Dynamics Nav Industry Specific Solutions

aavio

Hi guys,
From MS site i had seen that MS is offering industry specific solution in Dynamics NAV,
i had a few queries related to it....
--> can u give be a idea,of how NAV will available, do they just add third party addons?? or microsoft specific objects??
suppose if i choose for retail industry, do they offer a different download package other than standard one?

aavio

can someone help me... :?

Marije_Brummel

Dynamics NAV is a generic ERP solution that can be used in a wide area of industries but maybe with some gaps.

On top of this ERP solution, partners have developed vertical industry solutions that will close these gaps.

More important than the add-on solution is the industry knowledge the partner has.

My book (see signature) explains more about this process and offers a wide range of examples of how to implement industry solutions in Dynamics NAV.

David_Singleton

aavio,

be aware that there is a HUGE difference between Add-Ons and Verticals. But often you will see the two confused. Even Microsoft don't make clear the difference, so you may see what you think is a Vertical solution that really is just an Add-On.

In simple terms an Add-On is code bundled as a solution to solve a specific process need in Navision. eShip is probably the best known and most successful Navision Add-On. Add-Ons can be used in multiple industries. I have implemented eShip at many clients where the only thing they have in common is that at some stage their business process requires putting Items in boxes and sending them to customers. The idea of an Add-On is package up the code that is used to solve a specific issue so the it can be resold and thus reduce the cost to the client and at the same time offer them a better solution. Most often Add-Ons evolve becasue a partner finds them selves developing the same or similar code over and over for their clients and thus bundle a lot of these into Add-Ons.

A Vertical solution is a business package that solves all or most of the common BUSINESS requirements of a specific industry. A good example of a Vertical is RMI this is a system specifically oriented to companies that rent and lease items equipment, services etc. to their clients. The idea of a vertical is to take specific business knowledge and apply it to a full package solution that a company can basically plug into and work with. Verticals most often arise becasue a company specializes in a business area and sell dedicated software that they realize does not solve all their clients' needs. So they start again with Navision and custom develop a business solution that they can continue to use over and over again.

If we compare an Add-On to a Vertical, then we can see that in our example of eShip, any competent Navision partner with the proper Navision staff, after about a week of specific training on eShip can resell this Add-On and successfully implement it in their clients systems. But if we look at RMI it takes far more. The partner will surely have the technical skills, but in addition they now need a dedicated team to sell the Vertical. These people need to know how the rental business works, they must know all the in house terminology, they need to know how companies in this industry work. When a company buys a vertical solution, they are not buying code, they are getting a full business system, they expect their partner to know how they work, so much less time is spent on analysis and more teaching the client how the vertical solution works. This means of course that the solution must actually work correctly for the industry.

Think of Add-Ons as like Lego, each time you build a new system for a client you can mix and match the pieces you want. But think of a Vertical solution as a complete toy truck. Every client has the exact same toy and you specialize in knowing only that one.

If your company is planning to sell verticals, then either you need to go for very simple ones, or you need to dedicate time to working with the solutions and dedicate personnel to them.