Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200 ERP Software

Ash Equipment Co.

Denise Petitti, Co-Owner and VP of Finance

Background
Ash Equipment Company has been in business since 1965 and is a leading supplier of heating, sensing and process control solutions.

The Challenge
Ash Equipment was running their business on an old AS400-based distribution software application. It was very difficult to use, cumbersome to navigate, and hadn’t been upgraded in over 8 years. Denise Petitti, Co-Owner and VP of Finance recalls, "We became accustomed to adjusting our processes to the old software over the years. But one day when I was training a new employee, it’s like a light came on and I discovered just how difficult our software was to use. We had to click through several times to skip screens and functions that our company didn’t even use. I realized that it was a huge waste of time and I figured there had to be a better way."

To make matters worse, Ash Equipment was running 3 separate systems. One for sales and customer management, another for accounting and inventory control, and a third for shipping. Denise adds, "Anytime we got a new customer, we had to type their information into all 3 systems. After a while, changes that were made to a customer account in one system didn’t necessarily get updated in the other 2 so our data was inconsistent."

The Approach
To replace their old accounting system, Ash Equipment evaluated popular software like QuickBooks and Peachtree only to discover that they couldn’t handle the volume of sales, customer, and inventory data that Ash Equipment needed to track and report on.

Denise was subsequently referred to Partners In Technology in Wheaton, IL. She explains, "The folks from Partners In Technology came out to our office and I was immediately impressed by how knowledgeable, friendly and positive they were. They didn’t seem focused on how much we were willing to spend like some of the other vendors we spoke to. Instead, they listened, analyzed our challenges, and focused on helping us find the right solution." That solution turned out to be Sage MAS 90. Denise adds, "They clearly explained how they would address our challenges and gave me confidence that they could help."

Regarding her opinion of Sage MAS 90, Denise states, "I liked the fact that Sage MAS 90 was already integrated with Act! and could easily be integrated with our UPS shipping software so we could enter data one time and it would be available and consistent throughout all 3 systems."

The Results
"Sage MAS 90 is so easy to use and Partners In Technology has helped transform us into an organization that’s far more efficient," states Denise. "We’ve eliminated the duplicate data entry that slowed us down previously and new employees take to it quickly." In fact, Denise recalls hiring a college student intern for data entry after an employee left the company unexpectedly. After just 1 week, the intern noted that Sage MAS 90 was easier to learn than any other accounting system she had used. According to Denise, "With the efficiency of Sage MAS 90, we now run our accounting department with 1 less person."

Ash Equipment has recently trained 3 new employees on Sage MAS 90 and it has been a breeze. Denise notes, "I can’t imagine training 3 new people on the old software. I’d be putting in 12 to 14 hour days."

With the integration between Act! and Sage MAS 90, salespeople can deliver better customer service and quickly answer questions about inventory availability, pricing, and recent purchases right from Act! without having to fumble around in the accounting system. The integration between Sage MAS 90 and UPS shipping software has also helped. Denise says, "I was able to identify and eliminate several errors being made by our shipping clerk thanks to Sage MAS 90 and Partners in Technology. And perhaps best of all, the integration means that I have one less system to update."

According to Denise, "We’re much more efficient, Partners In Technology has helped streamline many of our processes, I have fantastic reports to help make sense of all the data in our system, and I have much better control over cash flow." Partners In Technology continues to support Sage MAS 90 and ensure it runs smoothly for years to come. And when Ash Equipment Co. needs help, they know who to turn to. In fact, Denise recently needed help with an issue and was on the phone with a support technician from Partners In Technology for over 3 hours and long into the night. The problem was resolved and Denise thankfully states, "The support tech stuck with me and didn’t give up until the issue was resolved." Denise closes in saying, "It has been a very busy year and I’m not sure we would have survived without the help of Partners In Technology."

Testimonials
"The folks from Partners In Technology came out to our office and I was immediately impressed by how knowledgeable, friendly and positive they were. They didn’t seem focused on how much we were willing to spend like some of the other vendors we spoke to. Instead, they listened, analyzed our challenges, and focused on helping us find the right solution."

"Partners In Technology clearly explained how they would address our challenges and gave me confidence that they could help."

"I liked the fact that Sage MAS 90 was already integrated with Act! and could easily be integrated with our UPS shipping software so we could enter data one time and it would be available and consistent throughout all 3 systems."

"Sage MAS 90 is so easy to use and Partners In Technology has helped transform us into an organization that’s far more efficient. We’ve eliminated the duplicate data entry that slowed us down previously and new employees take to it quickly."

"With the efficiency of Sage MAS 90, we now run our accounting department with 1 less person."

"I was able to identify and eliminate several errors being made by our shipping clerk thanks to Sage MAS 90 and Partners in Technology. And perhaps best of all, the integration means that I have one less system to update."

"We’re much more efficient, Partners In Technology has helped streamline many of our processes, I have fantastic reports to help make sense of all the data in our system, and I have much better control over cash flow."

"The support tech at Partners In Technology stuck with me long into the night for over 3 hours and didn’t give up until the issue was resolved."