The Client
Professional Cooling and Control Systems (PCACS) provides commercial facility management services with high performance building automation and HVAC systems. For years, they used an informal approach to tracking inventory. Employees would log incoming and outgoing items on spreadsheets but did not manage the stationary items that were already in stock. Having such a relaxed system ultimately resulted in several major issues that cost PCACS valuable time and money.
“We were continually missing items that we thought were in stock. Oftentimes, when we would order a certain part for a particular job, it would be used for a different job and we would have no idea,” said Tommy Gugliotta, Operations Manager at PCACS. “On numerous occasions, we had to have inventory shipped overnight because our tracking system was so inefficient. We wasted countless dollars and time searching for specific items to replace a part or repair a machine.”
The Challenge
PCACS utilized a spreadsheet-based system to track more than 5,000 HVAC components. Incoming and outgoing items were logged in the spreadsheet, but parts often went missing which resulted in costly overnight shipping charges and wasted labor hours.
The Solution
When Gugliotta joined the PCACS team, his first task was to repair the inventory management system that had been in place for over 20 years. He witnessed the ineffective nature of manually tracking inventory and knew there must be a better way to streamline the process and save his company money. Gugliotta began researching inventory software programs and came across Wasp’s inventory management solution.
“I tested several software programs but was immediately drawn to Wasp's inventory management software. I started out with a 30-day trial and was impressed with how easy it was to use,” said Gugliotta. “The software offered all of the features that PCACS needed, like multiple PC licenses, and the option to purchase barcode printers and mobile scanners to accompany the software.”
While testing the inventory management software, PCACS was starting several big projects that required a trustworthy, easy-to-use inventory tracking system. “After just two and a half weeks, I was convinced that Wasp's software was the answer to our inventory issues. It was a simple program that would be easy to teach to other employees,” said Gugliotta.
PCACS purchased Wasp's inventory management software, which included five PC licenses and one mobile license. PCACS also purchased a handheld mobile computer and a barcode printer.
The Result
PCACS has been using Wasp's inventory management software for approximately one year. “Since deploying the software, we now have in-depth insight into our entire inventory – not just the incoming and outgoing items,” said Gugliotta.
One of the greatest benefits of Wasp's inventory management solution has been financial savings. “Once we began using the software, the issue of overnighting items completely ceased. We no longer had to spend excessive amounts on shipping items we thought we had in stock.
Ultimately, Wasp's inventory management software paid for itself within six months. We no longer are subject to missing inventory and have significantly cut down the amount of time spent looking for items. Now, it only takes one or two seconds to look up a certain part, versus scouring through pages and pages of spreadsheets,” said Gugliotta.
