AccountingManufacturing TipsSales Job Order Costing – Achieving Accurate Margins in the Job Shop Job order costing tracks the materials, labor, and overhead of each individual job instead of averaging them across production. For make-to-order manufacturing business owners, it’s the difference between quoting a job profitably and eroding profit without realizing it. By Steve Maurer, IME 15 min read
Manufacturing TipsSales B2B Customer Portal: A Guide for SMB Manufacturers and Distributors A B2B customer portal gives business customers a self-service way to place orders, reorder products, track order progress, and access account documents without relying on back-and-forth emails. For SMB manufacturers and distributors, an integrated customer portal can reduce manual admin, improve order visibility, and make it easier to manage repeat customer relationships at scale. By Mattias Turovski 10 min read
AccountingManufacturing Tips Product Costing: A Complete Guide for Manufacturers Most manufacturers can quote a selling price to the penny. Far fewer know what each product truly costs to build. Product costing closes that gap, and the number it produces drives nearly every decision that protects your margin. By Steve Maurer, IME 15 min read
Manufacturing TipsProduction planning Product Configuration Guide for Manufacturing SMBs Product configuration makes it possible to customize products without designing each order from scratch. By using predefined options and rules, small manufacturers can offer more choice to customers while keeping production repeatable and manageable. By Shane Dubbelman 13 min read
Manufacturing TipsProduction planning Multi-Level BOM (Indented BOM): Benefits, Tips, and Use Cases A multi-level BOM is a bill of materials that represents the composition of subassemblies in addition to the final product. This type of BOM becomes indispensable when a certain level of product complexity is reached, but there are also situations where a multi-level BOM is unwarranted. By Madis Kuuse 12 min read
Choosing a SoftwareManufacturing TipsProduction planning Production Planning Excel Template: How to Build a Production Schedule and When to Move to MRP? Excel spreadsheets can be a good place to start with production planning. They give manufacturers a simple way to organize everything. That works well until production gets more complex and the schedule starts changing faster than the spreadsheet can keep up. By Steve Maurer, IME 19 min read
InventoryManufacturing Tips Lean Warehouse Management – A Practical Guide for SMEs Lean warehouse management helps SMEs reduce waste, improve inventory accuracy, and keep materials moving. For manufacturers, that means fewer delays, better stock control, streamlined warehouse operations, and stronger support for production. By Steve Maurer, IME 15 min read
InventoryManufacturing Tips 8 Inventory Optimization Tips and Techniques for SMBs Few things disrupt an operation faster than inventory that doesn’t match demand. Overstock ties up money. Stockouts delay deliveries and production. Real-time visibility through effective inventory optimization makes inventory management easier. By Steve Maurer, IME 13 min read
Manufacturing Tips Direct To Consumer Manufacturing – How to Optimize Your Manufacturing Op for D2C Direct-to-consumer sales can open new opportunities for manufacturers. They can also make demand, inventory, fulfillment, and service harder to manage. That is why D2C works best when the strategy and the operation support each other. By Steve Maurer, IME 15 min read