SUCCESS STORIES

LEVERAGING SYSPRO TO BOOST OPERATIONAL EFFICIENCIES

The following are indicative of the ways in which SYSPRO ERP software is enabling SMB manufacturers and distributors to boost operational efficiencies and successfully compete with the largest firms in their respective industries:

Higginson Equipment, a Burlington, Ontario, Canada -based manufacturer of pneumatic and hydraulic NFPA-style cylinders and a distributor of fluid power and industrial product lines, reports that SYSPRO software has enabled the company to boost productivity by approximately 30 percent and enhance competitive industry positioning while maintaining the same employee head count.

Higginson installed SYSPRO ERP software in 2009 to replace outdated, incumbent software and help the company ride out the effects of the current economic recession. In addition, the company felt that a new, integrated ERP solution would enable it to fully leverage future opportunities.

According to Higginson Equipment President Bill Allan, SYSPRO software has enabled the company to automate numerous functions, maximize order desk efficiency via utilization of the SYSPRO Product Configurator and facilitate the integration of office productivity tools, such as Microsoft Outlook, electronic faxing and remote connectivity.

"SYSPRO has made us much more efficient," says Allan. "We used to have to do an Excel spread sheet for every job and calculate cut-lengths of different materials. Now we just put the model number in, and SYSPRO calculates everything for us . . . . I would definitely recommend SYSPRO to any manufacturer."

Honest Tea, headquartered in Bethesda, Md., USA, makes a variety of ready-to-drink bottled organic teas, thirst quenchers and drink pouches sold in tens of thousands of stores across the US. The company, which is 40% owned by Coca Cola, now employs 98 individuals and expects to report close to $50 million in revenues for its latest fiscal year.

Honest Tea reports it has slashed inventory levels by more than 50% thanks to the combination of astute management aided by real-time inventory data and greater forecasting accuracy from its SYSPRO ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) software implementation. According to CFO Jonathan Clark, SYSPRO software lets the company know how much raw materials it has on hand at any point in time as well as enabling it to more precisely forecast production levels. These elements are particularly critical, notes Clark, as Honest Tea outsources all manufacturing to co-manufacturers or co-packers, providing each with the raw materials and recipes to make the teas, Honest Tea chose SYSPRO software in 2007 after an extensive software search. Clark simply states, "SYSPRO fit our needs. We're going to be a $200 to $250 million company, and we needed software that could handle that volume. SYSPRO does have a great track record, and SYSPRO has room for growth." He adds that the local SYSPRO reseller was also a key factor in the company's choice of SYSPRO. "We gave them a lot of questions, and they always came to us with answers and solutions," he says.

Piolax, based in Lancashire, UK, is part of a global group of companies which manufactures and supplies plastic fasteners for the car manufacturing industry. Piolax customers include BMW, Nissan, Toyota and Honda. Since implementing SYSPRO ERP with Advanced Planning & Scheduling (APS), Piolax has gained full visibility of its production processes, accessible management information and a platform for its expanding business. The SYSPRO tailored solution incorporates shop floor data capture (SFDC), using mobile devices to assist with managing and monitoring production progress.

The cutting-edge Piolax installation was specifically designed to support a streamlined manufacturing and supply process. Customers place orders with the Sales & Distribution division, and these are transferred overnight to Manufacturing. Some of these are EDI orders while others are entered manually into the system. The orders trigger the MRP function to create the demand.

SYSPRO transmits this to the APS module which interrogates data and produces the production plan. From here a work order is generated that contains all the production information and barcode labels for the items.

The SYSPRO solution incorporates features such as mobile computing for shop floor data capture and communication. This capability keeps SYSPRO updated by logging exactly what is happening on the shop floor. Using wireless handheld computers with integrated laser scanners, operators simply scan the instruction on the works orders for the various operations they must perform for each job. This is done as they start and finish each stage of production.

The scanned information is transmitted back to the system, verifying each stage. This is displayed on large screens and uses 'traffic lights' to indicate the exact status of each plastic molding machine. For example, as soon as a job is complete the machine operator scans the bar-coded works order to register that the task is finished. Should there be a production issue, such as a machine breakdown, the operator also scans a barcode. This automatically signals a 'stop' and registers a red traffic light on the screen which signals the maintenance team into action to fix the machine.

Piolax reports that the quality of the information provided by the system is generating much interest from other Piolax sites around the world.

Frontline Australasia manufactures precision components and assemblies for the automotive and defense industries. With revenues of approximately AUD$50 million annually, the company provides full design and engineering services using the latest CAD design and modeling systems. Its high-tech specialized equipment is shipped to customers locally and internationally to countries including New Zealand, Malaysia and Canada.

More recently, the company has begun moving into a third niche with the manufacture and commercialization of a new seamless titanium pipe technology developed by CSIRO. Capable of being manufactured for approximately 25% of the cost of comparable pipes, Frontline's management is confident that the new venture will have strong global potential.

Operating across a total of 15 production lines, all Frontline products are manufactured to Australian or internationally recognized standards, and the company has a consistent record in meeting quality and schedule requirements.

The ability of SYSPRO to integrate data across the company has helped to increase productivity among the company's administrative staff by around 20% due to easier user interfaces and a reduction in the time it takes to generate and interrogate data. In addition the ability of SYSPRO ERP to accurately report costing enables the company to analyze the profitability of particular products. Greater accuracy has also been introduced into the company's overseas international activities through new multi-currency capabilities which automate previous manual calculations.

Originally established as an agricultural co-operation, Tuinroete Agri registered as a private company in 1997. Today, the company continues to serve the agricultural community in the southern Cape and Langkloof regions of South Africa. Tuinroete Agri is represented in 19 locations which include retail and manufacturing operations.

Tuinroete Agri provides a wide range of products and services ranging from agricultural products to home-baked goods. The company has also increased its retail activities in larger towns to include liquor stores, paint outlets and filling stations.

Tuinroete Agri demanded highly specific functionality from its business solution. Its retail and trading activities required a sophisticated Point of Sales (POS) solution capable of handling more than 5000 transactions a day. Given the geographical distribution of the various sites, the POS solution also needed to function offline should WAN connectivity be lost. Furthermore, it had to integrate with the forecourt management system used for fuel sales.

With more than 53 000 item numbers linked to over 70 warehouses, Tuinroete Agri had complex requirements in terms of sales price management, stock-takes, inventory movements and tracking. Tuinroete Agri also decided to centralize procurement as part of its system implementation. The wide range of products and different locations also required a unique approach to scheduled replenishment.

In addition to the financial services, Tuinroete Agri functions as a broker for various insurance products aimed at its customer base. The volume of transactions necessitates sophisticated automatic bank reconciliation as well as an automatic supplier reconciliation.

Tuinroete Agri's To-Be business process for material planning was driven by the need for central purchasing. Today, SYSPRO Dashboards are used to facilitate the planning of the large number of Stock-Keeping Units (SKUs). The solution also facilitates the management of stock between the branches.

Requisitions for all purchases are created by the SYSPRO solution from the material planning process and ad-hoc by users for stock and non-stock purchases. Requisitions are created using a concept of 'model stock'. The inventory solution focuses on stock-takes for the large number of SKUs. A process for the creation of new stock codes is also supported. The management of sales prices up to the printing of barcode and shelf labels is incorporated in the solution.

Tuinroete Agri manufactures various feed products, either on contract or for its own stock. Today, the production control process is standard SYSPRO, while the storage process is facilitated via scripting and dashboards within SYSPRO.