RTI Hotel Supply, Inc. has been providing specialized procurement services to the hospitality industry since 1989. The company focuses primarily on the Caribbean and Latin American marketplace and has built a solid reputation as a single-source provider of high-quality products. A second division builds customized hotel furnishings including vanities, casework, and seating. The company had relied on Sage 300 as its accounting and distribution software, but had neglected to update the software for several years. Rapid growth, including the opening of several international offices, ultimately prompted the company to invest in its technology infrastructure and to update its system to the most current level.

Hoya Vision Care of the Americas was constrained by an aging legacy application written by its parent company in Japan. The system was no longer capable of supporting the company’s fast-growing transaction volumes. The team was limited to creating only 100 invoices per day and required a new system that could handle an unlimited number of transactions, customers, and pricing options. They were seeking a more user-friendly system that could automate processes that were controlled by Excel® spreadsheets. Additionally, they were seeking a warehousing application that would enable them to increase their capacity and speed, provide better physical procedure control, and be tweaked to fit their specific business needs.

ABC Compounding, Inc., a specialty chemical manufacturer of industrial cleaning supplies, was facing challenges with its existing ERP software, ProcessPro. The software had become undersized and lacked key functionality needed to meet the company’s growing demands. The company needed planning, scheduling, and Material Requirements Planning (MRP) features, which were lacking in their previous ERP software. They needed a scalable, fully integrated, enterprise solution that was easily adaptable to their requirements.

North Bend Medical Center (NBMC) was struggling with a manual, spreadsheet-based system to track HR and payroll data for its employees. The system was inefficient and could not tie HR and payroll data together, making it difficult to keep up with the ever-changing employee information. The management team often had to wait for information such as the number of sick days an employee had left or how much they had contributed to their 401(k) plan. The company urgently needed a better system to process these requests in a timely and accurate manner.

S & S Hinge Company, a family-owned industrial hinge manufacturer, was seeking ways to boost efficiency, speed production, and lower costs to drive growth and profitability. The company was using three disconnected applications to manage its accounting, manufacturing, and quoting tasks. This disjointed system was inefficient and did not support the company's lean manufacturing initiative. The company needed a single, integrated solution that could handle all these tasks seamlessly. The challenge was to find a solution that could replace the three legacy systems, streamline operations, and support the company's lean manufacturing objectives.

Yard House Restaurants, an upscale eatery chain, was facing challenges due to its rapid expansion. The company had outgrown its original QuickBooks package by the time it expanded to a second restaurant. The operations became more dispersed, making it difficult for the IT staff to set up and maintain business systems in remote locations in several states. The company needed a solution that could handle its growing needs and provide centralized control over its operations.

Amfit, a company that fabricates custom orthotic insoles and footwear and sells patented manufacturing equipment, was struggling with its business software. The company was using separate packages for basic accounting, inventory, and bill of materials, which resulted in a lot of manual work. General ledger entries had to be converted manually and the shipping process was slow and inefficient. The company was in desperate need of a fully automated and integrated system.

Nashville Wire Products was using a highly customized version of ProfitKey, an ERP and manufacturing application. The system proved to be costly to maintain and support, and it was difficult to obtain data and operating metrics from it. The technology was old and cumbersome and not nimble enough to support their fast-paced operation. An internal project team analyzed available options, including Sage 500 ERP, Microsoft Dynamics AX, and Microsoft Dynamics NV. They selected Sage 500 ERP for many reasons, including the more intuitive interface and strong business partner support it offered.

Krier & Blain, a HVAC and plumbing contractor based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, was facing challenges with their old, inadequate system. The company was in need of a smarter, faster, low maintenance business solution that could help maximize efficiency and profitability. The existing system was not meeting the company's needs in terms of speed, ease of use, and functionality. The company was looking for a solution that could streamline data access and entry, provide precise job costing capabilities, and improve operational efficiency.

Monarch Computer Systems, a direct supplier of computer systems and related products, experienced a significant increase in sales due to the rise of e-commerce in 1999. The company capitalized on over 80,000 discrete web transactions in a single year. However, their existing Sage 50—U.S. Edition system was not equipped to handle this surge in online sales. Monarch needed a software system that could match its business model, provide excellent management reporting, and improve process flow and integrity of the overall information flow.

Smart Inventions, a company that sells household cleaning products, was facing a challenge with its outdated Novell system. The DOS-based network was losing data, limiting the number of simultaneous users, and was not easily expandable to handle the volume of orders the company was processing. The company was processing up to 4,000 orders a day and the system was not able to keep up with the demand. Additionally, the company had five different divisions, each with different commissions, pricing, and royalties, which added to the complexity of the situation.

Workspace Commercial Furniture, a respected name in quality Australian furniture, was struggling with its business systems. The company was using an antiquated UNIX-based accounting system that was slow, error-prone, and required programmers’ time to create reports. Moreover, its sales operations were run manually, which was inefficient and required triplicate data entry. The company was looking for a new solution that was ultraflexible, especially in reporting options. It also wanted an end-to-end system with sophisticated financial analysis and customer relationship management capabilities.

Wiseco Piston, Inc., a world leader in high-performance aftermarket pistons, was using a proprietary business software that predated PC technology. The software was not integrated, could not provide up-to-date reports, and prevented offering online services. The company was in need of a system that was designed for midsized companies, addressed manufacturing and distribution operations, and was backed by a respected name. The company also needed a system that could help it comply with Sarbanes-Oxley regulations.

The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA) was struggling with separate nonintegrated systems for various parts of its business. It was difficult to extract information from these systems and impossible to integrate data from the museum’s diverse operations. With a budget topping $30 million, every penny must be accounted for. The museum needed an advanced financial solution that could manage the diverse information integration needs, reporting, and distribution requirements of a $30 million operation.

Xtrac, Inc., a leading provider of high-performance transmissions for top motorsport teams, was facing a challenge with its initial Sage BusinessWorks accounting system. The company had expanded its business lines, adding NHRA, GrandAm, Motocross, and other lines, which led to the outgrowing of its initial accounting system within just one year. The company needed a more robust system to manage its financials, including customer orders, invoicing, parts ordering, tracking and reporting back orders, inventory control, paying vendors, cutting checks, and accounts receivable and collections.

Onsrud Cutter, a router bit manufacturer, was faced with a challenge when its application service provider (ASP) stopped supporting its manufacturing software. The company needed to find a new source for manufacturing software within a short period of time. To make the challenge even more daunting, Onsrud decided to replace its entire enterprise information system in that same time. The team wanted a system that would be quick to install yet have the scalability and flexibility to support company growth. The problem was that with most enterprise software, high flexibility and quick installation are mutually exclusive.

Two years ago, Kerry Thornhill joined Colgin as CEO and vice president of marketing with a clear and ambitious vision. He wanted to transform the company’s perceived image in the retail trade from a small mom-and-pop operation to a large, dynamic, manufacturing firm. He dreamed of setting Colgin apart from the competition through technological sophistication and possibly even expanding to international markets. This would require embracing the latest software available at all levels so that Colgin could deliver added value to its customers. At the same time Thornhill hoped to improve communications with retail channels and offer all the services of a larger firm, including 24-hour customer support and service, seven days a week. With fewer than 20 employees, this was next to impossible using traditional methods.

Data Cable Corporation, a custom data and voice cable configuration firm, was facing an enormous volume of invoices and increasingly complicated inventory requirements as it grew. The company had been using Sage 50—U.S. Edition, an accounting package that was well-suited for the company’s early years. However, as the company expanded, it discovered that it had maxed out its accounting system. The company needed to upgrade to a fully automated, mature business solution that could handle exponential increases in volume and manage complex inventory demands.

Russell Sigler, Inc., a leading wholesaler of heating and air-conditioning products, was facing the challenge of managing its growing operations and increasing market presence. The company was undergoing a major expansion, more than doubling its revenues and employee count, and adding 25 additional locations. The company required a robust, scalable solution that could handle all aspects of its busy distribution operation, including supply chain management, forecasting tools, and point of sale functionality. The company's multi-site environment posed strategic challenges because all branches were closely intertwined from a supply and demand standpoint. The company continually transfers inventory between sites to help satisfy local customer needs, so it is common for a branch to pull inventory from another branch’s stock.

Quality Imaging Products (QIP) wanted to differentiate itself from its competitors in the world of e-commerce. The company was looking for a solution that would allow it to manage all operations, including manufacturing half a million toner cartridges a year, tracking 100 different product lines, managing an inventory of over 40,000 cartridges, and running a 30,000 square-foot state-of-the-art warehouse. The company was also looking for a way to streamline its shipping operations and automate the process of handling returned merchandise.

Swing-N-Slide, a leading manufacturer of wooden outdoor playground equipment, recognized the need for a robust financial system to handle its growth and improve sales to 'big box' stores and consumers. The company had been using Sage 100 ERP software as its backbone for nearly a decade. However, the company faced challenges in automating its business systems to handle growth and offer Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and online commerce to improve sales. Major trading partners insisted on their vendors communicating through an EDI. For five years, Swing-N-Slide used an integrated third-party module, written specifically for Sage 100 ERP, that facilitated transactions with its 20 largest customers.

Blount Fine Foods switched to Sage ERP X3 in 2006 when it became apparent that its legacy system could not support the company’s growing operations. The previous system had limited process manufacturing capabilities so formulas, recipes, and work orders were managed in a Microsoft Access database. Compounding the problem, only a few people had the ability to access the data. The company evaluated several solutions, but found most to be overly complex with high maintenance and overhead costs. “We wanted a system that could manage our business, be installed easily, and was scalable,” adds Pitzer. “Sage ERP X3 meets all of our requirements. It offers strong process manufacturing capabilities, provides an integrated development environment, and comes at an attractive price point.”

Avmor Ltd., a family-owned company that manufactures and distributes quality cleaning products, was relying on a legacy software system that had exceeded its useful life. The system was not based on Microsoft Windows and was heavily customized, making it expensive to maintain. It also lacked Material Requirements Planning (MRP) capabilities, and reporting was always a struggle. Avmor launched a comprehensive search for a new fully integrated advanced manufacturing and distribution enterprise software solution.

CFM Equipment Distributors, Inc., a HVAC wholesaler based in Sacramento, California, was looking to expand its business without adding staff in customer service. The company wanted to leverage e-commerce to achieve this goal. They needed a solution that would allow their customers to check real-time inventory across their warehouses and place orders online. The company was also looking for a solution that was easy to implement and use.

Creation Entertainment, a memorabilia retailer and event promoter, was facing a challenge with its online sales and fulfillment process. The company's e-commerce system was poorly designed, leading to sluggish online sales and lengthy fulfillment times. The system was a mishmash of HTML screens that brought in email orders, which were then manually entered into a low-level bookkeeping package. This process was time-consuming and inefficient, taking up to three weeks just to input orders and as long as 16 weeks to fulfill orders when new products were introduced.

CHIN Radio, a pioneer in multicultural radio broadcasting, was looking to update its accounting system. The company wanted a modern, flexible solution that could interface with its advertising revenue application. The company was concerned about the migration of data from its legacy system to the new one, and wanted to ensure that it would have access to both historical and current financial data from the start. The company also wanted to eliminate costly data entry time and the errors associated with manual entry.

The Grand Beach Hotel, a luxury hotel in Miami Beach, was in need of a financial and reporting solution. The hotel initially considered proprietary software designed specifically for hotel accounting, but found it to be nearly twice the cost of Sage 300 and didn't offer any additional benefits. Microsoft Dynamics GP was also considered but was deemed overly complex for the hotel's needs. The hotel wanted a system that was easy to learn, easy to use, and could deliver core accounting functionality, remote access capabilities, flexible reporting, and scalability at a competitive price point.

Fairmont Raffles Hotels International (FRHI) is a leading global hotel company with more than 70 hotels under the Fairmont, Raffles, and Swissôtel brands. The company’s business model centers around the design, development, and management of hotels for the properties’ owners. FRHI sought a reliable, flexible, and cost-effective solution that could be deployed globally and serve as the financial backbone of each individual hotel and the centralized database for its corporate offices. The company needed a system that could adapt to different sizes of hotels, from a 1,000-room resort to a 150-room hotel. The system also needed to be reliable and affordable, with no single point of failure, and flexible enough to integrate with other applications.

Ready Mix USA, a dominant player in the construction industry in the Southeast, was experiencing rapid and sustained growth. The company had been using Sage 100 Advanced ERP for years, but as the company expanded and the number of users increased to 160 across 29 separate company codes, the need for a more robust and scalable ERP solution became apparent. The company was also looking to standardize item numbers and deduplicate its customer database, which had become cluttered due to acquisitions and expanding operations.

Mercy Health Plans (MHP) was struggling with an unreliable, labor-intensive accounting package that lacked substantial analysis and reporting capabilities. The balance sheets wouldn't balance, transactions didn't add up on the general ledger report, and system crashes were frequent. There was no audit trail for consolidated reports, as data had to be entered manually into a series of spreadsheets. The lack of reliability was very frustrating for the MHP team. They needed a solution that was 100 percent dependable, with greater functionality plus a complete range of intercompany capabilities.