Why Are We Still Talking About MES–ERP Integration?

Every few months, I still come across discussions about how to integrate MES and ERP. And every time, I find myself asking: why are we still talking about this?

It’s a bit like asking whether a boat floats. The answer is obvious—yes, it does. The real question is where is it going and why are we on it?

Integration Isn’t the Problem

Let’s be clear: integration between MES and ERP is not new, nor is it unsolved. For decades, manufacturers have been connecting these systems to exchange the information that keeps their operations running. I challenge you—have you ever heard of an MES system that couldn’t integrate to ERP?

The technology is there. APIs, middleware, standardized data models, cloud-native platforms—the tools have only gotten better. Integration is no longer the hard part.

As I wrote in an earlier post "About Accountants and Production", ERP and MES have always been about different things. ERP is designed for financial management (order-to-cash) - transactions, costs, compliance, reporting. MES is built for the shop floor—real-time visibility, control, and execution. Each system has its domain. Integration ensures they don’t talk past each other.

But the value doesn’t come from whether or not you can connect the two. It comes from what you do with that connection.

From Technical to Value-Driven

When integration conversations remain technical—what middleware to use, which API calls to expose—we miss the bigger picture.

The true conversation should be:

• What processes, operations and decisions do we want to improve?
• What outcomes are we aiming to achieve?
• What value will the integration unlock for the business?

For example, integrating to have a streamlines and effective work order execution from ERP to MES is not valuable because the two systems are connected. It’s valuable because it eliminates manual re-entry, reduces errors, speeds up production scheduling, and ensures financial systems reflect operational reality in near real time.

Integration is the means. Value is the end.

Enter the Age of Digital and AI

We’re well into the era of digital, transformation is ongoing and constant, and AI in manufacturing is becoming a reality. Advanced analytics, machine learning, digital twins, and agentic AI are reshaping how operations are managed and humans work. Against that backdrop, spending time debating MES–ERP integration feels outdated.

The real opportunity is to ask: how do these systems, together, create the digital backbone that enables AI to bring operational insights that deliver business value?

ERP knows the plan. MES knows what actually happened. AI thrives when it can see both and spot patterns across them—optimizing schedules, predicting disruptions, and suggesting interventions. That’s the conversation worth having.

Time to Move On

So let’s put this to rest: MES and ERP can integrate. They do integrate. The technical questions have answers.

The real debate—the one that matters in the age of digital and AI—is about value. How do we design our digital architectures, processes, and cultures so that integration serves as the foundation for smarter, faster, and more agile manufacturing? Shift the focus from can we integrate? to what value will the integration deliver?