The plant cannot stop when the ERP does
Production, quality checks, labels and shipping need to continue through ERP maintenance windows and upgrades, cloud outages and network drops, then reconcile.
Fuuz and SAP
Moving To S/4HANA? Keep The Plant Floor Running
Many SAP manufacturers are deciding where shop-floor logic should live as they move to S/4HANA. You can rebuild it in SAP Digital Manufacturing and SAP BTP, or move it to Fuuz: one platform for MES, WMS, quality and maintenance that runs between S/4HANA and your machines, keeps your ERP a clean core, and keeps running when the ERP does not.
When to consider Fuuz
Six Signs The Plant Needs Its Own Platform
You need store-and-forward at the edge
Machine data should be buffered at the gateway and forwarded when the connection returns, not lost or converted first.
Quality, maintenance and warehouse belong with execution
Running them in one platform and one data model avoids separate modules, skill sets and integration projects.
Your plants are not all on S/4HANA
Acquisitions, regional ERPs or a phased migration mean the plant floor has to work with more than one ERP.
OT and citizen developers need to build
Controls and operations teams can extend applications themselves, inside IT's guardrails, without a second development stack.
Cost has to be predictable
More sensors, more data and more plants should not mean a bigger bill on every axis.
Side by side
Two Different Architectures
SAP Digital Manufacturing is one part of a larger suite, built around S/4HANA. Fuuz is one platform that runs between any ERP and your machines. Here is how that difference shows up on the plant floor.
| Area | SAP Digital Manufacturing | Fuuz |
|---|---|---|
| Scope in one platform | Execution in SAP DM; quality, maintenance and warehouse live in separate S/4HANA modules | MES, WMS, quality, maintenance and custom applications on one platform and one data model |
| Keeps running without the ERP | Execution depends on the cloud engine; edge continuity covers SAP DM's own buffered objects for short outages | In a three-tier deployment, a full Fuuz enterprise runs at the site, so production, quality and warehouse keep working for as long as the ERP or the internet is down, then sync |
| Edge and store-and-forward | Edge buffers SAP DM transactions after they are mapped; it needs a site Kubernetes cluster | The Fuuz Gateway buffers machine data locally through network drops, with outbound-only connections |
| Real-time decisions at the line | Validation and interlock logic runs against the cloud engine | Logic can run at the site tier or the gateway, close to the equipment |
| Custom applications | Built separately on SAP BTP, in a second development stack | Built on the same platform, in the same tools, as the accelerators |
| Data model | Core model is not freely editable; custom fields are limited | Model your own entities with the native data modeling tool and ORM; everything is available through one GraphQL API |
| Who can build | Specialist skills: SAP DM, BTP, CAP or ABAP Cloud, integration | IT, OT and citizen developers, with low-code and pro-code native to the platform and bootcamps to get started |
| ERPs supported | Designed around S/4HANA | Vendor-neutral: SAP ECC, S/4HANA, Oracle, NetSuite, Plex and others, including several ERPs at once |
| Cost as you grow | Consumption-metered compute, users, messages and data on BTP | Predictable licensing that does not grow with every sensor, message or app |
Novel architecture
Why Fuuz Keeps Running When The ERP Does Not
Fuuz is deployed in tiers. Gateways connect equipment at the edge. A Fuuz enterprise can run at each site, in your data center or ours, and a central Fuuz enterprise ties the sites together. Every tier runs the same platform, so applications run where they are needed.
How long a plant can run disconnected depends on the deployment. In a two-tier (hybrid) deployment, the gateways buffer data while offline; expect 4 or more hours, depending on your implementation. In a three-tier deployment, a Fuuz enterprise runs at the site, so the plant can keep executing for as long as it needs: orders already released, quality checks, labels, inventory moves and machine data. When the connection returns, Fuuz synchronizes with the central enterprise and posts to the ERP.
The same goes for upgrades. Your ERP needs maintenance, and each of its modules has its own update cycle. Can production stop and wait for all of them? Operations cannot, so Fuuz delivers zero-downtime deployments and upgrades with blue/green releases: the new version is brought up beside the one that is running and switched over when it is ready. A 99.9% uptime figure sounds strong, but it still allows hours of downtime a year, and when minutes are dollars and the difference between making and missing a shipment, that is too much. Fuuz was designed for the needs of operations, so you can run dock to dock without planning around a maintenance window.
- Gateways buffer data locally and forward it when the connection returns
- Outbound-only connections from the plant
- Zero-downtime upgrades with blue/green deployments
- Build, QA and production environments in every deployment
Deployment tiers
Edge tierFuuz Gateways connect PLCs, machines, scales and scanners.
Site tierA Fuuz enterprise runs at the plant, so the plant runs on its own.
Central tierA central Fuuz enterprise connects sites and enterprise systems, including S/4HANA.
An honest view
When Each One Fits
SAP Digital Manufacturing may fit when
- You are standardized on S/4HANA across every plant
- You want execution tightly bound to SAP finance and logistics
- You already run a large SAP center of excellence with SAP DM and BTP skills
- Your edge needs are limited to short outages
Fuuz fits when
- Plants must keep running without the ERP or the cloud, and through upgrades
- Execution, quality, maintenance and warehouse should share one model
- You run more than one ERP, or are mid-migration
- OT and operations teams need to build and extend
- You want cost that does not climb with every sensor and app
Better together
Fuuz Alongside S/4HANA
A clean core
Keep shop-floor customizations out of the ERP. S/4HANA stays the financial and logistics system of record.
Connected through APIs
Fuuz exchanges orders, materials, inventory and confirmations with SAP ECC and S/4HANA through standard interfaces. For on-premises SAP, a Fuuz Gateway installed next to the ERP connects it to Fuuz, outbound only.
Migrate at your pace
Run Fuuz with ECC today and keep the same plant applications when you move to S/4HANA.
Supply chain visibility
Fuuz has fed real-time co-packer data into SAP Ariba for a global food and beverage brand.
Read the storyEnterprise data layer
Merz connects SAP, PAS-X and plant data through Fuuz as one source of truth.
Read the storyReference architectures
See anonymized SAP ECC and S/4HANA customer architectures.
See architecturesNot on SAP?
The Same Pattern Works With Any ERP
The ideas are not SAP-specific
A clean core, a plant that keeps running when the ERP does not, and one model across plants apply whichever ERP you run, or if you run several.
Extend any ERP on Fuuz
Keep the ERP standard and build the processes it does not cover on Fuuz, at a predictable cost.
See ERP extensionQuestions
Common Questions
We run a different ERP. Does this apply?
Yes. Fuuz works with the ERP you run, or with several, and the clean-core approach is the same. See ERP extension.
Does Fuuz replace S/4HANA?
No. Fuuz runs between S/4HANA and your machines. The ERP stays the system of record for finance and logistics; Fuuz carries execution, warehouse, quality and maintenance at the plant.
Can we run Fuuz with SAP ECC while we migrate?
Yes. Fuuz connects to SAP ECC and S/4HANA, so plant applications do not need to be rebuilt when the ERP changes.
Is Fuuz an MES?
Fuuz is the industrial platform that makes MES possible. The MES accelerator is a versioned, governed solution built on the platform, so you start from a working MES instead of from scratch, then make it whatever your plants need with app component substitution while continuing to take platform updates. Because it runs on the platform, not beside it, it shares one operational model with WMS, quality, maintenance, integrations and your own applications, without another silo or vendor dependency. Stand Fuuz up alongside a legacy or homegrown system and retire the old system one plant at a time.
Who implements Fuuz?
Qualified systems integrators deploy Fuuz, supported by the Fuuz Center of Excellence. See how we deliver.
SAP, S/4HANA, SAP BTP and SAP Digital Manufacturing are trademarks of SAP SE. Fuuz is not affiliated with SAP.
Get started
Plan Your S/4HANA Move With The Plant In Mind.
Tell us what you run today and what you need next. We will map how Fuuz fits, without ripping anything out.
Prefer to talk? Call 1-877-801-FUUZ (3889)