Roofing and Siding Business Increases Efficiencies With Activant Falcon
Executive Summary
Eikenhout, Inc. has been in business more than 112 years selling
roofing, siding and windows to contractors throughout most of the
state of Michigan. The declining housing market in recent years has
hit Michigan particularly hard, but Eikenhout remains profitable
and delivers superior customer service by relying on its Activant
Falcon® system to deliver efficiencies. Eikenhout’s inventory is more
accurate, special order processing and monitoring runs more smoothly and gross margins
have increased since converting to Falcon.
Switching to Falcon Increases Efficiencies
Eikenhout evaluated alternatives and ultimately decided that Falcon had the right functionality
to meet its needs and that Activant staff understood the roofing and siding industry. “We
quickly narrowed our solution search to two companies and Falcon stood out,” explains Joel
Gritter, Controller. “The software works very well and the Activant team demonstrated an
understanding of our business and knowledge of what we needed to do to be successful. In
fact, they helped us improve our business processes so that we operate more efficiently.”
“Since we converted to Falcon, I’ve seen many improvements in my area of the business. We
bill faster. We’re better able to answer customer and management questions. And I can
prepare financial statements much faster than before. With better reports and tools for
managing accounts receivable, our days outstanding have gone down a bit. Our business has
grown and with Falcon, our existing staff can get more done and even do projects that we
didn’t have time for before,” continued Joel.
Managing Roofing, Siding and Windows Inventory and Special Orders
Eikenhout’s inventory accuracy has improved with Falcon and after the company completes
the transition to cycle counting, it’s expected to improve even more. “We have more sales
and inventory reports available and with the higher degree of confidence we have in our
data, we comfortably rely on those reports,” describes Joel. “Our purchasing team uses SKU
inventory and sales data to better plan their buys.”
“Special orders of windows, doors and other non-stock items are a large and growing part of
our business. Falcon helps us do a better job of tracking those orders from our initial
estimate to delivery,” continues Joel. “We have increased our special order revenue, while
streamlining our processes. Falcon is flexible, accurate and we have all the reports needed to
efficiently track orders.”
Using Information for Decisions
The Eikenhout management team receives daily reports on sales, inventory,
receivables and more, and uses that information to improve decisions. “We use
information differently because reports are so much easier to get and use. We’re
looking at Performance Driver Suite so that we can deliver up-to-the-minute
dashboards to the management team,” states Joel.
Commission reporting has transformed from spreadsheets and manual calculations to an
automated Falcon commission report. Joel says, “Falcon is helping our sales team improve its
performance. Sales and commission information is delivered much faster and there is little
chance for error. Managers can more easily evaluate salesman performance to determine
what’s working and what isn’t.”
Thriving in a Declining Market
Michigan is at the vortex of the U.S. housing decline. Fewer new home starts, increased
foreclosures, vacant homes for sale—Michigan has the unattractive distinction of leading the
nation in all of those measures. How does a roofing and siding company survive, or even
thrive in those market conditions?
“Falcon helps us meet the declining housing market challenge by making us more efficient.
Our sales have leveled off to a degree so in order to remain profitable, we must control costs.
Falcon delivers efficiencies to keep our costs in line and helps us to deliver outstanding
customer service. Our gross margin has increased over the past couple of years and Falcon
has certainly contributed to that success,” concludes Joel.
"Activant Falcon helps us meet the challenge of the declining housing market by making us more efficient… Our gross margin has increased over the past couple of years, despite a declining market.”
