Custom ERP or off-the-shelf: which suits a small manufacturer?
Off-the-shelf ERP suits businesses whose processes match the product: standard stock, simple assembly, a few users. A custom ERP suits manufacturers and wholesalers whose work doesn't fit a template, with deep bills of materials, their own way of quoting or scheduling, or a growing team that per-user pricing punishes. Praxa Tech builds custom ERP for Australian and New Zealand businesses.
When off-the-shelf is the right answer
If your business works the way the software expects, a good off-the-shelf system is quick to start and well supported. A wholesaler with a defined range, simple assembly and a small team is often well served. There is no prize for building what you could have bought. See what we replace for an honest view of the main systems.
When it stops fitting
The signs are familiar: spreadsheets kept beside the system for what it cannot do, deep or multi-level bills of materials, subcontract steps, scheduling against real machines and people, customer-specific pricing, and a monthly bill that grows with every hire. At that point the business is paying to work around its own software.
How they compare
Cost. Off-the-shelf: a monthly fee per user, plus implementation. Custom from Praxa Tech: a fixed one-off price, mostly under $35,000, with no per-user fees.
Fit. Off-the-shelf: your process bends to the product. Custom: the system takes the shape of your business, in your terms.
Time to go live. Off-the-shelf implementations commonly take months. Custom from Praxa Tech: 30 to 60 days, with a working demo in 48 hours.
Ownership. Off-the-shelf: you rent access. Custom: you own the code and the accounts it runs on.
Change. Off-the-shelf: you wait for the vendor's roadmap. Custom: small changes are requested in the app and turned around within 48 hours.
The question to ask
Not "which is better", but "how much of our week is spent working around the system we have?" If the answer is a lot, the cheapest way to find out what a custom build would look like is to see one. Praxa Tech builds a working demo of your business in 48 hours, free.
Where to look next.
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Solution
Custom ERP
One system for stock, production, purchasing and sales, built around how you work.
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Comparison
From spreadsheets to an ERP
A perfect fit, until two people need it at once.
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Free calculator
Software cost calculator
What your per-user subscriptions add up to over the years.
What people ask next.
Is custom ERP only for big companies?
No. Praxa Tech's sweet spot is businesses turning over $2 million to $10 million a year, with around 5 to 50 staff.
What happens if Praxa Tech disappears?
You own the code and the accounts it runs on, so it keeps running. See continuity and security.
Do we lose Xero or MYOB?
No. Your accounting stays where it is and the ERP connects to it.
Can we see it before we commit?
Yes. A working demo of your own business in 48 hours, free.
See what yours would look like.
Tell us how your business runs and we'll build a working demo of it, free, in 48 hours. Then you'll have a real number, not a guess.