Business Architecture

Epicor designs and builds its enterprise applications from the ground up using state of the art connected systems architecture. A connected systems focus was chosen because enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems thrive as high performing, approachable services that connect people, systems, and processes. Business strategy today is tightly coupled with technology strategy, and technology is partly responsible for shaping the culture within a company that ultimately drives competitiveness. Epicor separates the design and development of our technology platform from the production of the applications themselves. The tools and frameworks that comprise the Epicor platform ensure users have a consistent experience across the system, allow for collaboration with ERP constantly in context, and provide the ability to create an optimized ERP experience. This unique blend of tools and technology is called Epicor ICE.

Epicor ICE

Epicor ICE is the business architecture that underpins the Epicor enterprise business software and offers a true service-based Microsoft .Net architecture with SQL Server Optimization. This agile technology enables business process and builds on an already complete and robust framework. The toolset is helping our customers to both use and enhance Epicor applications at a business level—rather than a technology level—with minimum overhead. Epicor ICE addresses a number of key needs required by modern enterprises, including:

  • Flexible deployment options—in the cloud or on-premises
  • Service-based architecture
  • High-end scalability
  • Web Access Framework
  • Windows forms, web forms, and mobile device forms
  • Built-in customization engine
  • Comprehensive BPM Platform
  • Embedded dashboards
  • Connected people, systems, and processes

Epicor ICE offers a series of system facilities and tools to enable the effective management of Epicor applications— extending to system security, document management, advanced software development, software deployment, and product documentation. System tool functionality includes:

  • Centralized administration console
  • Comprehensive system monitor
  • Email integration
  • Separation of Epicor ICE from Epicor Applications
  • Multiple system agents
  • Extended reporting framework
  • Customizable printed forms
  • Auto print control

Flexible Deployment Options

As your business grows and changes, you need a solution that can grow and change with you. Epicor can be deployed on premises or in the cloud, providing great flexibility. For example, if your business has limited IT resources, you may opt to initially deploy the solution in the cloud. As your business changes, you may subsequently opt to redeploy Epicor ERP on premises. If your company has multiple sites or establishments, Epicor is one of the few leading vendors to have architected a cloud ERP software as a service (SaaS) offering—Epicor Cloud ERP—and an on premises offering—Epicor ERP—out of a single product and is the only vendor who has deployed it to customers.

Enterprise Experience

Epicor ICE delivers user interface (UI) options that are at once easy to use, rich and intuitive, and give users choice in deployment and experience. Unique technology within Epicor ICE offers the ability to support simultaneous access to the system by users who run many client applications concurrently—whether Windows® desktop, mobile, or browser based. All UI options are intuitive, flexible, aesthetic, and promote user productivity. Comprehensive features include:

  • Mobile workers
  • Personalized keyboard shortcuts
  • Tool tips
  • Simplified navigation
  • User-defined searches
  • Comprehensive cut-and-paste
  • Transaction visualization
  • Advanced grid management
  • User based translation
  • Styling and themes
  • Active Home Page – The Active Home Page offers an intuitive experience for users with favorites, social streams, and custom links to other applications, and it delivers key indicators needed to help prioritize the day for optimum efficiency and satisfaction.
  • Personalization – Personalize the way in which all forms look for users—including how many forms are viewable, tab order, fonts, colors, menu shortcuts, tree view, hide panels, change grid orders, and whether specific interaction dialogs should be suppressed.
  • Customization – For businesses looking to tailor ERP to match unique business practices, Epicor ERP offers an embedded customization layer that saves modifications to forms based on Visual Studio .NET. Business tailoring includes multiple editions of any form, add user fields, add dynamic user defined field, add user logic, add sheets, add Microsoft Visual Basic® .NET or C# code, hide fields, and make fields mandatory. Modifications are upgradable as they are held in the data layer, reducing the impact on upgrades and potential version lock. Managing modifications is greatly simplified with the use of a Solution Manager where modifications can be bundled together and managed.

Web Access Framework

Rather than rewriting application forms to support mobile devices and the web, Epicor has developed the Web Access Framework—a unique technology that stores all client business logic as tagged XML metadata. This permits Epicor applications to run as smart clients or web clients or on mobile devices—all from the same source code. This framework also ensures that user customizations and personalization remain intact—whatever the UI. Web forms can be accessed from many different browsers, and for added flexibility, web forms can be accessed using most popular browsers— including Microsoft Internet Explorer®, Microsoft Edge®, Mozilla® Firefox®, or Apple Safari.

Information Worker

According to current industry surveys, desktop productivity tools are used by 95 percent of business workers, with Microsoft Office as the standard for desktop applications. Epicor Information Worker provides a secure, seamless interface to your Epicor application from within Microsoft Outlook®, Excel®, or Word—blurring the lines between enterprise software and desktop productivity software to create a single, immersive solution. The underlying architecture behind Information Worker provides direct access to updatable BAQs. Information Worker is also able to call Epicor Web Access forms—as well as desktop application forms—from the Information Worker menus. Complete functionality includes the ability for authorized users to retrieve, view, and modify Epicor data; download the data you need directly into your Microsoft Office application without leaving your current task; and provide support for customer relationship initiatives.

Epicor Mobile Framework

The Epicor Mobile Framework (EMF) was developed at Epicor as a new user experience to meet the needs of a wide range of applications across the Epicor portfolio. It offers a flexible and responsive platform that supports modern HTML5- compliant browsers. EMF is responsive, as forms can be displayed in full size on a browser, but they can also be resized for mobile use. Some examples of mobile applications built using the EMF include:

  • Mobile CRM – Epicor Mobile CRM empowers your salesforce by providing mobile access to the entire CRM suite of capabilities on any iOS™ or Android™ device. You can manage the sales cycle from lead to order shipment—anytime, anywhere.
  • Epicor Mobile Access – Epicor Mobile Access supports mobile dashboards that are rendered as web applications that may run on a number of mobile devices—including iOS or Android. Since the mobile dashboards that support Epicor Mobile Access are built using the dashboard technology and updatable BAQ technology, it is possible to create web applications that implement business functionality on mobile devices. Epicor ships with sample mobile forms that can be copied, modified, and customized to meet specific business requirements.
  • Epicor Data Discovery – Built to extend the existing Epicor dashboard capabilities, Epicor Data Discovery (EDD) is part of the Epicor data platform that enables Epicor ERP users to access greater visualization and self-discovery tools for their existing and growing library of dashboards and BAQs. EDD is an analytics solution intended to provide an easy-to use data exploration and data visualization experience, and it is a major component of the overall Epicor data platform—which encompasses a broad set of capabilities for managing, accessing, sharing, cleansing, visualizing, and extracting insights from data created by or related to Epicor-created data.

Business Activity Query

Every business needs an intuitive and easy-to-use query engine, and for this, Epicor created business activity query (BAQ)—allowing you to create personalized queries or copy standard queries. Once created, queries can be used throughout the application to generate SSRS reports or quickly search or view results in a Dashboard. Complete functionality includes:

  • BAQ design wizards
  • Graphical table links
  • Embedded calculations
  • Multiple data views
  • Analyze/test query tabs
  • Updatable BAQs
  • External BAQs
  • Configurable dashboard applications

Enterprise Query and Application Search

Epicor Enterprise Search brings the Internet search experience to ERP. Enterprise Search provides embedded search capabilities through tag clouds of Epicor structured data that span all Epicor applications built upon it, and it can also extend beyond enterprise data to unstructured data like Word documents—all in a secure manner. Complete functionality includes:

  • Secure search results
  • User-definable searching
  • Easily find relevant business data
  • Data drill-down capability
  • Complete search results in browser
  • Epicor Administration Console-Based System Configuration

Business Process Management

Building on and extending beyond the simple rules enforced by Business Activity Management (BAM), Epicor Business Process Management (BPM) is all about identifying and improving processes to make your business more efficient, disciplined, and better able to adapt to change. Epicor incorporates BPM technology to enable organizations to automate and streamline business processes for continuous improvement. Epicor BPM augments your current efforts of continuous improvement by allowing you to more closely tailor your Epicor solution to reflect the best practices you have developed. Complete functionality includes:

  • Seamless integration and workflow capabilities
  • Easy-to-use designer with wizard interface
  • Pre-process condition builder
  • Post-process routine automation
  • Customizable base process

Social Collaboration Platform

Epicor Social Enterprise (ESE) is a collaboration solution that provides a fundamental shift in the way organizations collaborate around a project, customer incident, quality issue, procurement challenge, or planning event. It enables people to fully engage within their businesses and leverage their ERP data in the process to make more informed decisions. Online social engagement reduces the frequency of company meetings, improves the speed of decision making, and ultimately drives a new level of business efficiency. Fully embedded within Epicor ERP to deliver easier access to business information, ESE fosters cross-company collaboration by bringing social media concepts and contextual ERP information together in a single tool. This allows people to share information with each other—working together to solve problems while building up a knowledge base repository in which good ideas are never lost. Because it is an embedded component of Epicor ERP, users already can subscribe and unsubscribe to the information relevant to their role in the business. Complete functionality includes:

  • Embedded capabilities
  • Business notification
  • In-context and on-demand
  • Activity streams
  • Collaboration
  • Knowledge base

Enterprise Content Management

Enterprise Content Management (ECM) helps your business achieve growth by enabling you to streamline and automate reporting processes, reduce the risk of error, and improve business efficiency. ECM is the technology used to capture, manage, store, preserve, and deliver content and documents related to organizational processes. ECM tools and strategies allow the management of organizations’ unstructured information—wherever that electronic information exists. Complete functionality includes:

  • Drag-and-drop attachments
  • Secure document repository
  • Contextual retrieval
  • Multiformat document viewing
  • Automated product documentation workflow
  • Advanced Print Routing
  • Epicor DocStar ECM

Advanced Print Routing

Epicor ERP Advanced Print Routing lets you email multiple recipients in multiple formats, send output to one or more designated printers, or save reports to a network folder in a desired format. With an easy-to-use graphical workflow builder, you can quickly and easily manage reports by filtering and assigning alternative reports styles. Advanced Print Routing allows you to send order confirmations or invoices to customers, generate and submit required financial reports, deliver parts reports or pick-lists to others, or save critical information to a business archive.

Epicor DocStar ECM

Epicor DocStar ECM is an industry-leading solution that’s built for the web and delivers deployment choice. Users can install DocStar ECM on their hardware or use DocStar in the cloud. The same software offers the same user experience and the same great results. DocStar ECM supports all popular browsers and mobile devices to deliver access anytime, anywhere. Epicor DocStar ECM manages electronic assets with:

  • Security
  • Audit Trail
  • Data Center
  • Workflow
  • Intelligent Capture
  • Custom Forms
  • Search and Retrieve
  • Document Retention

Electronic Commerce Platform

Businesses looking to improve customer service, reduce lead times through new business efficiency, and deliver new opportunities to sales will often invest in eCommerce solutions. Epicor Commerce Connect (ECC) was designed to solve the challenges of manufacturers and their unique needs as they integrate an eCommerce solution. ECC is built on the Magento platform—a leader in eCommerce—with a comprehensive ecosystem and tooling in constant development to enable businesses to stay current with latest commerce trends. Epicor Commerce Connect is also fully integrated with Epicor ERP and offers the synchronization required by most commerce sites while boasting additional capabilities needed by manufacturers—including full integration with Epicor ERP product configuration capabilities. Finally, ECC easily extends to new data elements and provides a platform for eCommerce business growth.

While many companies can provide eCommerce services, very few leading providers are able to deliver the value and rapid results that Epicor Commerce Connect affords. It can extend business boundaries with a proven commerce architecture that connects businesses to consumers, customers, and suppliers—and enables Epicor ERP customers to utilize their websites to help drive revenue, increase customer satisfaction, and grow their businesses.

Security Management

Epicor comprehensive security features secure access to multiple companies without having to close all forms or carry out different logins when switching companies. Plus, Epicor ICE provides the option for Microsoft Windows Authentication, Windows Single Sign-on, and Password Policy, as well as method security protocols to secure types of processing users are able to carry out—like allowing a user to update an existing part but not add a new part—by user or group. Complete Security features also include:

  • Data level security
  • Security reporting
  • Online edits and audits
  • Date and time—using server time—and user name for auditing
  • Product security
  • Application security
  • Access security
  • Business security
  • Change logs
  • Complete audit control
  • HTTPS protocols

Automation Tool For Epicor

The Automation Tool for Epicor (ATE) can do everything your users can do in Epicor ERP and is a very efficient way to either run repetitive tasks that may differ only in the selection criteria or run tasks that need to be launched late at night when other users are off the system—like data-intensive tasks such as very large print runs, MRP, etc. ATE can also be used as part of your change management process to test the latest Epicor hotfixes using automated test scripts matched to your business activities and data. Users can easily revalidate results with ATE.

Service Architecture

Epicor Service Connect is a powerful business integration platform—functioning as a central integration point for secure workflow orchestrations within Epicor applications, as well as external connectivity to Epicor and non-Epicor applications. Because Epicor Solutions are built using Epicor SOA, the power of Service Connect can be used to streamline processing within the application framework. Epicor Service Connect enables you to promote lean principles, continuous performance initiatives, and Six Sigma quality throughout the organization. You can also incorporate workflow and system orchestration through visual designers with little to no programming effort, easily link and transform XML documents to map to different systems, quickly review and track in-progress processes or after the process completes with Service Connect workflow logs, and perform full dataset and multiple record updates in the same way as the web service update method processes data.

REST Services

Representational state transfer (REST) services are a type of web service based on the architecture of the internet. Through this application program interface (API), these services link applications more easily through Internet type connections.

These services use the OData REST Protocol, which adds query capabilities and metadata descriptions to enable OData aware applications such as Microsoft Excel, Power BI®, or similar third-party applications to display real-time Epicor data. REST does this by exposing data and functions as unique Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) resources. Applications can then communicate with the REST services in the same way a web browser interacts with a website.

The REST services implement the full functionality of the Epicor ERP business objects. As with any use of the business objects, the services can be used to extract data to other systems and to provide interfaces for data Import and Update, but they should not be used in applications designed to provide transactional functionality that would otherwise require a concurrent user login.

Compliance and Structured Reporting Framework

The Compliance and Structured Reporting Framework consists of functionality designed to allow definition, generation, and distribution of electronic documents in formats such as XML, JSON, and CSV. In many countries, there are specific reporting requirements—including electronic accounting, invoicing, and SAF-T reporting—mandated by government agencies that must be generated from the ERP system. Such regulatory requirements can change periodically and rapidly. The functionality is designed to allow definition and distribution of document formats. The functionality also has broad use for generation of document formats used for system integrations and other data reporting applications.

Epicor Education and Content Delivery

Epicor University delivers a suite of tools, aligning to the different learning styles and needs of your employees. Resources include:

  • Training on Demand videos
  • Embedded Education self-paced courses
  • Role-based training agendas
  • Course tests
  • Live training
  • Online help
  • System and user documentation

Embedded Education

Embedded Education is a self-paced training module accessed directly within a training installation of Epicor ERP. Users can access more than 100 courses—each with detailed explanations and hands-on exercises. Learners are able to easily navigate between courses and the related application using real-life business data through an Epicor education database. The courses provide a structured and repeatable learning experience for initial and ongoing training. As this is a licensed module, new training comes with each release of Epicor ERP, so users can more easily be trained and ready.

Epicor Learning Center

Your Epicor Learning Center (ELC) allows you to deliver, manage, and track your company’s training needs from one central location. Here, you can access course materials, set and manage employee assignments, register for classes, and track training progress and test scores. The ELC contains a broad catalog of Training on Demand courses and tests. Role-based agendas help you align courses and exams to each employee’s training needs, so they can learn a new topic, prepare for an upgrade, launch a new application, or dive more deeply into current applications. Administrators may view individual test results or aggregate scores across the entire organization to easily track knowledge levels. Best of all, tests are not limited to Epicor content. You can add proprietary questions and tests to the ELC, and then assign and track them as desired.

Documentation

Epicor provides an extensive set of documentation to help users get the most out of their Epicor solution. Developed for a wide audience that includes management, technical staff, and end-users, the resources provide detailed information on installing, configuring, and using Epicor ERP applications. Resources include:

  • User guides and eBooks—illustrated, detailed instructions that walk users through major application functions are available both in printed and electronic formats
  • Feature summaries—a concise overview of the new functionality within each Epicor ERP version and release
  • Knowledgebase—an extensive collection of documents—including answers to frequently asked questions, procedural documentation, release notes, tips from Epicor staff, and more
  • Online help—reference tool that documents application features and functionality—including field definitions, technical detail, calculations, tips, and examples
  • Installation guides—comprehensive instructions on installing applications
  • Technical reference guides—in-depth information on the most complex topics

Scroll to top

 

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.


The second of two release upgrades planned for 2019, the Epicor ERP Cloud 10.2.500 Update is part of the regular cloud ERP update cadence and commitment to helping businesses grow through the innovation of the Epicor Cloud ERP solution. Major releases like this bring greater usability, performance, and strategic value in a single upgrade. That’s why users are given 4 weeks to test in Pilot and explore the changes before upgrading the live production system.

Epicor ERP Cloud 10.2.500 Update Highlights

The Epicor ERP Cloud 10.2.500 update can be distilled into four different categories of change, Experiences, Industry, Analytics, and Cloud tools.

Experiences

  • Epicor Virtual Agent Skills
  • Kinetic Epicor Collaborate
  • Kinetic Mobile Warehouse
  • Enhanced Mobile Time & Expense
  • Epicor Kinetic Preview

Industry

  • Epicor Service Pro
  • Mattec MES 8.3 Integration
  • Finance Enhancements
  • Country-Specific Functionalities

Analytics

  • Enhanced Epicor Data Discovery
  • Epicor Data Analytics
  • personalization

Cloud

  • System Notifications
  • New Cloud Status Webpage
  • Canada Datacenters
  • Epicor Functions

Epicor Collaborate

A new offering from Epicor Software Corp., Epicor Collaborate provides enhanced cloud-based business collaboration. So, what does that mean for the end-user and business as a whole? Epicor Collaborate provides:

  • Improved communication and collaboration among your teams
  • Easy to use and intuitive interfaces
  • Engagement with colleagues using familiar social media concepts
  • Easy following of relevant ERP entities
  • Viewing of notifications and feeds in your homepage

Epicor Virtual Agent (EVA)

A unique AIexperience that improves the overall usability of the Epicor System from desktop and mobile devices, Epicor Virtual Agent (EVA) delivers intelligence personified for Epicor ERP systems. The tool made its first appearance in the Epicor ERP 10.2.400 update. EVA is a conversational digital agent available on Android and iOS devices. Utilizing Azure-enabled Natural Language Processing (NLP). In the 10.2.500 update, new skills have been added and the free-trial has been extended to December 31, 2019.

An image of the epicor virtual agent eva epicor erp cloud 10.2.500 update

Epicor Mobile Warehouse

Epicor Mobile Warehouse has received a facelift with the Epicor Kinetic design system. Epicor Mobile Warehouse is a modern and intuitive app. It provides workflow optimization for fast and accurate scanning. Time to process transactions is reduced alongside the instance of errors. Accuracy is also increased, as a result. The application provides bin-level validation as well as complex sorting and filtering options. What’s more, the application is fully integrated with Epicor ERP.

An image of the epicor mobile warehouse epicor erp cloud 10.2.500 update

 

Enhanced Mobile Time and Expense

want to increase efficiency and throughput for teams on-the-go? The Epicor ERP enhanced mobile time and expense module empowers teams with offline tools to get work done when unconnected. Then, when connections resume, automatic sync delivers the updates needed to communicate progress. Enhanced mobile time and expense allows users to:

  • create timesheets or expense reports in offline mode
  • Auto-sync offline changes when you go online
  • Leverage new file types to manage attachments in cloud
  • Add Time Reporting against Maintenance Jobs
  • Utilize enhanced mobile time and expense on both iOS and Android devices

An image of the epicor mobile time and expense epicor erp cloud 10.2.500 update

Epicor Kinetic Framework

The Epicor Kinetic framework transforms how customers interact with Epicor ERP software, making them more productive by simplifying everyday tasks. Kinetic is more than a modern look and
feel and intuitive user interface, it also aims to automate the most critical business process functions. The Kinetic design is a simple, intelligent, modern and consistent look and feel for your Epicor ERP system.

An image of the epicor kinetic framework epicor erp cloud 10.2.500 update

The Kinetic preview program is now available. Take advantage of this exclusive opportunity to gain early access to Kinetic and get:

  • Get familiar with its intuitive user interface and benefit from improved performance
  • Test drive 600+ high demand reports and processes at no cost
  • Provide feedback that will help shape the future releases of Kinetic
  • Once the preview period is completed, benefit from a faster installation of the full product with the 10.2.600 release

Contact your Customer Account Manager for more information.

New And Improved Epicor ERP Analytics Tools

Epicor Personalized Analytics Tools give you the power to gain more insights that matter. Additionally, Epicor Data Discovery has been “kineticized” for greater usability. Epicor Data Analytics now supports custom views and dashboards grids, as well.

An image of the epicor data analytics epicor erp cloud 10.2.500 update

Epicor Service Pro

Service work is never centralized and a constant source of hiccups for those businesses without a sounds system to keep everything organized. Epicor has advanced these tools for users to streamline services with a service-oriented architecture. In particular, Epicor Service Pro delivers the tools to:

  • Efficiently schedule work, dispatch, and track technicians
  • Integrate with inventory and financial systems
  • Incorporate time-saving automation tools that streamline service calls, quoting, work order management, service contracts, and more
  • Leverage easy-to-use mobile service app for field technicians

Epicor ERP Cloud and Mattec MES 8.3

The latest Mattec MES offers improved data integration for a seamless experience. The latest update includes a redesigned integration utilizing RESTful API services for greater performance, SSRS reporting and support for Epicor IoT. Additionally, Epicor ERP Mattec MES efficiency in scheduling, allocation of jobs to machines, and production reporting have been improved.

Epicor ERP Finance Enhancements

Increasing accuracy, speed, and security, Epicor ERP finance tools are among the best in the industry. With the Epicor ERP Cloud 10.2.500 update, users can take advantage of:

  • CRE Support for Level 3 Compliance to optimize credit card payment validation with deep transaction security information
  • Resolve bank receipt file import performance
  • Enhancements in Electronic Compliance Engine

New Epicor Country-Specific Functionality

Several critical updates to ten countries’ functionality have been included in the Epicor ERP Cloud 10.2.500 update. These countries are:

  • Argentina
  • China
  • Colombia
  • India
  • Finland
  • France
  • Germany
  • Malaysia
  • Mexico
  • Portugal

New Epicor ERP Functions

The Next Evolution of Epicor BPM’s are here and users will be happy to learn they have enhanced tools with:

  • Familiar BPM Designer Experience
  • A new way of server-side customization
  • Eliminated copy and paste BPM logic
  • Integrations that upgrade seamlessly

Epicor ERP Standards REST-based approach couldn’t be easier to work with. That’s because the logic is not built on the client and is called via REST, any device, OS, etc can call the function (ie. a calculation, integration, etc.)

Epicor ERP Cloud Regions

The Epicor Cloud Infrastructure has added an additional data center in North America. Epicor-administered data centers include:

  • Australia
  • Canada (New)
  • Singapore
  • United Kingdom
  • United States x 3

An image of the epicor cloud data centers epicor erp cloud 10.2.500 update

Epicor Cloud Communication

Epicor strives for clear communication with customers through in-app or email communications. As a result, Email address on the In-app user profile is now where you enter your preferred communication email address. Need to update your notification preferences? Access your profile from the System Monitor, within the Action Menu.

Epicor ERP Cloud Status Webpage

As the name implies, Epicor has erected a Cloud Status webpage to communicate the status of cloud infrastructure on a global level. The status for all Epicor Cloud products can be found at https://status.epicor.com.

Embedded Education Courses

Epicor ERP Cloud 10.2.500 Embedded Education features 40 new courses and several updated. This includes cloud-specific training on:

• Epicor ERP in the Cloud first steps
• Epicor Support and Cloud Operational Excellence
• Leveraging the Unique Business Component Tracker to Manage You Customizations During an Upgrade

For more information on the Epicor ERP Cloud 10.2.500 update, connect with your Encompass Solutions Customer Account Manager.

Epicor ERP Cloud 10.2.500 Webcast

Epicor ERP Cloud 10.2.500 Release Guide

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions, Inc. is an ERP consulting firm, NetSuite Solution Provider and Epicor Gold Partner that offers professional services in business consulting, project management, and software implementation. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems or addressing the emerging challenges in corporate and operational growth, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. As experts in identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.


You do not have a Rock Builder Form with this shortcode : [rockthemes_fb id="5"]

Epicor designs and builds its enterprise applications from the ground up using state of the art connected systems architecture, referred to as the Epicor Business Architecture. A connected systems focus was chosen because enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems thrive as high-performing, approachable services that connect people, systems, and processes. Business strategy today is tightly coupled with technology strategy, and technology is partly responsible for shaping the culture within a company that ultimately drives competitiveness.

Table of Contents

  1. Epicor Internet Component Environment (Epicor ICE)
  2. Epicor Business Architecture
  3. Epicor ICE User Experience
  4. Epicor Everywhere Framework
  5. Information Worker
  6. Business Activity Query
  7. Epicor Portal
  8. Business Process Management and Workflow Management
  9. Web 2.0

1. Epicor Internet Component Environment (Epicor ICE)

Epicor separates the design and development of the technology platform from the production of the applications themselves. The tools and frameworks that comprise the Epicor platform ensure users have a consistent experience across the system, allow for collaboration with ERP constantly in context, and provide the ability to create an optimized ERP experience. This unique blend of tools and technology is called Epicor ICE.

Epicor ICE is the business architecture that underpins the Epicor enterprise business software and offers a true service-based Microsoft .Net architecture with SQL Server Optimization. This agile technology enables business process and builds on an already complete and robust framework. The toolset is helping our customers to both use and enhance Epicor applications at a business level—rather than a technology level—with minimum overhead. Epicor ICE addresses a number of key needs required by modern enterprises, including:

  • Flexible deployment options—in the cloud or on-premises
  • Service-based architecture
  • High-end scalability
  • Web Access Framework
  • Windows forms, web forms, and mobile device forms
  • Built-in customization engine
  • Comprehensive BPM Platform
  • Embedded dashboards
  • Connected people, systems, and processes

an image of the Epicor Business Architecture foundation for epicor erp

2. Epicor Business Architecture

Epicor ERP is built using a service-oriented architecture (SOA). Epicor business architecture includes several core components businesses of all sizes can leverage towards streamlined operations and performance management. They include:

  • Epicor ICE
  • Epicor Everywhere Framework
  • Information Worker
  • Business Activity Query
  • Epicor Portal
  • Business Process Management and Workflow Management
  • Web 2.0
  • System Tools
  • Service Connect

3. Epicor ICE User Experience

Epicor ICE delivers user interface (UI) options that are at once easy to use, rich and intuitive, and give users choice in deployment and experience. Unique technology within Epicor ICE offers the ability to have multiple user interfaces interact with the same SOA-based business logic simultaneously including a “Smart Client,“ a Web browser-based Client or Microsoft Office applications. All UI options are intuitive, flexible, aesthetic, and promote user productivity. Comprehensive features include:

  • Mobile workers
  • Personalized keyboard shortcuts
  • Tool tips
  • Simplified navigation
  • User-defined searches
  • Comprehensive cut-and-paste
  • Transaction visualization
  • Advanced grid management
  • User-based translation
  • Styling and themes

Active Home Page

The Active Home Page offers an intuitive experience for users with favorites, social streams, and custom links to other applications, and it delivers key indicators needed to help prioritize the day for optimum efficiency and satisfaction.

Active Home Page— Built on the Epicor Kinetic Framework, the Active Home Page offers a user experience that is both intuitive and visual for optimum productivity as part of the Epicor Business Architecture

Active Home Page— Built on the Epicor Kinetic Framework, the Active Home Page offers a user experience that is both intuitive and visual for optimum productivity.

Personalization

Personalize the way in which all forms look for users—including how many forms are viewable, tab order, fonts, colors, menu shortcuts, tree view, hide panels, change grid orders, and whether specific interaction dialogs should be suppressed.

Customization

For businesses looking to tailor ERP to match unique business practices, Epicor ERP offers an embedded customization layer that saves modifications to forms based on Visual Studio .NET. Business tailoring includes multiple editions of any form, add user fields, add dynamic user-defined field, add user logic, add sheets, add Microsoft Visual Basic® .NET or C# code, hide fields, and make fields mandatory. Modifications are upgradable as they are held in the data layer, reducing the impact on upgrades and potential version lock. Managing modifications is greatly simplified with the use of a Solution Manager where modifications can be bundled together and managed.

4. Epicor Everywhere Framework

Today many enterprise applications are being rewritten to support mobile devices and browser-based clients, which provide easier more convenient access to business information and easier deployment. These clients are generally considered “zero-footprint“ or “thin“ clients. Rather than rewriting application forms to support mobile devices and the Web, the Epicor Everywhere Framework was developed. This unique technology stores all client business logic as tagged XML metadata. This permits Epicor applications to run as smart clients or Web clients or on mobile devices, all from the same source code. This framework also ensures that user customizations and personalization remain intact, whatever the UI.

For example, users can customize smart client forms to meet specific business needs and then simply re-generate the form’s metadata and output it as a Web form with all customizations included. ICE delivers a new usability feature whereby a Web user has the option of switching to the Windows smart client for certain forms, thereby running a hybrid application designed to improve performance and user flexibility. In addition to this key feature, Epicor ICE introduces “Group By” and Personalization” functionality for Epicor Web Access forms similar to that found in the Windows client version.

Epicor ICE supports the generation of asynchronous JavaScript and extensible markup language (AJAX) Web browser-based forms from existing Windows forms (C#). For added flexibility Web forms can be accessed from different mobile devices and browsers, including Microsoft Internet Explorer®, Mozilla® Firefox® or Apple® Safari® and can run on any operating system, including Windows, UNIX, Linux, or Mac®.

Mobile Access framework

In Epicor ICE, the Epicor Everywhere Framework™ has been extended to support mobile dashboards which are rendered as Web applications that may run on a number of mobile devices including BlackBerry® and iPhone™. Since the mobile dashboards that support Epicor Mobile Access are built using dashboard technology and Updatable BAQ technology, it is simple to create Web applications that implement business functionality on mobile devices. Epicor 9.05 ships with sample mobile forms that can be copied, modified, and customized to meet specific business requirements.

The Epicor Mobile Framework (EMF) was developed at Epicor as a new user experience to meet the needs of a wide range of applications across the Epicor portfolio. It offers a flexible and responsive platform that supports modern HTML5-compliant browsers. EMF is responsive, as forms can be displayed in full size on a browser, but they can also be resized for mobile use. Some examples of mobile applications built using the EMF include:

Mobile CRM

Epicor Mobile CRM empowers your salesforce by providing mobile access to the entire CRM suite of capabilities on any iOS™ or Android™ device. You can manage the sales cycle from lead to order shipment—anytime, anywhere.

Epicor Mobile Access

Epicor Mobile Access supports mobile dashboards that are rendered as web applications that may run on a number of mobile devices—including iOS or Android. Since the mobile dashboards that support Epicor Mobile Access are built using dashboard technology and updatable BAQ technology, it is possible to create web applications that implement business functionality on mobile devices. Epicor ships with sample mobile forms that can be copied, modified, and customized to meet specific business requirements.

Epicor Data Discovery

Built to extend the existing Epicor dashboard capabilities, Epicor Data Discovery (EDD) is part of the Epicor data platform that enables Epicor ERP users to access greater visualization and self-discovery tools for their existing and growing library of dashboards and BAQs. EDD is an analytics solution intended to provide an easy-to-use data exploration and data visualization experience, and it is a major component of the overall Epicor data platform—which encompasses a broad set of capabilities for managing, accessing, sharing, cleansing,

Web Access framework

Rather than rewriting application forms to support mobile devices and the web, we’ve developed the Web Access Framework—a unique technology that stores all client business logic as tagged XML metadata. This permits Epicor applications to run as smart clients or web clients or on mobile devices—all from the same source code. This framework also ensures that user customizations and personalization remain intact—whatever the UI. Web forms can be accessed from many different browsers, and for added flexibility, web forms can be accessed using most popular browsers—including Microsoft Internet Explorer®, Microsoft Edge®, Mozilla® Firefox®, or Apple Safari.

Web Access Framework—Web Access provides a rich user experience over the Web as part of the Epicor Business Architecture

Web Access Framework—Web Access provides a rich user experience over the Web.

Smart Client

Epicor takes full advantage of Microsoft’s .NET smart client technology to deliver an easy to use, rich user experience in a traditional local client environment. Smart clients are easily deployed and managed client applications that offer users a powerful interactive experience—an experience that takes advantage of local resources to connect intelligently to distributed data sources. Business workers can take advantage of increased opportunities to extract, consume, analyze, and distribute information to help create new products, expand into new markets, streamline business procedures, and provide better operational control. The Epicor smart client delivers the rich functionality that users expect, including tear-off sheets; user sizeable screens; navigation trees; non-modal forms; publish and subscribe; advanced searches; drag and drop attachments; drill-down navigation and exploration; and HTML online help and tutorials.

Unlimited Comments

Enter unlimited comments throughout the system.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Personalize keyboard shortcuts for all functions.

Tool Tips

Provides for user-controlled (on or off) fly-over text-based tooltips.

Indication of Attachments, Memos, Audits, Etc.

This feature makes it visible to users when memos or attachments are present.

Open With

Simplify navigation throughout the system with “open with.“ Right-click on any field to highlight all related areas of the system that can be accessed. Powerful publish and subscribe technology automatically associates all open forms together. Changes in one form affect the information the subscribing forms show.

User-Defined Searches

Define searches in all parts of the system. Search criteria can be saved and reused in the future. Auto-load searches can be applied to forms so the search is automatically applied when the form is opened. Auto-search can be applied so that when a form is opened, the search screen is automatically opened.

Cut-and-Paste

Cut-and-paste information to and from all areas of the system and other applications (e.g., rows can be cut and pasted to and from Microsoft Excel).

Transaction Visualization

View all transactions within a user-defined tree structure, allowing users to pinpoint information even in the largest of transactions.

Form Worksets and Navigation

Select multiple records to work with during a session. Move forward and backward within the set. Go straight to a particular record. Save to work with it later or e-mail to a colleague to process.

Advanced Grid Management

Freeze multiple areas of a grid vertically or horizontally so multiple areas of a grid can be seen simultaneously. Multitiered “group-by“ functionality quickly makes sense of large amounts of data. Sort multiple grid columns.

Personalization

Personalize the way in which all forms look for users; how many forms are viewable; tab order; fonts; colors; menu shortcuts; tree view; hide panels; change grid orders; interaction dialogs (e.g., suppressing alert questions like, “Are you sure you want to delete this record?“).

Customization

Do everything available in personalization. The customization engine is based on Visual Studio .NET. Build multiple versions of forms; add user fields; add user logic; add sheets; add Microsoft Visual Basic® .NET code; hide fields; make fields mandatory. Layered customizations ensure no impact on upgrades.

Customization Wizard

Customization wizards are available to streamline the use of the customization and personalization engine. This ability allows “visual behavior“ for a field or set of fields and can be extended to include the setting of behaviors for fields in any defined view based on complex comparisons.

Dynamic User Defined Fields

Supports a range of user-defined fields in all primary tables in the database. The Epicor schema can be extended via customization to include any number of additional user-defined fields against such tables thus allowing unlimited growth in usage of these fields which may be used for both customer installations and for Epicor localizations.

Localization

Localization refers to the fact that Epicor is designed for global-ready applications. Epicor utilizes Microsoft’s standard transactional format assemblies to ensure that resources that require localization and translation have been separated from the rest of the application’s code so that source code need not be modified during localization. To enable this, the Epicor ICE customization engine has been extended to include a separate localization layer. Creating a separate framework localization layer makes version migration easier for customers and localization partners and provides an area within the framework and application for the development of local addons which go beyond the needs of the base application.

External Update Method Added to All Business Objects

An external update method (UpdateExt) is available on all transactional business objects to support bulk updates via integration engines such as Epicor Service Connect. This method implements the functionality previously incorporated in the Epicor Web Service Update method to accept a complete dataset containing hierarchical data and multiple records and to call the base Update method of each business object repeatedly for each row in the dataset and for all records in the dataset. Since all processing is conducted on the server within one login session, the use of this method eliminates much of the latency within the Web services and improves performance for bulk updates.

Styling and Themes

Styling offers complete control over the look and feel of the entire user interface. It works by letting users define the look of each item within the interface—buttons, checkboxes, fields, etc. Because themes can be deployed for a company or plant, multi-plant and multi-company deployments can set their unique theme for easy recognition and brand loyalty.

5. Information Worker

According to current industry surveys, desktop productivity tools are used by 95% of business workers, with Microsoft Office as the standard for desktop applications. Epicor Information Worker provides a secure, seamless interface to the Epicor application from within Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Excel, or Microsoft Word, blurring the lines between enterprise software and desktop productivity software to create a single immersive solution. Imagine the productivity and business visibility gained by using Epicor Information Worker as an interface for both traditional and non-traditional Epicor users.

Epicor Mobile Access—Epicor Mobile Access fr the Information Worker offers anywhere access to any Epicor ERP dashboard, including updatable capabilities to promote greater productivity as part of the Epicor Business Architecture.

Epicor Mobile Access—Epicor Mobile Access fr the Information Worker offers anywhere access to any Epicor ERP dashboard, including updatable capabilities to promote greater productivity.

With changes in ICE, the underlying architecture provides direct access to Updatable BAQs. Information Worker also is able to call Epicor Web Access forms as well as smart client forms from the Information Worker menus.

Extend the Reach of Epicor Applications

Many business workers simply don’t need to utilize all the powerful features of their Epicor applications, but they do need access to the data. Epicor Information Worker allows authorized users to retrieve, view, and modify Epicor data. Epicor application licenses are utilized efficiently—minimizing the licensing impact on an organization and easily allowing more users access to the Epicor solution.

Work in Context, Online, and Offline

With Epicor Information Worker, users no longer have to leave what they are currently doing to get the data they need. Simply download the data directly into the Microsoft Office application. With a few clicks of the mouse, add Epicor contacts, tasks, calendar items, and other data into Microsoft Outlook lists. Outgoing and incoming customer emails can be automatically logged as calls. Customer, supply chain, manufacturing, and customer relationship management (CRM) data are all available online or offline.

Support Customer Relationship Initiatives

Epicor Information Worker can help businesses exceed customers’ expectations. Customers will be impressed with how well everyone in the organization knows the details of their account anywhere, anytime. From the sales organization, customer service workers and business executives—everyone in the company—can easily retrieve and update information within Microsoft Office while at work or on the road. The powerful combination of Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, and Epicor data empowers all business workers to offer informed and responsive customer service, which translates to higher customer satisfaction.

6. Business Activity Query

Every business needs an intuitive and easy to use query engine, and for this Epicor created business activity query (BAQ), which allows users to create personalized queries or to copy standard queries. Once the query is created, it can be used throughout the application—to generate Crystal Reports, for quick searches, to support Portal views, or to view results in a Dashboard. Epicor BAQ lets users create queries that display the data they need, when they need it. Complete functionality includes:

  • BAQ design wizards
  • Graphical table links
  • Embedded calculations
  • Multiple data views
  • Analyze/test query tabs
  • Updatable BAQs
  • External BAQs
  • Configurable dashboard applications

Business Activity Query—The BAQ Designer provides many easy to use features for creating business queries as part of Epicor Business Architecture

Business Activity Query—The BAQ Designer provides many easy to use features for
creating business queries.

Easy to Use Wizards

The BAQ Designer includes easy to use wizards to help users define a query—or they can create the query free-form. The BAQ can be accessed from various parts of the application.

Graphical Links

A graphical display for table links.

Use of Temp Tables and Variables

BAQ includes the ability to use temp tables and variables in a query. This is especially useful for BPM.

Calculations

Embed calculations within query data for rapid reporting and use throughout.

Views of Data

Create multiple views of standard system information for rapid reporting and dashboard generation. Also, allow multiple instances of a single table.

Easily Analyze and Test Queries

In addition to providing a visual presentation of the query being created, the BAQ designer also provides tabs where users can analyze, test the syntax, and run the query to confirm the query is correct before it goes into production. There is also a tab to display where an existing query is being used— dashboard, quick search, or dynamic report. The BAQ designer provides all the tools they need to quickly and easily create queries that return the relevant data they need.

Updatable BAQ’s (UBAQ)

The ICE platform and the BAQ designer has been extended to support updatable Business Activity Queries (UBAQs). The query designer supports both the ability to update the database via the new External Update method or, to update via a BPM directive which in turn may call a Service Connect workflow for complex updates. In either case, the update is performed through the framework business objects thus protecting the integrity of the data. The UBAQ is supported in both dashboards and in the Mobile framework. UBAQs are enabled for a user via User Maintenance as “Advanced BAQ Designer.”

Dashboard Applications

The Dashboard designer provides a standardizes user experience and supports UBAQs. While the dashboard designer can run dashboards in interpreted mode, UBAQs are only available when the dashboard is deployed as an application or as a mobile dashboard. When configured with UBAQs, the dashboard behaves in much the same way as a delivered Epicor form thus allowing the user to construct dashboard applications that streamline the business process.

7. Epicor Portal

It is essential to have current enterprise data at users’ fingertips to make the decisions that drive a business to success. But sometimes important business decisions need to be put on hold because users have to wait for someone else to get them the data they need to make those important decisions. Epicor Portal can help by providing the framework and tools that allow users to gather and share enterprise data without having to depend on others. With Epicor Portal, users can get the information they need from the enterprise system when needed, without having to wait in line.

Reduced IT Burden, Secure Data Access

Epicor Portal moves the function of gathering and publishing data out of the hands of IT and into the organization for easier collaboration and knowledge sharing. By leveraging Microsoft SharePoint products and technologies, the industry-leading portal infrastructure, Epicor Portal is able to provide the rapid deployment of a secure and collaborative portal environment that reaches across the enterprise. Epicor Portal provides a management console where roles and security settings are maintained. Admins and managers determine exactly what portal users can do by creating specific security settings for every Epicor Portal content consumer or group.

Ease of Use

Epicor Portal includes the Epicor Administration Console which is used for specifying data sources and maintaining roles and security settings and the Epicor Portal Explorer, an easy-to-use data visualization tool which allows end-users to intuitively create data views without any knowledge of the underlying database or querying language. The Epicor Portal Explorer is a personalized workspace to build, edit, preview, and export data views. Epicor Portal Explorer runs within Microsoft Internet Explorer and can be accessed from any computer that can connect to the Portal server.

Improve Collaboration and Increase Productivity

Epicor Portal allows users to build specific content within a portal and make that content available for use throughout an organization. The ability to provide this level of information access will boost productivity and improve collaboration between people, departments, and divisions. Additionally, Epicor Portal can provide secured enterprise data access to outside entities such as partners, suppliers, and customers for added visibility and business opportunities. Once Epicor Portal views have been created, they can be published as Microsoft SharePoint Web parts for use by any qualified user. Users are able to access business data either through the Epicor Portal Explorer or Microsoft SharePoint. Data discovery and visualization within Microsoft SharePoint empowers information workers and other stakeholders to build and share business data and events in addition to performing ad hoc online queries.

Integration with Sharepoint Business Data Catalog

Integration with SharePoint Business Data Catalog enables Office SharePoint Server 2007 to surface business data from back-end server applications without any coding. Business Data Catalog bridges the gap between the portal site and business applications and enables users to bring in key data from various business applications to Office SharePoint Server 2007 lists, Web Parts, search, user profiles, and custom applications.

Take Action Immediately

Epicor Portal allows companies to do much more than simply view business data—it allows them to take action. With Epicor Portal, users may create views that allow users to create new or update existing business data without having to open the application. For example, a bunsiess might want to allow customers to create an order that will go directly to the ERP system without anyone else touching it. This acceleration of information delivery-decision-action process can improve the responsiveness and performance of an entire organization.

Unified View of Your Organization

Epicor Portal enables transparent and secure interaction with Epicor applications throughout the organization. Additionally, non-Epicor data sources can be incorporated into security and data discovery wizards to provide an integrated view of the business.

Epicor Portal Customer Content Pack

Improve business efficiency by extending traditional boundaries for doing business with customers. The Epicor Portal Customer Content Pack provides interactive customer-facing content that supports strategic goals for improved customer communication and direct collaboration on day-to-day business, right from a company’s Web site. Additionally, customers enjoy 24×7 self-service and can access, review, and make online requests for quotations. The Epicor Portal Customer Content Pack is designed to deliver the information customers are looking for; open and closed orders, shipments, RMAs, invoices, credit memos, payment history, service calls and more. Customers are becoming more demanding for information. Use Epicor Portal’s flexible environment for further defining the content to which customers have access and securing it based on the customer and what you want them to see. Customer-focused businesses can provide the details customers are looking for without taxing internal customer service resources. With Epicor Portal, customers can drill into the details to which you give them access. For companies looking to take new opportunities electronically, customers can submit a request for quotes with quote details electronically. Behind the scenes, the Epicor solution will accept these details and automatically generate a quote with appropriate tasks and follow-ups to complete. The Epicor solution is updated the same as if someone was sitting in the office entered the new quote, including business-specific quoting workflows, approvals, and automated e-mail communication.

Epicor Portal Supplier Content Pack

Improve business efficiency by extending traditional boundaries for doing business with suppliers. The Epicor Portal Supplier Content Pack provides interactive supplier facing content that supports strategic goals for improved supplier communication and direct collaboration on day-to-day business, right from the company Web site. Suppliers enjoy 24×7 self-service and can access, review, approve purchase orders and changes and submit pricing in response to RFQs.

Real-Time Collaboration with Suppliers

The Epicor Portal Supplier Content Pack is designed to provide real-time collaboration with suppliers on current business and drive new efficiencies and performance in a supplier network. Communicating electronically and in real-time with suppliers reduces lead times and improves responsiveness to customer’s demands. Suppliers can approve and reject purchase orders and purchase order changes electronically as well as respond to new pricing requests. Behind the scenes, the Epicor solution automatically responds to supplier input, improving buyer response to estimators request for quotations, and more.

Secure Content Delivery

Suppliers have the information they need when they need it; freeing up buyers to do more important things than making phone calls when purchase orders become late and answering supplier questions about delivery, payment and more. Use Epicor Portal’s flexible environment to define the content access and securing it based on the supplier and what you want them to see. With Epicor Portal and the Epicor Portal Supplier Content Pack, suppliers can drill only into the details to which you give them access.

8. Business Process Management and Workflow Management

Epicor takes into account the real-life circumstances that define the complex and dynamic business environment, both during the planning and the actual process. Embedded within Epicor applications is a comprehensive and flexible workflow solution that gives you the tools you need to respond quickly to critical business requirements. The workflow facilities available within Epicor enable you to quickly begin managing and automating even the most complex business processes, including working toward ISO certification. Epicor Workflow Management is comprised of five major components: Task Management; Workbench Views; Business Activity Management (BAM); and Business Process Management (BPM).

Business Process Management—Build new controls and validate easier with BPM as part of the Epicor Business Architecture

Business Process Management—Build new controls and validate easier with BPM.

Task Management

Systematically automate and execute routine processes using a set of tools provided by Epicor. The inherent systematic nature of processing tasks via these tools contributes to the speed, consistency, accuracy, and ability to document procedures for regulatory compliance. Multi- and Single-Tiered Task Management Define workflow processes which key transactions must follow for completion. Tasks may be a single step process, or they may be a series of interlinked processes involving many different parties. Create custom workflows specific to your business using task sets. Such task sets may define a single step process or a series of interlinked processes involving many different resources. These task sets can contain Multilevel tasks, milestones, mandatory tasks, and alternative routes.

The Epicor Task Management system allows you to connect your people with processes and the ERP system itself. As business processes become more complex and dynamic, it’s important for any enterprise application to recognize situations and help drive people toward the right efforts and the right decisions. Complete functionality includes:

  • Multi- and single-tiered task management
  • Easily definable tasks
  • Electronic sign-offs
  • Type-based task categorization
  • Definable task lists
  • Detailed message log
  • Automatic work assignment and routing X Automatic WIP notification
  • Automatic alert notification
  • Automatic carry-out processes

Task Definition

Define tasks to accurately represent the work to be done within your enterprise. Tasks can be created on-the-fly, or users can select from predefined tasks (e.g., pricing approval, revision update, generate quote) to identify different types of work to be completed. After creating a task, you can assign it to the appropriate employee.

Electronic Sign-Offs

Optionally require password clearance for sign-off on key tasks, providing traceability and adherence to procedures. Task sets ensure that transactions can only be updated if the task set is at the right status.

Streamline

Categorize tasks by type, streamlining assignment and task set generation. Task types are user-defined (e.g., to-do, urgent item, follow-up) and simplify categorization of work.

Task Lists

Specify task lists to each employee, and automatically deliver them to the area where the work needs to be done.

Message Log

Document e-mails and calls regarding the task with a message log.

Automatic Assignment and Routing of Work

Automatically assign tasks using required resources and the context of the transaction. Dynamically assign task sets based on circumstances. The task management system will automatically assign and route the work needed to process the change.

Staying Up-to-Date

Choose to have Epicor automatically send an e-mail notifying key personnel when a task has been created or completed.

Send Alert

Automatically and immediately send an e-mail alerting internal or external resources when key areas of the system are changed. E-mails can be automatically constructed by Epicor, or you can construct sophisticated HTML-based e-mail messages.

Carry Out Processes

When critical information has changed, automatically carry out processes to update other parts of the system.

Workbench and Tracker Views

Epicor provides a series of role-based workbenches to streamline and expedite workflows throughout your company. Workbenches provide a focused, paperless, single entry point from which internal and external users can automate and execute routine processes. Epicor comes with many predefined workbenches including buyers, planning, engineering, inspection, service, sales, credit manager, and plant workbenches.

Business Activity Management

Epicor extends Workflow Management with integral business activity management (BAM). BAM enables you to build simple proactive business rules into any of your system transactions and has four major components:

Change Log

Identify key data areas to track including who, what and when data has been changed.

Alerts

Immediately send an e-mail alerting internal or external personnel when key transactions have been changed. E-mails can be automatically created or you can design sophisticated HTML-based e-mail messages using related information from your database. You can specify e-mail addresses manually, use scripts to identify e-mails based on rules, or automatically derive e-mail addresses based on transaction-specific information.

Execute Processes

Automatically execute a process to update other parts of the system when a key transaction has changed.

Manage Exceptions

Easily activate alerts, enabling you to immediately begin gaining control of potentially expensive exceptions. Epicor includes a library of predefined alerts ranging from “customer credit hold flag changed“ to “employee clocked out early.“

Business Process Management (BPM)

Building on and extending beyond the simple rules enforced by BAM, Epicor Business Process Management is all about identifying and improving processes to make your business more efficient, more disciplined, and better able to adapt to change. Epicor incorporates BPM technology to enable organizations to automate and streamline business processes for continuous improvement. Epicor BPM augments your current efforts of continuous improvement by allowing you to more closely tailor your Epicor solution to reflect the best practices you have developed.Complete functionality includes:

  • Seamless integration and workflow capabilities
  • Easy-to-use designer with wizard interface
  • Pre-process condition builder
  • Post-process routine automation
  • Customizable base process

Seamless Integration and Workflow Capabilities

When coupled with Epicor Service Connect, Epicor BPM gives Epicor customers seamless integration capabilities with any service-driven application. Epicor BPM automates the delivery of information to customers and suppliers directly from within the Epicor application. As an integral part of the Epicor business architecture, Epicor BPM provides a layer to each Epicor service for applying rules and conditions whether the service is called from a client, another service, or another program. Epicor BPM includes the ability to track data changes within the database and automatically send alerts or print reports when change events occur.

Easy-to-Use Wizard Interface

Epicor BPM provides a Microsoft Outlook-style rules wizard so you can easily intercept Web service methods with Method Directives and add custom logic to perform actions before, after, or in place of a Web service method. Every Method Directive is executed as though it were part of the standard code itself. Epicor BPM will allow the simultaneous update of changed rows to support new BPM method directives and to improve processing performance.

Pre-Process

Epicor BPM allows you to build pre-process conditions that require approvals or other conditions to be met before processing continues. For example: require approval for customer credit limit change.

Post Process

With Epicor BPM you can automate post-process routines such as an Epicor Service Connect workflow that provides integration to an outside system, send an e-mail, invoke a .NET method, execute code, or create a record such as a workflow task.

Base Process

Epicor BPM also lets you replace an existing business service with your own.

9. Web 2.0

Epicor understands the value that mass participation and collaboration, with the Web as an enabler, can bring to a business. Substantial advances and the ongoing maturity of the consumer Web have brought new levels of productivity and self-evident usability to today’s technology consumers. Even the rise in social computing and related technologies has an outlet in enterprise business software, and are manifested in capabilities such as enterprise search and presence. Epicor ICE merges these emerging technologies, often referred to as Web 2.0 with Epicor True SOA to deliver unprecedented support for harnessing the knowledge, rapidly finding information, and taking collaborative actions upon it.

Electronic Commerce Platform

Businesses looking to improve customer service, reduce lead times through new business efficiency, and deliver new opportunities to sales will often invest in eCommerce solutions. Epicor Commerce Connect (ECC) was designed to solve the challenges of manufacturers and their unique needs as they integrate an eCommerce solution. ECC is built on the Magento platform—a leader in eCommerce—with a comprehensive ecosystem and tooling in constant development to enable businesses to stay current with latest commerce trends. Epicor Commerce Connect is also fully integrated with Epicor ERP and offers the synchronization required by most commerce sites while boasting additional capabilities needed by manufacturers—including full integration with Epicor ERP product configuration capabilities. Finally, ECC easily extends to new data elements and provides a platform for eCommerce business growth.

While many companies can provide eCommerce services, very few leading providers are able to deliver the value and rapid results that Epicor Commerce Connect affords. It can extend business boundaries with a proven commerce architecture that connects businesses to consumers, customers, and suppliers—and enables Epicor ERP customers to utilize their websites to help drive revenue, increase customer satisfaction, and grow their businesses.

Enterprise Content Management

Enterprise content management (ECM) supports paperless operations and reduces document control costs by enabling users to easily add documents and retrieve information from nearly everywhere within the system. Epicor ECM delivers essential attachment/document management capabilities by extending them to include use of Microsoft SharePoint (Microsoft SQL Server) document repositories. This means that document versioning is also supported along with the option to integrate to other best-of-breed document management systems.

Drag and Drop Attachments

Epicor supports drag and drop document attachments, document versioning, and advanced document meta-data tracking and searches through attachment vaulting in Microsoft SharePoint. The electronic document is not stored anywhere in the system; just the file location is stored and linked to the business object used in the form. Multiple content management storage options are supported including; SharePoint Document (documents stored in a SharePoint document list), File System Document (documents stored in a defined file system location), Attachment Link (specific document link to a file location), and Collaboration Link (specific link to a SharePoint Document List).

Simple and Secure

Simply drag and drop a document from your secure document repository and the system generates a secure link that can be accessed based on user network security.

Retrieval

Retrieve documents for viewing, editing, or printing by contextually searching within your Epicor application and accessing related attachments.

Document Viewing

Epicor ECM offers support for industry-leading AutoVue™ 2D Professional Desktop Edition and AutoVue 3D Professional

Desktop Edition for viewing of hundreds of file formats. These include technical document types such as 2D/3D CAD and Electronic Design Automation (EDA), as well as business documents such as Office and Graphics. These solutions also include redlining capabilities.

Product Documentation Workflow

Automated product documentation workflow ensures the flow of accurate product documents to the production floor for viewing, redlining, and updating of drawings and other documentation related to the product, process, or material used.

Enterprise Search

Today’s business workers are typically savvy internet users in their personal lives and have come to expect the same sort of access and community in their business lives. By utilizing Web 2.0 technologies and the building blocks of Microsoft Search, such as SQL Full Text Indexing, Epicor delivers Enterprise Search, a Google-like search tool that brings the personal Internet experience to the workplace. Enterprise Search provides embedded search capabilities through tag clouds of Epicor structured data that span all Epicor applications built upon it and extends beyond enterprise data, to unstructured data (Word documents, etc.) if desired, and in a secure manner. Epicor Enterprise Search also supports extensible actions from search results including task-specific actions, internal and external Web service calls and direct links to applications or application forms in context. Complete functionality includes:

  • Secure search results
  • User-definable searching
  • Easily find relevant business data
  • Data drill-down capability
  • Complete search results in browser
  • Epicor Administration Console-Based System Configuration

Enterprise Search—Epicor Enterprise Search delivers search options for relevant business information in a format similar to Google as part of the Epicor Business Architecture

Enterprise Search—Epicor Enterprise Search delivers search options for relevant business information in a format similar to Google.

Secure Search Results

Business workers will be able to search for data that resides within the Epicor application as well as data stored locally, on the network, or on the internet. Application data search results are returned to workers based on access rights—if a user is not permitted to view certain data, it will not be listed in the results. Search results are bound to the BAQ security rules—if a user does not have access to columns, they are not displayed for that user.

Easily Find Relevant Business Data

With Enterprise Search, business workers are no longer tied to traditional ways of accessing information—now they can specify exactly what they are looking for and pick and choose from the result set to see the data. Enterprise Search will

also include the ability to “drill down“ into related data. For example, if you search for a customer, you will be able to see results that drill down into sales orders, invoices, payments, or CRM calls, to name a few.

Get the Information You Need Right from Your Browser

With Enterprise Search, users get the information they need with less input and without having to move from form to form within the application. Enterprise Search allows you to set the sensitivity level so you don’t get irrelevant data.

Enterprise Data Without Utilizing an Application License

With Enterprise Search you get fast, relevant and secure access to all of your information, without utilizing a license. Enterprise Search brings relevant business information to employees and customers in a familiar and easy-to-use setting.

Search Administration and Management

Configuration of Enterprise Search and of the BAQs that populate the search is available in the Epicor Administration Console allowing much easier system configuration.

Social Enterprise

Epicor Social Enterprise (ESE) is a collaboration solution that provides a fundamental shift in the way organizations collaborate around a project, customer incident, quality issue, procurement challenge, or planning event. It enables people to fully engage within their businesses and leverage their ERP data in the process to make more informed decisions. Online social engagement reduces the frequency of company meetings, improves the speed of decision making, and ultimately drives a new level of business efficiency. Fully embedded within Epicor ERP to deliver easier access to business information, ESE fosters cross-company collaboration by bringing social media concepts and contextual ERP information together in a single tool. This allows people to share information with each other—working together to solve problems while building up a knowledge base repository in which good ideas are never lost. Because it is an embedded component of Epicor ERP, users already have the ability to subscribe and unsubscribe to the information relevant to their role in the business. Complete functionality includes:

  • Embedded capabilities
  • Business notification
  • In-context and on-demand
  • Activity streams
  • Collaboration
  • Knowledgebase

Social Enterprise—Monitor changes using activity streams within an Epicor application as part of the Epicor Business Architecture

Social Enterprise—Monitor changes using activity streams within an Epicor application.

Subscription Services

Epicor ICE extends RSS subscription capabilities to Epicor application data. This means that business users may subscribe to specific information that they wish to be kept appraised of. One area where this is enabled is within Epicor Portal, where the entire schema of Epicor applications is accessed for end-user query development and Web deployment. By subscribing to a particular query using RSS, users will see information proactively pushed to them when the data behind that query changes. For example, a user may wish to attach an RSS feed to a particular contact at a customer site. Any time something happens to that contact they can receive a note about it. RSS information can be pushed to your container of choice including the RSS Feeds Outlook Syndicated Content (RSS) Directory within Microsoft Office or via Windows Gadgets.

Composite Applications

Enabled by the Epicor Everywhere Framework, Epicor application Web forms generated from XML metadata, and their related linked business logic, can be used in composite application development. Each Web form supports publication and subscription, allowing specific business functionality to be “mashed-up“ with other lines of business developments.

Epicor Portal Mashups

Within Microsoft Office SharePoint Server it is possible to build composite applications that combine various connected Web Parts, such as Epicor Web forms, Epicor Portal Web queries, Epicor EPM analytical Web parts, and more.

Mobile

Enabled by the Epicor Everywhere Framework, Epicor application Web forms generated from XML metadata, and their related linked business logic, can be accessed via mobile device. Additionally, Epicor EPM KPIs can also be deployed direct to mobile devices and include full search capabilities to rapidly find and drill-down to applicable data.

System Tools

Epicor ICE offers a series of system facilities and tools to enable the effective management of Epicor applications, extending to system security, document management, advanced software development, software deployment, and product documentation. System tool functionality includes:

  • Centralized administration console
  • Comprehensive system monitor
  • Email integration
  • Separation of Epicor ICE from Epicor Applications
  • Multiple system agents
  • Extended reporting framework
  • Customizable printed forms
  • Auto print control

Centralized Administration Console

This feature delivers a single management area for your Epicor system, which removes redundancy and in so doing boosts user productivity, accuracy and efficiency.

System Monitor

Schedule tasks to be run in the background on a one-off or regular basis (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly, etc.). Tasks can be jobs such as MRP or reports and forms. Reports and forms can be frozen at a point in time so the data can be referenced at a future time.

Integrated E-mail

Automatically e-mail employees, suppliers, customers, and partners from the system based on key actions. Attach documents so the recipient need only click on the attachment to drill into the associated transaction.

Separation of Epicor ICE from Epicor Applications

Epicor ICE business architecture is developed separately from Epicor enterprise business applications, allowing each to be modified and updated in separation and potentially under differing release cycles. Epicor ICE framework components have been extracted from application source control and given their own build and delivery schedules resulting in a more robust application development environment that allows staged delivery of Epicor ICE to application developers using the Epicor ICE software development kit (SDK).

Multiple System Agents

ICE gives the ability to run Multiple System Agents. This feature allows customers to set up multiple defined areas for the generation of reports and processes. Application servers can now be located in many different physical servers to distribute the processing load or remain on just a single physical server. Multiple System Agents also allows for greater flexibility in system tuning and security configurations. Epicor also provides the ability to execute reports on alternate databases. A System Agent can be expanded to have connection information for alternate database servers. This allows a user to log in once to a company and run reports using data from an alternate reporting database, thereby offloading reporting overhead from the main transactional database.

Extended Reporting Framework

The reporting framework within Epicor ICE allows optional Server-based printing. This is done via the creation of an Enterprise (or Server based) printing option for users who wish to leverage the associated Crystal Reports, Microsoft SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) or other enterprise reporting software. Epicor’s server-based reporting option includes Microsoft’s SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS). SSRS reports add the capability to e-mail and fax reports in addition to printing from the server or previewing on the client.

Customizable Printed Forms

Access the laser-generated and preprinted customizable continuous forms that are provided with auto-fax and e-mail capability.

Auto Print Control

This feature handles the automatic printing of forms and barcode labels upon the completion of a predetermined list of Epicor transactions. Auto-print control lets you define the events that trigger the printing, rules that define the conditions, and the action to take on a form-by-form basis.

Advanced Print Management

Automate document delivery with Advanced Print Management. Whether e-mailing, faxing, or printing and mailing.

Support for Multiversion Environments

The Epicor ICE framework now provides the ability to define and manage certain master data elements and processes across an environment that includes multiple versions of Epicor solutions.

Automation Tool for Epicor

The Automation Tool for Epicor (ATE) can do everything your users can do in Epicor ERP and is a very efficient way to either run repetitive tasks that may differ only in the selection criteria or run tasks that need to be launched late at night when other users are off the system—like data-intensive tasks such as very large print runs, MRP, etc. ATE can also be used as part of your change management process to test the latest Epicor hotfixes using automated test scripts matched to your business activities and data. Users can easily revalidate results with ATE.

Security

Multi-company Menu

This feature provides secure access to multiple companies without having to close all forms or carry out different logins when switching companies.

Operating System Security

Epicor ICE provides the option for Microsoft Windows Authentication and Windows Single Sign-on and Password Policy.

Method Security

Secure the types of processing users are able to carry out (e.g., allow a user to update an existing part but not add a new part) by user or group.

Data Level Security

Secure which data users are allowed to access. This can be done at a dataset (e.g., all sales order information), data table (e.g., sales order header information) or field level (e.g., sales order due date).

Security Reporting

More closely manage user security with security reporting.

Online Edits and Audits

Monitor all changes to records (before and after values), who made those changes, and when those changes were made. Prompt users for audit notes of why changes have been made.

Date and Time (Using Server Time) and User Name for Auditing

Epicor ICE introduces a true date-time field which involves the creation of a Microsoft SQL Server style date/time data type or data control that can then be used by application developers to easily render local time. All date fields are of this date/time data type and are only stored in universal date format.

Software Development Kit

For those requirements that cannot be satisfied by the embedded customization layers, Epicor also offers an advanced SDK which is available at an extra cost and supplies the client source, framework UI and business logic tools necessary to write your own additions and extensions to the application. The SDK is a toolset used to create new software elements (or modify existing software elements if the adoption of future releases is not a concern).

REST Services

Representational state transfer (REST) services are a type of web service based on the architecture of the internet. Through this application program interface (API), these services link applications more easily through Internet type connections.

These services use the OData REST Protocol, which adds query capabilities and metadata descriptions to enable OData aware applications such as Microsoft Excel, Power BI®, or similar third-party applications to display real-time Epicor data. REST does this by exposing data and functions as unique Uniform Resource Locators (URLs) resources. Applications can then communicate with the REST services in the same way a web browser interacts with a website.

The REST services implement the full functionality of the Epicor ERP business objects. As with any use of the business objects, the services can be used to extract data to other systems and to provide interfaces for data Import and Update, but they should not be used in applications designed to provide transactional functionality that would otherwise require a concurrent user login.

Use the Tools Our Developers Use

Epicor ICE SDK is a packaging of some of the tools that are used by the Epicor development group in the creation of base code. These tools allow a developer to make modifications or extensions to the base application or create new software within the same framework used for the base product. The Epicor ICE SDK allows developers to build their own custom modules and integrate and embed them into the product as though it were part of the base system.

Audit Control

Within the Epicor ICE SDK users can make changes to underlying business processes via the Object Designer. This allows users to tailor the system to meet their needs while at the same time tracking these changes as they represent a functional change to the software application that might need to be tracked for governance and compliance auditing. This is a significant addition to the customization options within the application framework.

Epicor Service Connect

Epicor Service Connect is a powerful business integration platform, functioning as a central integration point for secure workflow orchestrations within Epicor applications as well as external connectivity to Epicor and non-Epicor applications. Because Epicor Solutions are built using Epicor True SOA, the power of Service Connect can be used to streamline processing within the application framework.

Epicor Service Connect—a rapid platform for incorporating workflow and system orchestration through visual designers with little to no programming effort as part of the Epicor Business Architecture

Epicor Service Connect—a rapid platform for incorporating workflow and system orchestration through visual designers with little to no programming effort.

Promote Lean Principles

Users can automate tasks and processes within the application to promote lean principles, continuous performance initiatives and Six Sigma quality within the organization or across the supply chain. Service Connect lets employees focus on value-added activities and management by exception instead of repetitive data (re)entry tasks. Built to support collaborative processes, Service Connect links different business entities, applications or users using open, industry-wide standards and technology that enables businesses to deploy solutions— confident that their investment will remain intact for the future. Service Connect harnesses the openness of XML and includes service-bus functionality for Security, Messaging, Orchestration, Transformation, Scheduling, Notification, and Exception Handling to deliver rock-solid reliability combined with ease of use.

Much More Than A Programming Interface

Typically, the effort to connect different applications requires code for mapping the integration, proper error handling, scheduling, and so on. The aim of Epicor Service Connect is to eliminate this extra coding effort required to integrate an Epicor solution. Epicor Service Connect is more than a tool for integration; it is a platform for rapidly incorporating workflow and system orchestration through visual designers with little to no programming effort. Integrations can be easily built by using the Service Connect Visual Data Mapping tool to link and transform XML documents to map to different systems along multiple communication channels and protocols to support a wide range of integration scenarios.

Secure Audit Trail

Service Connect logs workflow processing for both transactional integrity and compliance. Processes are available for review and tracking while in progress or after the process completes. If for any reason processes error or stop, transactions are rolled back and queued for subsequent correction and resubmit. Notification services can be incorporated into the workflow to alert either the submitting application (e.g., system integration or EDI process) or an administrator.

Direct Database Updates

Epicor Service Connect includes workflow support for Epicor business objects directly in addition to the existing Web service elements. This feature can be used with the UpdateExt method to update full datasets and multiple records in the same way as the Web service Update method processes data. Since the business objects are called directly and within a single login session, much of the latency in Web services can be eliminated.

Epicor Documentation, Education, and Content Delivery

Epicor offers an approach to documentation and content delivery that puts relevant, context-driven information in the hands of stakeholders and end-users. This comprehensive solution set shortens your return on investment while maximizing utilization of your investment in Epicor.

Epicor deploys a worldwide team of dedicated content writers and trainers to bring together the feature summary, online help, technical reference user guides, online training courses, and online tutorials through a single-source technology.

Epicor University delivers a suite of tools, aligning to the different learning styles and needs of your employees. Resources include:

  • Training on Demand videos
  • Embedded Education self-paced courses X Role-based training agendas
  • Course tests
  • Live training
  • Online help
  • System and user documentation

Embedded Education

Embedded Education is a self-paced training module accessed directly within a training installation of Epicor ERP. Users can access more than 100 courses—each with detailed explanations and hands-on exercises. Learners are able to easily navigate between courses and the related application using real-life business data through an Epicor education database. The courses provide a structured and repeatable learning experience for initial and ongoing training. As this is a licensed module, new training comes with each release of Epicor ERP, so users can more easily be trained and ready.

Epicor Compliance and Structured Reporting Framework

The Compliance and Structured Reporting Framework consists of functionality designed to allow the definition, generation, and distribution of electronic documents in formats such as XML, JSON, and CSV. In many countries, there are specific reporting requirements—including electronic accounting, invoicing, and SAF-T reporting—mandated by government agencies that must be generated from the ERP system. Such regulatory requirements can change periodically and rapidly. The functionality is designed to allow definition and distribution of document formats. The functionality also has broad use for generation of document formats used for system integrations and other data reporting applications.

Epicor Learning Center 

Your Epicor Learning Center (ELC) allows you to deliver, manage, and track your company’s training needs from one central location. Here, you can access course materials, set and manage employee assignments, register for classes, and track training progress and test scores. The ELC contains a broad catalog of Training on Demand courses and tests. Role-based agendas help you align courses and exams to each employee’s training needs, so they can learn a new topic, prepare for an upgrade, launch a new application, or dive more deeply into current applications. Administrators may view individual test results or aggregate scores across the entire organization to easily track knowledge levels. Best of all, tests are not limited to Epicor content. You can add proprietary questions and tests to the ELC, and then assign and track them as desired.

Epicor Learning Center—Epicor Learning Center offers Training on Demand for users for optimum productivity and greater utilization of ERP as part of the Epicor Business Architecture

Epicor Learning Center—Epicor Learning Center offers Training on Demand for users for optimum productivity and greater utilization of ERP.

Enterprise Content Management

Enterprise Content Management (ECM) helps your business achieve growth by enabling you to streamline and automate reporting processes, reduce the risk of error, and improve business efficiency. ECM is the technology used to capture, manage, store, preserve, and deliver content and documents related to organizational processes. ECM tools and strategies allow the management of organizations’ unstructured information—wherever that electronic information exists. Complete functionality includes:

  • Drag-and-drop attachments
  • Secure document repository
  • Contextual retrieval
  • Multiformat document viewing
  • Automated product documentation workflow
  • Advanced Print Routing
  • Epicor DocStar ECM

Advanced Print Routing

Epicor ERP Advanced Print Routing lets you email multiple recipients in multiple formats, send output to one or more designated printers, or save reports to a network folder in a desired format. With an easy-to-use graphical workflow builder, you can quickly and easily manage reports by filtering and assigning alternative reports styles. Advanced Print Routing allows you to send order confirmations or invoices to customers, generate and submit required financial reports, deliver parts reports
or pick-lists to others, or save critical information to a business archive.

Epicor DocStar ECM

Epicor DocStar ECM is an industry-leading solution that’s built for the web and delivers deployment choice. Users can install DocStar ECM on their hardware or use DocStar in the cloud. The same software offers the same user experience and the same great results. DocStar ECM supports all popular browsers and mobile devices to deliver access anytime, anywhere. Epicor DocStar ECM manages electronic assets with:

  • Security
  • Audit Trail
  • Data Center
  • Workflow
  • Intelligent Capture
  • Custom Forms
  • Search and Retrieve
  • Document Retention

XML-based Content Delivery

Built on XML DITA technologies, the team pulls information from a unified content library to create deliverables with consistent tone and structure. Creation of deliverables is more efficient, as one writer can seamlessly reuse content generated by another writer, making the creation of deliverables more efficient and thus provide cost savings for both creation and translation.

Feature Summary

Understand the impact of updates to every line of the business. Feature summaries provide comprehensive role-based help that explains business cases alongside impact topics for rapid adoption of new releases.

Online Help/Field Help

The comprehensive online help that is tied to the application functionality they are using reduces frustration from users and optimizes performance.

Intuitive Field Level Help

Epicor ICE offers a “quick“ viewer to display Field Level Help embedded in a Sheet but available to be docked or torn off as an independent window. If docked, then help can be set up with a pinned or unpinned capability that allows it to slide out /slide back when the sheet is activated. The quick viewer also supports Links and provides Rich Text functionality (colors, variable fonts, bold, italics, etc.).

Customizable Help

Users have the option to display help for a specific field where field definitions, field specifications, or both can be added. Epicor ICE provides a “help property“ for each control available in UI customization. When field-level help is requested, the text in the Help property is added or merged into the standard field-level help prior to display. This also allows text to be run through standard translation logic before being merged into standard help, enabling customers and partners to create multi-lingual field-level help.

Layered Help

This feature also allows help to be customized and modified by partners and end-user customers. Help customizations are “layered“ in much the same way that UI customizations are layered. Epicor Help content is used as the base and then can be amended by a partner (or Epicor Custom Programming) using the verticalization or productization layers of the Epicor Layered Client Stack, which can then be further updated by the end customer.

User Guides

Epicor User Guides provides a complete overview of the major functions within Epicor. These printable documents offer full-colour explanations of system functions and walk users through the system, step-by-step. In addition to an application user guide, there are guides on Epicor Business Architecture, user experience and customization associated with the Epicor Business Architecture, and Epicor Service Connect.

Technical Reference Guides

The Technical Reference Guides provide detailed instructions focusing on technical audiences. Epicor offers technical reference guides on scheduling, MRP, product configurator, job costing, and the posting engine.

Embedded Courses

Courses are embedded within the Epicor application to simplify role-based learning and optimize deployment.

Customization Toolkit

The Customization Toolkit allows users to leverage standard content by editing according to their business processes. Users can add annotations to topics on the same tab as the help content. Course content can also be made available for larger deployments with advanced customization requirements.

Contact Us


If you’re not already testing your Epicor Cloud ERP system in Pilot, you should be. There are just two weeks left to test Epicor Cloud ERP 10.2.500 changes in your Pilot environment. The Epicor Live (Production) environment upgraded to 10.2.500 will take place on October 12 – 13, 2019.

Testing Epicor Cloud ERP 10.2.500 In Pilot

Epicor upgraded customer Pilot systems September 13 – 14. This ensured customers would have time to explore the updates in 10.2.500 without affecting live data or transactions. As a best practice, please use this time to review and make any necessary changes to your Unique Business Components. This includes custom reports, BAQs, BPMs, User Interface customizations, etc. This testing will ensure everything continues to operate as expected after the update. Epicor will then move your Unique Business Components from Pilot to Production if you choose to opt-in*.

* Note: This is a change to the UBC process. Epicor moved UBCs files automatically in 10.2.400 and earlier unless you opted-out by requesting that they not be moved. In 10.2.500 and going forward, Epicor will only move your modified UBC files if you choose to opt-in by submitting an EpicCare ticket.

Epicor Cloud ERP 10.2.500 Resources

Several resources are now available in the Epicor ERP 10.2.500 folder and in the “announcements” section on the Epicor customer portal EpicWeb. As a reminder, reach out to EpicCare anytime you have a question or need application support.

Epicor Cloud ERP 10.2.500 Upgrade Important Dates

Below are the important dates related to the Epicor Cloud ERP 10.2.500 upgrade.

  • Tuesday, October 8, 2019
    Unique Business Components Opt-In Deadline. If you want Epicor to move your UBCs from your Pilot environment to your Production environment, you must submit an EpicCare ticket to opt-in to the process. If you do not submit an EpicCare ticket to opt-in to the process, the UBCs from your Pilot environment will not be moved to the Production environment.
  • Saturday, October 12, 2019 – Sunday, October 13, 2019
    Production system upgrades to 10.2.500. Your upgrade weekend arrives! Systems will be unavailable for several hours while Epicor upgrades your production system to Epicor Cloud ERP 10.2.500.

About the Epicor Cloud ERP 10.2.500 Major Release Upgrade

Epicor Cloud ERP 10.2.500 is the second of two major upgrades scheduled for 2019, as part of our regular cadence and commitment to helping your business grow through innovation. This update is not like more frequent minor updates that enhance your daily experience. Major releases like this bring you greater usability, performance, and strategic value in a single upgrade. That’s why customers have advance notice. This provides the opportunity to test and explore the changes in the pilot before upgrading your production system.

Epicor Cloud ERP Major Release Schedule

Epicor Cloud ERP Update ​Pilot ​Production
​​10.2.400.8 ​​N/A ​​N/A
​​10.2.400.9 ​13-Aug-19 ​17-Aug-19
​​10.2.400.10 ​​N/A ​​N/A
​10.2.400.11 ​10-Sept-19 ​14-Sept-19
​10.2.500.2 43722 ​12-Oct-19
(Release 10.2.500) (1 month to test)
​10.2.500.3 ​22-Oct-19 ​26-Oct-19
​10.2.500.4 ​5-Nov-19 ​9-Nov-19
​10.2.500.5 ​19-Nov-19 ​23-Nov-19
​10.2.500.6 ​N/A ​N/A
​10.2.500.7 ​17-Dec-19 ​21-Dec-19
​10.2.500.8 ​14-Jan-20 ​18-Jan-20
​10.2.500.9 ​N/A ​N/A
​10.2.500.10 ​11-Feb-20 ​15-Feb-20

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions, Inc. is an ERP consulting firm, NetSuite Solution Provider and Epicor Gold Partner that offers professional services in business consulting, project management, and software implementation. We provide full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems. For businesses addressing the emerging challenges in corporate and operational growth, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. As experts in identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.

 


Epicor Internet Component Environment, more commonly known as Epicor ICE, is a business system architecture. It fortifies the Epicor enterprise business software and offers a true service-oriented architecture. This agile business process enabling technology builds on an already complete and robust framework. It is designed to help customers use and enhance Epicor applications at a business level, rather than a technology level. The result is minimal overhead for your business. Epicor ICE addresses the following key needs of modern enterprises:

Epicor ICE Reliability

Downtime is very expensive, and many companies now run 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Although a company’s employees may not be on the premises ’round the clock, many systems are up and running 24×7 to service the needs of global operations and customers who need access to the system via the Web or increasingly the Cloud. Epicor ICE allows online backup and complete fail-safe options. Ensuring availability meets the most rigorous service level agreements. It also supports corporate social responsibility initiatives in areas such as hardware and software virtualization, for more efficient environmental and energy management.

Epicor strongly believes that investments made make in their products to run well in the Cloud benefit every customer, even those who run ERP on-premises. The improvements in deployment, management, and operations are have been extremely useful to all customers.

Scalability

Whether your business is at a single location or spans multiple sites around the world, Epicor offers scalable and easy to deploy solutions for simple to complex operations. In particular, for deployments requiring high-end scalability, all business logic within Epicor applications is encapsulated within objects that are executed via application servers. These, in turn, communicate with the database via data servers. An enterprise can utilize multiple application and data servers in order to deliver the required level of performance to the enterprise. Epicor ICE also allows an enterprise to split itself up on multiple servers that can be deployed around the globe—delivering maximum performance to the local company. However, a powerful messaging infrastructure ensures real-time collaboration of information for delivering the same control and data access as if the enterprise existed on one centralized server. This combination of technology delivers unrivalled scalability.

Agility

A service-oriented approach to enterprise software development ensures an abstraction of complexities in terms of how business systems are built and operated. In an SOA, business logic, that represents software processes is broken down into a series of loosely coupled granular “business services“ which are then made available and discoverable on a network via web services. Each service provides functionality that can be adapted to the needs of the enterprise while hiding the underlying implementation details. By exposing business processes, SOA provides the ability to streamline those business processes, which in turn promotes agile change management. It becomes much easier to match your business rules to the processes in your business system because business processes are broken down into smaller functions that can be accessed and manipulated.

Epicor goes a step further by considering both server business logic and client business logic as “business services.“ This delivers a technology resource that’s not just built for change but is designed for people. Epicor ICE reduces the cost and complexity of technology adoption by being completely ready for business.

Accessibility

Epicor ICE includes the Epicor Everywhere™ Framework for complete user interface and device control, including utilizing Microsoft .NET Windows desktop application technology to provide users with the most effective platform in order to maximize their environment. Historically, a Windows client meant that applications could only be effectively operated over a local area network (LAN). Users connect to the application over a LAN and over wide area networks (WAN) with Desktop application technology.

The Epicor Everywhere Framework uses metadata so that user experiences can be rendered for a number of devices and platforms. For instance, your Epicor applications can be deployed as Web forms in almost any Internet browser or deployed to almost any mobile device. Epicor ICE also ensures that all application logic is exposed securely as web services to allow users to connect with business logic via their chosen mechanism and to enable greater access from other applications and businesses.

Flexibility

Epicor ICE also provides flexibility for the client deployment with support for Windows forms, Web forms, and Mobile device forms. Additionally, Epicor ICE offers flexibility in deployment model with support for on-premise installation, external and colocation hosting and multi-tenancy software as a service (SaaS).

Customization

Epicor ICE has a built-in customization engine based on Microsoft Visual Studio® .NET that allows companies and individual users to customize and personalize their environments without the need to alter existing source code, thus avoiding costly upgrade costs.

na image of the epicor BPM workflow interface

Epicor ICE uses a layered approach to customization. Customizations are held within the database in a separate layer. This ensures portability from release to release with minimal effort. At the base layer, there are no customizations. Epicor Partners and end-users can create industry-specific customizations within the verticalization layer for streamlined deployment and utilization by those industries. Then, site-specific customizations can be made in the customization layer. Finally, individual users personalize the system for optimum usability on top of site customizations. Epicor can continue to add functionality to the base without interfering with customizations executed on successive layers. This is called the Epicor Layered Client Stack. Customizations created in the Epicor Layered Client Stack can be written in C#, VB.NET or a combination of both.

Also embedded into Epicor ICE business architecture is a comprehensive BPM platform. Epicor BPM allows users to build their own business rules into the application. With no need to touch the base source code, costly upgrade issues can be avoided.

Productivity

Epicor enterprise business applications are delivered with dedicated user experience. Application forms can be rendered in a Windows desktop application or Web application. However, Epicor understands that to maximize productivity, application capabilities need to be extended out to a broader community of users. To that end, Epicor ICE also supports composite applications delivered via Web Portals and immersive applications. This is where application logic is surfaced up within common office productivity tools, like Microsoft Office. This ensures that all users, no matter what their chosen tool may be, can be as productive as possible.

Also embedded into Epicor ICE business architecture are a series of Web application concepts that raise user productivity. Enterprise Search grants rapid access to relevant information and support for subscription technologies, like really simple syndication (RSS).

Connectivity

Connecting people, systems and processes is the primary goal for modern ERP applications. Systems work together through integrations. Application programming interfaces (APIs) and standard protocols like SOAP tightly-couple these systems together. Alternatively, simple message exchanges or REST can offer loose coupling. Epicor ICE ensures that every application has a robust API which is available using multiple methods and protocols.

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions, Inc. is an ERP consulting firm, NetSuite Solution Provider and Epicor Gold Partner that offers professional services in business consulting, project management, and software implementation. We provide full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems. For businesses addressing the emerging challenges in corporate and operational growth, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. As experts in identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.


Designed and fully integrated into Epicor ERP, the Epicor Mobile Warehouse is the next generation of handheld applications for the warehouse environment. A modern and intuitive application, Epicor mobile warehouse provides complex sort and filter options for users that include both part level and bin level validation. Scan validation is a configurable feature as well. Shortcuts to favorites and the frequently visited, as well as automated workflows triggered by scan events, improve the user experience.

an image of Epicor Mobile Warehouse handheld devices

Epicor Mobile Warehouse optimizes workflow for fast and accurate scanning, improves time to process transactions, increases accuracy, and reduces errors. It is compatible with the latest scanning devices running on Android® 5 or higher from Honeywell® and Zebra®. Simply download the application from the Google Play™ store into your device and start using it with minimal setup.

Epicor Mobile Warehouse Features

Receiving – Provides complete functionality to process an inbound container or purchase order, as well as intercompany and transfer order receipts. It provides users with effective and efficient serial and lot processing and multiple UOM scanning. Users can search for all open POs for a part by scanning parts’ barcodes.

Material management – Provides core warehousing functions allowing users to initiate adjustments and movements from the warehouse floor. Offers an increased efficiency with cycle counts and stock takes. Enables efficient entry with automated workflows triggered by scan events.

Material queue – Users can efficiently pick items assigned to their queue, grab items from the available queue, or return items to the queue. Users can select an outbound order and select all material queue transactions related to the order, to the users’ queue. Advanced sort and filter functionality allows users to save to a named query and dynamically add it to the sub-menu. Unpicking sales or transfer orders functionality is also included.

Shipping – Scan pick validation option included. Process outbound shipments direct from the device. Functions include creating Master Packs and standard Pick Lists for customers not licensed for Advanced Material Management (AMM).

Trackers – Trackers help shop/warehouse users in completing their daily routines. Powered by BISCIT Since its establishment in 2002, BISCIT has formed a strong relationship with Epicor and as a certified Partner is a proud expert in delivering successful Epicor ERP projects Australia-wide and overseas. BISCIT specializes in Epicor ERP services to deliver flexible, comprehensive, and value-driven business solutions.

Configurable MTR Software

Add Encompass’ MTR software to the equation and leverage a potent tool made for metal fabricators and distributors with an extensive library of Mill Test Reports and Certifications to manage. We make it easy for your teams to deliver the customer satisfaction and supplier relationships you need to thrive as a business.

Want to know more about Epicor ERP Mobile Warehouse or Configurable Material Test Report Software? Get in touch with an Encompass Solutions representative today using the contact link below.

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions, Inc. is an ERP consulting firm, NetSuite Solution Provider, and Epicor Gold Partner that offers professional services in business consulting, project management, and software implementation. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems or addressing emerging challenges in corporate and operational growth, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. As experts in identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of the Industry.


The Epicor ERP cloud framework is one that modern businesses are increasingly looking toward with an interest in more agile and efficient operations. Lending the environment necessary to deliver leading intelligent ERP software to businesses all over the world, cloud ERP systems are not a fringe fad, but the platforms of the future.

Epicor ERP Cloud Features

As with many other cloud-based technologies, Epicor ERP cloud deployments deliver access from anywhere, at any time. The impacts on productivity and performance can be realized almost immediately. Designed to fit a business’s unique needs and industry requirements, Epicor ERP Cloud users reap the benefits of modern tools built for a modern workforce.

Want to simplify your company’s technology landscape? Cloud ERP features a distilled technology profile to reduce the costs a business incurs with upfront purchasing and ongoing maintenance of in-house hardware. This leaves more room for IT teams to focus on internal projects and improvements. Not to mention, Epicor delivers one of the most trusted and secure ERP cloud solutions that are easy to deploy, use, scale, and extend.

an image of the epicor erp cloud and Microsoft azure logos

The Cloud ERP trifecta consists of security, performance, and innovation. Incorporating these essential three concepts continually, Epicor ERP on Azure keeps your business data protected and your competitive edge strong.

“Microsoft’s focus on the ‘Intelligent Cloud’ and ‘Intelligent Edge’ complement our customer-centric focus. We looked at several public cloud options. Microsoft Azure offers the best foundation for building and deploying enterprise business applications that will enable our customers’ businesses to adapt and grow. Today, we are seeing more than three-quarters of prospects ask about cloud ERP. As that deployment model becomes the norm, we are ready to enable our customers to move to the cloud with confidence leveraging the reliability, security, and scalability of Microsoft Azure.”
-Steve Murphy, CEO, Epicor

The Great Migration To Cloud ERP

By staying abreast of the most innovative and forward-thinking technologies available to businesses, it is more likely for a business to succeed in growth and remain competitive. Clinging to manual, disconnected processes makes it increasingly difficult for a business to do exactly that.

The great migration to cloud platforms is well underway and businesses leading the movement are already reaping the benefits. IT operations, inventory management, product manufacturing, and keeping mobile workforces connected are all part of the equation. The result is increased development in even more efficient and powerful technologies, including big data analytics, robotics, eCommerce, digitization, Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity, and more. Microsoft Azure and Epicor ERP work together to deliver an enterprise-grade global cloud platform that is value-driven and cost-effective.

What Is Microsoft Azure?

Microsoft Azure is an open, flexible, and enterprise-grade public cloud computing platform. It serves more than 50 regions globally and leads the industry in security and privacy standards. With hundreds of data centers around the world and millions of servers, Microsoft Azure is the leading, most trusted public cloud platform for the enterprise. Epicor leverages this proven foundation to build and deploy enterprise business applications that enable your business to adapt and grow.

“Standardizing cloud deployment of its world-class manufacturing and distribution solutions on Microsoft Azure is a natural step for Epicor with its history of leveraging forward-looking technology to deliver the utmost value to its customers. With Epicor solutions running in the cloud, customers will reap the benefits of greater agility, faster innovation, and favorable economics of Azure as they embrace digital transformation.”
-David Willis, Corporate Vice President Microsoft

Learn More About Microsoft Azure And Epicor ERP Cloud Options

For a complete breakdown of the Epicor Cloud deployment options available with Microsoft Azure, download the free brochure: Download

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions, Inc. is an ERP consulting firm, NetSuite Solution Provider, and Epicor Gold Partner that offers professional services in business consulting, project management, and software implementation. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems or addressing emerging challenges in corporate and operational growth, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. As experts in identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of the Industry.


Summer is a season know for bringing the heat. For many of us working-types, that heat can take the form of reporting and analytics on a business’ latest efforts and performance over time. Unfortunately, that’s not a heat we can avoid in our climate-controlled, AC-cooled offices, desks, and cubicles. However, that heat can be beaten and you can get more done, faster with XL Connect 7. Knowing you got the job completed right in a fraction of the time leaves more time for doing the things you love. Like budgeting. Right? No, just me? Well, you can give your business a leg up and potentially to steal a few more hours of summer sun now that Epicor XL Connect 7 is on sale at a rate of 20% off. Leverage this powerful tool to reap the benefits of self-service reporting and analytics, nested in the user-friendly environment of Microsoft® Excel®.

Epicor XL Connect 7 Sale – 20% Off

Customers who have not used Epicor XL Connect previously get a 20% off the list price on license price or subscription when buying Epicor XL Connect 7.

Customers already using Epicor XL Connect 7 get a 20% off the list price on license price or subscription when buying additional users.

Contact your Customer Account Manager using the link below for further details.

Hurry! Special offer expires 8/31/19.

What is Epicor XL Connect 7?

Epicor XL Connect 7 is a self-service reporting and analytics solution that allows users to engage with their data in the familiar ecosystem of Microsoft® Excel®. The built-in query tool and drag-and-drop interface solve the universal problem of relying on others to create customized reports. It works with your Epicor and Microsoft Excel data sources and includes intuitive features that allow business users to answer many of their own questions. For the analysts, XL Connect 7 means that manual and ad hoc reports can be automated in a matter of minutes—saving time for more critical activities.

Epicor XL Connect 7 makes it easy for users to create and refresh information in Excel. Combining Epicor data with additional lookup and calculations, you get the answers you need without the usual challenges of gathering and refreshing the data sources.

The perfect solution for both the analyst and the business user, XL Connect 7 is a game-changer in the way you and your company manage reporting. Build reports in minutes, utilize templates, and create interactive reports for detailed drill-downs and analysis from existing spreadsheets and Epicor data—all within Microsoft Excel.

Epicor XL Connect 7 includes enhanced data protection, so you have peace of mind knowing your data is secure and that users can only access the data you want them to see.

Epicor XL Connect 7 Benefits For The Business Analyst

When it comes to the benefits of Epicor XL Connect 7 for the business analyst, the biggest benefit emerges with the tool’s ability to leverage all Excel data. Not only this, but Epicor XL Connect 7 facilitates the real-time automatic connection to all your Epicor data. the result is a consolidation of company information drawn from multiple data sources. Additionally, there is built-in functionality that allows users to automatically create pivot tables for more detailed analysis. By incorporating this useful tool, business analysts can significantly reduce the amount of time spent creating routine and ad hoc reports.

Epicor XL Connect 7 Benefits For The Business User

When it comes to the benefits of Epicor XL Connect 7 for the business user, activities take place in Excel and remain in excel. This delivers the familiarity of Office productivity while contributing to the Epicor data your teams need for business intelligence and analysis. The tool provides the ability to creates ad hoc reports, functions, and analysis while also giving more detail behind the numbers with the ability to drill down into data. Access to data is provided anytime, anywhere with fully interactive reports—even offline.

Epicor XL Connect 7 PDF (Download)

About Encompass Solutions

Encompass Solutions, Inc. is an ERP consulting firm, NetSuite Solution Provider and Epicor Gold Partner that offers professional services in business consulting, project management, and software implementation. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems or addressing the emerging challenges in corporate and operational growth, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. As experts in identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.

 

1 6 7 8 9 10 13