Beware of MAPICS?

[Konrad Underkofler <kdunderk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Very interesting topic. I found it interesting when MAPICS de-contented
their web site and became focused on making companies into "World Class
Manufacturers". According to them these are the measures of a world class
manufacturer...
*       Reduce lead times 
*       Speed time-to-market 
*       Cut operations cost 
*       Exceed customer expectations 
*       Streamline outsourcing processes 
*       Manage global operations 
*       Improve business performance visibility 

Unfortunately these are the things MAPICS XA is worst at. Too many bugs that
cost productivity, too many workarounds instead of sound functionality and
of course too many poorly integrated add on packages with different /
indifferent levels of support. I can easily see how a new customer expecting
normally modern functionality (ie good interfaces, b2b, workflow) would get
deceived by the functional claims and costs necessary to get MAPICS up and
running. Even as a longtime MAPICS veteran I still have to test each
function "live" to ensure that it works as documented because if it does not
it will not in any future. (CRM?) And of course support is not what it used
to be!

In summary, if you already have an AS/400 staff and programming skills and
are willing to buy source code, MAPICS XA is a good basic ERP package that
scales pretty well. If you have any exceptional requirements or require a
comprehensive set and forget environment without hidden costs you need to
look elsewhere. In a similar vein if you workers are heavily temped with a
shifting cast MAPICS is not a good fit because of the training requirements.


Regards,

Konrad

PS I heard the Russians used EPDM to plot Soyuz re-enty path and it only
landed 250 miles off target. I knew they would get the bugs out of it
someday :)