Allen Impact Adopts Microsoft Dynamics AX to Compete With Office Mega-Chains

REDMOND, Washington, March 28 - Independent office supplier predicts improved operations, web commerce, and data analysis and reports, and a return on investment in less than half the targeted time.

Allen Impact Services LLC, one of the nation's largest independent office product suppliers, has switched its web commerce and enterprise resource planning (ERP) software to Microsoft Dynamics(TM) AX and the MBS Dev Office Product Vertical Extensions for Dynamics AX.

The Beltsville, Maryland, company is transitioning from its present Systems House ERP system to a combination of Microsoft Dynamics and industry-specific applications developed by MBS Dev Inc, a Microsoft Certified Partner that customises Microsoft Dynamics AX to meet the computing needs of office suppliers and other vertical industries.

MBS Dev designed the specialised Microsoft Dynamics system to help independent office suppliers such as Allen Impact not only compete with nationwide office supply mega-chain stores, but also extend the customer service and convenience benefits of those suppliers to their online commerce and other IT systems.

"Two things drive the online office supply industry: a great front-end experience for customers when placing orders, and flexible, customised reports," said Bill Ratcliffe, president of Allen Impact. "Microsoft Dynamics AX provides the advanced technology and sophisticated user experience that will allow us to compete with any office supplier, even the massive nationwide chains."

Ratcliffe predicts the Microsoft Dynamics AX system's combination of advanced features and customisation will shorten Allen Impact's recovery of its technology investment to less than 18 months -- roughly half the time the company initially targeted. Specific product features and benefits on which the company bases its prediction include the following:


-- Go-with-the-flow web ordering. The simplicity of the MBS Dev online
business-to-business order entry and its underlying Microsoft(R)
technology is already paying dividends for Allen Impact. The company
gave a pilot group of customers a 20-minute training session on how to
place orders on its new web commerce site. Of those 50 customers, only
one has called Allen Impact with questions or concerns. "The flow of
the processes, the flow of the information, the cleanness and
crispness -- they all make it very easy," Ratcliffe said.
-- Quick analysis and reports. The Microsoft SQL Server(TM) data analysis
tools built into Microsoft Dynamics AX reduce the time needed to
create customised reports for customers, and they perform large
database queries of sales and profit trends. A typical query that took
six hours with Allen Impact's old ERP system now takes 15 seconds.
This will enable employees to look for hidden data trends by
performing dozens of queries in a fraction of the time it used to take
them to perform a single query.
-- Easy transition. As with many companies, staff members at Allen Impact
feared that the transition to a new ERP system would hamper business.
So far it hasn't, and Ratcliffe said he expects it won't because of
the highly intuitive and familiar Microsoft Office interfaces,
controls and workflows available throughout Microsoft Dynamics AX.

"With Microsoft Dynamics AX, being smaller than those mega-chain supply stores is no longer a competitive disadvantage within vertical industries such as office supplies," said Michael Park, corporate vice president for US Microsoft Dynamics business at Microsoft Corp. "Businesses such as Allen Impact can go toe-to-toe with any competitor, offering customers the convenience of online ordering and customised reports and benefiting themselves from Microsoft Dynamics AX's data analysis and other advanced resource planning tools."

About MBS Dev

MBS Dev, Inc. is a Colorado corporation founded to assist Microsoft Dynamics AX customers with distribution industry vertical solutions, development requirements and support services. MBS Dev, Inc. is a certified Value Added Reseller (VAR) and Independent Software Vendor (ISV) partner for Microsoft Dynamics AX.

About Allen Impact

Allen Impact Services, LLC was formed in December of 2003, when George W. Allen Company, Inc. and Impact Office Products, Inc. decided to share common services. Located in the Washington, D.C., Baltimore, and Philadelphia metropolitan areas, this partnership brought together two of the largest independent office product companies and their national customer base. The companies' customer base was expanded to include GWA's large Government presence and Impact's extensive National commercial accounts. The individual partnerships with Councell Computer Products and Deskmate remains intact, and offers organizations minority, SBA 8(a), alternatives for their office product needs.