Microsoft Previews Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 for Manufacturing Organizations

HANNOVER, Germany, April 4, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- At Hannover Messe (http://www.hannovermesse.de/en/homepage), the leading international showplace for industrial technologies, materials and product ideas, Microsoft Corp.(Nasdaq: MSFT) today previewed the manufacturing foundation in Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012, Microsoft's enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution for global organizations, expected to be generally available in the third quarter of 2011.

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"Manufacturers are challenged with addressing economic pressures, globalization, environmental regulations and requirements and preparing for an increasingly diverse workforce with varying technology expectations," said Rakesh Kumar, global industry product director, manufacturing, Microsoft Dynamics. "Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 will provide the capabilities global manufacturers need to thrive."

Contrary to real-world requirements, many ERP applications force discrete, lean and process manufacturing to be managed in separate systems. Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 removes these limitations by supporting the ability to run all three processes in a single solution, simplifying operations, and increasing flexibility in production planning and execution. Going a step further, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 provides visibility across a unified resource pool, helping to optimize resource utilization and increase responsiveness to customers' needs.

"The ability to view and apply various manufacturing processes through a single ERP solution is revolutionary to our business," said Hubert Meisterjahn, chief information officer, Dornbracht (http://www.dornbracht.com/en/), a globally active manufacturer of high-quality fittings and accessories for bathrooms and kitchens. "We are confident Microsoft will help us remain on the cutting edge of technology."

To provide visibility into the environmental impact of a manufacturer, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 includes an update to the Environmental Sustainability Dashboard for Microsoft Dynamics AX (http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics/products/ax-environment.aspx). The dashboard is designed to track a company's energy consumption, carbon footprint and related costs, and it supports a manufacturer's ability to address increasing supply-chain requirements and government regulations. New dashboard features include additional key performance indicators for waste and water usage, a graphical interface for ease of setup and management, and a what-if analysis feature to help assess the impact of proposed changes.

Helping to increase user adoption across an organization, Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 takes advantage of Microsoft technology investments in user experiences. Shop floor machine operators without convenient keyboard access or experience using on-the-job business application technology will benefit from new interactive touch-based capabilities. Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 delivers Kanban (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanban) visualizations for lean manufacturing, automating a typically manual replenishment process, which saves people time. Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 also delivers a familiar Microsoft Office interface (http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics/familiar.aspx) and interoperability with the latest Microsoft Office 2010 applications, such as Microsoft Word 2010 and Microsoft Excel 2010.

Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 provides partners with a manufacturing foundation that can be easily customized and extended for multiple vertical industries, such as industrial equipment, food and chemical manufacturing. This foundation gives them the opportunity to deliver further value to and broaden their customer base.

More information about Microsoft Dynamics solutions for the manufacturing industry is available at http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/dynamics/industries/manufacturing.aspx.

About Microsoft Dynamics

Microsoft Dynamics CRM and ERP solutions empower your people to be more productive and your systems to last longer and scale as your business grows, while enabling you to derive the insights necessary to respond quickly in an ever-changing world of business.

About Microsoft

Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq "MSFT") is the worldwide leader in software, services and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential.