Wholesale Distributor Realizes 25% Efficiency Gain with Move to Acumatica
Wholesale Distributor Realizes 25% Efficiency Gain with Move to Acumatica.
Midway Industrial Supply has been a stalwart in the industrial sector for nearly six decades, serving the Mid-Atlantic region through the supply of power transmission and industrial products and repair services. In an industry that’s traditionally slow to embrace change, Midway continually innovates, growing through strategic acquisitions while striving to keep its operations lean and efficient. So when its outdated on-premise ERP began negatively impacting operations, Midway was ready to make a change.
The company recognized the timing was right to replace Infor FACTS with a modern, cloud-based ERP — Acumatica Cloud ERP — and turned to its long-time technology partner, Net at Work, to make it happen.
Gearing Up for Growth
“We were ready to move the business forward by taking advantage of a next-generation, cloud-based ERP application,” explains Richard Swank, Midway’s CFO. “Infor FACTS had been around for nearly 30 years. We had a lot of performance and network issues that zapped productivity. Also, we wanted a more agile, modern solution that would make it easier to roll out to new entities and provide us with better insights across the organization.”
Midway considered other ERP applications before zeroing in on Acumatica. “Net at Work recommended Acumatica as an ideal replacement for FACTS. We’ve trusted Net at Work with our technology for decades, and their recommendation carried weight,” adds Swank.
Modifications to Fit, Not Foil, Updates
One challenge Midway faced with its previous ERP system was extensive customization, which resulted in challenging — and therefore infrequent — software updates. But Acumatica’s highly configurable platform alleviates this pain point. Midway can make most of the changes and adjustment they want in Acumatica through simple configuration adjustments.
Midway also has access to Net at Work’s library of Acumatica enhancements through its Customer Experience Plan. In addition, the Net at Work programming team has built several customizations that add specialized functionality, but none of these modifications impede the company’s ability to update the software. “We update every year without issue,” notes Swank.
ROI Powered by Greater Efficiency
Since implementing Acumatica, Midway has made three acquisitions and opened three new locations while hiring only one new finance department employee. The efficiencies gained with Acumatica led to substantial growth without increasing overhead costs.
“We’re growing bigger but remain lean,” Swank says. “Much of that is because of the efficiencies we’ve gained with Acumatica. We can achieve things with the software we never considered with the older application. With Acumatica, every single process is more efficient. I would estimate that overall, we’re seeing a 25 percent gain in efficiency. That alone helps pay for the software.”
Supporting Data-Driven Activity
Midway’s remote sales teams have direct access to a customized Acumatica dashboard, providing instant access to key performance indicators, informative graphs, and detailed reports. It’s a simple yet impactful change that allows sales teams to spend more time with customers and less time searching for data.
Midway Industrial Supply’s transition to Acumatica Cloud ERP has been a resounding success. The product’s flexibility and strong partnership with Net at Work have empowered the organization to scale efficiently, achieve significant gains in efficiency, and streamline operations across its distributed organization.
Download the full Net at Work success story to read more about Midway Industrial Supply’s next-generation transformation.
