Manufacturers Plan for Maximum Throughput and Highest Profitability Using Made2Manage Systems' Latest Advanced Planning Tool

ing and Forecasting Tool Combinations That Optimize the Shop Floors of Small and Midsize Manufacturers

INDIANAPOLIS, March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- When total customer demand exceeds total production capacity, determining the most cost-effective shop floor plan is critical to small and midsize manufacturers, particularly as they compete for profitability and growth in a chaotic economy. Made2Manage Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: MTMS - News), a leading provider of comprehensive enterprise business systems for small and midsize manufacturers and distributors, today announced M2M(TM) Advanced Planning 5.01, a dramatically improved finite capacity production planning tool housed in the supply chain management module (M2M SCM) of the Made2Manage® Enterprise Business System. Advanced Planning 5.01 uses Theory-of-Constraints-based mathematical algorithms to determine a manufacturing plan that generates increased shop floor throughput with the highest profitability.

"When faced with a series of sales orders that cannot all be satisfied on their request dates because of capacity or material constraints, managers often rely on manual data searches, customer priorities, or simple guesswork to build shop floor plans," said Kyle Sanford, product manager for M2M SCM. "With M2M Advanced Planning 5.01, managers can quickly and intelligently respond to demands. Users no longer have to plan jobs with wishful due dates and then run detailed finite schedules to get realistic due dates. Instead, they can evaluate various and, perhaps mutually exclusive, demand opportunities and then build a plan (jobs or work orders) that delivers the most profitability-without any detailed scheduling."

Made2Manage Systems' ongoing supply chain management product strategy reflects an understanding of small and midsize manufacturers' need for tools that will maximize their unique production environments. As a result, the M2M SCM product suite offers a collection of tools that enable forecasting, planning and scheduling; organizations can execute any or all of these tools in any combination to meet their specific needs. For instance, repetitive manufacturers with relatively simple, lean shop floor operations can rely on finite (advanced) planning tools to build a capacity-feasible daily build plan. More complex environments, such as make-to-order and engineer-to-order manufacturers, would employ the combination of infinite planning and finite (advanced) scheduling tools to streamline production. Mixed-mode companies with relatively complex shop floor operations often require both finite planning and finite scheduling tools to optimize shop throughput.

"M2M Advanced Planning 5.01 is a cutting-edge planning tool that offers the latest example of how our M2M SCM product suite is constantly evolving to meet our customers' unique production needs, as well as facilitate the growth and success of our customers' businesses," said Dave Wortman, CEO of Made2Manage Systems. "We are the first enterprise software vendor to offer this level of supply chain planning and scheduling functionality to small and midsize manufacturers with revenues of less than $250 million."

Driven by M2M Synchronizer, a memory-resident application server, Made2Manage Systems' fully integrated planning, scheduling and forecasting tools work together to optimize resource usage and maximize throughput and profitability. Drawing from a shared, real-time database with Made2Manage Systems' enterprise resource planning tools, M2M SCM leverages the enterprise- wide data from a manufacturer's back office to ensure efficient supply chain planning.

About Made2Manage Systems Inc.

Made2Manage Systems delivers a comprehensive, fully integrated enterprise business system designed specifically for the unique needs of small and midsize manufacturers and distributors. The enterprise solution addresses the most critical business processes facing small and midsize manufacturers and distributors, creating a system that requires minimal customization and administration. Utilizing Microsoft technology, the end-to-end solution guarantees Made2Manage customers get their businesses online and working efficiently as quickly as possible, helping them to compete effectively against growing global competition. With more than 25,000 licensed users, Made2Manage works with leading suppliers behind some of the nation's biggest brand names. Visit Made2Manage Systems' corporate Web site at www.made2manage.com . Made2Manage Systems can be reached via e-mail at info@made2manage.com or by calling (800) 626-0220.

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Source: Made2Manage Systems Inc.

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