Piolax secures future with ERP and mobile applications support

The system, from K3, allows three-way matching of machines, tools and works orders via a wireless barcoding system. That will enable Piolax to get real-time recording of stock movements, which the firm says will allow it to get delivery performance to 98% plus – and with future-proofing for planned expansion of its warehouse capacity. Piolax was an early adopter of wireless barcoding, but its existing IT wasn’t up to the job – increasingly causing delays in data transfers as transaction volumes grew. And that was worrying since some shipments go direct to the auto OEMs’ lines – presenting the prospect of serious penalties for late deliveries. However, with the cost of upgrading what was a largely bespoke, Unix-based system being prohibitive, the firm decided to go for the Syspro system with 20 user licences. Says financial director Duncan Cornwall: “After evaluating five ERP packages we chose Syspro because it is a single business system, whereas others were a series of packages bolted together. We have learned from experience that when you bolt software together it is only as good as the weakest link in the sense of development and upgrades.” Other deal clinchers included K3’s Document Flow Manager (DFM) module, which will allow Piolax customers to call off weekly orders via EDI against a three month rolling forecast, and for the company to issue ASNs (advance shipping notices) against them. Piolax also says there will be efficiencies and cost savings to come from K3’s integrated document management suite – while its Syspro e.Net technology means that customisation where necessary can be done without compromising the future upgrade path. The system is being implemented now using a best-practice blueprint prepared by K3 against the company’s existing manufacturing and business processes. It’s due for go live in March next year.