Industrial and Municipal Supply

“Digging in the Dirt”

The team members of Industrial and Municipal Supply (IMS), West Point, Georgia, love to play in the dirt. Its owner and founder, Marc Simmons, runs a company of 9 employees that provides large, commercial pipes to general contractors and utilities contractors. Marc and his team provide products that require customization, including determination of length and diameter, among other measures.

Century Solutions Group, an Atlanta-based IT consulting firm, also loves to dig in the dirt. The dirt they deal with is the stuff that pulls Marc and his team away from their core business. Management of IT services is a huge concern for IMS. From a proprietary database to an interconnected network, Mark believes that the network is “like having another employee”, and as with all team members, the system needs care and attention. That is where IMS afforded Century the chance to roll up its sleeves and dig in.

Problem:

IMS’ problem was two-fold: finding a competent, honest IT consultant to manage day-to-day needs and a software developer to help IMS migrate its database from a DOS-based platform to a more open, user friendly platform, Visual Basic/SQL Server 2000.

Solution: Network Management

Prior to using Century, IMS utilized the services of a local vendor. IMS and a neighboring company (a client of Century’s) both shared some IT and telephone service. In getting ready for a major system upgrade, both IMS and the neighbor had contracted the services of their respective IT firms. Century was ready to go and the other firm just flat out was not. Marc decided from that day forward to retain the services of Century Solutions Group.

On the IT management side, Marc says that Century scores “a 99% versus 60%” for the old company. Additionally, Marc says that Jeff “is not a ‘yes man’.” This type of integrity is what sets Century apart from its competition. Furthermore, Century’s priority rate feature allows IMS to receive priority service within specified periods. Coupled with remote network management and troubleshooting, Century is able to address IMS’ issues quicker and at a lower cost.

Database

Century was also retained to redesign and recast IMS’ dated, DOS-based quoting system. Century accomplished this work while keeping IMS up and running. The new system has reduced quoting days from a 2 to 3-day turnaround to 1 day or less. As part of the road map advanced by Century, the ultimate solution includes seamless integration of Great Plains to handle purchase order management.

As IMS continues to focus its energy on its business, Century energetically performs its services, enhancing IMS position in the marketplace.

Business Results:

• Increased responsiveness
• Quality of services
• Time to market efficiency and effectiveness
• Ease of use; user-friendly systems.