Our client is a leading, award-winning home-building construction company based in Texas with over two decades of experience in the industry.The Client
Our client is a leading, award-winning home-building construction company based in Texas with over two decades of experience in the industry.
Challenges Faced by the Client
The client faced several challenges which impacted operational efficiency to a greater extent. Firstly, heavy reliance on Excel spreadsheets and template-based processes posed significant obstacles. These manual Extra Purchase orders (EPO) resulted in errors, inefficiencies, and increased workloads for administrative staff.
The Key challenges included:
- Tedious and repetitive manual Extra Purchase Order’s (EPO) creation led to Project delays
- Manual management of different templates for different EPO processes
- High lead time for approval process causing delays
- Unable to track and monitor purchase orders once submitted
- Manual update required of the HSP legacy system once EPO was approved
- Administrative delays due to lack of available staff and resource
Solutions
UBTI, with its extensive experience in Microsoft technologies, designed, developed, and implemented an Extra Purchase Order (EPO) Automation solution using Microsoft Power Apps and Power Automate (RPA). From obtaining the data from the legacy AS/400-based HSP system to reinputting the details in the HSP legacy system using robotic keystrokes, the complete process was fully automated.
The solution included different EPO request form submissions, builder logins, approval processes for specific conditions, notifications, and updating the details in the HSP legacy system using RPA keystroke automation.
The solution processes included,
- Integration with HSP legacy application to ensure accounting continuity
- Customizable Extra Purchase Order (EPO) application
- Warranty Purchase Order (WPO) request
- General Ledger Purchase Order (GL PO) request
- Inventory Distribution Control Center Purchase Order (IDCC PO) request
- Expedited back charge process for subcontractors
- Automated approval process notifications
- PO creation in the HSP System using RPA keystrokes
- Automated EPO application available across multiple works sites
Solutions Benefits
The implementation of these innovative solutions yielded substantial benefits for our client:
- Enhancing Operational Efficiency: Automation and digitization significantly reduced the time required for manual entry and processing of EPOs by up to 50%.
- Visibility and Tracking: The new system enhanced visibility into Purchase Orders, enabling robust tracking between the client and all vendors, which greatly improved approval times.
- Real-time status updates on Purchase Orders from various vendors to ensure that all orders are processed promptly and Project Delivery Time is ensured.
- Enhanced Human Resource Allocation: With more time saved with EPO Automation, Administrative staff were able to prioritize additional tasks, improving productivity.
- Reduction in Labor Costs: EPO Automation allowed administrative staff to complete additional tasks and avoid over-time accrual, reducing the client’s expenses.
- Fully automated approval workflows
