Case Study: Solid State Supplies
"Mysoft's Document Management Centre
has far exceeded our expectations. As the implementation progressed we realised that
in addition to our original requirements, the Mysoft solution would provide numerous other valuable, cost-saving benefits."
Matt Cook, Business Development Manager, Solid State Supplies Ltd
Solid State Supplies Ltd
Solid State Supplies Ltd is a leading value added distributor for the electronics OEM community in UK and Ireland. The company focuses on the military / aerospace, medical, industrial and energy market sectors. Founded in 1971, Solid State Supplies is part of the Solid State Plc. Group. The Group has an annual turnover of £21 million (March 2011) and employs 120 staff. Solid State Supplies offers outstanding levels of technical and commercial support, assisting their overseas suppliers in developing the UK market.
The Challenge
With the explosion of the internet in recent years, Solid State Supplies' legacy system was not able to provide the functionality now expected by staff and customers alike. The production and distribution of despatch notes and invoices was costly, inflexible and incredibly time consuming. The company also needed to end its reliance on their dot matrix printers which were becoming unreliable and expensive to maintain.
"Each month 400-500 invoices needed to be printed, folded, put into envelopes and posted. Not only was this incredibly expensive in terms of stationery and postage, but it was also very time consuming and not very environmentally friendly!"
The challenge presented to Mysoft was to provide a solution which would automate document production, facilitate electronic document delivery and be compatible with the existing back office system.
The Solution
The project implementation took place over a one month period and was incredibly straight forward as the set-up did not require any additional hardware. The process is now standardised. DMC looks at the spoolers, recognises the type of document then captures the document and emails it to the relevant contact.
As the implementation progressed it became apparent to Matt Cook that Mysoft's DMC would bring additional, valuable features which Solid State Supplies had not originally requested.
DMC enables changes to be made to the document format - logos, terms and conditions or type face could be updated as and when required. DMC also facilitates the automated production and distribution via email of internal reports.
The efficiency of Solid State Supplies' purchasing procedure has also improved since the implementation of DMC. Previously all purchase order forms were pre-printed, hand-written and then typed into word to be emailed. DMC now generates a purchase order system whereby the order is entered directly and the purchase order is generated automatically.
With increasing business levels over recent times, Solid State Supplies has had increasing pressures on storage space. Previously they had needed to maintain large areas in order to store and file a hard copy of all paperwork. The implementation of DMC now means that documents can be archived month by month onto a CD.
A number of customers had requested that their despatch notes be barcoded. Solid State Supplies were keen to address this customer requirement and Mysoft was able to assist. The Mysoft solution enables text to be turned into a bar code and included on the despatch notes.
Mysoft has also allowed Solid State Supplies to improve the visibility of their cash flow management. A process now exists whereby a field can be selected as an order is being entered and a copy of any purchase order over £25k is automatically forwarded to the MD.
The Benefits
"Our investment in the Mysoft DMC solution has been more than justified. By year two we had recouped our original investment and we are continuing to save money on stationery, postage, manpower and storage. In addition Mysoft have enabled us to streamline key business processes and therefore improve efficiency."
Cost Saving
- The DMC solution has allowed Solid State Supplies to drastically reduce their overheads. Their spending on stationery and postage and the expensive round of maintaining and replacing the dot matrix printers was in excess of £8,000 per year. These costs have now been all but removed.
- The efficiency of creating and distributing documents both internally and externally has been significantly improved. What was once the full-time job of a dedicated member of staff is now an automated process.
Increased Quality and Ease of Internal Reporting
- Mysoft have provided the means to improve and increase internal reporting without creating any increased administration overhead. Internal reports are now produced by the back office system and distributed by DMC.
Increased Efficiency of Internal Processes
- The automation of many business functions such as purchasing, despatch and order entry has led to a marked increase in the quality and efficiency of internal processes.
Consistent and Up-to-date Documentation
- DMC allows for all Solid State Supplies' documentation to be consistent and up-to-date. Document formats can be changed quickly and easily thus creating a professional impression to the customers.
