Microsoft DynamicsCustomer Solution Case Study

Construction company combines business units with new ERP system

OverviewCountry or Region: New ZealandIndustry: Construction

Customer ProfileCalder Stewart is an award winning industrial and commercial construction company with a proven record of successful project completions.

Business SituationAfter fifty years of building up a successful commercial construction company, Calder Stewart now employs 300 people throughout New Zealand. Proudly ‘Mainlander’, the Head Office is based in Milton.

SolutionAfter completing a thorough business wide review, Calder Steward elected to implement a new Enterprise Resource Management solution to replace the existing accounting system.

Benefits Targeted profit and loss reports Organization wide visibility Centralized data Instant asset tracking Integrated solution

“We have had massive savings around accounts payable, because we can now scan invoices straight into our system, meaning instant access and we don’t have to waste time picking through manual files.”

Tony Allison, Chief Operating Officer, Calder Stewart.

Calder Stewart is a successful commercial and industrial construction company running multiple business units, from construction to land development, roofing, forestry and steel fabrication. The legacy financial system provided reports on individual business units, however, there was no facility for enterprise level reporting on the organization as a whole. The team at Calder Stewart worked with Eclipse to implement a new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system using Microsoft Dynamics AX. After a phased implementation, Calder Stewart has seen reductions in cost, increased productivity and has a wealth of additional reporting functionality. The company can now track costs at the individual unit level and have instant access to the performance of the entire organization.

SituationAfter fifty years of building up a successful commercial construction company, Calder Stewart now employs 300 people throughout New Zealand. Proudly ‘Mainlander’, the Head Office is based in Milton. The core business is building specialist commercial construction for organizations such as Bunnings Hardware, Mitre10 and Fonterra. As an award winning commercial and industrial construction company with multiple business units running independently of each other, Calder Stewart was starting to outgrow its legacy accounting system.

Each individual business unit managed separate data, IT equipment and storage. Having multiple separate business units meant that data was frequently double handled and opportunities for information sharing were limited. The legacy system was an out of the box application which worked well initially but lacked the ability to grow with the business.

“We had a general lack of efficiency around data tracking which directly affected our decision making. Valuable data existed in different silos throughout the company. We needed a system that would allow us to access and collate it all together,” says Tony Allison, Chief Operating Officer, Calder Stewart.

Calder Stewart sought an organization-wide solution to transform a series of successful independent business units into one transparent operation. The company had some specific requirements for the new system, including the ability to track sales

and inventory by location. The ability to identify and report on the profitability of individual business units and specific elements within a unit, such as an individual truck was also a key element.

SolutionAfter completing a thorough business wide review, Calder Steward elected to implement a new Enterprise Resource Management solution to replace the existing accounting system.

“Our advice to anyone undertaking this type of implementation is to first undertake an in-depth business process review. This initial exercise was vital in emphasizing that we had to harness the relevant information from each of our business divisions – and along the way get buy-in from each business to re-think how to view our organization,” says Tony. After an intensive selection process Calder Stewart chose to partner with Eclipse to implement Dynamics AX.

“Eclipse had a proven track record with these kinds of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) implementations. They offered a ‘one-stop-shop’ approach, including ongoing maintenance.”

With a clearly defined implementation methodology and process plan that covered documentation, testing, training and implementation, Eclipse was the ideal partner to implement the new system.

The project began in October 2008 and continued for ten months with the new system going live in July 2009.

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The overriding business challenge for the company is continued growth across each business unit. To ensure business growth continued alongside the new system install, a phased implementation approach was adopted. The first challenge was to complete the project plan and have it approved, next the in-house system experts were trained and finally the system underwent extensive testing and the end users were trained.

Implementing Microsoft Dynamics AX is part of Calder Stewart’s overall strategy to deploy a cohesive suite of Microsoft products to manage the business.

“The two pillars that will provide the business with timely and accurate information, that is easily found and shared are Dynamics AX and SharePoint,” says Tony.

Benefits• Targeted profit and loss reports• Organization wide visibility• Centralized data• Instant asset tracking• Integrated solution• Optimized Business Processes• Future proof solution• Increased productivity• Cost savings

Calder Stewart now has the ability to view the profitability of individual components of the company within separate business units. Enterprise level reporting is now also available to provide complete visibility and a full 360 degree view of the entire organization. Reports can be generated to

compare business units in terms of profitability, cost and performance.

Having a centralized data source has reduced infrastructure and administration costs for Calder Stewart. Managing one source is a far more efficient process than trying to align the strategy of multiple disparate business units each with different components and requirements.

There are a large number of assets in multiple different locations within the company, and the new system allows management to track specific assets and view profitability and performance at a glance.

As part of the Microsoft suite, Dynamics AX integrates seamlessly with other Microsoft products. This allows for future growth and development as the needs of the organization changes in the years ahead.

“What we’ve embarked on is a 10 year software plan – we have a system that’s a vast improvement on our legacy system and will grow with us. We have a roadmap for the next 10 years which is fantastic,” says Tony.

Re-engineered and more efficient business processes have resulted in cost savings and increased productivity across the board for the company.

“We have had massive savings around accounts payable, because we can now scan invoices straight into our system, meaning instant access and we don’t have to waste time picking through manual files.”

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Calder Stewart has implemented a fully integrated ERP system that spans all business units. The solution has improved visibility and productivity while reducing costs and duplication of data. The company now has a future proofed solution, and a system strategy plan and roadmap for the next ten years.

Microsoft DynamicsMicrosoft Dynamics is a line of integrated, adaptable business management solutions that enables you and your people to make business decisions with greater confidence. Microsoft Dynamics works like familiar Microsoft software such as Microsoft Office, which means less of a learning curve for your people, so they can get up and running quickly and focus on what’s most important. And because it is from Microsoft, it easily works with the systems that your company already has implemented. By automating and streamlining financial, customer relationship, and supply chain processes, Microsoft Dynamics brings together people, processes, and technologies, increasing the productivity and effectiveness of your business, and helping you drive business success.  For more information about Microsoft Dynamics, go to:www.microsoft.com/dynamics

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For More InformationFor more information about Microsoft products and services, go to:www.microsoft.com

For more information about Eclipse products and services, call 09 377 7639 or visit the website at: www.eclipsecomputing.com.au

For more information about Calder Stewart products and services, call 03 417 9777 or visit the website at: www.calderstewart.co.nz

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.