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Autumn 1999
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Lyon Engineering is an electrical distribution company, developing its own computer system to deploy access into its customers’ premises for improved stock handling and efficient order processing.
Lyon Engineering purchased a computer system some years ago which failed to provide the required functionality for the business. It has embarked upon a complete rewrite using D3 SCO with internal applications written in DataBasic and customer applications written in Visual Basic.
Managing a database of 450,000 components requires that the system is efficient, flexible and easy to use. The data to maintain this database catalogue is received from suppliers in electronic form and through an in-house developed import routine posted directly to the D3 database.
“We hold about 20,000 items in stock since these are the fast moving items, but we need to be able to offer the same turnaround on orders for all of the other items. Our customers need to be able to get right into our warehouse to see what we have in stock and to make pricing decisions from our entire catalogue,” said Rob Lyon.
The company is developing off-line applications for its customers, written in Visual Basic, allowing 8,000 images of the fastest moving items for customers to create orders that can be processed with minimal recapture of information.
Some of the benefits Lyon sees as being directly attributable to the system are pricing and product identification for the customer and lower inventory for themselves.
Visual Basic was the obvious choice for the deployment of applications since the customers have PCs running Windows 3.1 or 95.
The aim is to create a more efficient system which functions the way the business works, and to provide the means to allow the customers to do as much of the work as possible. This releases resources to focus on specialist knowledge and a higher level of customer service.
“We have EDI links to our suppliers so by allowing our customers to interrogate stocks this will be of substantial benefit to everyone in the supply chain.”
The applications are being developed by Nugent Business Systems. Full implementation and deployment to customer sites is expected to be completed by the fourth quarter of this year.
Mr Rob LyonLast Updated: 13 December 1999