Why Elevator Companies Outgrow Their Software and How Cinntra Solves It with SAP Business One

From the outside, it seems very easy to run an elevator company. You build an elevator, install it, and then maintain it - nice and simple. But if you actually operate an elevator company, you know it is not that simple at all. 
 

Each one of your projects will be different from the rest. Your installation of each one of your pieces of equipment will be done at a different customer site, for different time periods, using different parts.  
 

You're also trying to simultaneously coordinate the procurement of all of the equipment from your manufacturer's facility, the manufacturing and delivery of new elevators, and the future service and maintenance contracts for those elevators with the issuance of all those contracts for future elevators that have yet to be manufactured. 
 

Elevators are not simple to operate; therefore, they are not operated using simple tools. 

Where Most Elevator Companies Get Stuck 

The elevator industry is in a unique position due to its convergence with the manufacturing, construction, and service industries as it relates to the construction or installation of elevators. 
 

This creates many complications in the day-to-day operation of an elevator company that require the coordination of custom-made products, the coordination of multiple installation sites, the monitoring of all costs associated with all current projects before completion, the renewal of long-term AMC contracts, the supervision of subcontractor activities, and the maintaining of adequate quantities of parts available for the next installation of a given elevator before beginning that installation. 
 

Most general ledger accounting systems are designed to handle transactional data. None of the above activities can be tracked or reported by even the best accounting systems. As a result:   
 

1. Your teams tend to work in silos.   
2. Your firm utilizes multiple spreadsheets, and data is entered multiple times, but the data is still not correct.  
3. You only find out how much money you have in total project costs when the project is finally closed.   
4. You run out of parts while performing an installation.   
5. Your management ultimately makes decisions based upon instinct because you do not have real-time visibility into the actual state of your business. 
 
The company is continuously obtaining new business but is still having trouble managing the work they are already committed to. 

What Cinntra Brings to This Industry 

Cinntra is an SAP Gold Partner. More specifically, we are a partner that has built true expertise within the lift and elevator industry. 

We comprehend the entire journey of how an elevator company functions from the initial inquiry by a client through to the final renewal of the AMC many years later. We know how parts are sourced; how costs of projects behave; how service "teams" operate separately from "installation teams"; how executives need to see everything within one environment, with no need to dig through multiple reports. 
 

This is what enables us to configure and implement SAP Business One for elevator companies as opposed to just a generic ERP solution. 
 

For the elevator company, we configure SAP B1 in the following ways: 

• Project Costing: Trackable installation projects from beginning to end as separate financial entities. Ability to view parts, labor, logistics, and subcontracting costs in real time on day one until the project has been handed over. 
   

• Component Inventory: Configured based on the structuring of specific categories used by elevator companies, with built-in reorder triggers, project allocation, and visibility into warehousing. 
   

• Multi-Site Project Management: All the current installations being worked on are displayed in one space so that all timelines, team assignments, and project progress can be monitored without having to chase down an update. 
   

• Management of Service and AMCs: Information such as service schedule, renewal reminders, and maintenance history are directly tied to the installed elevator unit and client account. 

• Live Financial Reporting: Executives have access to view how the total company and each project is performing today without the necessity of waiting for month-end closing or going through manual work. 
   

Easa Elevators: What This Looks Like in Practice 

Easa Elevators is a leading provider of elevator and lift solutions who design, supplies, install and maintain systems on an ongoing basis within commercial and residential projects. 
 

Prior to our support, Easa used Tally for the first years of their operation. Tally did serve its purpose for the early years; however, Easa Elevators' growth has far surpassed Tally's ability to assist them in meeting the growing operational demands of their business.  
 

Therefore, Project costs were not visible until jobs were completed. The inventory was purely managed by "feel." There was no visibility anywhere on the project due to no visibility of anyone's work. Leadership had no true understanding of their operational performance. 

 
The Role of Us 
 
We engaged with Easa to develop an understanding of the way they operated and implemented SAP Business One to fit their actual workflows, versus a standard template, or an overly rushed go-live, to give the customer a system built to provide the same functionality as their overall project, overall inventory, and all projects as a whole. 
 

The positive impact was almost immediate, and it continues to this day. Instead of having to estimate the actual costs of the project at the end of the month, the cost of the project was a monthly calculated value, so the team could control costs as well as estimate it when placing the project under construction. Inventory is no longer a source of anxiety on a daily basis. Every department is now working off the same numbers for the first time! 
 

Easa Elevators received more than improved software; they received a company that can operate as successfully as the systems they provide. 

That is what Cinntra provides to its elevator customers. 

If your company is experiencing similar complexities because of operating systems other than what was intended to do what you do, then please contact us today to have an honest conversation.