‘Tis the season for 12 steps of fiscal year planning for the 12 periods in the fiscal year, to ensure you enjoy the 12 days of Christmas.
Fiscal Year Planning
A proper fiscal year planning for all your departments is imperative to ensure your organization’s success in the coming year. You can start by defining your priorities and implementing them in a go-to-market strategy. However, the number of moving parts needed to accomplish this is massive. Tasks include evaluating your projected revenue goals, defining target markets and how to segment them, as well as determining your resource availability. Accomplishing these tasks will ensure you have a good roadmap to achieve your fiscal year planning goals. Below you’ll find the twelve steps to generate financial reports for your annual planning periods. This will help you to identify resource availability, as well as other data, to ensure you have good visibility into your finances.
IF
at (Financial Management/General Ledger/ Setup/Fiscal Calendar/ Selected Calendar) Latest FY = Current FY+1
THEN
Go to the Twelfth Step of Fiscal Year planning
ELSE
Add a New Fiscal year
Enter End Date
Save
Check Number of periods and closing periods for accuracy (check for period 13 requirements)
Go to Actions. If a Calendar period THEN Generate Periods
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.
Re-implementing new software, or even upgrading a system to the latest version may seem like a risky endeavor to most IT executives – why put a company that is “working fine” under the stress of an upgrade?
Let’s look at the return on investment on moving from a typical legacy system, to a modern system like Epicor ERP 10.
A Forrester Total Economic Impact TM Study showed significant productivity savings in invoicing and sales tax administration, and general accounting productivity increases related to creating, processing, and reporting numerous accounting entries using the Epicor ERP 10 Financials (TEI Case Study).Epicor’s Supply chain suite provided a 15% reduction in average inventory levels, a reduction in headcount, and avoided future hiring associated with supply chain activities.
It’s time to upgrade your ERP software and the cost of doing nothing comes at a higher price.
Many people are happy with the software they already have because it just works.But these people do not know what they are missing out on when they opt out of modern upgrades for their software. For example – in older versions of Epicor, finding data could require navigating through multiple screens, whereas Epicor ERP 10 enjoys the sophisticated Enterprise Search built in, which is like Google for your enterprise.
Laser equipment supplier Access Laser Company recently moved from cloud deployed Epicor ERP 10 to the new version and “The move has been a smooth transition and we are already leveraging the new functionality. We especially like the enhanced Enterprise Search function, which enables us to locate sales orders and other data quickly and easily,” said Andrew Chamberlain, an information technology specialist at Access Laser Company.
The Cost Of Doing Nothing Comes At A High Price
Concerned about the expense of provisioning hardware for an upgrade?Leveraging modern Microsoft technologies, deployment for Epicor ERP version 10 will require substantially less (50%) hardware cost compared to earlier Epicor versions, and, of course, the hardware is not needed with SaaS/cloud Epicor ERP.
Once your business is on the latest version of Epicor ERP, whether by implementing it, or upgrading to it, Epicor has made it easier and faster than ever before for customers to take advantage of new release functionality, as evidenced by the hundreds of customers that are already up and running on the newest version of Epicor ERP in the cloud and on premises.
Boers & Co. Fine Metalworking Group, a developer fine mechanical parts, high precision assembly, and sheet metal products, went live on Epicor ERP 10.1 via a process that ICT Manager Jos Greeve characterized as “easy” and “straightforward.”
“I’d definitely advise customers to upgrade to the latest version of Epicor ERP,” Greeve said. Boers is leveraging new functionality including the powerful new integrated mobile dashboards, which Greeve says are working very well across all mobile devices with good speed and responsiveness, and which are giving Boers the ability to understand vital real-time answers to questions around the status of Jobs, Shipments, Orders, and Shop Floor operations.
Once on the latest release, customers can take advantage of frequent service packs to the software, and, in addition, the ongoing new functionality being added with each new release.With Epicor’s latest 10.1 release, up to date users have access to more than 300 enhanced features that build on Epicor’s core strengths across key manufacturing and supply chain functionality such as: inventory and material management, purchasing, shipping and receiving, quality assurance, project management and job scheduling, sales and CRM, quoting and order management, to name a few. Chief among these enhancements are expanded global and compliance capabilities. Broadened global capabilities include expanded country-specific functionality to enable companies to operate seamlessly in their geographies of choice.
“Epicor ERP is architected to flex to easily accommodate and support growth — whether that’s an expanded user base, more product lines, or a broader market or geographic range,” said Malcolm Fox, vice president, product marketing, Epicor. “By providing the right technology, world‐class services and support, and an unwavering focus on driving improved business outcomes, Epicor is helping its customers’ realize their full growth potential.”
The Cost of Doing Nothing
So what is the cost of doing nothing?Missing out on swift service packs that can remove day to day headaches. Passing on cutting-edge technology that reduces your hardware footprint (and expenditure) and increases performance.Losing out on the new functionality your competitors are receiving that will allow your business to compete in today’s ever more challenging environment.
Now is the time for you to stop doing nothing. Encompass is the EPICOR solution your business needs to upgrade or install the tools necessary to stay competitive, cut costs, and increase efficiency. Give us a call today and let’s get started on your next big something!
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.
Kaufman Container is a leading packaging sourcing center in the United States. For the past 100 years, the company has provided packaging components, custom and stock molds, package development, quality assurance, and technical support to a wide range of customers and markets. Kaufman’s capabilities are endless, offering a variety of products including glass, plastic, aluminum, and metal containers, tubes, closures dispensing systems, celon bands, and more. The Kaufman Container Case Study serves to illustrate how operations and process improvements resulted in a 30 percent reduction of overhead costs, thanks to internal teams and the Encompass Solutions implementation staff.
Prior to their Epicor implementation, Kaufman was running several non-integrated systems, and users were having to do each other’s jobs—for example, if inventory was needed for a job and one of the systems stated there was inventory on hand, there was no trust in any system of reference, and the material was manually verified to be there.
Larry Keilin, IT director, spearheaded the implementation of Epicor. “The transition from our old system to our new system was less painful than I expected—for many employees, the day you switch from an old system to a new system is the day they love the old system,” Keilin commented. “A large number of our employees got on the Epicor bandwagon and became excited about all the work they can now do that they couldn’t do before. We are truly seeing the benefits, for example for the purchasing department, the Buyers Workbench is such a useful tool that it really stands out, and our customer service department really loves the way they can take an old order, copy it, and create a new one—it’s a huge time saver for them.“
Kaufman initially implemented Epicor ERP to work as closely as possible to existing business processes, as followed with their legacy ERP. While there was a successful transition to Epicor, partnering organization Encompass Solutions identified that Epicor was not being used to its full advantage, and that there were some additional modules that would need the implementation to get maximum functionality from Epicor ERP.
Kaufman contracted Encompass Solutions to perform an end-to-end business process review (BPR) to determine the best business processes to follow and unleash the maximum benefit from the newly implemented Epicor ERP product. This one-week exercise flushed out many areas for improvement, and a recommendations document and go-forward plan were implemented. Kaufman’s key goals from this BPR were to achieve better tracking of sales and gross margin data to salespersons and customers, improve inventory management, and integrate production management.
Every business area was assessed, and recommendations for change were made, particularly in the areas of engineering, production, inventory, purchasing, costing, and accounting.
Some key recommendations were to continue the implementation with some additional modules that were not included in the initial cutover—including CRM and the Epicor Configurator—as well as better implementing production and inventory management. Encompass provided a go-forward path to have everything implemented.
Other key recommendations were changes to costing to allow Kaufman to be more specific in assigning costs for production times, to leverage time-phased material requirements to drive purchasing decisions, and to expand the number of warehouses and bins used to reduce the amount of time staff spend locating inventory. A plan to move Kaufman to the scheduling engine was also produced—typically refinements over a six-month period provide an accurate, trusted model.
“Encompass has done a great job at assessing the situation, with BPR guidance to systematically attack and resolve pain points following the implementation,” concluded Keilin.
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.
Our recent Accutrex Upgrade project was a smashing success that enabled our customer to jump four versions of Epicor ERP to the most modern solution for discrete manufacturing operations held to ITAR standards, Epicor ERP 10.1. Read on to learn about the Accutrex upgrade process and get in touch with Encompass to discuss your own Epicor ERP upgrade project.
Accutrex, an award-winning supplier who offers superior quality products coupled with uncompromising attention to detail to the Aerospace, Military and Defense industries, recently upgraded from Vantage 8 to Epicor 10.1, with the help and expertise of Encompass Solutions.
Accutrex has established themselves as a leading source nationally and internationally for custom shims, gaskets, special OD/ID washers, metal stamping, sheet metal fabrications, kits and assemblies to the Aerospace and Military and Defense industries. As an ISO 9001:2008 and ITAR registered company, they are equipped to handle all facets of manufacturing from prototype to production in all types of industries.
Accutrex Upgrade To Epicor ERP 10.1
Encompass, in partnership with Bezlio, worked to preserve all the historical data available in Vantage 8, and uplift all custom solutions to Epicor 10.1 so that Accutrex could continue leveraging the investment made in their system to support their unique industry needs, and also retain critical data that allows them to look back and make forward-looking decisions based on that historical data. In addition, Accutrex can now take advantage of all the new functionality available in Epicor ERP 10.1, and can leverage being on the most current version of the system to take on exciting new features as they are made available.
“An upgrade like this requires a lot of attention to detail, and making sure that the existing functionality was uplifted correctly to preserve key business functions, while still taking advantage of all of the new features of Epicor ERP 10.1 such that everything comes together to work flawlessly” said Rob Cummings, Project Manager and Solution Architect with Encompass Solutions.
Encompass is a certified Epicor Partner, providing ERP Consulting and industry-leading development of mission-critical enterprise solutions for over 15 years. The company’s focus is to be an advocate to customers facing the challenges of today’s market fierce competition and is often chosen as experts in this field to help American enterprises achieve a technological advantage. Encompass customer base has expanded to sectors beyond standard manufacturing and distribution to include pharmaceuticals, Life Sciences and more.
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.
Earlier this week, Epicor presented Encompass Solutions, Inc. Platinum Partner Award recognition at the annual Epicor Partner Awards ceremony, presided over by Epicor Software Corp. We were honored to receive this distinction once again and strive to continue delivering the highest level of service in partnership with Epicor.
Encompass Solutions, Inc. Platinum Partner
Greensboro, NC, 25 October 2016 – Encompass Solutions, Inc., has achieved Platinum Partner Status in the Epicor Channel Partner Program. Members are selected by Epicor Software Corporation based on contributions to customers, revenue generated to Epicor as well as other considerations that showcased the partners’ abilities in transforming customers to position them to grow by leveraging Epicor solutions.
“We are honored to be recognized by Epicor as a Platinum Partner for another consecutive year as we continue to deliver excellence throughout the implementation, technical support, and training of Epicor ERP,” said Sonia Haslam, managing partner, Encompass Solutions, Inc.
Encompass has provided ERP consulting and industry-leading development of mission-critical enterprise solutions for over 15 years. The company’s focus is to be an advocate to customers facing the challenges of the market’s fierce competition and is often chosen as experts in this field to help enterprises achieve a technological advantage.Encompass’ customer base has expanded to sectors beyond standard manufacturing and distribution to include pharmaceuticals, life sciences and more.
“Congratulations to our Platinum Partner Program member, Encompass Solutions, for enabling business growth by implementing Epicor solutions for another year,” said Joe Cowan, president and chief executive officer, Epicor Software Corporation. “Our partners are an extension of our sales force and we are fortunate to have an elite group of IT professionals aligned with us to support customers to focus on business growth, innovation, and enhanced customer experience.”
Epicor Partner Program Awards
The Epicor Partner Program Awards are designed to reward Epicor Channel Partner Program members who have demonstrated their ability to serve as an extension of Epicor’s own salesforce to help businesses worldwide grow and transform. There are several different categories across different geographies in which partners are awarded, ranging from Global Partner of the Year to specific recognitions such as Customer Advocacy and Marketing Excellence.
About Encompass Solutions, Inc.
Our mission at Encompass is to provide a professional services practice skilled in business consulting, project management, and software implementation that offers clients a complete business solution focused on high levels of customer service, industry expertise, and value available to the North American manufacturing industry and beyond. Encompass Solutions, Inc. is a privately held company. Visit us at oldencompass.sevenagesdesign.com.
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.
Ever been on a hike? A real hike. I’m not talking about a long walk with a bottle of water, here, I’m talking about carrying thirty pounds of a tent, sleeping bag, food, and equipment in a backpack the size of two small children twenty miles up and down mountains.
Whether you have or not, you know that a whole lot of prep happens before a hike: breaking in the boots, getting the pack fitted, and paring weighty equipment down to the barest essentials. If you’re just getting started on your ERP journey, you may want to consider our free ERP selection strategies ebook. If you’ve just finished your ERP implementation project, you’ll certainly feel as though you’ve hiked the Appalachian Trail.
Just as with a hike, though, your ERP system isn’t just about the destination, it’s about the journey: In the same way that any good hiker will be constantly adjusting their pack, changing their pace and stride, and constantly reorienting themselves via map and compass to keep themselves moving steadily and happily, a good company is going to be constantly reevaluating their system and making upgrades, streamlining processes, and changing to meet market demands.
Encompass will be with you every step of the way in your ERP journey with a BPR: A Business Process Review.
What Is A Business Process Review
A business process review is like a hiker’s gear adjustment: It is an objective look at how your company is currently operating. It involves a review of current business practices and system-user interaction, with a focus on optimization. It includes an analysis of system transaction use and configuration to identify functionality that may better support your operational needs. Although technology application and configuration is a core part of this assessment, your business processes, resource skills, and infrastructure are also evaluated. We also conduct employee interviews to determine ‘pain points’ for the user and management.
Here’s a list of the mountains we often have to climb while getting your ERP system on the right path:
Poor Data Quality – Incomplete or incorrect data creates mistrust in the system, creating the need for offline workarounds, which increases the risk of inaccuracies while creating an unneeded workload.
Mismatch Between Roles & Responsibilities – Insufficient training in the case of high employee turnover and lack of proper training creates inefficiencies and inaccurate data, as does ignoring the hierarchy of responsibilities (managers assuming duties meant for their employees, or giving work to employees that are beyond their skill level, for example).
Offline Processes – Employees may perform work off of the ERP because ‘that’s how we’ve always done it,’ or because they ‘don’t trust the system’. This could be through the incorrect implementation of the ERP, poor training, or the need for a ‘mindset change’.
Growth – Unexpected or aggressive growth may require an expansion of existing infrastructure before operational systems impact and slow growth.
Training – High turnover or increased growth creates staff with less expertise and knowledge. Even with experienced staff, cross-training or advanced training is needed for employees to understand the ‘big picture’ of the ERP process.
The Result: The business process review provides a suite of deliverables that improve your business by refining and upgrading your ERP system. The BPR identifies the ‘Hot Spots’ where efficiency drops, where lack of training creates problems downstream, or where features are not being used correctly (or at all) and offers solutions to all of them, through new functionality, increased training, or modifying the procedure.
So, break out the boots and the hiking stick: The trail to a better ERP and better business is a steep one, full of rocks and switchbacks, but trust us: when you’re at the top of the mountain, the view is incredible.
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, or renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of the Industry.
In a global marketplace where speed, change, and the demand for innovation are accelerating challenges, the expectations of ERP have changed. ERP is no longer simply about cutting costs, but rather about enabling businesses to grow and take advantage of new opportunities (and avoid unexpected risks) as they emerge. We at Encompass solutions work with customers in various fields and industries, many of which are in the Pharma sector, delivering Chemicals and Life Sciences adaptive ERP solutions.
Several of our Life Sciences customers have successfully shown how Epicor ERP can be used to manage their business. This proves the flexibility of Epicor ERP from a configuration and customization standpoint, and also speaks to the depth of the product.
How Adaptive ERP Like Epicor Address Life Sciences Challenges
Life Sciences companies have some unique challenges over standard manufacturing and distribution companies. Some of those challenges include:
FDA Regulatory requirements
FDA tracking and traceability
Unpredictable manufacturing outcomes
Challenging clean-room manufacturing environment
Stringent Quality Control
Cost control and management
Managing extremely valuable inventory
Gating manufacturing decisions based on critical review status
FDA Regulatory requirements include tracking and traceability on every employee, material, and piece of equipment that comes in contact with the manufacturing process, putting a huge strain on quality control and record keeping. Epicor ERP has built in Enhanced Quality with a quality configure that allows for granular quality attributes to be captured and reported on, as well as the built in functionality of the ERP that captures user and machine events that jointly satisfy this need. Maintaining a Total Quality Record is critical in life sciences, and can be supported in Epicor ERP.
Forecasting and cost control are also critical for Life Sciences companies. By developing models of what we think our customers should be selling, we can use MRP to predict some predicable demand, which allows for planners to forecast the manufacturing jobs, so that finished goods are not wasted, but are available when needed. Utilizing this MRP process also enables our customers to have a more predictable cost control, and fund the correct projects for maximize the contributions of donors, or use of materials that may have a short useful life.
Manufacturing in a clean room or laboratory, which is a completely sterile environment, poses its own challenges, particularly when coupled with the need to track everything. In traditional manufacturing environments, we can adhere barcodes to material and print on demand on the manufacturing floor. In a sterile environment, we need any traceable identifiers to be produced ahead of time such that they can be sterilized, and a barcode may not be the most appropriate identifier for some material – in some cases an RDID may be better. We have worked through business and application processes to support pre-creating the identifiers and assigning them while maintaining the sterile integrity of the cleanroom or lab.
In Life Sciences, there are critical checkpoints, beyond which point a process should not continue without stringent review by a qualified professional. Epicor ERP has built in ‘gates’ that can be applied where processes, and approvals must take place, before further manufacturing can continue. This is invaluable in a controlled, regulated industry such as life sciences!
We would be happy to share our experiences in this fascinating field – it’s exciting to support organizations that are saving and improving the lives of people, and we are proud to be part of this industry.
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.
Encompass and Bezlio partner on many projects aimed at enhancing performance through better utilization of barcode systems. For years the gold standard on the shop floor has been to use dedicated barcode scanners to replace time-consuming and error-prone manual keyed entry. Unfortunately, many mobile applications require the user to verify that they are in the correct field prior to scanning a barcode and then re-checking after the scan to ensure that the correct data was entered into the correct field. This removes some of the efficiency of the system because it requires the user to be constantly going between the handheld unit and the task that they are performing.
Adding Field Qualifiers For Barcodes’ Labels
The first efficiency that you can add is by adding field qualifiers to your barcode labels. These can then be interpreted and the data can be automatically filled into the correct data fields instead of relying on the user to have the correct fields selected. Most customers benefit from adding an automated process in their purchase order receipt process to print off an internal label which can be added onto any raw material received. This process ensures a consistent label format for all internal transactions.
The below carton label is printed by the customer as a finished good label, they have listed their part number, job number that produced it, and the quantity in the carton. By having this information to perform inventory movements, pick for shipping or assign a product to a shipment the user can simply scan the three barcodes, have it entered into the correct fields automatically, and complete whatever transaction they are performing.
Adding Non-Visual, Dynamic Feedback
The next efficiency that can be added is providing non-visual feedback to the user. When the user has scanned the necessary data to perform the transaction, you can add an audio or vibration cue for them so that they can focus more on the task than providing constant visual verification of the process.
These simple changes can provide a dramatic improvement of data integrity and employee efficiency for shop floor operations, but to quote Steve Jobs “one more thing…”
Most modern handheld devices including smartphones or the latest generation of mobile computers for shop floor applications such as the Zebra TC7x and TC5x series include a camera. Now while shop floor selfies may not have a use yet, the camera can still add substantial value to shop floor processing efficiency.
Many of us have used the barcode scanning applications on a smartphone, the problem is that they are much slower than a traditional barcode scanner, they are unwieldy to use, and are not appropriate for the most part in a shop floor environment due to these issues. But that is for scanning one barcode, instead of using the camera you can scan all of the barcodes at once. Using our customer barcode at the top, let’s say to add that box to a picking process the user would need to scan the 3 individual barcodes to pick that box as they put it into a cart. Using that exact image above, we can extract all 3 barcodes our simultaneously and then by using either their data qualifiers or by using their relative locations on the label we can pick with a single operation.
Now scanning efficiency with data qualifiers and a quality feedback mechanism to the user means that often times scanning a single box with a dedicated barcode scanner will be quicker than taking a picture, but there is nothing that limits the transaction to a single box. Take for instance the illustration below:
Scanning each of those barcodes although efficient would mean that you would have to perform a transaction for each box. By using the camera we could either choose to perform that transaction on all of them simultaneously, or provide the user with a touch based interface where we present all of the data that we gathered from the image (each box) and allow them to select the boxes that they would like to perform the transaction on. This increases process efficiency dramatically by having a single step to perform many complex operations.
In this case, working from our photo we’ve extracted all of the labels that were visible. From there we’ve created a mobile UI in the Ionic framework allowing the user to select the cartons they would like to pick and pick all of them in a single operation.
Hopefully, this inspires some of you out there to look at what else mobile devices can do to increase employee efficiency for shop floor operations. If you have any thoughts or questions please feel free to reach out and we’ll help however we can!
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.
What business wouldn’t want to save on credit card transactions? Well, we’ve developed a process that will allow you to do just that. We have developed a solution as an enhancement to the base credit card processing module that Epicor provides. With the Epicor credit card transaction enhancement, we replace a DLL with an updated one that looks for events involving capturing of funds or sales (where it is an authorization and capture all in one).
The Epicor Credit Card Transaction Enhancement
When we receive that transaction event, we query the Epicor database for additional information and add that to the request. This resides at level 3 details, which includes everything for level 2. The nice thing about credit card processors is they will only use the amount of information they need. If it is a consumer credit card, the additional data will be discarded. However, for B2B customers, the enhancement will automatically select the right level and provide those cost savings.
The standard Epicor credit card handling system only provides level 1 information. This is essentially the total and information to identify the customer in terms of fraud protection. Now some of these fees and savings are individually negotiated. The default fees for PayPal Website Payments (which is technically what is used) is 2.9% + $.30/transaction.
Now level 2 will be the level that helps our customers the most. This requires additional details on the purchase. Details can include the amount of the tax, a customer code, postal codes, and tax identification number. For customers that are using corporate cards (B2B customers), you get a lower fee if you provide this information as well. I had seen the most often quoted numbers as .5% savings for level 2 customers.
Level 3 is the next iteration of that offering something around 1% total savings. This is for business to business (tend to be larger corporations) and business to government purchases. For this, we are sending a lot of additional data in terms of the line-level details about the purchase.
The Epicor Credit Card Transaction Enhancement Level 1, 2, and 3 Comparison
Looking at only level 2 savings (.5%), $400,000 in credit card sales would result in an annual savings of $2,000.
Bezlio is a professional services firm. They provide custom development services and support for Infor ERP Visual (Visual Enterprise/Visual Manufacturing) and Epicor Vantage ERP.
Here at Encompass Solutions, Inc., we are proud to continue working with Bezlio on many development and implementation projects.
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.
Quick: Think of something scarier than navigating and understanding the tax code! Okay. Are you done? If your top three looks like ours—which are navigating and understanding the tax code, giant spiders, and regular-sized spiders—then we’ve got good news for you! Here’s a hint: it comes in the form of a business software tax deduction.
Epicor ERP Qualifies For A Business Software Tax Deduction
One of the things we’re not afraid of is finding ways to make our ERP systems affordable enough for any company. IRS Section 179 is one of the ways we do this: It covers all the software that you bought for your company in a tax year. It’s right there on line 5 of Eligible Property. That means you can deduct the full purchase or leasing price directly from your gross income. This was implemented by the U.S. Government to encourage businesses to buy equipment from other businesses, while investing in themselves at the same time. It’s a fantastic reason and a serious incentive to upgrading your ERP system.
How To Collect Your Epicor Business Software Tax Deduction
To get into a little bit more detail, the software you purchase has to meet all of the following specifications:
The software must be used in your business for income-producing activity.
The software must have a determinable useful life.
The software must be expected to last more than one year.
In addition, these three specific stipulations must be met:
The software must be readily available for purchase by the general public.
The software must be subject to a non-exclusive license.
The software must not have been substantially modified. Basically, the software can’t be custom code.
Now for some more good news: We know about some software that fulfills all of Section 179’s requirements. It’s a brand new Epicor 10 system, installed and maintained by Encompass Solutions, Inc, of course.
Contact your accounting professional today to see how implementing Epicor 10 will allow you to take advantage of IRS Section 179 tax deduction.
There is bad news, though: We can’t do anything about the spiders.
Encompass Solutions is a business and software consulting firm that specializes in ERP systems, EDI, and Managed Services support for Manufacturers and Distributors. Serving small and medium-sized businesses since 2001, Encompass modernizes operations and automates processes for hundreds of customers across the globe. Whether undertaking full-scale implementation, integration, and renovation of existing systems, Encompass provides a specialized approach to every client’s needs. By identifying customer requirements and addressing them with the right solutions, we ensure our clients are equipped to match the pace of Industry.
