This article was originally published at www.mbtmag.com on August 31, 2012.
 
For a business considering a move to the cloud, it is critical to weigh customization requirements against the cloud’s affordability and ease of implementation.
 
Cloud technology is proliferating throughout corporations around the globe, and manufacturing companies have been among the earliest adopters of cloud-based solutions. According to the July 2012 IDC Manufacturing Insights report, “Business Strategy: Cloud Computing in Manufacturing”, 22% of manufacturers worldwide have already implemented cloud-based computing systems, and an additional 45% of those surveyed are actively evaluating cloud deployments to replace internally-managed IT infrastructures over the next 24 months.
 
For the large number of manufacturers considering moving to the cloud, this article will provide a clear analysis of how cloud-based systems differ in their capabilities and costs from the traditional on-premise and hosted IT alternatives.
 
Read the full article as published.