Choosing software

Manufacturing ERP vs project ERP for fabricators

Manufacturing ERP optimizes repeatable work orders. Project ERP (or construction PM) optimizes tasks and documents. Facade fabricators need both: factory execution and project coordination. Spectr is built on that overlap.

See this on your jobs Project structure in Spectr

Key facts

A work-order ERP will fight unique panels and site dates.
A construction PM tool will not nest sheet or scan a container to a brake.
You are last trade on someone else’s schedule — that is a project problem with factory consequences.
Spectr uses phases, scopes, and directives, then drives shop and ship from the same job.

How shops handle this

List factory must-haves
Cutlists, inventory containers, machine schedule, labour.
List project must-haves
Phases, submittals, GC dates, cost vs budget.
Reject “we’ll integrate later”
Two systems with a nightly CSV is how you get two truths.
Demo the join
Change a phase date and see whether the shop list actually moves.

Common questions

Can we run Procore plus a shop system?

Many do. The gap is product identity — the panel ID that should be the same in both worlds.

Is Spectr a PM tool?

It structures the job and the work. It is an operational ERP, not just a Gantt chart.

Experience how Spectr could fit in your shop

From the jobs you're quoting now to the installs you're managing next month — we'll walk through your actual work, not a canned tour.

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