Global chemicals manufacturer Schenectady has traded its JD
Edwards enterprise resource planning system for one from
lesser-known rival Ross Systems in a deal covering 14
countries.
Schenectady said it chose Ross because it had the experience in its
sector which JD Edwards lacked. John Fallon, IT manager for Europe
and Asia at Schenectady, said, "Having reviewed the market it was
clear that we required a niche ERP provider with extensive
experience in the process manufacturing space."
The move was also driven by a need to meet customer demands and
comply with growing global legislation. Schenectady also wanted to
simplify and speed up its processes, cut costs and provide a global
IT platform.
The new ERP implementation includes financial, sales order
processing, distribution, quality control and manufacturing
modules.
The product is based on Ross's Gembase tool working in a Windows
and SQL Server environment. The system has a browser-based
front-end, allowing Schenectady staff to access the ERP system
remotely.
The first site to go live was Mexico at the end of last year. The
UK was second, at the beginning of May. The US begins a second
phase in July to implement maintenance management.
Implementations over the next 18 months will include Germany,
China, Switzerland and Canada.
Andy Barrett, operations director at Ross, said the implementation
had been straightforward as Schenectady did not require custom
modules. "It was a good project," he said. "We were on time, they
were under budget, and it will be a long-term relationship."