Microsoft Dynamics AX Team Unveils 2013 Feature Packs for Warehouse, Transportation, Mobility

In an hour-long Microsoft Dynamics Convergence 2013 general session, Dynamics ERP managers revealed more of the product's upcoming release plans including 2013 feature packs for warehousing, transportation, and mobility and a 2014 major release.  Dynamics AX General Manager Christian Pedersen led led a lively presentation that found current customers sharing their stories and several Microsoft executives and developers discussing how far AX has come over the last few years and what users can expect from the solution in the near term.

Hal Howard, corporate vice president of ERP research and development at Microsoft, walked attendees through AX's progress over the last three years, noting that AX 2012 R2 contained "the same amount of innovation of AX 2009 as a whole," despite the fact that the former was developed and released within just 15 months. "We want something new for customers every year," said Howard, "and we're averaging a new release every nine months right now."

The next round of features for Dynamics AX this year will be delivered in a feature pack with new functionality for warehousing, transportation, and mobility, Howard revealed.  Kees Hertogh, director of product management for Dynamics AX, said customers looking for deeper warehousing functionality (including RFID capabilities), demand planning, shared services, accounting and budget planning, and mobile apps for both phone and tablet (including POS), will be interested in the 2013 update.

In terms of shared services, for example, Hertogh said Microsoft has been investing in the area since 2009 and currently expanding AX's capabilities along those lines. Users will also be able to leverage apps, several of which (including expense, scheduling, and timesheets), were demonstrated live for session attendees. According to Howard, AX users won't need "a $100,000 extranet to leverage these new tools," all of which will ...