CUSTOMERS
NIREX
Nirex Introduce Microsoft
Navision
With an ageing Unix system, Nirex needed a modern, centralised business solution that would help them to reduce support costs and provide users with an easy to use, future proofed solution. They chose a Microsoft Navision solution from Metaphorix for the job and are now reaping the benefits across the business.
Nirex is the UK radioactive waste management organisation, based in Harwell, Oxfordshire with a team of 67 staff and around £11 million turnover. Nirex’s mission is “In support of Government policy, develop and advise on safe, environmentally sound and publicly acceptable options for the long-term management of radioactive materials in the UK”.
Cost was the prime factor for changing the financial system to Microsoft Business Solutions Navision. The existing system was expensive to run due to high licensing charges. Furthermore, it required a dedicated Unix server running a database platform of a type contrary to Nirex’s preferred Microsoft SQL Server standard. Nirex is a relatively small company and, increasingly, found that it was necessary to retain specialist skills merely to input and extract data from its old financial system.
But there were many issues associated with this ageing Unix solution that caused pain and consternation, not least the lack of compliance and integration with the Microsoft infrastructure that was in place. Nirex wanted an easy to use, centralised database solution that would support the business from end to end. “The previous system had two purchasing modules, which made it difficult for managers to produce a single picture of their financial status” commented Stuart Newborough – Management Accountant for Nirex.
The old system was purely an accounting solution and hence did not integrate well with the other systems within the business. This made the production of key information very difficult as it had to be pulled from several disparate systems.
This was not helped by the complexity and inflexibility of the existing system, which also made it difficult for the existing supplier to support. This became an important factor in the decision to change solutions and it was for this reason that Nirex chose Metaphorix to handle the Microsoft Navision implementation.
“During the selection process it became clear that Metaphorix had a genuine commitment to understanding our business. They were thorough in their approach and have continued to prove this ever since” added Newborough.
Nirex were looking for a solution that would assist the business to develop and grow in the future, hence they needed a solution for the long term, from a supplier they could trust.
“What we like about Microsoft Navision is its strong proven track record, the assurance of its long life from Microsoft and the ability to start small, but extend the product over time. In partnership with Metaphorix, we knew that we could exploit the potential of Microsoft Navision at a pace that was right for us” stated Newborough.
Nirex were also impressed by the amount of functionality Navision had as standard. This meant that there was minimal customisation of the solution to fit their needs. “The areas we have had specific customisation in are for our specific purchasing requirements” added Newborough “This should ultimately make for a very smooth upgrade path in the future”.
Implementation
Nirex went live with Microsoft Navision V4.0 on 1st April 2005 with the finance, purchasing and managerial teams all being implemented on the same day.
This was achieved, on schedule, in less than 3 months after signing the implementation contract and Nirex were able to make their first payment run on the same afternoon, which was considered to be a significant achievement by the team.
The project management teams on both sides worked extremely well together and ultimately it was this close working relationship which assisted with the smooth running of the project.
With Microsoft Navision, Nirex now have a single view of their financial information. Also with its Microsoft Office user interface and the ability to customise and cut and paste information into Microsoft Excel, acceptance has been immediate. The ease of access to information has allowed them to improve processes and significantly reduce the time and ultimately cost of routine tasks.
For example, reconciliation work in Nirex’s previous system was a significant manual task, but with Navision it is much quicker and easier, this has freed up the Financial Accountant’s time to allow more time to work on value added activities.
Another significant time saving has been in time recording. “The time recording process on our old system took 10 steps in 3 different screens from various different menus, it also took 2 people to undertake this task, one to input timesheets and the other to post them. On Navision the timesheet process is undertaken by one person who posts the timesheet at the time of entry and it now only requires 3 steps in one screen” commented Newborough.
Additionally the previous system required significant systems administration support to keep it running, whereas Navision requires very little specialist in-house IT support.
Without doubt the implementation of Navision has led to significant cost savings at Nirex. Taking account of the license fee of their old system and the cost of implementing the new software, they see the payback period of the new system as less than 18 months.
Conclusion
Nirex have seen some major benefits from implementing Navision, staff support costs have been reduced, processes have been simplified and data duplication eradicated.
“The integration with Microsoft SQL Server and Microsoft Office was a key point in the decision making process, this provides users with a single, easy to use interface, with the integration of Microsoft Excel, Word and Outlook allowing information to easily be transferred and communicated between these platforms. It has also meant the seamless interfacing of our document management system with Navision, which provides a linkage from each scanned invoice and expense record directly into Navision” concluded Newborough
Finally Newborough stated “The implementation of our Microsoft Navision system has been a great success”
