Healeys Printers Ltd

“After the second demonstration, we knew instantly that Access was the one for us. It all made sense… the system was so intuitive we felt as if we could begin using it there and then.”

In responding to the challenges of an increasingly competitive industry, Ipswich-based Healeys Printers Ltd is seeking to enhance the scope, speed and quality of the service it can deliver to its customers. Although it is already a highly successful company, offering a full range of print facilities, Managing Director Philip Dodd recognises that “the demands of the modern customer can only be met using modern technology.”

In early 2001 – following the purchase of a rival, Felixstowe-based company – Mr. Dodd began a thorough review of his business software. He was surprised to learn that the Sage Line 50 software being used by his old competitors was producing reports beyond his own capabilities. Healeys were running a comparable Pegasus Opera solution, but had not received the training necessary to understand its full functionality.

“I contacted my bank manager for some guidance on which of the two systems to opt for,” says Mr. Dodd, “and he recommended Access Accounts as an alternative to both."

After the first round of product demonstrations, it was still proving difficult to decide between Access, Sage and Pegasus. They asked their local Access Specialist Centre to visit again “and everything just clicked,” says Mr. Dodd. “Following the second viewing, we knew instantly that FoundatonsXP was the solution we had been looking for. It all made sense… the system was so intuitive we felt as if we could begin using it right there and then.”

Mr. Dodd went into the selection process with an open mind and a clear idea of his core requirements. “I didn’t want to spend a great deal of money, but felt equally reluctant to compromise on functionality. Integration was a big factor – we operate a separate print quotation and Job Bag system called Printpak, and I needed something that would link into this directly. I was particularly keen to eliminate the frustrations caused by continually re-keying data.”

Today, the company continues to generate quotations and invoices using Printpak, but now enjoys automatic updates to FoundationsXP. Data only has to be entered once – then the seamless, real-time connectivity provided by Access Transaction Broker takes over and it is sent straight from Printpak to every relevant accounts module.

Mr. Dodd is equally pleased with the levels of functionality offered by FoundationsXP and, in particular, its reporting capabilities. He says, “Prior to Access, I didn’t know how generate a monthly Profit & Loss sheet. Today, I can produce a raft of management reports almost instantly, giving me the exact financial position on a daily basis. This certainly helps to keep my bank manager happy. It also allows me to concentrate on securing new prospects, rather than just tracking the activity of my existing customers.”

For Company Accountant, Alison Christian, and the other members of the accounts department, the greatest advantage of Access software has undoubtedly been its ease of use. In total, the team had just 3½ days training – yet this gave them the confidence to go live with FoundationsXP and Access Payroll on the same day.

Philip says, “At the same time as installing FoundationsXP we switched mid-year to Access Payroll. I was keen to avoid using two separate systems and wasting time on the ensuing journaling between them - having a fully integrated system was our prime objective.” Four months later and the two applications are running extremely smoothly.

Alison and Philip feel that there are specific reasons why implementing Access is such a painless process. Firstly, they point to the instinctive, consistent way in which information is displayed. Alison says “This helps users to navigate around the system and understand module functionality in the shortest possible time.” Philip adds: “In short, Access is amazingly easy to use. We all have the confidence to wander in and out of unfamiliar modules, based on our knowledge of the ones we use very day.” Instruction manuals written in plain English have also helped – “definitely not written by Techies… or aimed at Techies!” says Philip.

Mr. Dodd now has renewed confidence in the ability of his accounts software to cope with changing economic conditions, and to help him make the most of any new opportunity.

The company is already considering an e-commerce web site, complete with ordering facilities and ‘straight-through’ processing into the back-office accounts. This will provide a self-service environment, enabling registered customers to track the progress of their orders and see their account status 24 hours a day, without increasing the administrative burden on Healey’s staff.

Mr. Dodd believes the benefits of this kind of integration cannot be overestimated: “As companies search for faster turnarounds and greater degrees of customisation, the size of our average print run is likely to reduce significantly. I anticipate that we will soon be handling small, personalised print-runs, based upon orders received over the Internet and needed for delivery within the hour. Immediate access to key accounts data – and full front to back-office integration – is the only way we will be able to respond to this change and still make a profit.”

For the moment, Felixstowe will continue handling all pre-press activity using its existing Sage software. However, as the move towards complete integration gathers pace and accounting activity becomes more centralised, it is likely that a second FoundationsXP package will be installed. This will provide parity between the two branches and allow Mr. Dodd to view company wide activity in an instant.