"We were delighted to go live with Infor CRM in less than 90 days. We were able to exceed our implementation goals and finally had our essential data in one place." Cheryl Jones Manager Information Technology Koch Equipment

Koch Equipment Implements MAPICS (now Infor) CRM In Less Than 90 Days

In December 2000, Koch Equipment was created as a new company. Prior to this, it had been a division of Koch Supplies. As part of the split from Koch Supplies, the new company had two months to create a standalone business system and become fully operational to continue business.

Management at the new company knew they wanted one database for all customer information, and they did not have a lot of time to implement a complex system. "We had about four weeks to pick a CRM solution, and there were only three vendors that were flexible enough to provide a demo quickly. We were impressed by what MAPICS (now Infor) had to offer, and by the end of the year we had chosen MAPICS (now Infor) CRM for customer relationship management with order management capabilities. We were ready to start the implementation right away," says Cheryl Jones, manager, information technology.

Koch Equipment offers complete systems for manufacturing sausage and cured and smoked meats, incorporating such equipment as grinders, mixers, cutters, stuffers, injectors and smokehouses along with a wide variety of equipment and systems for vacuum packaging and labeling of food and non-food products. The company prides itself on offering high-quality equipment and parts and is continually seeking new technologies to serve the unique needs of its domestic and international markets.

Implementing in only 90 days
Koch Equipment had an aggressive schedule to get up and running. Each and every milestone was critical to ensure a successful business launch. The first phase of the project was to replace the several, disparate contact management systems to consolidate necessary information into one database. "We were delighted to go live with MAPICS (now Infor) CRM in less than 90 days. We were able to exceed our implementation goals and finally had our essential data in one place," adds Jones.

Improving quality assurance and customer satisfaction.
Because the entire company will have access to customer information, Koch believes quality assurance will improve. The CRM solution from MAPICS (now Infor) will help our engineering department improve quality. Our engineers now have access to the same database that the sales department uses to keep track of customer information and issues. This information will be helpful when designing products and trying to improve quality," continues Jones. The meat packaging equipment has a very long life; therefore tracking the equipment and providing service over the life of the machinery is a key requirement. Koch Equipment was able to take advantage of the built-in flexibility in MAPICS (now Infor) CRM to tailor the solution to fit its business requirements. Koch is able to tie customer information to the equipment owned, track that equipment, and effectively provide long-term product service and support. Koch Equipment products have graphical representations that will be stored or hotlinked to engineering files in MAPICS (now Infor) CRM. "We have found that our customer satisfaction is going up as well, because the sales people can see images of each product and are setting expectations better the first time. We have fewer returned products and happier customers," says Jones.

Expanding market share
By analyzing customer data and input from the sales force, Koch Equipment is hoping to find new markets for expansion within its customer base and with new prospects. "We are using the information in MAPICS (now Infor) CRM to study sales trends and learn more about our customers," says Jones. "With this information, we believe we will find places in the market where there are either gaps from consolidation or new opportunities with 'mom and pop' shops opening."

Jones Continues, "We will also use the information to expand market share by targeting and marketing to our current customers based on SIC codes. We will generate interest and leads based on vertical markets, which is something we have never been able to do in the past."

Looking forward
Because Koch Equipment is always looking for ways to provide superior customer service and improve efficiency, the company is looking to upgrade to the next version of MAPICS (now Infor) CRM. "The MAPICS (now Infor) solutions have been nothing but an asset to our company. We are currently enrolled in the Customer Field Test Program for the next version of customer relationship management. By integrating our CRM information into our back-end system, SyteLine, we will be able to take our total solution to the next level. We will be able to not only track our prospect and customer information, but we will also eliminate redundant data entry. MAPICS (now Infor) CRM will be our single point for viewing and executing all customer activity from opportunity to order through service," concludes Jones.