A.S Bryden

Brydens, a thriving Trinidad & Tobago-based Distribution Company, was looking for a way to grow its business operations and as such, completed a thorough assessment of the use and effectiveness of its current technological tools. For Brydens, upgrading its software package proved to be a proactive step for the entire company, and as a result, significantly impacted, and improved its business performance and bottom line. Company executives realized that adding a flexible enterprise software system, coupled with extensive functionality and easily customizable capabilities, was a sure fire way to expand operations, increase staff productivity and obtain a large return on investment (ROI).

Customer Profile
Brydens is a large distributor that imports and sells wine and spirits, food and hardware. Headquartered in San Juan, Trinidad, Brydens operates three warehouse facilities in North and Central Trinidad. Among the company’s notable customers include HILO Supermarket and Tru Valu Supermarket.

Problem-Context
Brydens needed a way to integrate the operational and financial aspects of the business, but it also needed a solution capable of turning raw data into useful management information for better decision-making capabilities.

Objectives
Brydens was looking for a comprehensive system with many advanced features and specifically, a solution that could support varying units of measurement. It was essential that the company be able to stock goods in one unit of measure and sell those same goods in other units of measure—no simple request. More specifically, Brydens needed to stock and report inventory in “cases” and have the ability to sell in individual “units.”

Since the distributor operates three separate warehouse facilities, Brydens needed a way to increase and better track order fulfilment—all in an integrated ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) system that was compatible with the firms IBM Power™ Systems platform. The goal was to streamline operations, not only in the warehouse, but also across the entire organization, which meant removing many of the time-consuming manual tasks that were slowing efficiency levels.

Finding the Right Partner
VAI, a highly skilled and knowledgeable software provider, possessed the exact combination of tools to help Brydens transform its business, and three warehouse facilities, into a fully integrated, top-of-the-line distribution company. With VAI’s S2K Enterprise for Distribution, Brydens found a single software product that fit the bill. VAI’s experienced staff and powerful enterprise solution would allow the company to address its biggest warehouse issues: receiving, picking and shipping.

Brydens knew that with VAI, its warehouse staff would be better able to fulfill customer orders and stock shelves more efficiently. A software product such as S2K, that offered advanced planning capabilities, was an important feature that Brydens needed and that VAI delivered.

Solution-Process
After carefully planning and evaluating each of Brydens specific business and warehouse needs, VAI installed S2K Enterprise for Distribution in 2002 and a few years later, the S2K WMS package.

VAI worked seamlessly with Brydens staff to ensure that each package met their every demand and individual specifications. VAI also paid close attention to Brydens need to work within different units of measure—a high priority demand for the company in being able to deliver orders quickly and accurately.

Using the Solution to Solve the Problem
S2K Enterprise for Distribution and WMS has proven to be a worthwhile investment for the organization. VAI’s Sandra Carman commented, “Brydens is now equipped with a solid base from which to run its operations, and can confidently rely on VAI’s technology support and solutions portfolio for future expansion. VAI had a thorough understanding of how the organization needed to run its daily operations and worked with the staff until every need was met. Each step of the process was monitored by VAI’s knowledgeable team—from assessing the company’s needs to implementing and testing the system.”

Evaluation-Results and Benefits
According to Roy Ramkissoon, Group IT Manager, Brydens Trinidad, “With S2K, greater financial transparency has led to better operational and financial decisions. In fact, since implementation, our company sales and profit margin have increased respectively by an average of 20% and 23% per year between 2003 and 2009, providing Brydens with a true return on investment that can be overwhelmingly attributed to VAI’s S2K product line. In today’s tough economy, businesses must find a way to not only survive but also thrive. S2K has given Brydens the power to stay on top of the market.”

Brydens achieved its technology goals with the help of VAI. Not only is the business now using the most up-to-date and efficient software available, but all business and warehouse operations are integrated—saving valuable time and money. The distributor’s entire warehouse environment has been overhauled. Receiving, picking and shipping processes are now simplified and easier to maintain with S2K WMS.

Customer Quote
Roy Ramkissoon commented, “All employees, across all departments at Brydens have benefited from the integration and information retrieval capabilities of VAI’s S2K software packages. The removal of manual, time-consuming tasks has dynamically increased efficiency in services. Inquiries alone have allowed users to better manage the business. We are thankful that VAI was diligent in helping us solve our most difficult problems. Brydens is looking forward to working and growing with VAI in the future.”