THE SITUATION
As a 24/7 cargo and shipping service, Port Nelson Limited needed to move swiftly to transform their ageing business information systems to provide the business intelligence that would support their desire to maintain performance as a reliable, speedy and efficient shipping partner. Port Nelson's challenges were typical of organisations running older legacy systems - multiple data entry, manual and time-consuming reporting processes hindered business efficiency and too much proprietary knowledge was 'living' inside people's heads.
THE PAIN
Port Nelson needed to pull anchor on an ageing DOS-based financial system, and undertake a major revamp of its technology infrastructure. "Our investment in technology needed to be about growing business profitability and optimising our assets, such as appropriately pricing and allocating resources, with a long term goal of fully integrating all our business systems." Parke Pittar, Chief Commercial Officer, Port Nelson Limited.
Port Nelson Sails with Transformed Business Management
"With Microsoft Dynamics NAV, we are so far ahead of where we were before - it's literally been a quantum leap." Parke Pittar.
According to Parke, a close partnership approach with Intergen has been critical to Port Nelson deciding to invest in the Microsoft Dynamics NAV financial management suite and leveraging its selected technologies. It was a convincing argument - a combination of the product's functionality, support and technology roadmap and Intergen's hands-on knowledge of NAV.
Port of Nelson describes their investment … ''We picked Microsoft based on what we coined the 3F's concept. Firstly it gave us the functionality we needed straight out-of-the-box, together with the support of a strong Microsoft partner in Intergen. Next it had the flexibility to make modifications that worked for our business. Thirdly, our technology choice needed to be future proof, and evolve with us over time."
Port of Nelson attributes the smooth passage of the project to Intergen's thorough implementation plan and strong support, "They just got the job done."
Faster Implementation
By using Microsoft Dynamics NAV Rapid Implementation Methodology, Intergen's Business Development Manager, Paul Murray explains why it is such a fast track, well proven business solution. "Microsoft Dynamics NAV (formerly Microsoft Navision) helps you automate, integrate and better manage finances, e-commerce, supply chain, manufacturing, project accounting, customer relationships and human resources. It is highly suitable for a vast range of organisations from industry and manufacturing, to retail, service and government and can be implemented rapidly."
Big Leaps in Productivity and Efficiency
By automating many of its financial processes, Port Nelson has significantly cut administration and manual data entry and achieved 100% data consistency, in turn gaining valuable business insights to gauge the company's performance.
Dramatic markers include:
- A 50% reduction in the reporting cycle.
- A 25% reduction in headcount in the finance team, with resources being reallocated.
Parke explains, "The information is more meaningful and diverse, combining financial and non financial data to give a complete picture. Staff can get business intelligence straight from their desktops, where previously it could have taken weeks."
THE GAIN
With growth forecast to reach 3 million tones within 10 years, Port Nelson has tightly integrated business systems to optimise performance and profitability.