SpecPrint, Durable Decal Maker, Is Stuck on Sage 500 ERP
Customer Company Size
SME
Region
- America
Country
- United States
Product
- Sage 500 ERP
Tech Stack
- ERP System
Implementation Scale
- Enterprise-wide Deployment
Impact Metrics
- Cost Savings
- Productivity Improvements
Technology Category
- Functional Applications - Enterprise Resource Planning Systems (ERP)
Applicable Functions
- Discrete Manufacturing
Use Cases
- Manufacturing System Automation
- Inventory Management
Services
- System Integration
About The Customer
SpecPrint, Inc. is a family-owned company that has been in operation for almost 60 years. The company has cornered a unique niche market—manufacturing long-lasting adhesive labels. The decals that identify vacuum cleaners such as Kirbys come from SpecPrint. So do the labels on Murray lawnmowers, Champion oil filters, and numerous big-name household appliances. The company's high-quality silk-screened decals go on everything from tiny insulator labels for power lines to enormous control panels with operating instructions for heavy machinery. Utilizing substrates from paper to polycarbonates, SpecPrint can do just about any printing project. High-end nameplates are printed in reverse on a polycarbonate subsurface, then laminated with an adhesive on top of the ink, making the end-product practically indestructible. The company is based in Mt. Juliet, Tennessee and has 80 employees.
The Challenge
SpecPrint, Inc. had been running its accounting on an AS/400-based package for years. However, the system had a major drawback as it couldn’t handle “coproduct” manufacturing—when two products are made from a single order. This was a significant issue for SpecPrint as many of their products, such as lawn mower hood decals, often consist of mirror-image versions for either side of the mower. These need to be tracked as separate part numbers yet manufactured from the same order. The weaknesses of the legacy system resulted in constant overages and duplicate shipping. The final straw came when the vendor stopped supporting the product. SpecPrint needed a replacement that was PC-based, integrated all manufacturing, inventory, and accounting functions, and most importantly, provided coproduct management.
The Solution
SpecPrint chose Sage 500 ERP as it met all their requirements. The system is used to receive raw materials, compare Purchase Order data information with the Accounts Payable voucher, and set up routings for production. When a customer puts in an order and sends artwork, the system delivers data to the scheduler and transfers instructions to the shop floor. Labor, material, and overhead costs are applied to the job at hand for accurate job costing, which results in increased profitability. Parts are tracked as they go into inventory and shipping, where Sage 500 ERP generates invoices. The Material Requirements Planning (MRP) module automates the function of reordering raw materials for more accurate replenishment.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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