Power & Signal is wired for speed

Customer Story

When it comes to technology, Power & Signal Group is one of the world’s top distributors, delivering billions of parts around the world. When the company had to move to a new ERP software system, it had to move fast.

“None of us was in our right mind – but we didn’t have a choice.”  That’s how Brad Hudson, the director of global operations for Power & Signal Group, remembers the predicament he and his colleagues faced in late 2003. The company had just been acquired by Arrow Electronics, Inc. and needed to transition off its previous owner’s software.

A fixed deadline

The dilemma: Power & Signal Group had a fixed deadline. Once a decision to swtich IT systems had been made, the company had to implement it in eight months – going live on the first working day of August 2004.

“The timeline was forced upon us,” says Hudson, pointing out that, under normal circumstances, any other company would have had 18 to 24 months to complete a similar project.

“The decision had to be: what was the right package that gave us what seemed like the most benefits, in a short implementation time, and within a reasonable budget,” explains Shana Bloom, who served as project manager.

After a gap analysis, the company decided to go with an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system and chose IBS Enterpise, the supply chain management software package offered by IBS. Bloom says an important factor in the decision was that IBS caters more to electrical products distribution companies, such as Power & Signal Group.

Systems administrator Ellen Mastrodonato, a project team member, adds that IBS was with them the whole way. “IBS was willing to do whatever we needed to do, to get us up and running with as much functionality as we could – so we could run the business.”

Worldwide distribution

As the global distribution arm for Delphi Connection Systems, Power & Signal Group supplies a complete line of high-performance connection and wiring system components. It is a strategic relationship that spans more than 20 years and supports the transportation industry around the world.

“If it moves – on the ground or in the water – most likely we have a part associated with it,” says Hudson. This includes everything from heavy-duty trucks and farm equipment to automotive, marine and recreational vehicles, lawn mowers, and even golf carts.

With two standalone facilities – in the United States and Germany – and a third-party logistics operation in China, Power & Signal Group has to keep track of an inventory that totals 18,000 SKUs. And annually it distributes more than three billion parts to more than 4,000 ‘ship-to’ locations in some 40 countries around the world.

Benefits from the start

The IBS ERP software solution provided visible benefits from day one: the distribution center immediately became paperless; multiple currency functionality was enhanced; and, company-wide, employees no longer had to sign on to multiple software packages. Power & Signal Group was fully integrated for the first time.

Bloom, a senior finance manager, points out another important benefit. The package supports both European and U.S. businesses, which have completely different legal and business reporting requirements, she says.

An integrated IT software solution

While some people lost some initial functionality in the move to ERP from more specialized systems, Bloom maintains this was the trade-off for getting an integrated system that was easier to install for the whole company at once. Power & Signal Group has added new modules and upgrades, working closely with IBS throughout the process.

“That was part of the attraction of going to an ERP solution,” stresses Bloom. “It gave us that flexibility to do these enhancements and modify the system – on our own, and with IBS.”

Hudson continues this thought. He says continuity has been key to the business relationship. “We are still dealing with the same people that we met prior to the implementation. They are still working on our system. They know our business very well. “And the payoff, he says, is when you take an issue to IBS. “They understand your business needs and requirements.”

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