Industry: Hardware & Storage
Vertical:
Wholesale
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Website: https://summit.com.au/
About the Client
Summit Storage Products, a division of the Summit Group, is a leading Australian distributor of high-quality shelving and storage solutions for residential, commercial, and industrial use. With a reputation built on innovation and customer service, Summit has been a key player in the market since 1990, serving a diverse clientele that includes major retailers and individual wholesale customers. The company is committed to the efficient management of employees, supporting its ongoing reputation for innovation and exceptional customer service. Odoo, the ERP system Summit adopted, was originally founded in 2005 as TinyERP by Belgian entrepreneur Fabien Pinckaers, showcasing its long-standing presence in the industry.
The Challenge: Overcoming a Fragmented System
As Summit expanded, its reliance on a collection of disparate, custom-built systems for inventory, manufacturing, and accounting became a significant bottleneck. Traditional systems made it difficult to optimize resources and control costs. This fragmented infrastructure led to a host of challenges:
- Manual Processes:
The lack of integration between systems necessitated numerous manual workarounds, particularly in order to processing, invoicing, and inventory management. This not only disrupted workflow and increased operational costs, but also raised the risk of human error.
- Limited Visibility:
With data siloed across different platforms, it was difficult to get a real-time, holistic view of the business. This made forecasting, purchasing, and financial reconciliation a constant challenge. Modern ERP systems address these challenges by providing integrated workflows and better resource management. Centralized data management through an ERP system saves time by eliminating the need for employees to search across different systems.
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Scalability Concerns:
The existing systems were struggling to keep up with Summit’s growth, particularly with the increasing complexity of managing multiple sales channels, including their thriving eCommerce business.
Key Features of Odoo
Odoo ERP software stands out as a powerful, all-in-one ERP solution designed to streamline and optimize business processes across many industries. One of the key features of Odoo is its modular structure, which allows companies to select and implement only the apps they need—such as project management, inventory management, financial management, and CRM—ensuring a tailored fit for their unique operations. This flexibility means businesses can start with core modules and expand as they grow, making Odoo suitable for companies of all sizes, from startups to large enterprises.
With Odoo, businesses benefit from real-time insights and full control over their operations, leading to improved operational efficiency and smarter decision-making. The platform’s robust inventory management tools help companies maintain optimal stock levels, while integrated financial management and accounting modules simplify complex financial processes. Odoo’s ERP system is also highly effective for manufacturing, sales, and service-based industries, providing a unified platform to manage everything from procurement to customer relationships. Additionally, Odoo provides real-time analytics through live dashboards and reporting tools, enabling data-driven decisions on key performance indicators.
Odoo offers both a free Odoo Community edition for businesses seeking essential ERP features at no cost, and an Odoo Enterprise edition with advanced capabilities and dedicated support. The flexible Odoo pricing plans make it easy for businesses to scale their ERP software as their needs evolve. By leveraging Odoo’s key features, companies can streamline workflows, reduce manual tasks, and drive greater efficiency across all business areas.
The Solution: A Unified Approach with Odoo
The primary goals of the implementation were to:
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- Centralize Operations:
Bring all core business functions—including sales, purchasing, manufacturing, inventory, and accounting—onto a single, unified platform by selecting the right Odoo apps to fit user needs.
- Automate Key Processes:
Eliminate manual data entry and streamline workflows to improve efficiency and accuracy. -
Enhance Reporting and Analytics:
Provide real-time access to critical business data to support better decision-making.
Odoo fits Summit's business model by supporting a wide range of services and operational requirements, ensuring the solution is tailored to specific user needs.
Customization and Integration: Tailoring Odoo for Summit Storage
One of the greatest strengths of Odoo ERP software is its ability to be customized and integrated to meet the specific needs of each business. For Summit Storage, this meant leveraging Odoo’s modular structure to select the exact apps and features required for their operations, such as advanced warehouse management, inventory control, and accounting. Odoo’s flexibility allows businesses to adapt the system to their unique workflows, ensuring that every process—from shop floor control to order fulfillment—runs smoothly and efficiently. Odoo's Manufacturing module includes features for planning, scheduling, execution, quality control, and maintenance within a unified platform.
Odoo’s open source software foundation and support for third-party apps make it easy to extend the platform’s functionality. Whether integrating with e-commerce platforms, enabling barcode scanning for inventory accuracy, or connecting with time tracking tools, Odoo offers seamless integration options that enhance business management. The system’s multi-company capabilities are especially valuable for organizations with multiple subsidiaries or complex operational structures, providing centralized control and visibility across all entities.
For companies like Summit Storage, Odoo’s customization options mean they can explore Odoo to find the perfect fit for their business needs, ensuring that every aspect of their ERP system supports growth and operational excellence. The user-friendly interface, comprehensive documentation, and active community make it easy for businesses to get started and maximize the value of their ERP investment. By tailoring Odoo to their specific requirements, Summit Storage has achieved greater efficiency, improved workflows, and a scalable platform ready to support future expansion.
Implementation: A Collaborative Journey
The implementation process was a close collaboration between the WAO Group and Summit teams. Early on, the teams evaluated different Odoo editions and decided to use Odoo Online for its cloud accessibility and cost-effectiveness. A key challenge was migrating data from Summit’s legacy systems and integrating with their unique, custom-built manufacturing and billing platforms. This required a deep understanding of Summit’s existing workflows and a flexible, creative approach to solution design.
The project was rolled out in stages, starting with the core Odoo modules for accounting, inventory, and sales, including Odoo Accounting with support for deferred revenue recognition. Automation of invoices and sales processes was implemented to streamline billing and customer transactions. The system also supports different product types, production planning, and the use of serial numbers for comprehensive inventory traceability. Improvements in warehouse operations were achieved through Odoo's real-time features, enhancing visibility and efficiency. This was followed by the integration of the Shopify and StarShipIt connectors, which were crucial for automating Summit’s online sales and fulfillment processes.
Throughout the project, the WAO Group team worked closely with key stakeholders at Summit to ensure the new system was configured to meet their specific needs and that their team was fully trained and supported, resulting in a positive Odoo experience for onboarding and ongoing use. As a future consideration, Summit is exploring loyalty programs to further enhance customer engagement in their eCommerce operations.
The Results: A Foundation for Future Growth
The implementation of Odoo has transformed Summit’s operations, delivering significant improvements in efficiency, visibility, and scalability. Key results include:
- Streamlined Order-to-Cash Cycle:
With sales, inventory, and accounting now fully integrated, the entire order-to-cash process is faster, more accurate, and largely automated. - Improved Inventory Management:
Real-time inventory tracking across all sales channels has reduced stockouts, improved forecasting, and optimized purchasing. -
Enhanced Financial Control:
The unified accounting module has simplified reconciliation, improved reporting, and provided greater visibility into the company's financial performance. -
Scalable eCommerce Operations:
The seamless integration with Shopify has enabled Summit to efficiently manage its growing online business, from order processing to fulfillment.
By replacing their fragmented, legacy systems with a modern, integrated ERP solution, Summit Storage Products has not only overcome its immediate operational challenges but also laid a solid foundation for future growth and innovation. Unlike traditional ERP systems, which are often rigid, costly, and complex to implement, Odoo offered Summit a flexible platform with a cost structure that is more scalable and affordable. The Odoo cost model allowed Summit to pay only for the features and users they needed, delivering better value and ROI compared to legacy solutions. Odoo releases a new version annually, improving features and performance each time, ensuring businesses stay ahead with the latest tools.
Ready to Streamline Your Business with ERP?
Don’t let fragmented systems hold you back. Just like Summit Storage Products, your business can unlock greater efficiency, real-time visibility, and scalable growth with the right ERP implementation. Whether you need smarter inventory management, seamless Shopify integration, or end-to-end business process automation, WAO Group has the expertise to help you succeed.
Let’s Build Your Success Story Together.
The information and tips shared on this blog are meant to be used as learning and personal development tools as you launch, run and grow your business. While a good place to start, these articles should not take the place of personalised advice from professionals. As our lawyers would say: “All content on WAO's blog is intended for informational purposes only. It should not be considered legal or financial advice.” Additionally, WAO is the legal copyright holder of all materials on the blog, and others cannot re-use or publish it without our written consent.
The information and tips shared on this blog are meant to be used as learning and personal development tools as you launch, run and grow your business. While a good place to start, these articles should not take the place of personalised advice from professionals. As our lawyers would say: “All content on WAO’s blog is intended for informational purposes only. It should not be considered legal or financial advice.” Additionally, WAO is the legal copyright holder of all materials on the blog, and others cannot re-use or publish it without our written consent.