Columbia Chemical
NexTec Formulates a Successful Solution for Columbia Chemical
Columbia Chemical selected Microsoft Dynamics GP for its robust feature set, integrated manufacturing suite and competitive price and NexTec Group for the team’s broad experience with manufacturers.
About Columbia Chemical
Columbia Chemical has always operated on the cutting edge of technology in the metal plating industry. More than 30 ago, the company pioneered an environmentally friendly alternative to cyanide-based zinc coating. To manage its financial, inventory and manufacturing operations with state-of-the-art precision, Columbia Chemical selected Microsoft Dynamics GP, Vicinity Manufacturing and the technical consulting services of NexTec Group.
Industry
Chemical Manufacturing
Location
Brunswick, OH
System Selected
Microsoft Dynamics GP
Key Results
Order entry time has been cut in half
Improved inventory control and accurate cost data
Integrated QC functionality helps ensure consistently high quality
Main Functionalities
Here’s how NexTec Group and Microsoft Dynamics GP helped solve Columbia Chemical’s challenges.
Prior to implementing Microsoft Dynamics GP, order entry at Columbia Chemical had been a slow process. The staff had to manually produce the Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS), Certificate of Analysis (COA) and Department of Transportation (DOT) required shipping documents for every order. “They were going back and forth between Word, Excel and Peachtree to complete even the most straightforward order,” recalls Kevin Reilley, VP of Operations at Columbia Chemical.
NexTec streamlined the entire process by adding a new shortcut to the order entry screen. The button launches a process that dynamically creates all the required documentation based on the actual items and lot numbers referenced on the order. “We have halved the time it takes to produce an order,” says Reilley. “That’s significant because it allowed us to grow without hiring additional customer service staff.”
Columbia Chemical is ISO 9001 registered. As part of its certification requirement, the company must thoroughly document its manufacturing
process and the quality assurance testing it performs. Previously this was a tremendously burdensome job. Several spreadsheets were maintained holding batch information and testing results.
Now, Columbia Chemical’s software solutions automatically maintain the detailed records required as a part of daily operations.
The Vicinity Manufacturing software tracks all quality control (QC) results by batch and formula and stores them centrally. As QC results are entered, the software warns the staff if a value outside of the accepted range is entered. This eliminates typos and ensures consistent quality. Columbia Chemical can then query these results over time by batch, formula or test, and share the data with statistical analysis packages for deeper evaluation. COA forms are centrally generated from the QC results and tracked by batch, formula and raw material lot. They can be viewed and printed for one or more formula batches, for finished goods or for all lots on a sales order.
The integration between Microsoft Dynamics GP and Vicinity Manufacturing eliminates the need for duplicate data entry between the company’s manufacturing and distribution functions. As batches are completed in Vicinity Manufacturing they are instantly recorded to the Dynamics GP Inventory module. Lot numbers and the COA follow an item throughout the system ensuring all departments have access to the vital production data they need.
Reilley says one of the biggest benefits of the company’s new solution is tighter inventory control. “We weren’t able to accurately manage a perpetual inventory before,” he recalls. “As a result, we always had to physically check stock before ordering or before a big production run. It took a lot of time and it was risky to not have better accounting for an expensive asset such as our inventory.”
Now Columbia Chemical has precise cost tracking for every batch it produces. Rather than simply using the standard cost of an item, the software uses the actual cost associated with each item used in production run. “Our financial reports are much more accurate now and the accurate cost information helps us make strategic pricing decisions,” Reilley notes.