Claremont, New Hampshire-based Sullivan-Palatek makes air compressors and mining equipment for industrial construction companies and offshore oil refineries. The company needed a more cost-effective means of replenishing its inventory and rescheduling material plans accordingly. To help meet its demands, Sullivan-Palatek opted for UNIX-based Infimacs II Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software suite, produced by San Ramon, CA-based Relevant Business Systems.

"[The software's] Material Requirements Planning (MRP) module...allows us to get hold of our inventory levels, thus keeping payables in balance with cash [and] making us more flexible," says Todd Shepherd, accounting manager for Sullivan-Palatek. The MRP module delivers a material plan that helps manufacturers meet their production schedules, taking into account lead times and in-process cycle times for parts and assemblies. It also plans work orders and purchase requisitions and makes appropriate recommendations for boosting efficiency.

"We originally chose Relevant because of their professionalism and cost competitiveness," adds Shepherd. "However, we've come to realize that they were the right choice for many more reasons. Relevant's technical support has been nothing short of awesome. Their rapid response time, across the time zone differences, has saved me many times."