First Tunnels Ltd

Business overview:

First Tunnels are a leading manufacturer of poly tunnels operating from Barrowford in Pendle who sell to both commercial gardeners and the general public. Over a number of years they have built considerable sophistication into their website, enabling poly tunnels to be specified and purchased over the internet. Unfortunately, their business systems were disjointed and manually intensive, leading to a considerable office bottleneck at their peak times. This led to a period of long hours and stress for at least three months of the year, which also impacted on their ability to support customers.

Regenerate’s role:

The company sought Regenerate’s help to enable them to upgrade their Sage Line 50 system to Sage Line 200, to integrate the Sage system with their website and also to integrate their document management system. The project involved two suppliers, one to handle the integration of the website with the business system and one to implement the system upgrade.  The upgrade included the customisation of the software to smooth the process flow through the office and the integration with Invue (their document management system). The opportunity was also seized to improve their ongoing marketing by upgrading from their old Sage Act system to Sage CRM (Client Relationship Management) and by integrating the new system with their new business system.

Regenerate’s Lancashire Innovation Network helped with the hardware specification (to replace their ageing server), initial system design and with improving the process flow, in addition to providing financial support. Some project management assistance was also provided.

Impact:

Following the upgrade of the Sage system, customisation of fast order entry, integration with the website and implementation of a new server, the handling of new orders has been revolutionised. The new process flow is smoother, less labour intensive and produces shop floor and despatch documentation automatically. In addition, there are a number of business reports available (integrated with MS Excel), which enable better control of the shop floor, deliveries and company finances.

The changes in the website and the improvements in customer engagement and service has lead to increased sales and two new jobs in the first few months.

Continued Support:

Regenerate continues to maintain close links with the company to enable them to realise their growth potential.

www.firsttunnels.co.uk