Helping you plan, evaluate, and select the right MES.
After months of preparation, evaluations, and internal discussions, we’ve officially reached a key milestone in our MES journey — selecting the vendor we believe is the right fit for our factory. This process wasn’t just about comparing systems. It was about identifying a solution that balances structure with flexibility, and a team that could support […]
We’ve Selected Our MES Vendor – A Milestone Step Forward Read More »
We’ve reached the end of our MES demo phase — a major milestone after months of vendor screening, requirement clarifications, and live demonstrations. But instead of wrapping things up neatly, the final phase opened up a new layer of complexity. We originally shortlisted two strong candidates: One: a top-tier global MES vendor with a strong
Final Demos Are Done. But the Decision Just Got More Complex. Read More »
This week marked a significant milestone in our MES project—the selected vendor came onsite for a line walk to better understand our operations and expectations. Watching them observe our production lines with fresh eyes gave me a chance to reflect—not just on how far we’ve come, but also on what we’ve overlooked. Initial Observations from
What the Line Walk Revealed: Reflections After Our MES Vendor Visit Read More »
“It looked affordable on paper.But when we started using it, we saw a different kind of cost — one that didn’t show up on the quotation.” The Initial Appeal: Competitive Pricing & Feature List When we first looked at MES solutions from China, the pricing was significantly lower than Western or global providers.The proposal included:
Is China MES Really Cheap? Here’s What You’re Overlooking Read More »
“By the time we reached the final two MES vendors, I wasn’t just comparing features.I was comparing philosophies — and how each one saw our factory.” Getting to the Final Two Wasn’t Just a Scorecard Exercise We started with a structured approach — using a weighted scorecard, evaluation checklist, and real-world use cases.But what truly
Choosing the Final Two: Lessons from My MES Vendor Shortlisting Read More »
“Many vendors can talk the talk.I needed one that could walk the production floor — and show it.” Why Functionality Was My First Filter In the early stages of MES sourcing, it’s easy to get distracted: But after leading our pilot MES experience, I learned a hard truth:If the core functionality doesn’t fit your operations,
How I Evaluated MES Functionality First (Before Price or Promises) Read More »
“I wasn’t just looking for features.I was looking for fit — with our factory, our people, and our pace of change.” Why Clear Criteria Mattered When you’re sourcing an MES, the danger isn’t that you’ll find too few vendors —it’s that you’ll find too many, each promising to solve everything. At first, it was tempting
Criteria I Set for Selecting the Right MES Vendor Read More »
“When your current MES isn’t meeting expectations, but the factory can’t wait — sourcing becomes more than a selection process. It becomes a balancing act.” Why We Needed a New MES — Quickly Our current MES had been deployed as a pilot, and while it served many functions, we began to notice gaps as we
Sourcing MES Vendors Under Pressure: Balancing Business Needs, Speed, and Fit Read More »
“We didn’t have process owners.We didn’t have flow diagrams.We didn’t even know where to start.But the MES rollout had already begun.” The Reality: No Process Owners, No Documentation When I was tasked to define the MES requirements for our end to end production (From Subassembly to Final Packing), I wasn’t handed a neat document or
How to Gather MES Requirements from Scratch (When Nothing’s Defined) Read More »
“I thought the hardest part would be configuring the MES.I was wrong — the real challenge was that no one could understand it.” The Unexpected Language Barrier When we adopted a China-based MES, we expected technical gaps, maybe even integration issues.But what caught us off guard was how much missing English support could cripple the project. The
What to Do When Your MES Only Speaks Chinese: Lessons from the Shop Floor Read More »
