A Model of Cloud-Based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) for Small and Medium Enterprise

Cloud Computing is an uprising technology in the rapid growing IT world. The adaptation of cloud computing is increasing in very large scale business organizations to small institutions rapidly due to many advanced features of cloud computing, such as SaaS, PaaS and IaaS service models. So, nowadays, many organizations are trying to implement Cloud Computing based ERP system to enjoy the benefits of cloud computing. To implement any ERP system, an organization usually faces many challenges. As a result, this research has introduced how easily this cloud system can be implemented in an organization. By using this ERP system, an organization can be benefited in many ways;especially Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) can enjoy the highest possible benefits from this system.

Integration of Enterprise Resource Planning System Based on SOAP

While the enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems become more and more complex, the traditional tools such as DCOM, CORBA or EJB encounter more difficulties than before especially when heterogenous and distributed environment and multiple companies are involved. The newly born international specification SOAP brings a new solution to ERP because of its simplicity and high extensibility. This paper analyses the techniques to extend basic SOAP to implement ERP system. The techniques, including data envelope, dynamically and loosely coupled remote process calling (RPC), support to the multiple communication protocol, and security and performance improvement, greatly enhance the ability of basic SOAP and make it capable to accomplish the integration task in large scale ERP systems. All the techniques we discusse here are successfully utilized in the ERP system in the Three Gorge Cascade Dispatch Center of China Three Gorge Project Corporation.

The Successful Methodology for Enterprise Resource Planning （ERP） Implementation

Organizations need to use a proved methodology to reduce implementation risks and enable the enterprise resource planning （ERP） solution to be put into operation as quickly as possible. The right implementation methodology will also help ensure that the ERP implementation fully addresses an organization＇s business goals and objectives. Modern ERP implementation methodology encourages and supports a progressive approach to the management for users of ERP systems. A company is constantly seeking better methods and models for decision supports in all kinds of decisions and developing/copying new products/markets that generate the growth of the company. On the other hand, a company creates efficient and effective operations that improve the return on investment, because ERP is always considered as an asset. This paper focuses on the interaction of culture in a company, business strategy, and organizational skills and balances the relationship among ERP methodology, ERP implementation, and the performance of the company. Considering the fact that different ERP systems use different methodologies, short descriptions of the most dominant brand name ERP are analyzed （Oracle Financials, PeopleSoft, and systems, applications, and products （SAP） implementation methodology）. Although all methodologies may look similar, the selection of a proper methodology is the most critical part in ERP investment. The focus of this paper is on the accelerated SAP methodology, also named as ASAP methodology, because it is the most used one on the worldwide market of ERP systems.

The Impact of Enterprise Resource Planning （ERP） System on the Cost and Price of Auditing Auditor＇s Perspective

Technology plays a key role in today＇s business environment. Many companies greatly rely on computers and software to provide accurate information to effectively manage their business processes. It is becoming increasingly necessary for all businesses to incorporate information technology solutions to operate successfully. One way for many corporations to adopt information technology （IT） on a large scale is by installing enterprise resource planning （ERP） systems to accomplish their business transactions and data-processing needs. ERP systems are software packages that enable the integration of business processes throughout an organization. This study aims to determine the effect of the ERP system on the cost of auditing period compared with traditional computerized （non-ERP） systems. According to cost analysis, the study also points out the changes in audit price. The methodology used in this research is survey-based data collection. The questionnaires are sent to auditors who are working with companies with ERP systems. The answers are processed and analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences （SPSS） 20. The data are performed using the statistical test to determine the effect of ERP usage on the cost of auditing process and pricing policy of auditors. The findings of this study are： （1） Companies with ERP systems are reducing their auditing costs; and （2） Auditing companies are not implying a low rate of price to their customers using ERP.

Fuzzy Logic Based Approach in an Enterprise Resource Planning System for Hydraulic Cylinders Assembly

Trends in modern industry show a tendency towards demassovization of production as a response to the customers＇ specific needs for unique and personalized products. This provokes significant changes in the processes of manufacturing, assembly, and testing The cost of such a type of production can be reduced by employing highly productive reconfigurable equipment with proper software to enable optimization. This paper presents a decision support extension for directing of hydraulic cylinders to assembly-testing lines using fuzzy logic in the Enterprise Resource Planning system of a small size production in a factory in Bulgaria. Different assembly-testing lines are flexibly assigned to the specific cylinder＇s parameters by the developed fuzzy system on the basis of the overlapping of parameters in the hydraulic cylinders classification. The final decision on the line assigned in case of alternatives is made through accounting for the minimal cylinder delay time. The effectiveness of the approach is assessed by simulation. It leads to an increase of the efficiency of the assembly-testing flow lines, a reduction of the time needed for hydraulic cylinders assembling and testing and balanced loading of the modules.

Application of Structuration Theory and Activity Theory in Enterprise Resources Planning Systems Implementation for Universities

An integration of organization culture in the conceptualization and development of Enterprise Resource Planning Systems （ERPs） is critical for an organization to reap potential benefits of the system. In this paper, the authors present an analytical approach through the Structuration Theory： How a university can assess its culture for the purposes of design and development of the ERPs. The authors extend the Structuration Theory by integrating it with the Activity Theory to provide the means of evaluating the activities that the system is to perform. The modified Orlikowski model is applied to depict the relationship between institutional properties, human agents, and technology in the university setup and how this offers a more inclusive approach to ERP systems development and implementation.

Shipbuilding—An Analysis from the Perspective of Enterprise Resources Planning System

Designed as a tool for business intelligence, resource planning is used to manage the essentials of a business by integrating processes into a single system. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions ensure all the organizational, operational, and procedural structures interconnection, which can be both an advantage and a disadvantage, knowing that inefficiency within one structure will lead to inefficiency in others. The originality of the approach consists in the unitary analysis of all processes which shipbuilding involves (design;evaluation of ship construction possibilities;contracting of works;contracting of supply of materials and equipment;presentation of inspections for the completed works reception;delivery of the ship into operation). The systemic approach is a notable contribution by highlighting the input and output quantities for the analyzed processes. Also, where it was found relevant, the diagrams highlight the owners of the process and show the interconnectivity of the functional departments within a shipyard. Although it is obviously the expression of in-depth knowledge of the peculiarities of Romanian shipyards, the authors hope that the work can support any shipyard that may be interested in knowing these structures (as a logical scheme mandatory to design a custom ERP software system).

Research on Technic Realization of Flexible Enterprise Resource Plan

Based on the theory of dynamic enterprise model （DEM）, this paper focuses on describing the technic realization methods of DEM and its application in flexible enterprise resource plan （ERP） system. The complete and systematical description of various business activities in enterprises, quick response to business changes and the demanding adjustments are achieved with the conformation of the dynamic enterprise model platform and the utilization of the dynamic enterprise system model. Mass customization production is truly used in the implementation and development of ERP software.

Research on Prediction of Enterprise Human Resource Demand and Supply Based on Gray Model

As the knowledge-intensive enterprise, the core competence of software enterprise is to master human resources of knowledge. But the unique human resource characteristic of software enterprise res^cts the management. While it develops rapidly, there is great waste for human resource cost. By using the prediction model of human resources for software enterprise, the paper proposes the human resource strategic planning system model of software enterprise. The paper applies grey prediction to make empirical research on requirements of human resource for software enterprises, and uses Markov chain to analyze supply of human resources. According to the prediction results, the paper adjusts the imbalanced supply and demand, and proposes the human resources planning.

Soft Computing Based Procurement Planning of Time-variable Demand in Manufacturing Systems

Procurement planning with discrete time varying demand is an important problem in Enterprise Resource Planning （ERP）. It can be described using the non-analytic mathematical programming model proposed in this paper. To solve the model we propose to use a fuzzy decision embedded genetic algorithm. The algorithm adopts an order strategy selection to simplify the original real optimization problem into binary ones. Then, a fuzzy decision quantification method is used to quantify experience from planning experts. Thus, decision rules can easily be embedded in the computation of genetic operations. This approach is applied to purchase planning problem in a practical machine tool works, where satisfactory results have been achieved.

Evaluation System and Actualization of Selection Supplier in ERP Enterprise

Suppliers become an essential factor of enterprise competitiveness. The analytic hierarchy process is a kind of Decision-making method with the combination of quantity and quality. This paper presents the evaluation system of supplier selection, using Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) method to select the optimum supplier in Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) enterprise. In order to reduce factor of manmade and increase exactitude, this paper innovates to use a real database in ERP system for evaluation. It also gives an example that one enterprise selects supplier.

Implementing Enterprise Systems for Management： A Case of Kenyan Universities

Kenyan universities, as other business entities, are implementing various information systems to facilitate their operations. The systems include enterprise systems which are implemented to enhance institutional management given their emphasis on standardisation, streamlining, and integration of business operations. In this study, the authors have established that Kenyan universities have mainly implemented systems for finance and accounting, student admissions, examinations management, and library services. The authors have also established that there are no significant differences in information systems needs among Kenyan universities, but there are significant differences in strengths and weaknesses among the private and public universities in the capabilities of systems they have implemented. The authors have further established that despite fears especially on delays in projects implementation and system costs, Kenyan universities are in a position to implement enterprise systems to facilitate their operations. However, the universities need to allocate more funds to systems implementation if they have to successfully implement enterprise systems which generally require more resources than ordinary software applications.

Research and Application of Management Information Systems

Management Information System provides an effective way for enterprises to improve their competitive abilities. It presents a framework for improving the management models through the design and implementation of effective and high-quality MIS. So it is very important to the modem management of corporations. ERP （Enterprise Resource Planning） system is one of the core parts of MIS, which solves the matter of management model mainly. ERP is a popular method enabling the business processes required to compete with the globalization. The thesis cites SAP R/3 to introduce the general structure and function of ERP. Global Enterprise Resource Planning Implementation is increasingly becoming the successful choice of MIS.

A Study on the Architecture of Flexible ERP Based on Multi-Agent Technology

Traditional ERP software system cannot efficiently su pport new management ideas such as BPR, DEM and virtual enterprise which emphasi zes that enterprise should be adjusted to market changes and business process ch ain and value chain should be integrated tightly. To solve these problems, this paper proposed the conception of Flexible ERP system. F-ERP is a self- adapti ve software system based on multi-agent technology. It developed the followin g kind of agents which are useful for F-ERP: business process agent, interf ace agent, data agent and decision and analysis agent. The F-ERP software syste m is an hierarchy system which is composed of data layer, system tools layer, bu siness application layer and business decision layer. It used component based de velopment mythology and complied with CORBA to development F-ERP. The F-ERP sy stem can support the new management ideas such as BPR, DEM and virtual enterpris e etc. By implementation of it, enterprise can improve its management and promot e its competence.

Exploring ERP Adoption Cost Factors

Due to their limited resources, budgets and their high sensitivity to costs, when Small and Medium Enterprises （SMEs） take the first step into implementing an Enterprise Resource Planning （ERP） system, they need to think about many things, foremost the cost of adoption. Literature suggests that most ERP implementations fail due to inaccurate and optimistic budget and schedule estimations, as well as, anticipating indirect costs beforehand is problematic. With the deficiency of a clear model of cost factors for ERP adoptions, ERP adoptions face high risks of failure. Failures could be caused by several factors, but the scope of this research is focused on identifying, exploring, and validating a comprehensive list of ERP adoption cost factors. This could aid SMEs in visualizing the different expected costs, and would consequently assist in better future cost management and estimations. There has been plenty of research in ERP; however, a clear gap in ERP cost identification, management, and estimation exists. This paper focuses on identifying direct and indirect cost factors that influence total costs in the ERP adoption process. The paper presents a cost list that has been developed through literature and an ERP expert panel. Furthermore, this study validates the costs list through interviews with different stakeholders within ERP adoption projects in Egypt.

The Investigation of Jordanian Education Ministry Employees’ Attitude toward the Using of Cloud ERP

ERP systems have become an optimal solution for companies to perform their works with maximum advantages of Enterprise Resources Planning (ERP). Moreover, even though the cloud computing has many obstacles which need to be solved, but the enterprises always embrace the cloud. Many enterprises tend to adopt the cloud computing paradigm in order to get its leverage in successful and benefits. With the development of cloud computing technology, there is a growing orientation to move the ERP from inside boundaries of organizations into the cloud computing technologies. In addition, there were many studies that covered the cloud ERP without concentrating on acceptance the end user for this technology. Thus, this study comes to increase the understanding the attitude of the end user for cloud ERP technology. The main aim of this study is to investigate the employees’ attitude towards use of cloud ERP. The conceptual research framework of cloud ERP is prepared based on the technology acceptance model (TAM). The employees of Queen Rania Center (QRC) in Jordanian Education Ministry used the cloud ERP system which implemented according to this study. The questionnaires are distributed online to the sample. The results indicate that the QRC employees enjoyed using the cloud ERP system.

The Advanced Manufacture Theory and Practice Based on the Management Science

The paper points out that the science and technology, social productivity and economic form are the decisive strengths in facilitating the reformation of the production method of the manufacturing industry. This kind of strength happens through making an influence on the theory of management and science. It analyses the stage and the characteristic of the development model of manufacturing industry of human society, and on this basis does the detailed research on the several patterns of the advanced manufacturing theory and practice： the computer integrated making, concurrent engineering, lean production, agile manufacturing, planning of enterprise resources, global manufacturing. Finally, it thinks that the development model of the advanced manufacture theory and practice embodies a continuous curve of the technical innovation, which is on the basis of the theory of management science.

Solid Warehouse Material Management System Based on ERP and Bar Code Technology

This paper presents a manufacturing mat er ial management system based on ERP, which is combined with industrial bar code i nformation collection and material management, and carries out extensive researc h on the system structure and function model, as well as a detailed application scheme.

A framework for ICT-enabled real-time production planning and control

This paper aims to develop a conceptual framework for real-time production planning and control（PPC）.Firstly,we discuss the most prominently applied contemporary information and communication technologies for PPC.Enterprise resource planning（ERP） systems that integrate the value chain in an enterprise,manufacturing execution systems that manage and control the production on shopfloor,and advanced planning and scheduling（APS）systems that develop solutions for complex planning problems are the planning and control systems that have been analyzed.We emphasize the application of radio frequency identification as the most advanced and promising emerging real-time data capture technology that is currently available to manufacturers.Having analyzed the features and shortcomings of the individual systems perse,and by considering the advantages that may be realized through effective integration of these otherwise discrete systems,we propose a framework for real-time PPC.

Impact of ERP Investment on Company Performance: Evidence from Manufacturing Firms in China

Information Technology （IT） investments, especially Enterprise Resource Planning （ERP） systems, are critical for the survival and development of companies. Therefore, understanding the impact of ERP in- vestment is of great importance to managers and researchers. As a corporate performance indicator, Tobin＇s Q has some inherent advantages compared to other accounting indicators, and it can better reflect the con- tribution of ERP investment to company performance. This study employs multiple regression models to examine the impact of ERP investment on Tobin＇s Q. The sample consists of 126 manufacturing companies listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges from 1999 to 2007. Empirical results show that in the first three years after ERP implementation, there is no significant change in Tobin＇s Q; however, in the fourth year, Tobin＇s Q increases significantly. The results indicate that, as a strategic long-term investment accompanied by large-scale business process reengineering and organizational learning, ERP implementa- tion has time-lagged effects; nonetheless, it eventually produces significant benefits.