Competitive in the Construction Industry

Initial Situation

“Before starting the upgrade project with anaptis, we were using Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009. Our system was highly customized, but it also included some adjustments that we no longer needed at that time. Our goal was to upgrade to the latest software version and remove irrelevant customizations.
Three adjustments that we definitely wanted to keep were our freight order processing, picking, and engine database. A brief explanation: With freight order processing, we can consolidate and process orders into freight orders. With picking, we can enter and scan quantities via touchscreen, and with the engine database, we can quickly find the right replacement in case of failures. These modules were specifically tailored to our needs and only needed to be adjusted to work with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central.

Our production was/is also very complex. The same goes for invoicing. After all, we face price increases in the construction industry every two months. At that time, a lot of staff was tied up in this area, and some processes were inefficient and very time-consuming.

Another peculiarity is our pallet provision and deposit system. It is noteworthy that there is a difference between the provision and return price of a pallet. Therefore, managing the pallet accounts in the old system was very time-consuming, and we wanted a way to automate this process and ensure better traceability.

Regarding third-party applications, we worked with an EDI solution, where we were very dependent on the provider’s support. In this regard, we wanted more flexibility and the option to make small changes ourselves. Additionally, the maintenance of our payroll and timekeeping solution was expiring towards the end of the year, so we needed a quick solution for legally compliant payroll processing.

Finally, we hoped that the upgrade would allow us to quickly and easily create various reports.”

Partner Search

“Relations with our previous partner company were tense, so we began searching for a new partner. We contacted several companies and eventually came across anaptis on the recommendation of a neighboring and friendly company.
The anaptis GmbH was the first company with which we held a personal meeting to get to know each other and discuss expectations and ideas. The impression was positive from the start, and we felt very comfortable. We particularly liked their approach. Instead of a four-week workshop including a detailed concept, anaptis conducts a workshop over a few days and works agilely. This approach suited our expectations very well, so we ended our search for partners after this meeting.”

Implementation

“Since our previous solution, Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009, was getting old and we were dealing with some problems in the system (e.g., booking) as well as issues with server performance, there was hardly any resistance from the team when we discussed the topic. Instead, there was more anticipation for a new user-friendly solution, which made our approach easier. We also involved our team throughout the implementation process and conducted internal workshops.
The only concern was regarding the renewal of the item master. You should know that we have around 14,000 items, and our orders usually consist of 10 to 12 items. Most employees knew the item numbers almost by heart and only needed a few minutes for order processing. Therefore, there was a fear that processes would take longer due to the change. In response, we assured the team that we would adapt the new schema to the old one. This helped alleviate this concern.

Unfortunately, there were some delays on our part during the project. Of course, our project manager’s calendar at anaptis was tight, so he was needed in new projects. However, this did not harm our project’s success in any way. We were able to clarify all concerns directly with our project manager or the developers, which we greatly appreciate.

Overall, we are very satisfied with the collaboration with anaptis. We communicate on an equal footing and can exchange ideas very well.”