Gone are the days when the manufacturing sector viewed customer satisfaction and optimization of productivity as separate entities. In the era of cutting-edge technology, the physical and digital units associated with manufacturing are integrated with each other for enhanced process visibility, efficiency, and reduced operational costs.

The 360⁰ visibility improves collaboration between different process segments in manufacturing, thereby boosting productivity. Connecting factory equipment with ERP, back-office operations, and the customer call centers is fast becoming the norm in manufacturing, as companies turn increasingly customer-centric.

Technology has deeply impacted the service delivery patterns as well. For example, the coordination between end users and technicians using technologies such as virtual reality and augmented reality, have left a positive impact on the monitoring and maintenance services for factory equipment. Furthermore, matching the customer service records with the availability of technicians from two different databases has enhanced the customer and field services manifold.

While larger manufacturers are deploying the state-of-the-art technologies such as AI, IoT, cloud, analytics and many more on a war footing, the trend is not restricted to them alone. Smaller manufacturers too are increasingly jumping into the digital transformation bandwagon. Consequently, various systems such as those concerning back office operations, IoT, ERP, and CRM are all being integrated with each other to improve efficiency.

In order to provide the right impetus to all manufacturers, Microsoft has launched Dynamics 365 that has provided the right impetus by eliminating the difference between CRP and ERM, besides offering capabilities such as analytics and embedded intelligence on a mobile environment. With a common data model, Microsoft Dynamics 365 allows other applications such as Office 365 and several others to be tightly integrated by means of a standardized API. Available in the Business Edition for SMEs and Enterprises for larger organizations, Dynamics 365 promises to be a new force to raise efficiency in manufacturing to greater heights.

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