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Matimco, Inc.
Matimco - The first BPCS MAX site in the country and in Southeast Asia
An expanding business and a passion for excellence were driving forces in the selection and implementation of SSA Global Technologies' (SSA GT) BPCS MAX solution at Philippines wood processor, Matimco, Inc. After a five-month deployment, and with assistance from Fujitsu Philippines, Inc.(FPI), Matimco can now close the books quickly, and make appropriate corporate decisions that are based on accurate and up-to-date information.
The Company
Matimco, Inc. is one of the largest and most advanced wood processing companies in the Philippines, with a manufacturing plant and head office in Mandaue, Cebu City, and a staff of over 500.
The company carries a range of over 600 product lines, known to developers, architects and designers, homeowners, and homebuilders under the Matimco and Matwood brands. The Matwood range is treated with Solignum, a light organic solvent preservative that keeps products safe from termites, wood borers, and fungal decay, and prevents twisting and warping.
Matimco's structural framing products, mouldings and casings, doors and door jambs, flooring, stair elements, and wall panelings are sold over-the-counter, to order and through a national network of over 2,000 dealers. Its products are also exported to other parts of Asia, Europe, and the Americas.
Business Environment
Matimco is the only manufacturer in the Philippines to offer Solignum treated products and in an industry first, offers a ten-year guarantee for its Matwood range. As a result, its market share is way ahead of the local competitors. One of the company's biggest issues right now is product differentiation or product awareness.
"We have a good manufacturing process," said Eileen B. Jover, Assistant Senior Manager for IT at Matimco, Inc., "but it means nothing if we cannot market the products properly; not just locally, but globally."
As Matimco grows its presence in the rest of the world, it must have world-class information systems to support the expansion of the business and the continued production of world class products.
Recognizing the limitations of the in-house developed application, Matimco developed an information technology strategy, and commissioned an independent consultant to conduct a business process review. There had been problems from the lack of integration, problems with security and processing capacity, and the IT team was spending a great deal of time maintaining and revising the system. The review identified specific system requirements, and established a set of selection criteria.
"We chose BPCS MAX because it is an integrated ERP solution that offers great functionality and value for money," Jover noted. "Moreover, SSA GT partner, FPI, is based locally and has an impressive track record of successful ERP implementations."
There was an element of risk in being the first BPCS MAX implementation in South East Asia. However, the selection committee checked FPI's ERP solution implementation capability and was happy it would be well supported by SSA GT's local partner.
ERP Solution
Matimco has implemented BPCS MAX Financials, Sales and Distribution, and Inventory Management, running on Windows 2000, with Microsoft SQL database. The solution is used by about 20 people, and integrates with a Lotus Notes-based knowledgebase and the current manufacturing system. Crystal Reports is used for sales analysis.
The project was completed on schedule, in five months. The implementation team consisted of five Matimco people, three consultants from FPI's system-related services subsidiary, UniServ Systems International Inc. (UniServ), and for a short period near the go live date, three more people from UniServ.
"We had already been through a business process mapping exercise before selecting BPCS MAX," said Jover, "so we knew what we needed to do once the project started. "One of our biggest challenges was the fact that we had no experience implementing ERP systems and no one in the team had in-depth knowledge of BPCS MAX. That situation soon changed for everyone in the team, and now as we extend the solution to the Quezon City distribution centre, our own people will handle the project themselves."
From the beginning, support was available through UniServ and MAX International and training was supplied on-site during the implementation.
Jover admitted that Matimco has a number of peculiarities, and she mentioned that BPCS MAX adapted very well to Matimco's business processes. "The project might have been more difficult if we'd selected another software application."
Business Benefits "It is still early days, but implementation of BPCS MAX has effected major benefits in three areas: integration, data integrity, and security," said Jover.
Here are some benefits in more detail:
- Managers can make appropriate decisions that are based on accurate and up-to-date information.
- Users can view information, identify and quickly correct errors in real time across the organisation.
- The books are closed more quickly than before.
- Information is more accurate, due to a reduction in manual data entry and task duplication.
- The system is secure from unauthorised access, at multiple levels
Jover added: "As the use of BPCS MAX is extended into other parts of the Matimco organization, we will start to see greater operational efficiencies, inventory reductions and cost savings that will allow us to serve our customers better and further expand our business."
The Future
Matimco's mission is to develop, distribute and market wood products to the construction market in the Philippines and the rest of the world, with an emphasis on quality products, customer service, and with a commitment to all stakeholders and environmental preservation.
In terms of its systems, Matimco is currently fine tuning the BPCS MAX system and expanding its reach across our company. Jover went on to explain: "We are already looking forward to the next phase of our information system strategy, which is extending BPCS MAX to help us better manage our business partner relationships."
Jover and her team were particularly impressed with the support they received from FPI. "FPI's UniServ people provided the level of support we had expected. When we needed extra help, they flew in extra people and they were always responsive when technical issues needed resolving."
