Steel and metal distribution centers serve many different industries such as drilling, oil and gas, construction and consumer goods manufacturing. They offer a large variety of products such as structural steel, specialty steel, perforated and expanded metals, flat rolled products, mesh, plate, bar, valves and fittings, pipe and tube, etc. Because of the nature of the product and the industries served, inventory tracking is a crucial aspect of ERP software for steel and metal distributors. It must be able to manage multiple units of measure and capture specific attributes that can then be searched and reported on easily.

Due to the weight of steel and metal products, warehouse and freight management functionality can help metal distributors realize significant cost savings. Using workflows combined with inventory and warehouse management can help with combining shipments and distributing them evenly.

Document management is also an important feature in order to track and manage industry specific documentation such as material test reports as well as product catalogues and communications with vendors, customers and internal staff.

Some key functionality that Exact ERP addresses for steel and metal distributors include:

Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)

Warehouse Management System (WMS)

Demand Planning

Inventory Management

Multiple Units of Measure

Document Management

Multi-currency

Multi-language

Quick Order Entry Procedures

Shipping Container Tracking

Business Activity Monitoring

eCommerce

Serial Lot Control