One of the first UK businesses to use SAP's small business
software believes it is already benefiting from more efficient
information management after a six-week
implementation.
Raffenday is a manufacturer and distributor of automotive wiring
harnesses and components to companies including Lotus and TVR. It
had difficulties upgrading from a Dos-based Sage package because it
had been customised for the business.
Nick Carter, technical director of Raffenday, said he had
considered Navision but found it too expensive and not easy to use.
Although Sage was good at accounts, customising it for billing and
materials was more difficult, he said.
Raffenday, which has 35 employees and has turnover of £2.5m, then
looked at SAP's small business software, SAP Business One, because
of the recommendation of its network support company Oryx. The
£20,000 investment was aimed at improving stock and waste
management and driving growth by improving customer service.
"SAP has credibility and prestige," Carter said. "We were also
supported by a company we had been working with for 10 years that
would implement SAP. We already knew who we would be dealing with
and if they said it would work we trusted them.
"We are starting to make some savings with the system, although
they have not been evaluated. However, the primary benefit of the
system is that you can get information quickly and efficiently."
