Requirements checklist
What to ask for when choosing software for food processing machinery manufacturers.
A checklist built from how food processing machinery manufacturers work, to print or save as a PDF and bring to any supplier meeting.
What the software should cover
Tick each one that matters to your business.
- Hygienic machine quotations
- Stainless material and heat records
- Weld, finish and passivation checks
- Build stages and bought-in parts
- Factory acceptance tests
- Commissioning and spares
Roles that need their own access
Who logs in, and what each person may see or change.
- For sales engineers
- For design and drawing office
- For fabrication and assembly leads
- For quality engineers
- For service and spares staff
Reports to ask for
Ask to see each one with your own sample data.
- Machines now in each bay, by stage
- Sheet and tube drawn for each machine, by heat number
- Open, won and lost quotations, split by product handled
- Acceptance tests booked, passed or waiting for sign-off
- Bought-in drives and panels still to arrive
- Spares quoted and supplied, split by machine age
- Commissioning visits scheduled by site
Systems it may need to connect to
Note which ones you already run.
- Accounting export
- Drawing file links
- Payment gateway
Questions for any vendor
Put these to every supplier you are comparing.
- Does it handle machines built to a buyer’s own drawing?
- Can we quote the same mixer with different options?
- How are sheet heat numbers linked to the vessel?
- Where do the weld and passivation checks go?
- Can a buyer watch the factory test?
- What does it do after the machine is installed?
- Can we move our existing machine and spares records in?
- What decides the cost?
Where the work usually breaks today
Circle the ones you recognise. They set the order of the project.
- Sheet certificates are separated from the machine
- Weld and finish checks live on paper
- Options multiply between quote and build
- Acceptance tests are scattered
- Spares requests lack a machine history
Prefer to talk it through? See the food processing machinery manufacturers page.