Accounting Software, Accounting, Packages, Business Software, Financial Management Software, CRM

Paul Tissot, Managing Director and part owner of Plantmark explains, “Over the years the business has grown both organically and through various acquisitions. With each new acquisition came a new and different operating system - there were six different systems in total. As a consequence, none of the business units could “talk” to each other and senior management was unable to pull together accurate and timely data on the performance of

individual business units, or the organisation as a whole. Reporting, invoicing and stock control were a nightmare.”

Given this situation, it was clear that the organization had outgrown its existing financial system. An urgent overhaul of its IT systems was required to ensure the business would continue to grow and operate efficiently.

 

Paul says, “It was obvious that the organization needed one system that could handle MIS, accounting and operations, and cope with the demands of a rapidly growing business.”

In the initial selection process the Plantmark management team considered a number of different solutions. After seeing a customized demonstration of the Arrow system, the Plantmark management team saw the benefits of the solution and had confidence in both Arrow and its Arrow business partner.

 

Paul states,“Working closely with Arrow and the business partner ensured they were able to deliver a solution that added value to our organization and that met the specific needs of our business.”

A significant portion of the Plantmark business operates as a consignment business model, which proved to be too challenging for some software system developers. “Not daunted by the special requirements of our business, Arrow undertook significant customization of its system specifically for our business. Due to that commitment and hard work, the system we have today works seamlessly,” Paul explains. “As a customer I was impressed by Arrow’s commitment and ability.” “Arrow is a great size business for us; large enough to support the needs of its client base and not so large that smaller clients are neglected,” says Paul.

 

There was an equal commitment to our success and this shone in the teams dedication to our project. Our experience with Arrow has been very positive, we would be happy to recommend them and, in fact, already have,” highlights Paul.

“The biggest benefit for our business was the implementation of the RF scanner. Arrow built the integration technology between its software and the scanning software so that the two systems worked seamlessly - now management and staff share one view of the world. We couldn’t run the SELECT Cash and Carry market business without these new scanning and recording capabilities,” explains Paul.

 

A major concern for this area of the business was the sheer volume of product moving through the market business every day. Plantmark needed to be able to accurately record stock movement. To manage this requirement, different bar codes were created to identify similar or identical items that were arriving at the warehouse from various suppliers. In addition to identifying individual supplier products, the new scanning technology records accurate stock levels and control.

Arrow accurately records stock movements as they occur, providing timely reports and statements for suppliers. “For our business, this means accurate tracking for stock control, pricing and supplier sales, which has improved our relationship with our suppliers dramatically,” says Paul.

 

Plantmark now email fortnightly statements to suppliers accurately detailing stock movement and sales, a major step forward for Plantmark made possible by Arrow software.

 

“Since implementing the system, we are experiencing more up time than ever before and

this is in a far more complex world. The speed of processing is very timely, we have increased our capacity levels... our data is consistently accurate and delivered on time,” highlights Paul.

As an outcome of implementing the Arrow system, Plantmark now has much greater capabilities and a more efficient operating environment. Its management team, staff and even customers are constantly coming up with new ideas for the business, using Arrow software, that save Plantmark and its customers time and money. “I’m very happy with our investment in Arrow, without this system we could not grow or expand our operations. I estimate our annual savings to fall in the ball park of $100k per annum, directly attributable to implementing Arrow, “emphasises Paul. As the solution is unique to Plantmark they have applied for R&D funding for the customised system.

 

“We have been able to improve our gross profit through the use of Arrow; it gives us an accurate picture of the business in a live environment.”

 

The system has the capacity to grow with the business and Plantmark expects to grow into four more markets in Australia within the coming two years.