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Background
Southwest (UK) Ltd. is a reseller of used plant and heavy equipment specialising
in, but not limited to, Caterpillar machines. Their head-office is located in
Guernsey with offices in Windsor, the Isle of Man and The Netherlands. Most of
Southwest's customers are international with equipment bought and sold
throughout the world, often with foreign partners.
What were the problems?
Southwest purchase the equipment for resale from partners around the World
and quite often sell it to a customer in a different country. This presents them with
the following logistical problems:
- Need to track the status of the equipment
- Need to track all of the costs incurred during purchase and refurbishment
in a variety of currencies
- Need to track the location of the equipment to ensure timely delivery
- Need to have a common system to hold client contact information
Why did they need a system?
Historically, Southwest used a combination of paper
and spread-sheet based systems to track and cost the machines. This was
cumbersome and greatly limited the amount of business which they could handle
because the systems were so time-intensive.
Why did they choose ESP?
ESP was chosen because of our willingness to produce a system which worked in
the way that Southwest wanted to, and not force them to change to suit the system.
We also have the flexibility to quickly modify the system to add new features as they
are required.
What was produced as a solution?
Originally a Microsoft Access system was developed to handle the data, but as the
company's requirements grew this was later upgraded with a SQL Server back-end
which replicates data between their head and branch offices.
Why was that solution produced?
Microsoft Access is a flexible solution which allows for rapid development and
upgradeability. Microsoft SQL Server is an industry standard system that allows
excellent scalability while still being a cost efficient platform.
What benefits did the system have for them?
This system has allowed Southwest to greatly increase the amount of business
which they can handle, to more accurately track the costing of those machines
and remain close to their customers, even though their numbers have grown
greatly.
To find out how you can benefit from the ESP experience call 0118 916 9300 now
or send an e-mail to sales@esp.co.uk
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