Sidorenko Holding manufactures first-class packages with Мicrosoft Dynamics

Situation

Sidorenko Holding Group has been founded more than 23 years ago in Bourgas, Bulgaria and it is now one of the fastest growing companies in the country. Starting as a supplier for the food industry in 1990, today Sidorenko Holding Group includes several companies, operating in various business areas – manufacturing and trading of packages for food industry, trading and service with specialized equipment, machines, and technologies for food industry, investment projects in building construction and property management. For its business and operation purposes in 2005, the company built its own office with a warehouse and a service center in Bourgas. In the same year, Sidorenko opened an office in the capital of the country – Sofia.

During the years Sidorenko Holding Group has increased the range of offered products and services, and has established subsidiary companies to organize the management of the specific activities in packaging industry. One of the companies is specialized in manufacturing of packages for food industries, including corrugated shells, bags, envelopes, foils, and so on. Beside the different packages for the food industry, the company provides machinery and specialized equipment, performing 24/7 warranty and post-warranty service. Another company from the group trades with various food additives. Sidorenko Holding Group also established a separate company for delivering professional services in business investment and construction projects.

For the management of each company and its specific business processes, Sidorenko used numerous software applications during the years. As the holding rapidly expanded and the scope and complexity of its business processes increased, the management faced many difficulties and bottlenecks due to the limited capabilities of the non-integrated software applications in charge.

Some of the main problems Sidorenko faced were difficulties in production materials planning, item discrepancy in the warehouse, lack of integration of interrelated data, and limited capabilities for real time reports and analyses. Many of the item shipping and purchasing operations were done manually which lead to a lot of errors and doubled information. Sidorenko also needed common database for effective tracking of stock inventory by batches, expiration dates, as well as mobile devices for optimized management of the warehouse operations.

Situation

In that situation, with a lack of integration between the different software applications, increased operational work, and inaccurate data and reports, Sidorenko management team felt the need of effective management of every process and tracking it in one integrated software system.

In the begging of 2012 they made an extensive research on the Bulgarian ERP market looking the most appropriate solution to best answer their business needs. Due to the good references of one of its business partner, using a Microsoft Dynamics solution, Sidorenko management team organized meeting with the system integrator Intelligent Systems. A lot of meetings followed, including product demonstrations and real view of business processes. Due to the rich functionalities and features of Microsoft Dynamics, as well as excellent references for Intelligent Systems’ consulting services, in April 2012 Sidorenko started the implementation project.

“We knew that we had overgrown the capabilities of the separated software applications we were using and we had to move forward with one integrated solution. The reasons we chose Microsoft Dynamics are complex. On one site the solution combines functionalities which meet our needs. On another – we found the investment not just cost-effective but also a long-term alternative for the successful development of our business. And finally, we rely on Intelligent Systems for our partner in this project not just because they are the leading Microsoft Dynamics partner in the country but also because of the rich experience and know-how they have”, says Mr. Yuriy Sidorenko, Owner of Sidorenko Holding Group.

Only a few months later, Sidorenco Holding and its subsidiary companies already implemented most of the modules: manufacturing, supply chain and warehouse management, sales, financials, accounting, CRM, and others.

Benefits

With Microsoft Dynamics ERP solution now, Sidorenko management team has real-time and reliable information about all items, including the entire manufacturing and trading nomenclature. Microsoft Dynamics improves planning and tracking of the materials for the manufacturing process, reporting them in separate production lines, work shifts, etc. The accurate cost amounts of the production ensure better planning and price management of the items. Microsoft Dynamics provides also more effective and optimized financial processes with detailed view of the cash flow in the company.

The ERP solution gives the management detailed and specific reports and analyses needed for better decision-making. The CRM functionality provides better tracking of the performance and productivity of all salespeople by tasks, projects and other criteria.

Intelligent Systems also deployed the mobile add-on application NAVmobile. The solution is installed on mobile devices and used by the warehouse employees, ensuring faster and more productive working process. NAVmobile solution optimizes organization and tracking of all warehouse operations through real-time integration with the Microsoft Dynamics database.

Almost a year after, the integrated solution Microsoft Dynamics streamlines all key business processes, the planning, and controlling of all activities in the subsidiary companies and the holding structure as a whole. Some of the main benefits and improvements are:

• Centralized database and quick real-time access to it
• Improved data security
• Decreased operational costs through standard and optimized business processes
• Better tracking and planning activities in manufacturing, warehouse, CRM, SCM, Finance, etc.
• Information flow automation
• Easy communication among employees, customers, vendors and business partners
• Detailed reports and analyses on KPIs

“The great news is that we already find a number of improvements in our business. Optimized business processes, enhanced employees’ productivity, and improved reporting tools are the basis for better and more productive decision-making. We think investing in Microsoft Dynamics  ERP solution was the step we had to do in order to guarantee successful and dynamic business development”, adds Mr. Sidorenko.