Success Stories

Activant Prophet 21 Helps Distributor Manage Expensive Inventory

John Ebert watches inventory levels closely. His company, Productive Tool Products, specializes in ergonomic tools that can cost three or four times as much as their traditional counterparts. "We can't keep seven or eight $12,000 tools on our shelves if we only sell one each month," explains Ebert.

As vice president of Productive Tool, Ebert maintains a well-balanced warehouse with the real-time inventory tracking and management tools in Activant Prophet 21, a Windows-based, SQL Server solution designed for distributors. Ebert estimates that Prophet 21 has enabled him to cut inventory levels by about 30 percent, without affecting customer service.

"Prophet 21 lets us use just-in-time principles to manage our stock," he says. "If a customer orders something we don't have, we can cut a purchase order immediately, send it to our supplier, and get what we need within two or three days.

"We use Prophet 21 to keep a close eye on manufacturer lead times and constantly run reports to make sure we're managing inventory instead of just stockpiling product," he says. "Prophet 21 has enabled us to push the warehousing responsibility to our manufacturers, making a big difference on our bottom line."

Managing Growth

Few people knew the definition of the word "ergonomic" in the mid-1980s when Productive Tool started selling instruments designed to reduce repetitive stress and job-related injuries. "We actually had a plaque in our lobby explaining what ergonomic meant," recalls Ebert. "No one knew what we were talking about."

Introducing ergonomic tools to the St. Louis, MO-area paid off when customers realized the value of the products. "It's a hard sale at first," Ebert says. "But, when customers realize that our tools reduce workers' comp claims and last 10 times longer than less expensive products, they come back for more."

Productive Tool is now a leading supplier in its marketplace, selling tools and accessories to some of the largest automakers in the country. "We were fortunate to carve a niche before any of our competitors caught on," Ebert says.

Even as it grows, Productive Tool maintains a relatively small staff -- about 20 people at its two locations. "Some of our employees represent three departments," Ebert says. "We run a lean operation."

Prophet 21 helps Ebert's employees get their myriad of tasks done by providing easy access to the information they need. "We can get information into and out of the system easily and drill down into just about anything to get what we need," says Ebert. "We don't have clerical staff pulling reports."

Because Activant provides reliable technical and solution support, Ebert does not have to hire IT staff; in fact, he is the system administrator by default. "The online help available right from the Prophet 21 and the technical solutions on the customer Web site are excellent," he says. "You can hit a button in Prophet 21, go online, and find a solution to just about any problem. I don't have to worry about being an expert on everything because I can find anything I need in a few seconds."

Ebert says that partnering with Activant helps him focus on driving his business: "We want to sell assembly and production tools, not develop software," he says. "Prophet 21 and Activant help us make sure we're getting our products to market instead of worrying about whether or not our system works."

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