Pod signs on as biggest Microsoft Axapta user
When Designer Textiles, the company with the fabric behind brands such as Icebreaker, merged interests with three other Australasian fashion companies to form Pod, a key to the success was going to be the selection of an ERP system. Here's the thinking behind the decision...
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The Microsoft Axapta solution will provide a standardised base for growth whilst unlocking the synergies between the four Pod businesses. These include Designer Textiles International, New Zealand’s leading supplier of high quality merino fabrics and garments to the world’s premium brands including New Zealand’s own Icebreaker, as well as Mollers Homewares, Logan Textiles and Michele Ann. The solution will be used throughout all of the Pod offices to connect the central business functions across New Zealand, Australia and China. Scoping of the project is now under way, with rollout of the solution expected to commence before the end of the year. Mark Bilton, Managing Director, Pod, says the decision to implement Axapta is a major milestone in the group’s evolution from a traditional manufacturing model to a marketer of fashion management companies. Previously the company was running a number of legacy systems largely inherited from acquisitions. “This is the biggest move forward in our company’s history of IT and business infrastructure and will be critical in enabling us to centralise functions across our group of companies. For the first time, our information and knowledge management, HR, admin and finance, operations and marketing will all be integrated on the same system. “Of prime importance is Axapta’s ability to introduce integrated functionality across all of our business processes to ensure we deliver on our goal of being “on trend and on time” in everything we do. We call the design component of what we do the right creative brain and refer to the manufacturing process as the left logical brain – Axapta will bring new competitive strengths and alignment to both sides of our business brain. “Our businesses will more effectively and efficiently talk to each other with the new solution and we expect to reach new levels of customer integration and ultimately customer satisfaction as a result. With a standardised base, we can confidently embark on our plans for growth.” Pod completed an exhaustive search for an ERP vendor culminating in a short-list of three potential suppliers. A comparison of the functionality of each solution along with a comprehensive survey of the solutions partner helped identify Koorb Consulting and Axapta as the preferred option, with the solution hosted by the managed IT services supplier AppServ. “Microsoft Axapta best met our internal requirements – it had all the functionality we need, including the ability to track against style, colour and size, to manage our business effectively, from customer relationship management through to financial management and manufacturing,” says Bilton. “We were also confident in Axapta knowing it was based on the latest technologies with a strong future in the market place due to its support by Microsoft.” Mark Bilton adds that the potential to forge long-term strategic partnerships with both Koorb Consulting and AppServ played a major part in their decision. “Our businesses are diverse in their fashion and design base, and there are exciting opportunities for us to pursue, so having trusted specialists like Koorb and AppServ to look after our IT keeps us strategically focussed on our own core business,” says Bilton. “Our outsourcing arrangement with AppServ provides us with an effective way to lower system management costs whilst effectively connecting and integrating functionality with our local and overseas operations.” Nicholas Birch, Director of Koorb Consulting, says Axapta is the ideal choice for companies poised for rapid growth. “The depth of functionality in Axapta enables companies to deepen and expand their use as they grow,” he says. “Axapta will also streamline and introduce new efficiencies into the manufacturing and business processes of Pod. The speed of business will be significantly improved which is a plus when everyone wants products made and delivered faster across complex markets.” David Guy, Microsoft Business Solutions New Zealand, says this is a great endorsement of how Microsoft can help New Zealand businesses gain new efficiencies and compete on the global stage. “Pod is the latest of a number of leading New Zealand businesses choosing Microsoft Axapta because it is a versatile, integrated business solution that can tailor to their industry needs here and now, with the capacity to scale to meet their future needs,” says David Guy. For more information about this case study contact |
February 2005
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