Small and mid-sized businesses that require more than basic finance and inventory quickly encounter limits with entry-level ERP. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Premium is the cloud ERP tier tailored for SMBs needing built-in manufacturing and service management—alongside robust finance, supply chain, and project accounting. In short: Premium encompasses everything in Essentials, plus full production and service modules to manage end-to-end operations in one system. Microsoft reports that Business Central customers have achieved month-end close times that are up to 400% faster and financial reporting that is up to 5x quicker, highlighting its significant impact on agility and decision-making. With cloud deployment, native Microsoft 365 integration, and extensibility via Power Platform, Premium offers a viable path to scalable, modern ERP. The following blog highlights 7 essential features included in Business Central premium and how these are beneficial for SMBs.
Dynamics 365 Business Central Premium Features
1. Manufacturing Capabilities
Business Central Premium’s manufacturing module includes integrated tools for managing production orders, bills of material (BOM), work and machine centers, capacity planning, and shop-floor tracking within a single cloud ERP. These capabilities make Premium an outstanding choice for product-centric SMBs that require agile planning and precise cost control.
Core manufacturing functions:
- Production order management: Create, schedule, and track production orders with material and routing requirements.
- Bills of material management: Maintain multi-level BOMs with version control and component substitutions.
- Capacity and resource planning: Balance workload across work centers, sequence operations, and reduce bottlenecks.
- Work centers and machine center operations: Define routings, labor, and machine times for accurate throughput and costing.
- Shop floor data collection and traceability: Record consumption, output, and scrap; trace lots/serials end-to-end.
Premium includes production orders, bills of material, work centers, and manufacturing planning not available in Essentials.
2. Service Management Tools
In ERP terms, service management encompasses service contracts, repair job scheduling, field service orders, and after-sales support. Business Central Premium offers an advanced service suite specifically designed for service-centric SMBs.
What you can do:
- Service order creation and tracking: Log requests, prioritize, and track SLAs from intake to resolution.
- Service contract and warranty management: Manage entitlements, warranties, and recurring service billing.
- Resource scheduling and dispatch: Assign technicians, plan workloads, and optimize on-site visits.
- Field service ticket/repair workflows: Standardize diagnostics, parts usage, approvals, and invoicing.
Premium supports service contracts, repair schedules, and service ticket management, enabling SMBs to streamline post-sale support, maintain uptime for customers, and unlock recurring revenue with contract-based services.
3. Finance and Accounting Functions
Finance and accounting functionality in Business Central covers the general ledger, accounts receivable/payable, bank reconciliation, and period-end closing. It serves as the backbone of both Essentials and Premium, with Premium providing deeper integration into manufacturing and service costing.
Out-of-the-box finance in Premium:
- General ledger management: Multi-entity, multi-currency GL with dimensions for granular analysis.
- Invoicing, AR, and AP automation: Streamline billing, collections, vendor payments, and approvals.
- Cash flow and bank account management: Forecast and reconcile cash with automated bank feeds.
- Budgeting and periodic financial close: Accelerate close with templates, allocations, and automated postings.
Many SMBs report significantly faster closes—up to 400%—and up to 5x faster reporting when consolidating processes with Dynamics 365 business central partner. With Premium, inventory, WIP, and service costs flow seamlessly into financials, enhancing margin visibility and auditability.
4. Inventory and Supply Chain Management
Inventory and supply chain management involves tracking, replenishing, and optimizing stock across warehouses, sales, and procurement. Business Central Premium centralizes this data, ensuring decisions and fulfillment remain synchronized.
Key functions:
- Centralized inventory tracking and valuation: Real-time visibility by location, lot/serial, and cost method.
- Automated replenishment and order generation: Use demand forecasts and reorder policies to minimize stockouts.
- Warehouse receipt and shipment processing: Standardize inbound/outbound, picks/put-aways, and transfers.
- Supply order fulfillment across channels: Align sales, ecommerce, and field-service parts from the same inventory.
5. Project Management Features
Project management features in Business Central integrate job costing, resource allocation, task assignments, time entry, and revenue recognition—ideal for consulting, construction, agencies, and other project-based SMBs.
What’s included:
- Project/job costing and budgeting: Track estimates vs. actuals, WIP, and profitability per job or phase.
- Resource and task tracking: Assign teams, manage utilization, and align capacity to timelines.
- Automated revenue recognition: Recognize revenue by milestones, percentage complete, or time and materials.
- Time and expense capture: Record time/expenses on the web or mobile; seamlessly flow through to billing and P&L.
Compared to standalone tools, Premium’s native project features tie directly to purchasing, inventory, and financials—providing one source of truth for scope, costs, and billing.
6. Microsoft Ecosystem Integration
Ecosystem integration means that ERP data and workflows connect natively with Microsoft 365 (Excel, Outlook, Teams), Power Platform (Power BI, Power Apps, Power Automate), and AI tools like Copilot—plus secure Azure AD login for single sign-on.
High-impact integrations:
- Excel: Export and edit lists or journals, then publish back to ERP to accelerate reconciliations.
- Power BI: Embed interactive dashboards in Business Central for role-based insights.
- Outlook: Create quotes and orders from emails; sync contacts and customer data automatically.
Business Central integrates seamlessly with Microsoft 365, Power BI, and Teams, fostering efficient workflows and enhancing reporting capabilities.
Integration options (examples)
|
Area |
Native Integration |
Custom Connector Scenario |
|
Reporting |
Embedded Power BI workspaces |
Dataflows to a lakehouse or custom models |
|
Productivity |
Outlook and Teams add-ins |
Specialized calendaring or routing add-ons |
|
Apps/Automation |
Power Apps/Power Automate with BC connector |
Complex, multi-system orchestration |
7. Extensibility, Cloud Deployment, and Updates
A SaaS deployment hosts ERP in the cloud for automatic updates and elastic scaling. Extensibility means adding or customizing functionality with modular extensions that maintain upgrade paths—avoiding brittle code forks.
Key benefits for SMBs:
- Cloud deployment with automatic, Microsoft-managed updates, reducing maintenance overhead and ensuring you’re current on features and security.
- Extensibility via Power Platform apps and AppSource add-ons for industry-specific requirements—without disrupting future upgrades.
- Flexible deployment options (cloud, on-premises, or hybrid) are supported, providing organizations with a path that meets compliance and IT strategy.
Best practices for upgrade-safe customization:
- Favor extensions over code customizations; keep changes modular and well-documented.
- Utilize standard APIs and the Business Central connector for integrations.
- Establish AL coding guidelines and CI/CD for extensions.
- Limit changes to the data model; leverage dimensions and configuration first.
- Schedule update “sandboxes” to test extensions before each release wave.
Implement Business Central Premium with Folio3
Folio3 is a trusted Microsoft partner focused on SMB digital transformation. Our teams implement Dynamics 365 Business Central Premium end-to-end—migrating data, configuring manufacturing and service modules, and integrating with Microsoft 365 and Power Platform for clear ROI. If you’re comparing Business Central Essential vs. Premium, Premium is clearly the superior choice when you need integrated production and service workflows—without relying on third-party tools or custom spreadsheets.
We collaborate quickly: discovery to map value streams, rapid prototyping to validate processes, iterative deployment to minimize disruption, and enablement to enhance adoption. Whether you’re implementing production orders and capacity planning, standardizing field service dispatch, or embedding Power BI across roles, we align Premium’s capabilities with your goals—so finance, operations, and customer teams work seamlessly on the same cloud ERP.
Conclusion
Business Central Premium provides SMBs with the manufacturing and service depth they need—plus unified finance, inventory, projects, and Microsoft-first integration—to scale confidently. Ready to evaluate fit, pricing, and an implementation roadmap tailored to your processes? Connect with Folio3’s Business Central experts today.
Business Central Premium FAQs
What is the difference between Business Central Essentials and Premium licenses?
Business Central Essentials includes core finance, sales, purchasing, and inventory functions, while Premium adds advanced manufacturing and service management modules for organizations requiring comprehensive operations management.
How does Business Central Premium support manufacturing SMBs?
Business Central Premium provides dedicated manufacturing tools like production orders, bills of material, and capacity planning, enabling SMBs to automate and manage their production processes within a unified cloud ERP.
Can Business Central Premium integrate with other Microsoft applications?
Yes, Business Central Premium integrates natively with Microsoft 365, Power BI, Teams, and other Microsoft tools, allowing for seamless workflows and improved reporting capabilities.
What are the typical implementation considerations for SMBs adopting Business Central Premium?
SMBs should prepare for subscription licensing, project-based implementation costs, data migration, and user training, often collaborating with a Microsoft partner to ensure a smooth rollout.
How does cloud deployment benefit SMBs using Business Central Premium?
Cloud deployment offers SMBs automatic updates, reduced IT infrastructure costs, easy scalability, and remote access to vital business data at any time.
