DELMIAworks

Pros

Its user friendly! Without having prior experience using an integrated system, I was able to lead a team, effectively self implementing from work station installs to setting up barcoding and scanning for Warehouse management.

Cons

Similar to any software, There can be a steep learning curve between modules in the beginning .

Alternatives Considered

Reasons for Switching to DELMIAworks

Pros

We selected IQMS to give us one central database across all plant functions. Apple Rubber is both a Manufacture and Distributor. Therefore we needed to monitor and control inventory levels and also manufacturing of the product. IQMS WMS gave full warehouse control of inventory. Improving both inventory count and placement accuracy. IQMS Realtime allowed everyone to see what the MFG plant is doing and ties back to the schedule to show if any timing issues. What our customers like best is the Quality module allows full lot traceability as well as SPC and if any issues using MRB or Corrective Actions. Now using IQMS CRM we have outside sales and inside sales working off one system. Marketing can push referrals to sales or engineering to support customer request. Accounting functions are fully supported, which allows us to easily close month and year-end activities. We have also found that regulatory and customer audits are much easier. Both have commented how having one central database is really beneficial and impressed with how well it works.

Cons

We are collecting a lot more data, so being on the system since 2007 our database has grown. We do need to come up with a way to better achieve or strip data that is not required. Large tables will slow SQL scripts, especially for remote users.

Pros

As an IT Administrator who does my best to help my company utilize the software, I can say that I actually enjoy working with the software, learning about it, and customizing it. I enjoy designing Crystal Reports, utilizing the built-in customization features like user fields and user-defined forms, and figuring out how to use and customize the various modules of the software to meet my company's unique needs.

Cons

I'd say my biggest complaint with the software is the lack of refinement. There are too many basic canned reports that were designed a decade ago seemingly only placed into the software as placeholders without much thought into what would actually be a useful report to each module. There are lots of features that seem thrown in to meet specific customer requests without enough strategic thought into how to make the feature the best it can be. One example is a CRM utility that automates the reassignment of activities to a different user. Sounds great. But the problem is, it won't work if the current owner of those activities has left the company and you deleted their account or set their termination date.
IQMS has been growing by leaps and bounds over the years, and the software I think reflects that. To their credit and to their discredit, they have been responsive to their customer's requests for new features and improvements. But the frequent changes led to things not working right. I think they were pushing out features faster than they could reliably test them and they were over their ski's for a time. For example, the HR/workforce module, in a previous version, was shockingly buggy. It seems to better now, though. New management at IQMS seems to have gotten the message about their customer's demands for higher quality and reliability. I think the jury is still out though how successful their quality push has been.
EnterpriseIQ is a good system but I wouldn't say it is intuitive in regards to MRP, scheduling, work orders, etc. I think it takes a sharp person to really dig into how everything fits together and how the multitude of switches and knobs throughout the software affects how things work. My fear, with the new ambitious management team, is that they'll push for new features and the latest buzzwords to win new customers but won't prioritize making the day-to-day workflow better and more intuitive for current users. The executives want the astronomical growth to continue, I'm sure, but slow and steady growth is probably more conducive to stable product development with growth based on word-of-mouth from people who have actually used the software every day.

Pros

This system goes from quote to customer right through sales, purchasing, engineering, manufacturing, quality control, material review board, non-conformance, returns. HR modules and document control are available. Warehouse and distribution allowing for scanners and barcoding. Many many add on's within the same software company - as well as the ability to go outside the core and get third party spreadsheet add on's that make reporting a breeze. Unbelievable continuity in this system. This is the first system where the schedule was actually useful - we do not have to do our scheduling outside the system!!!! With crystal report writer, every report can be modified to your specific needs. With various areas for custom fields in all sorts of places, you can set your own fields that you require that are not already in an extensive list of fields already available. We have implemented the core packages plus MRO, Quality, Document Control and are planning to put some HR and warehouse management packages on shortly.

Cons

Because of its overwhelming ability to do almost anything, sometimes you are disappointed by some small things it cannot do. Sometimes you have to go through a couple of people to find the best solution to your problems in support, but generally they get you the answers in a timely manner.

Pros

A 'One Stop Shop' for just about any need for which a database is applicable within the plastic injection molding industry. Having used separate application software programs prior to IQMS, integration has been a huge benefit and future integration is still an opprortunity.

Although I have only monitored it up to this point, the level of information shared by the User Group is amazing.

IQMS Staff, regardless of department, have always been extremely pleasant to deal with eith on the phone or by email.

Tech Support's ability to easily remote in and troubleshoot has been helpful.

Implementation was smooth , facilitated by the knowledge, experience, and confidence of the IQ implementation specialist assigned to us.

We began using scheduling very quickly upon installation; something I was unable to do with another ERP program with which I had exposure.

Taking it's power into consideration, IQ is easy to learn and begin using.

Cons

While Tech Support is responsive and interaction is positive, the need to coordinate a time to "remote in" is not always convenient and sometimes discouraged me from calling or emailing.

While Securities are very powerful and flexible, it seems there is complexity that comes with that power. Mastering securities is not something that appears to be intuitive or quickly/easily learned.

Given the power and potential flexibility of the software, it does require a resource dedicated (at least to some degree) in order to tap into that power and expand use into it's many features.

Cost as well as internal resources have prevented us from seriously considering additional modules and/or consulting visits from IQMS implementation specialists to improve utilization.