Sooner or later, senior management teams at fast-growing businesses discover just how much legacy software holds the company back:
- Accounting wastes manual efforts processing sales orders and purchase orders.
- Procurement can’t efficiently manage the supply chain.
- Manufacturing runs into production delays.
- Distribution lags on moving product into sale channels.
With all the new orders coming in, the business simply can’t keep up. That results in dissatisfied customers and prospects that don’t convert into customers.
Agile and Simple-to-Use ERP System Required
A U.S. manufacturer and distributor of home accessories found itself facing this scenario. Based in the southwestern United States, the company imports raw materials from Europe and manufactures a variety of home accessories. To support the distribution of products, the company utilizes West Coast and East Coast warehouses.
Because the company had customized its legacy Sage ERP solution running on an onsite AS/400 system, the software could not adapt to the growth of the business. To streamline business processes as product orders went through sales, manufacturing, and distribution workflows, the senior management team wanted to implement an agile and simple-to-use ERP solution.
To meet client demands and support the higher volume of transactions, the leadership team also wanted a solution that developers could easily apply changes when needed. Another requirement was smooth integration with key third-party systems—an Insight Works warehouse management system, an EDI tool, and a configurator that supports custom product designs.
Western Computer Solves the Challenge
The manufacturer turned to Western Computer to solve this challenge. We recommended Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Cloud for the base ERP system and Microsoft Power BI to generate reports on key performance indicators.
Our implementation team quickly demonstrated the ability to connect third-party products that enhance Business Central. Plus, we tailored Business Central to meet the exact needs—making sure the customer succeeded by providing the necessary technology and industry expertise.
Less Manual Work, Faster Reporting
With the new functionality provided by D365 Business Central, the customer has improved many processes. These include eliminating duplicate data entry and increasing data accuracy. Both benefits reduce the amount of time to process orders since data automatically flows across processes. Plus, end-users no longer waste time hunting down information to manually correct errors.
In addition, the manufacturer completely eliminated time-consuming manual review processes to check for errors. Managers know that once the data is in the system, it automatically updates and remains accurate across the entire order lifecycle.
And with the ability to consolidate data into one central database, the customer has improved its reporting capabilities. Thanks to the Power BI connection, the management team has visibility into all aspects of the business.
One of the key integration components is 365ContainerImport by Western Computer. This custom add-on to Business Central Cloud developed by our software experts consolidates and tracks purchase orders and inventory in containers coming from Europe. The manufacturer gets real-time updates throughout the entire transit process to plan production for when the containers will arrive.
Huge Plus Running ERP in the Cloud
It’s a huge plus to run an ERP system in the cloud. In addition to enabling all end-users to access the operational software from anywhere, the company benefits from the regular feature and function updates Microsoft installs. This means users can always tap into the latest Business Central capabilities and don’t have to wait until a future upgrade that may be years down the road.
Looking ahead, Western Computer will collaborate with the customer to implement more manufacturing features, such as projecting how long it takes to produce products and then analyzing that against the actual time. This exemplifies how the leadership team views us as a trusted advisor who will help them continue to navigate the evolving technology landscape.
To learn more about how this manufacturer facilitated company growth by deploying Dynamics 365 Business Central Cloud, check out the complete project success story. And to find out how Western Computer can deliver the same benefits to your company, contact us today.
About the Author
More Content by Amanda Sherry
