[December 16, 2009] Royal Ahrend Improves Sales Force Performance with Cordys Software Tweet PUTTEN, Netherlands --(Business Wire)-- Cordys, a leading provider of software for business process innovation, today announced that it has been selected by Royal Ahrend to streamline mission-critical quotation-to-order business processes. Royal Ahrend, a leading supplier of flexible office solutions and furniture, is already reporting efficiencies in its sales and order processes, a reduction in operational costs and improved levels of customer satisfaction, and all without the need to upgrade its legacy ERP system. Ahrend "Dutch design" products are sold worldwide through direct and indirect sales channels. Collaboration between sales reps, the design department and back-office operations is critical in Ahrend's objectives to reduce the time from quotation to order and to innovate faster. The ERP system, Triton, which Ahrend uses provides a stable and reliable environment for most of the business operations, but does not provide the agility required for today's market and Ahrend's ambitions. Bas Schoones, Corporate Information Manager, Ahrend, stated: "Replacing our reliable ERP system was considered a risk in terms of stability, and we acknowledged it would not lead to an environment in which we could achieve faster innovation of our business processes. Instead, we created a new, innovative sales configurator, and the Cordys software allowed us to leverage existing ERP functionality in this smart solution. The sales processes can now be monitored continuously, leading to more efficiency, faster improvements and, as a result, to higher customer satisfaction." As part of this new initiative, Ahrend has also adopted OFML, the Office Furniture Modeling Language, which is rapidly becoming the standard methodology for describing office furniture products in Europe. "OFML allows us to use a standard data format that can be used across different systems and technologies, from complex CAD software to sales force automation systems," added Schoones. "The average time it takes to process the front-office order in the back office has been reduced considerably," Paul Zuidema, Director of Sales Western Europe for Ahrend, added. "The number of manual interventions has been reduced dramatically, which is a big achievement in a complex sales process with a large number of products and product varieties, varying discounts and customer-specific requirements. Every sales person can now generate a proposal anytime, anywhere, fast and easy." Hans de Visser, Managing Director, Cordys Benelux, stated: "Royal Ahrend has shown how huge improvements can be made in business operations without touching existing enterprise software or legacy systems. The entire value chain - from prospect through sales, CAD design and financial administration, to order fulfillment - can now be continuously monitored and improved with the Cordys platform." "We are proud to have an ambitious customer like Ahrend who is using our software to become more efficient and competitive," added de Visser. About Cordys Cordys is a global provider of software for business process innovation. Global 2000 companies worldwide have selected Cordys to achieve performance improvements in their business operations, such as increased productivity, reduced time to market and faster response to ever-changing market demands. Headquartered in the Netherlands, Cordys is a global company with offices in the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific. More information is available at www.cordys.com. About Ahrend Royal Ahrend designs sustainable working, learning, and living environments that are stimulating to the people moving around in them. At Ahrend, we understand what impact the power of innovation can have in this. We make substantial investments in process- and product-innovation. By entering into alliances with progressive parties and through our comprehensive services, we are able to offer integral solutions. Through client interaction and co-creation we shape sustainable environments for our customers and their customers. Ahrend wants to develop itself as the foremost innovator in contemporary working, learning and living environments and to become the European market leader in effective human spaces. As an extension to this, Ahrend wants to be sustainable in every sense of the word. This will enable us to create further growth and to make an important contribution to a sustainable society. More information is available at www.ahrend.com. About OFML OFML (Office Furniture Modeling Language) is a standard of the BSO (Der Verband Buro-, Sitz- und Objektmobel e.V.), or the German Furniture Manufacturers Association. It was created in 1995 and its main objective is to have a common method of describing furniture products. Currently OFML is widely accepted in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Benelux. The OFML applications have been developed by EasternGraphics. More information is available at www.easterngraphics.com. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]