Better in the Bronx

Migrating from a home-grown computer system to a distribution-centric solution helped this Bronx-based distributor gain efficiencies.

by Rich Vurva

Like many small distributors with less than $5 million in annual sales, Greenhill Industrial Supply built its business by providing friendly, dependable service to a local customer base. It was established in the 1930s in The Bronx, N.Y., as a hardware store where residents scooped screws and nails from barrels while chatting with the friendly neighborhood merchant. Greenhill evolved into a distributor of hand and power tools, fasteners, hardware and other building and maintenance supplies to contractors, institutions, hospitals and other businesses in the boroughs of New York.

After Lenny Gamss bought Greenhill in 1987, he began to introduce new technologies to help the company operate more efficiently. Until 2000, he used a home-grown computer system to keep track of the books. As the company grew, its Microsoft Access-based solution lacked the sophistication Greenhill needed. Plus, counter salespeople, order takers and warehouse staff couldn’t easily enter the system to retrieve data.

Gamss decided it was time to migrate to a distribution software management system that could do a better job of tracking inventory, purchase history, receivables and other data critical to running a distribution company.

After checking out available solutions, he picked DDi System as his technology provider. Gamss says the switch to a distribution-centric software package made Greenhill more efficient. Enhanced data management and inventory control, automated credit card processing and improved customer service are just some of the ways technology benefits his company.

Better inventory control
New technologies help Gamss do things he never could before. For example, employees can look up products using keywords instead of entering an exact product description or part number. Even when a customer requests a tube of caulk but the manufacturer’s description calls it sealant, an order-taker can quickly retrieve the SKU because both keywords have been entered into the system.

Better inventory control also means fewer stockouts. Gamss assigns minimum stock levels to individual products or product lines and the system automatically notifies him when it’s time to place an order.

“Every other day, I get an e-mail with a critical inventory report attached,” he says. “I can quickly scan the report to see whether any of the items need to be ordered.”

Better data management also helped Greenhill lower costs. Because the system can track multiple vendors for the same item, Gamss can shop around for the best price on an item before placing an order.

The distribution-centric software solution also improved Greenhill’s process for receiving items into inventory.

“My home-grown system did not have a place for me to do receiving. Now, we receive everything as it comes in and it gets updated immediately. It’s easier to find out if there are back orders waiting to be pulled. Guys know immediately to go to the back order file and see what’s there. Before, it was a much more ‘seat-of-the-pants’ method of operating,” he says.

Automated credit card processing
About 50 percent of Greenhill’s business is walk-in trade. When contractors send a driver to pick up supplies they need for that day’s jobs, they want to charge the order on a credit card and get in and out as quickly as possible.

The DDi System automated credit card processing module eliminates the need for the counter salesperson to key in an order twice. Previously, employees entered the order in Greenhill’s computer system, then entered the transaction again into a separate credit card processing terminal and waited for authorization. Customers signed a purchase acknowledgement and a credit card receipt.

DDi System president Adam Waller says the automated credit card processing module generates a single sheet of paper for the customer to sign that serves as a receipt and credit card approval. Customers can get in and out of the store faster.

“This system brings a completely high-end retail point-of-sale solution and melds it with a very strong distribution management, inventory-centric application. It’s the best of both worlds. Very few systems have the capability to handle retail business and point-of-sale without losing distribution management capabilities,” says Waller.

Because the credit card module links directly to the DDi System software, it also eliminates the added daily steps of reconciling credit card slips with that day’s purchases.

Improved customer service
Gamss says a distribution-centric software solution helped improve customer service levels.

“Customers have noticed a difference in our ability to provide them faster service. They notice improved ease-of-operation at the point of sale. My guys can find SKUs a lot quicker. They’re willing to use it more than they ever were. It made it easier all around for everybody,” he says.

With access to historical purchase data, order-takers can quickly review a customer’s purchase history over the phone and make purchase suggestions.

The system tracks sales in a number of different ways, including by salesman, geographic location and type of customer, which enables Gamss to detect patterns and take advantage of new sales opportunities. For example, if he sees customers in Manhattan using a particular cleaning product, he might stock up on that item and develop a special price offer for his salespeople to take to the streets. Without easy access to sales and vendor data, it would be much more difficult to develop sales promotions in time to take advantage of market opportunities.

Perhaps one of the best benefits Gamss realized was the ability to grow the business without dramatically adding employees.

“As the company has grown, we have not had to add a lot of staff. The system helps me streamline. I probably would have needed a lot more people on staff if not for this system. We’d be doing a lot more things manually,” he says.

Gamss says moving from a home-grown software system to a distribution-centric solution made Greenhill Industrial Supply a better business. With each upgrade, he learns a new way to make his company operate even more efficiently. His only regret is not making the move sooner.

This article originally appeared in the September/October 2004 issue of Progressive Distributor. Copyright 2004.

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