COLLINS EQUIPMENT TURNS CHALLENGE OF AGING HARDWARE INTO OPPORTUNITY TO MIGRATE ERP TO THE CLOUD
WESTERN COMPUTER DEPLOYS DYNAMICS 365 BUSINESS CENTRAL CLOUD TO STREAMLINE ACCOUNTING, SALES, WAREHOUSE, AND FIELD SERVICE WORKFLOWS
THE SOLUTION
As the server hardware at Collins Equipment approached end-of-warranty status, it turned into an opportunity for the business to modernize its ERP environment.
“We had been running an on-premises version of Microsoft Dynamics NAV for many years,” says Kaileigh Strizzi, who manages business development for Collins Equipment. “With the server’s warranty about to expire, our IT support firm suggested we consider moving our ERP platform to the cloud rather than buying a new server to run on-premises.”
With NAV working well for a long time, replacing the system and moving to the cloud had not been on the technology roadmap for Collins Equipment. However, as Strizzi and the senior management team considered the transformation, the idea made perfect sense. Moving to the cloud would enable Collins Equipment to upgrade to a modern ERP platform. The cloud would also allow the business to benefit from the regular updates that software vendors provide for cloud solutions.
“The cloud lets us avoid the cost of deploying new software and hardware on-premises, which can delay upgrade timelines,” says Strizzi. “Plus, we can tap into new features as they are released rather than waiting until we implement an upgrade.”
As Strizzi searched for possible ERP solutions in the cloud, she turned to Western Computer for help. Western Computer provided the same team of ERP experts that deployed and supported the NAV solution.
“We knew that in addition to helping us select a cloud ERP solution, Western Computer would ensure a smooth transition away from NAV,” says Strizzi. “This was key as we did not want to interrupt our daily operations in shipping equipment to customers and providing equipment services.”
For the new ERP platform, Western Computer recommended deploying Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central Cloud. The look and feel of the software is similar to NAV, and Business Central streamlines many of the ERP functions, adding capabilities that older versions of NAV do not provide.
The Western Computer team configured Business Central and then migrated the data from NAV during a weekend, so Collins Equipment did not need to shut down the ERP system. “We came in on Monday morning, and it was business as usual,” says Strizzi.
A key reason for the smooth transition to Business Central was the training Western Computer provided in advance of the cutover. “Thanks to the Western Computer training sessions, everyone knew how to use Business Central and was comfortable with the functions,” Strizzi points out. “Some of us attended every training session, and we brought in specific user groups when delving into their functional areas—including accounting, sales, warehouse, and field services.”
THE BENEFITS
A key benefit of upgrading to Dynamics 365 Business Central Cloud is the broader use of ERP capabilities that the Collins Equipment staff now applies. “Going through the training sessions on a modern ERP platform helped us realize just how many functions Business Central has for us to take advantage of. This has enabled us to improve our workflows across the entire business,” Strizzi says.
One of the functions Strizzi appreciates most in Business Central is the attachment feature. Collins Equipment uses this function for sales orders, invoices, purchase orders, and work orders.
“We now have all of our workflow documents stored in one central database,” says Strizzi. “As departments communicate with each other—as workflows go back and forth among our sales, accounting, warehouse, and field service teams—Business Central allows everyone to quickly access order and invoice details. This lets us complete tasks more efficiently, and we can communicate more easily with customers and vendors.”
The sales team at Collins Equipment uses Business Central to track customer contacts and can now save multiple contacts and ship-to addresses for each customer. “The sales team can rely on Business Central to manage the entire sales cycle from quotes to orders, invoices and installations,” Strizzi points out.
The accounting team can easily track customer and vendor invoice status as well as the status of purchase orders. Business Central automatically converts sales orders into invoices and vendor purchase orders. When a vendor invoice arrives and gets posted, Business Central checks to see if the customer has paid. Adds Strizzi, “We like how we can search for posted purchase invoices by the PO number. With functions like these, Business Central has proven to be a huge time saver.”
For field technicians, Business Central automatically creates work orders from sales orders with details for each job. Once a job is completed, the technicians fill out the work order and send it back as an attachment for invoicing.
Another area where Business Central facilitates field services is the inspection of underground tanks, which customers are required to have inspected annually. Collins Equipment now tracks those customers and notifies them in advance of when it’s time to complete the inspection. This accelerates cash flow on the inspection services and ensures customers comply with tank regulations.
Then there are the cloud benefits from the IT perspective. Running in a data center hosted by Microsoft, the sensitive information and digital assets Collins Equipment handles are more secure from potential ransomware and malware attacks. Microsoft also rolls out new features for Business Central every six months, so Collins Equipment can benefit from new features and expanded capabilities. “Another plus is not having to worry about maintaining an in-house server and replacing it every few years,” Strizzi adds.
In 2024, Strizzi plans to expand how the company uses Business Central to manage inventory and match what customers need to the products suppliers provide. In addition to meeting customer demand, this will give Collins Equipment an accurate real-time view of inventory counts and where products are shelved in the warehouse to improve picking and packing efficiency.