QMedia Services Corporation specializes in just-in-time production and delivery of CD and DVD drive equipment, comprehensive printing services, web-based order management and fulfillment, and the provision of e-commerce support services to top computer hardware and software providers.
QMedias customers rely on the company to turn around large, highly customized orders in hours.
With four facilities and as many disparate solutions, they needed a single solution that could handle all their financial, manufacturing, and logistical needs, as well as deliver the fast turnaround their customers expected. They decided it would be too costly to upgrade the Oracle software at the largest facility and instead selected Microsoft DynamicsNavision.
CIO Lars Agger says, The simplicity and growth-oriented approach of Microsoft Navision matches our own business philosophy. Microsoft Navision was a natural fit.
SituationQMedia's supply chain solutions enable businesses to speed delivery of products to market, lower inventory requirements, and reduce transaction costs. Increasing product customization, speed to market and convergence of print and digital information products are driving businesses to outsource non-core processes and leverage QMedia's supply chain expertise. As supply chain experts, QMedia knows that what is good for their customer is even better for QMedia. Thats why the beacon that guides business practices at their company is customer satisfaction. Meeting their customers demands for speedy, cost-effective, and reliable delivery of their products makes for mutually beneficial, long-term partnerships with profits and growth for everyone. QMedia operates four manufacturing and distribution facilities in strategic locations across North America. Two of the facilities were acquired in 2000. While expansion was welcome, it brought new challenges to QMedias enterprise business solution. We realized our business software systems were no longer meeting our needs, says Lars Agger, Chief Information Officer. Our six sites ran on a mixture of software that either did not have the functionality we wanted or was too feature-rich and complex. Agger realized the company needed to cost-effectively integrate the business systems of its disparate locations through a single, unifying, and scalable Internet-based solution. Agger found that it would be costly to upgrade the Oracle software at QMedias largest facility and that the company had no use for much of the Oracle solutions functionality. Nor were solutions used at some of the other facilities the right fit for QMedias needs. We decided to look for a single system that could handle all our financial, manufacturing, and logistical needs, allowing us to concentrate more on customer service than IT limitations, Agger says. Speed, ease of use, adaptability, and e-business capabilities were among the functionality requirements for the new system. With this wish list in hand, Agger and other QMedia managers met with a number of recommended business software vendors. Among these were Epicor, QAD, Oracle, and Microsoft Dynamics. SolutionMicrosoft reselling partner Aston Business Solutions presented QMedia managers with Microsoft® Dynamics Navision, a cost-effective, end-to-end, integrated business solution designed for all mid-market needs. Aston did a very good job selling Navision, comments Agger. They gave an excellent demo and were able to show that Navision had the functionality we needed. All of the other options we considered had some kind of functionality deficiency by comparison. Aston Business Solutions illustrated its partnership style in forming a consulting team with personalities and specialists compatible with QMedias business needs and style. Microsoft Navision® software proved it could pass QMedias critical functionalities test for e-business, adaptability, and speed. After Aston Business Solutions trained 13 project managers and two implementers from QMedia, a five-month pilot project started. Following a successful initial launch with test data, Agger ran authentic trials using Navision. The business was set up to take a real order, do the available-to-promise check, put the order into manufacturing, process it, and pick it from the warehouse. Customers connected successfully over the Internet, queried QMedias inventory, and checked on their shipments. Navision handles inventory across multiple locations from a single database, providing them with a complete, real-time overview of their whole business. Dont commit until the software and value-added reseller have proven themselves, Agger advises. By the time we had to sign for a larger amount of money, we were completely confident that Navision and Aston Business Solutions could handle our critical business processes. The simplicity and growth-oriented approach of Navision matches our own business philosophy. Microsoft Navision was a natural fit. |
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Use of the Internet is very important to us, Agger says. The Commerce Gateway and Commerce Portal functionalities in Microsoft Navision proved well-suited for QMedia, enabling customers to browse stock and non-stock items, order online in real time, and check availability 24 hours a day. As a just-in-time operation, it is crucial to our customer service that we have this instant connectivity and collaboration with each other, says Agger. Many of our customers are big blue-chip companies who demand that we have this kind of capability.
QMedias recent acquisition of new facilities and the resulting growth of their business required greater adaptability than their previous software could provide. The Navision product is so easy to customize that we have no problems adapting parts of the solution to conform to our standard business practices at all of our locations, says Agger. In some cases, Navision had better business processes than we did, so we adapted some of our processes to theirs!
Navision includes much specific functionality designed to reduce the burden of daily administrative tasks and optimize internal and external communication and interaction.
Chief Information Officer QMedia Services Corporation |
Easy to Learn and UseQMedia is pleased by how easy it is to learn and use Navision. I find the program to be very intuitive, says Agger. It is also very easy for a normal user to remove any unnecessary fieldsthis makes things quite simple when the screens are not cluttered with things you dont need or use. And Im still getting used to the idea that I dont have to save everything all the time. Processing SpeedWith 1,000 to 2,000 different types of parts and hundreds of orders per day, the ability of Navision to download and process orders quickly is exactly what QMedia needs in order to deliver on business promises, ensure customer satisfaction, and pursue its own vigorous growth. We are essentially a job shop operation that has order turnarounds in hours, not days, Agger says. In the U.S., QMedia has a two-hour order turnaround. With Navision, we can process more orders, improve turnaround times, and provide better customer service. In this way, we will grow our business. |
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Microsoft Dynamics offers a wide range of integrated, end-to-end business applications and services designed to help small, mid-market and corporate businesses become more connected with customers, employees, partners and suppliers
For more information about Microsoft Dynamics, go to: http://www.microsoft.com/Dynamics