Business Micros is helping Kommerling fabricator Affordable Window Systems to save between £10,000 and £20,000 p.a. on printing and staffing costs thanks to the development of a new bespoke software module.

Affordable has had a ‘remote assistant’ added to its Business Micros Evolution software platform which automatically prints and delivers order acknowledgements to customers. Orders faxed in by customers are scanned using the EvoNet production management package, edited and checked and then automatically confirmed to the customer either by email, fax or posted print out.

With between 500 and 600 customers regularly placing orders, Affordable previously spent considerable sums every month on print costs and one member of its order processing team spent a large proportion of their time on the task.

Paul Banks, the IT Manager at Affordable, says the company is very pleased with the new module. He said: “In an increasingly difficult market, fabricators need to look for ways like this to become more efficient and to reduce costs, whilst also improving their service to customers.

“Working in partnership with Business Micros, we are delighted with the tangible savings the remote assistant is delivering and with the extra efficiencies we have been able to pass on to our customers.”

Blackpool based Affordable, which fabricates around 2,000 frames per week in the Kommerling Connoisseur 70mm profile, began using the Business Micros Evolution processing package in 2003 and since then has added EvoNet management software, EvoCite interactive order tracking and EvoWeb on-line pricing and ordering.

The remote assistant also works with the EvoCite package enabling customers to log on and view their orders and acknowledgement on-line around the clock.
The company has made a strategic decision to invest substantially in its IT and has recently purchased 62 new PCs and 6 servers to gain the optimum performance from its software.

Posted on 6th June 08