ABO Global accelerates the circular economy with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
The future is circular, and ABO Global is famously contributing to that with solutions for waste streams. Serious business, but above all, also human. An out-of-the-box story with exponential growth. One caveat though: in terms of systems, they were a bit behind until recently, according to the accounting department. And then scapta came along.
ABO Global from Lummen is a global player in the trading of recovered products. The company connects suppliers and customers to transform waste from the iron and steel industry back into raw materials. Consistently sustainable and innovative, and full of opportunities for the future – and the systems couldn't be left behind.
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The plan to completely renew the ERP package had been in place for a while. This would be a longer-term project in collaboration with a third partner from the waste sector. For accounting, the ABO Global team wanted to move faster. Issues included too many manual payments and VAT returns, a German system that did not meet Belgian standards, etc. This needed to be more efficient.
Elke Willems, Head of Accounting at ABO Global: “We researched several parties, the combination of finance and ERP, and the possibility of rolling out only the financial functionalities in a first phase. This last option was perfectly possible with" Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. Our CEO Jeffrey Alenus was already familiar with them, and we had an instant connection upon our first meeting. They offered a no-nonsense, expert, and warm human approach, with an intention to avoid excessive customization.”
From the first meeting, there was an instant connection. It was a no-nonsense approach, expertise, warm personal contact, and an intention to avoid excessive customization.
Elke Willems ~ Head of Accounting
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central for finance
On the consulting side, Business Consultant Erwin Germeys was responsible for guiding ABO Global in the implementation of Business Central for finance – meaning purchasing, accounting, and sales. “One challenge was importing the financial information from the old system. We created an import to get the performance data of the operational part into Business Central. The operations are in a separate package and are invoiced from there. The accounting matters are imported into Business Central.”
Business Central, a top ERP system for businesses that want to work smarter. The tool leverages all the advantages of the cloud model and, if desired, integrates seamlessly with Customer Engagement, Office 365, and Power BI. It optimizes logistics, administrative, and financial processes, improves customer interaction, and stimulates business growth. That said, ABO Global is already experiencing these benefits:
- Fast and easy booking of service invoices
- In (exploratory phase) additional options such as:
- Automatic reading of CODA files
- Automatic approval flows via Continia Document Capture & Approval
- Improved reporting thanks to integration with Power BI (and support from our partner) Elements from the scapular
Accounting enthusiast
“It's already clear that Business Central will be our leverage for further growth,” says Elke Willems. “For my department, Accounting, it's a matter of being able to switch gears faster, not lagging behind, and staying completely up-to-date with obligations and trends. Changes in VAT legislation, Peppol for e-procurement and e-invoicing... all possible with Business Central and scapta. That creates confidence. For shareholders, the system offers more comfort. We are looking forward to the extensive reporting capabilities and further automation.”
Happy work in progress
All positive, although it must be said that the implementation of Business Central for finance was quite intense. The deadline played a role in that, as did the tight schedule of 1 to 2 workshops per week for 2 months. But even then, there was Scapta involved and the guidance from Captain Erwin Germeys – a beacon of peace and knowledge during a time of ambitious transformation. And of course, the speed of implementation would not have been possible without the dedication of the accounting team itself. A big bravo to Elke Willems and her colleague Elke Holsteens. May their love for the system continue to grow.
P.S. There's also no shortage of aftercare. If it catches fire... just call Scapta. We will keep a close eye on ABO Global and will be ready for the next step.