In The News

Kitwe, Zambia May 2012 - Mopani Copper Mine has announced the launch of its new integrated SYSPRO ERP system to better manage internal customers and procurement.

The system, which has been active since the beginning of March, adds a new dimension to doing business with Mopani, making the entire process more user friendly and streamlined, while providing vendors with an equal competitive advantage.

The primary reason for the implementation was to enhance security and curtail the possibility of any fraudulent activities in the evaluation and awarding of supply tenders to vendors. SYSPRO has enabled Mopani to build a Tendering Module which gives vendors the opportunity to tender electronically. Once received, these tenders remain sealed until the due date when they are opened simultaneously. This eliminates any possibility for collusion between buyers and vendors, and provides all suppliers with an equal opportunity.

A further benefit is the addition of product codes to Vendor Profiles - allowing for a more extensive distribution of Requests for Quotations to all vendors able to supply particular products.

In order to ensure successful utilisation of the system by the vendors, Mopani, in conjunction with the Kitwe Chamber of Commerce and Industry, recently conducted workshops where over 200 vendors from the Copperbelt and Lusaka received training on how to use the new system.

"This is the first time in the 30-year history of SYSPRO that a company has undertaken such an extensive exercise to sensitise external system users, and simply goes to show the level of commitment to ensuring that the end users benefit significantly from the system," says SYSPRO's Marketing Director - Meryl Malcomess. "We hope that this kind of commitment and collaboration will set a shining example for industry across the continent and will help in ruling out corruption as well as in enhancing employment opportunities."

Mopani is the first mining company, and possibly the only company in Zambia, to come up with such an initiative for vendors. This will go a long way in creating more opportunities especially for small and medium businesses. Mopani Copper Mines CEO has reiterated the company's commitment to enhancing the capacity of local suppliers:

"I'm delighted that we have managed to implement such a system that will see all vendors competing at the same level, giving them an equal opportunity to trade with us. This makes our business more streamlined and transparent, and helps rid the system of any fraudulent and corrupt practices, as stipulated in our code of business ethics. We are confident that through this system, we will be able to help small businesses grow by giving them equal opportunities. This will go a long way in creating employment for the community," said Mr. Callow.

The project team trained more than 700 users on the new workflow and ERP solution. Upon going live, existing transactions were migrated, and Mopani Copper Mine went live with a "big bang" approach, with all users starting to use the system on the 4th of March 2012.

The solution has settled down well within the first two months, with the complete project being delivered on time and within budget. Both the Zambian Revenue Authority and the Zambian Chamber of Commerce has commended Mopani for improvement brought about by the project.

About SYSPRO

SYSPRO has earned the trust of thousands of companies in over 60 countries for its suite of visionary software that enhances the competitive thrust of small/mid-sized manufacturers and distributors. The company's adherence to developing technology based on the needs of customers is among the reasons why SYSPRO enjoys one of the highest customer retention rates in the industry.

For more information, visit: www.syspro.com or call Paul Rubin, +27 82 330 0600.

All company names and products mentioned in this release are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

SYSPRO Selected "Innovative Company of the Year" in "Information Technology"

COSTA MESA, Calif. - May 9, 2012 - SYSPRO, a developer of best-of-breed, award-winning enterprise resource planning (ERP) software for on-premise and cloud-based utilization, announced today that Network Products Guide, industry's leading technology research and advisory guide, has chosen SYSPRO "Innovative Company of the Year" in the category of "Information Technology." Network Products Guide industry and peer awards are the world's premier information technology awards honoring achievements and recognitions in every facet of the IT industry. Winners were honored in Las Vegas on Tuesday, May 8, 2012, at the 7th annual dinner and presentations.

SYSPRO was named the winner for the company's recently introduced "Quantum Architecture," SYSPRO's powerful breakthrough framework. Paralleling Einstein's Quantum theory of matter and energy, SYSPRO Quantum Architecture is a one-of-a-kind ERP architectural framework for managing today's technology diversity, data diversity and advancing people collaboration and energy. SYSPRO Quantum Architecture addresses: ERP Implementation; Communications/Reporting; Workflow Processes; Security Issues; Regulatory/Financial change; and Mobile/Cloud Requirements.

An annual achievements and recognition awards program with active participation from a broad spectrum of industry voices, the coveted annual Networks Products Guide Awards program encompasses the world's best in organizational performance, products and services, executives and management teams, successful deployments, product management and engineering, support and customer satisfaction, and public relations in every area of information technology.

Joey Benadretti, President SYSPRO USA, who was present to accept the "Innovative Company of the Year" award, noted: "This award serves as a standard against which we will judge our ongoing abilities to develop and sell ERP software that enables SMB manufacturers and distributors to maximize operational efficiencies and best their competitors in a variety of vertical industry segments."

About Network Products Guide Awards

As industry's leading technology research and advisory publication, Network Products Guide plays a vital role in keeping decision makers and end-users informed of the choices they can make in all areas of information technology. You will discover a wealth of information and tools in this guide including the best products and services, roadmaps, industry directions, technology advancements and independent product evaluations that facilitate in making the most pertinent technology decisions impacting business and personal goals. The guide follows conscientious research methodologies developed and enhanced by industry experts. To learn more, visit www.networkproductsguide.com

About SYSPRO

Since its inception in 1978, SYSPRO has been delivering state-of-the-art business solutions to some of the world's leading companies. As a global leader in the production of world-class ERP software, the company now caters to the specialized needs of 14,000 licensed companies in more than 60 countries worldwide. SYSPRO is marketed globally through regional territory distribution centers and a global reseller network in the US, Canada, Africa, Asia Pacific, Australia and the UK.

SYSPRO is a fully integrated business software solution that provides complete control over the planning and management of all facets of business including accounting, manufacturing and distribution operations in a variety of industries.

For additional information on SYSPRO, call Stanley Goodrich at 714/437-1000 or go to www.syspro.com

All company names and products mentioned in this release are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.

Innovative Technology, the Oldham-based bank note validator manufacturer, is investing in a new SYSPRO-based manufacturing, distribution and accounting solution from K3 Syspro (K3). The new fully integrated system is a major investment for Innovative Technology and includes additional software: Microsoft® Dynamics CRM, a sophisticated online product configuration tool called Configur8or and QlikView for instant business intelligence and reporting.

Innovative Technology expects the system to go live in May 2012 and that it will help support and drive its rapid expansion, providing full visibility of important information and integrating all areas of the business through advanced, user-friendly technology.

"We are an existing SYSPRO user and our previous system had been in place for about eight years. It was time for a major change or upgrade. We looked at several software vendors and different packages and we also invited K3 to tender. K3 responded well and put in a lot of groundwork. The company sent in a crack team of specialist consultants to look at all areas of the business. They genuinely were interested in what we do and what we want to achieve and were able to suggest suitable solutions. No other company offered this level of pre-sales support for the tender and K3 is also ensuring that the project will be properly resourced so that we go live in May," says Paul Smith, IT Manager, Innovative Technology.

Innovative Technology is a market leader in the provision of bank note validators for the amusement, gaming, vending, retail & kiosk industries and the past two years have resulted in strong growth as it released new products to the market.

"To support our growth we've taken on new people but the existing technology couldn't support the way the business was going. We needed a completely integrated system to cover all areas of our business activities and processes. The latest version of SYSPRO gives us this with its ability to interface with the additional software programs we require."

In addition to the benefit of installing a robust and reliable back end system, the company's sales and customer services teams will also see a major boost to their productivity with the new CRM system linking seamlessly to customer records held in SYSPRO. They will be able to respond faster to customers with all the information they need at their fingertips. Also, the online product configuration tool will speed up sales order processing with its ability to configure the company's range of industry standard products to suit individual customer requirements quickly and accurately.

About K3 Syspro

K3 Syspro employs 80 people at its Manchester head office and its branches throughout the UK and Ireland. The company offers solutions in enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management, advanced planning and scheduling, warehouse management, human resources and e-business. SYSPRO is used by some 14,500 sites in over 60 countries. K3 Syspro is a division of K3 Business Technology Group, a global leader in providing next-generation enterprise software for businesses in the retail, manufacturing and distribution sectors. With more than 3,000 customer installations in over 30 countries, K3 is recognised as a safe, innovative and reliable provider of world-class solutions, backed by world-class service.

For more information contact:-
Editorial - Ellen Hoefste, Marketing Manager, K3 Syspro on 0161 876 4498 or
Denise Taylor, Bridge PR on 024 76 520025, or e-mail denise@bridgepr.co.uk.

Leeds-based flexible packaging manufacturer Roberts Mart & Co Ltd is installing a new SYSPRO enterprise resource planning (ERP) system to drive efficiency improvements for both sides of its business – Romar, which manufacturers polyethylene film, and Roberts Mart, which converts the film into a wide range of packaging solutions. The phased implementation project is now well underway, with the organisation using SYSPRO's financial modules for both Roberts Mart and Romar.

Through it's investment in the latest SYSPRO 6.1 edition from K3 Syspro (K3), Roberts Mart & Co. are anticipating a wide range of benefits once the system is fully up and running. A small yet important feature that is delivering immediate results is the firm's take up DataSwitch. Simple, easy to install and a low cost utility program, DataSwitch is a quick method of updating stock-keeping unit (SKU) information. DataSwitch exports data from SYSPRO into Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and enables users to benefit from easy updating, without having to go into several thousand individual records held in the ERP system.

The innovative Excel Data Import Utility facilities users to amend information in the spreadsheet then import the data back into SYSPRO, automatically changing the records held in the ERP system's database. Simon Roberts, Commercial Director, and Claire Fitzsimmons, Customer Services Manager, at Roberts Mart take up the story.

"Once we embarked on the new SYSPRO installation, we recognised the need for a way of easily managing the many thousands of SKU codes and records we have for raw materials and finished goods. Each of these items requires price reviews and updates on a regular basis. We also need to keep the lead times up to date, whether it is an issue with a particular supplier or to align with customers' changing requirements," says Simon Roberts.

The standard approach, explains Simon Roberts, would require accessing each record to update them individually, which would require a significant amount of time. This was a situation to avoid and so K3 was consulted for a solution.

"K3 recommended that we look at the Excel Data Import Utility. The demonstration showed us that we could use the software to export all of the SKU codes and records held in SYSPRO into a spreadsheet, allowing us to quickly update them and import them back into the ERP database/system. The speed of operation would reduce the physical task of updating the records to a couple of hours, whereas it would take several days if done the old way," says Simon Roberts.

Claire Fitzsimmons adds: "We manage a very large amount of information in terms of SKU codes for finished goods and raw materials. The Data Import Utility provides a simple, user-friendly method of keeping the information up to date. It allows me to also delete data using the spreadsheets. This provides an immediate update to the records in SYSPRO once it is imported back into the system. Being able to complete the various updates on a spreadsheet in this way is an important time-saving benefit."

There are also benefits for factory planning from using the Data Import Utility reports Claire Fitzsimmons.

"We need to assign lead times to each raw material SKU code. This is important because these lead times drive our best of breed third part APS [Advanced Planning and Scheduling] system. The lead times change regularly, and, if you consider that we have over 3500 raw material SKUs, it would be a mammoth task to update the records manually each month – and sometimes they'll need updating weekly," she says. "We can also be selective and update information on the fly whenever necessary. Which means virtually live data is being transferred to SYSPRO, which again helps the planners. It means that as soon as SYSPRO is amended, so is the APS system."

The Data Import Utility is also useful for managing multiple SKU records of similar items beyond changing the lead-time details, allowing any of the fields within the records to be updated simultaneously. "The SKU code updates are the most immediate and obvious benefit but we can see that it will be useful for easier management of all the other data fields in the records. If you have multiple records of similar items, for example, it would take a long time to manually change all of them. This way allows it be done instantly," says Claire Fitzsimmons.

Both Simon Roberts and Claire Fitzsimmons highlighted the ease with which the Data Import Utility was installed.

"K3 spent just half a day on site, including the installation; the software installation only took an hour. The rest of the time was spent training me to use the software. If you are familiar with the way SYSPRO works, it is very easy to get up to speed so training is minimal," says Claire Fitzsimmons.

"If we hadn't invested in this software, Claire would be tied up doing all the updating herself. So, not only does this free up her workload, we are able make better use of her time rather than having a large portion of it consumed with updating the system," adds Simon Roberts.

About K3 Syspro

K3 Syspro employs 80 people at its Manchester head office and its branches throughout the UK and Ireland. The company offers solutions in enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management, advanced planning and scheduling, warehouse management, human resources and e-business. SYSPRO is used by some 14,500 sites in over 60 countries. K3 Syspro is a division of K3 Business Technology Group, a global leader in providing next-generation enterprise software for businesses in the retail, manufacturing and distribution sectors. With more than 3,000 customer installations in over 30 countries, K3 is recognised as a safe, innovative and reliable provider of world-class solutions, backed by world-class service.

For more information contact:-
Editorial - Ellen Hoefste, Marketing Manager, K3 Syspro on 0161 876 4498 or
Gary Lillistone, Bridge PR, 0247 652 0025, garyl@bridgepr.co.uk

SYSPRO Honored in Categories: Outstanding Technology Company; Innovative Product/Technology. Winners To Be Announced at Awards Gala on June 14.

COSTA MESA, Calif., May 1, 2012 - SYSPRO, a developer of best-of-breed, award-winning enterprise resource planning (ERP) software for on-premise and cloud-based utilization, today announced that the company has been named a finalist for two TechAmerica Orange County High-Tech Innovation Awards in the categories: Outstanding Technology Company and Innovative Product/Technology.

In its 19th year, this premier business event celebrates excellence and achievement in the region’s technology industry, honoring local companies, individuals and products that drive innovation in Orange County. This year's winners will be announced at a dinner June 14, 2012, at the Hilton, Costa Mesa, Calif.

SYSPRO was named a finalist in the "Innovative Product/Technology" category for the company's recently introduced powerful breakthrough framework - SYSPRO "Quantum Architecture." Paralleling Einstein's Quantum theory of matter and energy, SYSPRO Quantum Architecture is a one-of-a-kind Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) framework for managing today's technology and data diversity as well as advancing people collaboration. SYSPRO Quantum Architecture addresses: ERP Implementation; Communications/Reporting; Workflow Processes; Security Issues; Regulatory/Financial change; and Mobile/Cloud Requirements.

SYSPRO was selected in the "Outstanding Technology Category" for the company's on going quest of making Enterprise Resource Planning "smarter" for small to mid-size manufacturers and distributors by listening carefully to their needs and perfecting software and software implementation methodology that enables the companies to efficiently allocate resources on technology, functionality, operational efficiency and education. Despite the current recessionary economy, SYSPRO has added employees and grown revenues by developing software solutions that enable SYSPRO software users to better manage materials, costs and cash.

"We continue to advance the concept of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) solutions from the traditional to the collaborative, enabling the highly efficient, real-time management of information and IT assets," notes SYSPRO USA President Joey Benadretti. "The larger ERP vendors do not understand the variables and complexities unique to SMB manufacturing/distribution segments the way SYSPRO does. We focus on smart, sophisticated solutions that offer better value."

According to Bob Brunson, director of TechAmerica in Orange County, "We received nearly 100 nominations from start-up innovators, high-growth companies and established industry players across Orange County. We congratulate SYSPRO for rising to the finalist rank in not one, but two categories. This region is home to groundbreaking innovators, such as SYSPRO, that continue to influence technology development throughout the rest of the world, and we're excited to highlight them."

TechAmerica awards categories this year include the Harvey Mudd College Green Engineering Award, Innovative Product/Technology, Outstanding CEO in Technology, Outstanding Finance Executive in Technology and Outstanding Technology Company.

In addition to the awards, TechAmerica Orange County will recognize educators and students for their innovative use of science, math or technology in the classroom or the community in conjunction with Project Tomorrow. The organization is the nation's leading education nonprofit group focused on preparing today's students to be tomorrow's innovators.

For more information, please visit www.techamerica.org/hta19.

About TechAmerica

TechAmerica is the leading voice for the U.S. technology industry - the driving force behind productivity growth and jobs creation in the United States and the foundation of the global innovation economy. Representing approximately 1,000 member companies of all sizes from the public and commercial sectors of the economy, it is the industry's largest advocacy organization and is dedicated to helping members' top and bottom lines. TechAmerica is also the technology industry's only grassroots-to-global advocacy network, with offices in state capitals around the United States, Washington, D.C., Europe (Brussels) and Asia (Beijing). Learn more about TechAmerica at www.techamerica.org. Or Contact: Cara Stewart, Binary Pulse Technology Marketing, 949-336-7400. Email: carastewart@binarypulse.com

About SYSPRO

SYSPRO has earned the trust of more than 14,500 companies in 60 countries for its suite of visionary software that enhances the competitive thrust of small/mid-sized manufacturers and distributors. The company's adherence to developing technology based on the needs of customers is among the reasons why SYSPRO enjoys one of the highest customer retention rates in the industry.
Follow SYSPRO on:

• Twitter : www.twitter.com/SYSPRO_USA
• Facebook : www.Facebook.com/SYSPROAMERICAS
• Blog : www.responsibleERP.com
• YouTube : www.youtube.com/sysprousa

For more information, visit: www.syspro.com or call Stanley Goodrich: 714/437-1000

All company names and products mentioned in this release are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders.