Due to increasing competitive pressure, many small manufacturing enterprises (SMEs) are considering COTS software technology improvements to increase productivity. However, SMEs are generally not as prepared to bring COTS software technology into their company as are medium and large organizations. SMEs face unique COTS issues due to organizational constraints, limited interaction with vendors and a passive role (in terms of technology and business process) in the manufacturing supply chain. This report describes these unique SME COTS software challenges as observed in several hands-on technology demonstrations conducted over a two-year period as part of the SEI Technology Insertion Demonstration amp; Evaluation (TIDE) program.