EDITOR’S CHOICE
THE MERITS OF PAPERLESS
EPICOR
GETTING FIT FOR GROWTH BY
SAYING GOODBYE TO PAPER
The manufacturing industry has been
debating the merits of paperless for the
last two decades, but few have actually
adopted entirely paper-free operations. In
today’s manufacturing landscape, where
digital transformation is widely considered
as essential to business growth and survival,
and where Industry 4.0 and smart factories
are proliferating, there’s no longer a place for
paper.
Now, it’s time to stop talking about it—and
start adapting. Changes in legislations,
advances in technology, and the rapidly
evolving marketplace, will amplify the
need for adoption in 2019. With regulatory
and compliance authorities increasingly
demanding the automated generation of
digital records, the move to go paperless is
fast becoming crucial. For UK manufacturers,
minimising unnecessary checks and
preventing disruption to supply chains post-
Brexit will be heavily dependent on their
ability to participate in paperless customs
procedures.
Investing in the right software will help keep
businesses agile, and able respond quickly
to any market changes, but these systems
are driven by data. Data should therefore be
stored electronically so that it can be used
and accessed, across an organisation, by
anyone, at any time.
The multiple benefits of paperless
manufacturing are widely recognised—
increased accuracy, seamless electronic
record-keeping, and easily-shared data,
to name a few. By not digitising and
automating their operations, businesses
run the risk of being unable to navigate
today’s turbulent economic and political
landscape—let alone capitalise on growth
opportunities.
THE BUSINESS CASE FOR
PAPERLESS
For the manufacturing community,
compliancy is king. For instance, breaching
GDPR guidelines could cost firms an eye
watering four percent of annual turnover.
Accuracy and transparency is becoming
imperative—and paper leads to multitudes
of inaccuracies, which also costs the
industry millions of pounds each year.
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PECM Issue 38
For food and beverage manufacturing
particularly, accuracy has never been more
crucial. The frequency of high-profile,
large-scale food recalls has become too
commonplace for comfort. You only have
to look at the Food Standards Agency UK
government website to see that the volume
of food and allergen-related recalls shows
no sign of reducing—in 2018, 189 recalls
were issued. Businesses that have been
forced to recall large amounts of product
over safety, hygiene, or labelling concerns
can incur catastrophic damage, both in
monetary and reputational terms.
This reinforces the need for optimal levels
of traceability, quality, and regulatory
compliance to minimise damaging product
recalls, as well as risks to consumers.
For UK manufacturers, navigating the
regulatory and recall processes is only set
to become harder as Brexit approaches.
Paperless manufacturing will be crucial
in the wake of the UK leaving the EU—as
British businesses could face an increase
in administration, which will be an extra
hindrance for firms that haven’t fully
automated their business processes.
By Mark Hughes, regional vice president, UK
and Ireland, Epicor Software
BREAKING DOWN THE
BARRIERS
The benefits might seem obvious, yet
decades on from initial predictions,
manufacturers still have yet to completely
remove paper from the factory floor. Despite
various technological advancements in the
industry, manufacturers are struggling to
break down the barriers standing in their
way to an entirely paperless environment.