Processing issues due to lack of manufacturing functionality in incumbent ERP systems

Allredi ended up with disparate ERP systems after a merger of Marco Group and Abrasive Products & Equipment Group. Both systems lacked key feature functionality, such as manufacturing and rental management. After carrying out due diligence Sage X3 for manufacturing was selected and implemented by a USA partner.

Multi-company Sage X3 implementation to ensure best-in-class processes

Sage X3 was rolled out to the Marco Group first, but when it came to the roll-out of the system to their other business, they needed a partner who could guide them and provide significant expertise in Sage X3, advising them on best-in-class processes. Their US-based implementation partner had months-long turnaround times and could not provide that service. So, Allredi embarked on a search for a partner who could meet their needs. During their search, they discovered Inixion. Despite Inixion being UK based, Allredi was impressed by the fact that the Inixion team go “deep and wide” with their expertise. Before signing Inixion as a partner, a 2-week health check was carried out by Inixion on Allredi’s Sage X3 installation, producing a comprehensive report. Woodie Perkins, VP of Information Technology, Allredi stated: “It kind of solidified our decision because of the expertise of the people we talked to on each of the various modules that we needed help in. It was night and day difference comparing Inixion and our previous support partner.”

Faster and more efficient processing through one single version of the truth

Sage X3 now provides a single source of truth for Allredi – sales reporting and financials come out of Sage X3. Additionally, when staff move from one location to another, they are familiar with how the system works because it works the same for everybody; there is no need for training. Allredi has worked on standardisation, and made several internal changes over the years, including the way products are costed and priced and how they use shipping and freight. Their focus is on streamlining order processing and making things faster and more efficient for internal users. That has had an impact on their requirements from their Sage X3 system. Sage X3 is the driver of information across the business. It is integrated with other systems, such as EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) and online sales through the website.

A trusted partnership drives results

Being able to talk to the same people at Inixion over the past few years has brought a lot of value to Allredi. Says Woodie Perkins, “The team at Inixion know my business, they know what changes have been made to the configuration, where we’re at, what we want to do and it makes for a very quick and easy conversation – ‘what are the next steps that we need to do?’” “Inixion’s whole team know Sage X3 inside and out. They really understand the system and help drive to get things done quickly and inexpensively. There are also some very technical people at Inixion who work with the project managers; I don’t have to bridge that gap between what I want to be done on my project and what technically happens. The Inixion project managers do it in a very seamless manner, which you don’t always get and it is very much appreciated. It works out very well for us.”