The data lake concept centres on landing all analysable data sets of any kind in raw or only lightly processed form into the easily expandable scale-out Hadoop infrastructure to ensure that the fidelity of the data is preserved.

Since its inception, the primary objective of business intelligence has been the creation of a top-down single source of truth from which organisations would centrally track KPIs and performance metrics with static reports and dashboards.

This stemmed from the proliferation of data in spreadsheets and reporting silos throughout organisations, often yielding different and conflicting results.

Ishida, manufacturer of weighting, packing, and inspection equipment in Kyoto, Japan, had a mission to unite its domestic factories with international production bases. After installing Infor LN, a cloud ERP solution, without customisations, “we accomplished the seemingly impossible: process planning and shipping to meet the customer’s request within 2 days after specification decision.”

The customer is always right, and is always changing. Consumer-driven markets are facing pressure to introduce more products quicker and with more specialisations. Manufacturers must adapt. They must evolve processes quickly, efficiently, and cost-effectively. Meeting consumer demands is not a place for playing “catch up”. First to market with a product innovation often wins the market and dominates the mindshare of the buyer.

The Internet of Things is a world that connects people, data, processes, and physical things. Beyond the consumer realm, the IoT is creating a new paradigm in the business world. So, how will the IoT impact manufacturing?

The Factory of the Future isn’t some futuristic fantasy. It’s quickly becoming the new reality. And tech-savvy manufacturers are either on board or preparing for change. 40% of manufacturers believe that smart manufacturing and its foundational technology—the Internet of Things (IoT) — are within reach and that it’s the right time to invest.

Today’s furniture and fixtures manufacturers are facing volatile raw materials pricing, fluctuating consumer demand, and increased global competition. Manufacturers are competing in one of the most notable movements in the Furniture and Fixtures industry: customers expect higher quality and greater value than ever before, as well as more customisation options, including being able to configure selections and purchase online.

Thales has quite a global footprint with 64,000 employees worldwide and operates in 56 different countries. The company has embarked on an ERP consolidation journey in which they migrate multiple systems onto a single product. And after the selection process, they landed on the Infor LN platform.

Imagine a cloud Business Intelligence system that can aggregate and analyse data from 400 data sources in a single view, go live in fewer than 90 days, and help achieve a five-fold increase in inventory turns. Let’s have a look at the Citrix case study, focusing on how Citrix has solved its data analytics problem and architected its digital supply chain with Birst.

Read more: Cloud Business Intelligence for E-commerce: a Case Study of Build.com

It’s been at least 30 years since terms like kanban and kaizen entered our manufacturing vocabulary. Is it time to step back and evaluate where lean strategies stand now? Are the principles still relevant in light of the drastic changes in operational processes, global markets, and IT solutions?