December 2010
Agility Software Increases Bottom Line Results For Christensen
Lumber
Each customer that implements DMSi Software’s business and accounting system, Agility, does so for their own reasons. Some choose it to bring business processes up to speed, eliminate manual processes or to increase inventory accuracy. For Christensen Lumber, their reasons were based on their nearly 20-year relationship with DMSi and the proven results they had already seen from their previous DMS+ system. Implemented in 2009, Agility has given Christensen Lumber the power to increase accountability, visibility, purchasing efficiency and bottom line results. “Agility has made everyone more accountable because we can analyze things such as customer profitability and our inventory better,” Mike Potthoff, Christensen Lumber’s chief financial officer said.
For nearly 90 years, Fremont, NE based Christensen Lumber has delivered great service and products to customers in the Omaha, NE area. They serve contractors and homeowners with their yard, pre-hung door shop, railroad unloading dock, 40,000-square foot component plant and interactive showroom. Christensen Lumber is very focused on service and staying ahead of technology, which is why they chose to upgrade their system to Agility. “It became evident that we hadn’t been keeping up with technology and were in need of an upgraded, all-inclusive system,” Potthoff described. “We decided to start from scratch and implement Agility to gain the efficiency we were lacking.”
Agility provides Christensen Lumber with visibility they had not previously had. “Our real time visibility has increased significantly,” Potthoff said. “We can trust items stock availability and quantity on hand.” Their increased visibility also applies to nonstock items. “The bill-of-materials (BOM) structure lets us easily quote doors that we don’t carry in inventory,” Potthoff explained. “It allows our walk-in customers to get real time price and availability on special order, configured doors.”
By using Agility, Christensen Lumber’s purchasing strategies have also improved. “We use the suggested purchase order features extensively,” Potthoff described. “The ability to link a sales order to a purchase order has been a big improvement from the way things were done before. Also we now have enough history that we are really becoming efficient at managing our reorder points which has allowed us to free-up a significant amount of cash without compromising service.”
Processes that were once timely and manual are now simple, a change that has made an impact on productivity. “Agility has helped our month end billing process,” Potthoff said. “Previously, a statement was printed and invoices were manually matched up to the statement and then mailed to the customer. Now, a statement prints and all of the invoices print right behind them. What was once a day and a half project, now takes a half of a day.”
Since 2009, Agility has helped bring Christensen Lumber’s business processes up to speed to better compete in Omaha’s building materials market. Their processes are streamlined, their inventory is accurate, and they are able to continue to work with DMSi Software. “Agility has made a tremendous difference for us,” Potthoff added. “Change is always hard, but now we couldn’t imagine going back.”
About DMSi Software
DMSi Software is a privately held company providing software to nearly 400 building materials companies in North America. Since 1976, DMSi Software has consistently empowered its users to become more productive, competitive and efficient. For more information on DMSi Software, please call 800-347-6720 or visit dmsi.com.
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