Staytite
Overview
Established in 1978, Staytite is a family-owned fastener distributor to major assemblers in the white goods, electronics and motor industries. As the business continued to grow, Staytite’s existing business management system was increasingly under strain in providing the level of support required.
Following implementation of a Lakeview solution, Staytite has continued to grow successfully, increasing turnover by between 15-20 per cent year-on-year - and without a significant increase in associated staffing. Overall, the company estimates that its Lakeview investment has helped achieve a major reduction in management time, by around one third.
Challenge
The initial requirement for a replacement solution was to provide a scalable and transparent sales order processing system which would cope with daily and forward orders and stock level maintenance. “In replacing the previously manual and essentially paper-based system, our goal was to improve both operating efficiencies and accuracy,” says technical support and development manager, Eric Plummer.
“In particular, we needed to bring together sales information dispersed across the business and impose centralised control in managing a larger volume throughput.”
Solution
Following a review of what the market offered, Staytite selected the Lakeview solution as providing the most responsive and cost-effective solution for its needs. Though the chosen solution offered valuable broader functionality, Staytite was especially impressed with the fact that, as Lakeview authored its own software, any changes required to meet future evolving requirements could be done rapidly and at reasonable cost.
“Implementation was remarkably smooth,” recalls Plummer, “and the following three-month trial which ran in parallel with the existing system was trouble-free.” Subsequently, Staytite has also taken full advantage of the solution’s advanced purchase order and broader stock control functionality: as a result, Staytite has improved its stock turnover by around 10 per cent annually.
“This has become increasingly critical to our business, as we import more than 90% of the products we distribute,” he confirms. “Further, the Lakeview system has successfully underpinned the subsequent establishment of a thriving export business for us.”
Results
Staytite’s initial Lakeview purchase met the company’s targeted investment criteria: over time, the tailored system has scaled with the business and now supports five times the number of users since the initial implementation.
At the same time, Lakeview has continued to provide on-going software enhancements, a proactive approach which Plummer finds “unusually refreshing”. The latest has been the addition of drawings to the back of stock codes, especially valuable for a business in which product drawings form a key part of its sales operation.
“This not only helps the order process for less knowledgeable customers,” he says, “but also allows us to respond to any technical enquiries by putting all the information we need at our fingertips.”
For Staytite, the seven-year relationship with Lakeview has been consistently excellent: “the company’s highly responsive support has meant that meant that there has been no issue to which it has been unable to provide a satisfactory solution,” confirms Plummer.
“With Lakeview we are ideally placed both to continue expanding our existing customer base and, looking ahead, to diversify into new markets. In short, we are more than happy with the return we have achieved on our Lakeview investment.”
We would welcome an opportunity to talk to you in more detail about how we can directly benefit you and your organisation.
To arrange an on-line demonstration, please call Vickie Goddard on 0845 388 3329 or email vickieg@lakeview.co.uk
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