Newsletter Vol. 14 - Introduction

Softengine News is dedicated to keeping you up to date with the latest information regarding SAP Business One systems, Softengine solutions and Best Business Practices.

What’s New?

Customer Success Story – Rapid Conn: Growing a Multinational Business with SAP® Business One

How do you ensure smooth communications and data availability across operations in different countries and time zones? That was the challenge facing the Rapid Conn Group of Companies, which designs, manufactures, and distributes connectors and cable assemblies for companies worldwide. As the company grew, siloed information and reliance on manual processes across its four wholly owned subsidiaries in the United States, Malaysia, Singapore, and China made it difficult to run efficient operations. "We couldn't effectively compete in a global economy when we were missing opportunities to land new business and keep existing customers satisfied," explains Balaji Raghunathan, VP of operations for Rapid Conn Inc. in the United States.

With a goal of maintaining global leadership by rapidly satisfying customer requirements for high-quality parts, Rapid Conn is committed to streamlining its work processes wherever possible. What it needed was a single platform on which to run its business. Rapid Conn found that solution in the SAP® Business One application.

Manual Processes and Disconnected Systems Hinder Efficiency

Rapid Conn's various locations were using spreadsheets, a legacy purchase-order processing system, and outdated finance software to manage daily work. As a result, employees struggled to stay abreast of processes, issues, and opportunities. For example, Rapid Conn lost track of many requests for proposals (RFPs) because the information was stored on a single desktop computer with no support for enterprise-wide access. "We might receive 100 inquiries in a month, but only convert one into new business either because we weren't aware of the opportunity or failed to respond quickly enough," says Raghunathan.

Wasting Time and Making Errors

The problems associated with a reliance on manual processes and communication trickled down to other operational areas. In addition to challenges consolidating data and tracking opportunities, employees found it difficult to access important information all the way through to delivery. Employees in the California warehouse struggled to ascertain what materials were in transit, what components were being manufactured, and what had already shipped. Because information was tracked in a spreadsheet or a book in the warehouse, it was prone to data-entry errors and misinterpretation. "Orders were sometimes lost, and numbers and addresses were entered incorrectly. These issues threatened to undermine relationships with our customers, but hiring more people wasn't the answer – they would just create additional errors," says Raghunathan.
These issues also made it difficult to manage daily tasks. It could take up to two days to produce an accurate inventory report, as employees gathered and aggregated data from sources in different locations. Employees in California often struggled to determine the status of component orders, a good percentage of which were manufactured overseas. Without easy access to inventory-related information, employees would either order unnecessary materials or fail to have enough in stock. In fact, inventory accuracy was typically 80% or less.

Finding the Right Solution and Implementation Partner

Once the company decided to address its issues, a committee was established to identify and evaluate potential solutions. The group, consisting of heads from each department, defined the criteria for a new solution. "We wanted it to be reliable, proven, customizable to meet our needs, and easy to understand and use," explains Raghunathan.
After a thorough search, the committee decided on the SAP Business One application. "SAP Business One was the obvious choice. Its range of functionality, support for an interactive process flow, and adaptability to our processes were second to none," continues Raghunathan.
Rapid Conn also chose Softengine Inc. as its implementation partner. Softengine quickly understood Rapid Conn's needs, suggested how the company could use the SAP solution to streamline its process flow, and helped identify process redundancies. In addition, it had experience implementing SAP Business One in similar environments. As a result, Softengine was able to ensure a rapid deployment. "We were up and running in 15 days. After just a few days training our department heads and super users, Softengine had nearly three-quarters of our employees – across sales, finance, customer service, purchasing, shipping, and logistics – using the application," says Raghunathan.

Spotlight on Product – Softengine UPS Shipping

The Softengine UPS Shipping module for SAP® Business One provides real-time visibility of UPS customer orders that are in transit, while being seamlessly integrated with the Business One accounting and logistics modules. 
The UPS Shipping module is ideal for all companies managing parcel shipments who want to extend order fulfillment visibility both internally (customer service and accounting), and externally (to customer orders in transit).

Features and Benefits Highlights

Setup is quick and easy with SAP look and feel and self-explanatory functionality. No more returns with wrong address – with Address Verification you can be sure the package will be delivered. All SAP Documents integration means a clear process flow: from sales order and freight quote to a delivery with tracking number to an invoice with actual freight charges.

Allowing UPS to break the Delivery into multiple packages combined with the ability to track each individual package means less time spent in Pick and Pack manager – and better visibility.  Customers are automatically notified upon shipment and orders can be tracked on-line.  Delivery order shipping charges are automatically populated upon shipment for rapid invoice creation.  Look up shipment details by Sales Order, Delivery, and Invoice Number from within SAP Business One.

Call or email Barry Lederman for additional details: 818.704.7000 – blederman@softengineusa.com.