INSIGHTS: SPRING 2014 — CASE STUDY: EBERL IRON WORKS, INC.

Company

Founded in 1923, Eberl Iron Works started as a small welding shop fabricating wrought iron railings, exterior fire escapes and miscellaneous iron. Today, the third-generation owners and cousins, Nora and John Eberl, together with a dedicated team of employees, continue to fabricate metal, sell commercial framing support systems and hardware for the construction and manufacturing industry and provide design build services taking projects from concept to completion.

Situation

The anticipated growth included in Eberl’s strategic plan could not be supported by their existing business system software and internal processes. Workflow inefficiencies, as well as a desire for more accurate, real-time business performance measures, indicated it was time for a change. Unfamiliar with some of the business system software capabilities in the marketplace and lacking business system selection and implementation experience, they were looking for an efficient yet thorough means to align waste reduction efforts with the purchase of a business system that best supported their current and future needs.

Solution

Future state value stream maps were developed to capture Eberl’s desired workflows and reporting capabilities. Insyte’s familiarity with business system software helped them quickly translate these requirements into a detailed RFQ including Eberl’s critical requirements and unique demonstration scripts. This process helped Eberl better understand the terminology and technology of potential solutions. The detailed RFQ helped vendors quickly understand Eberl’s requirements and determine how their software could best meet Eberl’s needs. As a result, Eberl was able to select an ERP system well suited for both their current and future needs and implement this system all within one calendar year, without significant interruption to their current business.

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