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3E works 30% faster thanks to SAP Business One |
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3E helps organisations develop strategies and projects involving renewable energy and energy efficiency. The team consists of experts in various disciplines, who mostly work on location at client sites. To steer all projects in the right direction, 3E h as relied on SAP Business One & ProjectManagement, an integrated ERP solution tailored for growing, ambitious companies, since 2009.
Although only set up in 1999, 3E now has 80 employees in offices situated in Belgium, France, Turkey and China. Needless to say the company is growing at a quick pace. Until 2008 the computer system managing the projects could not keep up. Monthly reporting, for example, still required a lot of manual work. An integrated Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solution became imperative. 3E analysed the different packages available on the market and soon arrived at SAP Business One. “This package really stood out”, says Gween Cristens, Financial Manager at 3E. “It not only offers the necessary functionalities, but also presents them in an understandable manner. Furthermore, SAP is the market leader and is highly recognised, which gave us the necessary confidence.”
Functionality and user friendliness
“Integration partner Aztalan was convincing with its knowhow and experience in similar projects”, continues Cristens. “They proposed the additional ProjectManagement solution, a completion to the ERP package that allows us to perfectly manage our projects. In about four weeks the entire system was implemented and in January 2009 we had already started working with the new package. We needed some time to adapt, as is the case with every new system, but after the short training all project managers saw the clear added value of the new way of working. Both the functionality and the user friendliness were met with enthusiasm. Direct input of the completed hours into the SAP ProjectManagement solution, for example, is beneficial to all parties: project managers now have a formal input system and the accounts department does not have to collect and copy all data.”
Quick retrieval of information
Contrary to the previous package used by 3E, SAP Business One offers a complete integrated environment where all data are available in a quick manner. Cristens states: “SAP Business One has a clear structure. Everything is linked to each other, making it very easy to find out where certain information comes from. The ProjectManagement solution, too, fits perfectly into the picture. Furthermore, SAP Business One also offers security. A booked item is in the system, without any discussion. This seems evident, but the previous system allowed for easy data deletion, which could result in severe accounting errors.”
Time saving for the accounting department: 30%
The benefits for 3E are, however, not limited to data management. Data reporting, too, has become a lot more efficient; on the one hand because of the direct availability of data and on the other because of the decreased manual work. “The accounting department spends on average about 30% less time keeping projects up to date”, calculates Cristens. “Delivering monthly reports used to take three days’ work: first all data needed to be entered into Excel, only then could the calculations start. The risk of making mistakes was therefore very high. With SAP Business One all data are available ad hoc. Through the Project Dashboard we can retrieve results in no time. Both the management team and the investors can receive ad hoc operational and financial data giving direct insight into profitability, which can be very useful for investors.”
For 3E the current implementation of SAP Business One is not an ending. “It is our ambition to start using the package more broadly. After all, the programme contains quite a few features we find interesting but haven’t discovered yet. The CRM and cash flow possibilities are some examples of these. As soon as the opportunity arises, we want to further explore these options”, concludes Cristens.
Quote:
“In the past, delivering monthly reports meant about three days’ work; now all data are available ad hoc.”
Gween Cristens, Financial Manager, 3E
(Click to enlarge image)
Project requirements
- Integrated ERP for project management
- Flexible tool which supports fast growth
- More safety of data and results
SAP solution and service
- SAP Business One & ProjectManagement solution
Benefits
- Project Dashboard delivers direct management reporting
- Much less manual work
- Guaranteed flawless data
- All data are linked, enabling data mining
- 30% time saving for accountancy department
3E profile
3E is a knowledge company helping organisations create projects, strategies, concepts and products involving renewable energy and energy efficiency. Its highly qualified, multi-disciplinary team consists of engineers, scientists and financial and legal experts who operate as independent consultants and work together with public and private research teams. Approximately 80 employees in Belgium, France, Turkey and China have already realised hundreds of projects in over 20 countries.
