Topcare Cosmetic Packaging recently convened a cross-departmental meeting focused on optimizing product-related functions within its ERP system. The session brought together representatives from Product Management, Warehouse, Procurement, Sales, and IT teams—aimed at refining how the ERP system manages cosmetic packaging products (e.g., sprayers, bottles, caps) to boost operational efficiency and data accuracy.

Meeting Objectives

1. Standardize product master data in ERP to eliminate inconsistencies (e.g., duplicate SKUs, conflicting material descriptions for packaging items).
2. Optimize ERP’s product inventory management to reduce overstock of slow-moving packaging and prevent stockouts of high-demand items.
3. Enhance the link between ERP product data and procurement/sales workflows to streamline order fulfillment for custom packaging.

Key Discussion Topics & Outcomes

1. Product Master Data Standardization

• Current Issue: The ERP system had 12% duplicate SKUs (e.g., “100ml plastic sprayer” vs. “100ML Plastic Sprayer”) and vague material tags (e.g., “eco-friendly bottle” without specifying recycled PP content).
• Agreed Actions:
• Product Management will lead the creation of a unified product data template (including SKU naming rules, material specifications, and dimension details) by the end of next week.
• IT will develop an ERP batch-check tool to identify and merge duplicate SKUs within 2 weeks; all new packaging products must follow the template to be added to ERP.

2. Inventory Optimization for Packaging Products

• Current Issue: Slow-moving items (e.g., specialty luxury caps) accounted for 18% of warehouse stock, while 5% of high-demand products (e.g., standard 50ml toner bottles) faced occasional stockouts.
• Agreed Actions:
• Warehouse and IT will configure ERP’s safety stock alerts: set minimum stock levels for high-demand items (based on 3-month sales data) and auto-generate “slow-moving” flags for products with no orders in 60 days.
• Procurement will use ERP’s new inventory analytics dashboard (to be built by IT in 3 weeks) to adjust purchase quantities, reducing overstock of low-turnover packaging.

3. ERP Integration with Custom Packaging Workflows

• Current Issue: Custom packaging orders (e.g., branded sprayers with client logos) often had delayed ERP data updates, leading to misalignment between sales quotes and production materials.
• Agreed Actions:
• Sales and Product Management will add a “custom specification” field to ERP’s order entry module (IT to implement in 1 week), capturing details like logo position and material color.
• ERP will auto-link custom order data to procurement requests, ensuring suppliers receive accurate material requirements within 24 hours of order confirmation.

Next Steps

• A follow-up meeting will be held in 4 weeks to review progress on ERP tool development and data standardization.
• Product Management will train all teams on the new product data template by the end of this week.
• IT will share a weekly progress report on ERP configuration tasks (e.g., SKU cleanup, dashboard building) via the company’s ERP communication group.
• The meeting concluded with consensus that these ERP optimizations will reduce packaging inventory costs by 10% and cut custom order fulfillment time by 15% within the next quarter, supporting Topcare’s goal of improving client satisfaction for cosmetic packaging solutions.