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"Collins is a small company that competes successfully
in a global market. When
we tell our customers what kind of computer system we run our
business on, they're
amazed. eRPortal is state-of-the-art. It's comprehensive, reliable,
and it's helping
us grow our business." |
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Brian Tuohey, President, Collins Pipe |
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| Focus on |
Collins Pipe & Supply Co. |
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| Company Profile |
An industrial distributor of pipes, valves, and fittings
(PVF), Collins has provided materials to projects worldwide
totaling over 38,000 megawatts of power production capacity.
Specializing in stainless steel, exotic alloys, and automated
valves, Collins serves customers such as Bechtel and Raytheon.
On the inside, the company is efficient, lean, and incentive-driven,
and technology is a key contributor to its productivity. |
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| Issue |
Fueled by growth in international and power generation
sales, Collins' expansion was putting additional pressure
on an already unstable computer system. Since a new system
would affect every function of its business, reliability
was a key issue. Management also knew that a new state-of-the-art
solution could offer opportunities for productivity gains. |
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| Challenge |
Collins' challenge was to find a new distribution system
that would offer stability, internal systems flexibility,
and help fuel increases in productivity. |
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| Solution |
eRPortalÒ Distribution and Warehousing Software
has been a clear winner for Collins. Its Microsoft Windows
2000/03 and SQL Server architecture insures reliability,
while its XML-based technology insures scalability and
interoperability. A chief productivity issue for Collins
has been integrating different parts of its distribution
business, from quoting and sales ordering to picking,
shipping, and delivery and invoicing. eRPortal Software
achieves this by integrating the real-time inventory information
between these functions. Users can move from one area
of the system to another without switching applications
and they can readily view current information from different
areas of the system. eRPortal also communicates easily
with other systems. Whether communicating to its financial
application or to UPS WorldShip, now different systems
can deliver information to each other, and users can maneuver
flexibly between them.
Although the Internet will never replace customer relationships
and customer service, Collins understands that technology
has a primary role in the distribution business. eRPortal's
Remote Order Entry Module lets customers log onto the
system from anywhere on the internet through a web browser.
They can view inventory prices and on-hand quantities,
place orders using their own customer part numbers,
and check the delivery status of their orders. This
works to eliminate many phone calls that the Collins
employees would normally have to handle, and streamlines
the ordering process for customers and for Collins personnel.
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| Results |
Collins has a clear strategy for winning in the PVF
business. Its vision is aggressive, crystal clear, and
globally minded. Collins has grown 750% in revenue, from
a $2 million to a $15 million company, with only a 100%
increase in personnel. That's a productivity rate 30-40%
higher than the industry average. Company management attributes
this success to technology. "eRPortal affects every
part of our business - it's very well integrated, and
helps us work faster, and better," reports Brian
Tuohey, Collins's President. "That's how I measure
return."
For information on this Case Study, please contact Edward
Garibian at egaribian@erportalsoftware.com
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