Related Articles:
AE Smith Success Story
IBM Analytics selected for client management - iTWire
Leading Australian mechanical services contractor helps clients stay cool with IBM business analytics
AE Smith achieves significant margin improvement with IBM Cognos Express
Source: IBM News Room
Sydney, Australia – 15 Nov 2011: IBM Australia (NYSE: IBM) today
announced that AE Smith, Australia’s largest privately owned mechanical
services contractor, has selected IBM business analytics software to
transform the way it manages client relationships and makes decisions
across the business.
IBM business analytics software has helped AE Smith strengthen its lead
in the mechanical services industry by introducing powerful reporting
and forecasting capabilities. Staff can now generate customised reports
and automate standard processes, making it possible for them to conduct
in-depth analyses of contracts and projects. The air conditioning and
mechanical services contractor implemented IBM Cognos software with
assistance from IBM Business Partner Decision Resources.
“Our margins have improved since we introduced productivity reporting
with IBM Cognos Express,” said Ross Cochrane, General Manager, Finance,
AE Smith. “The new system has allowed us to examine the business in
detail and discover why certain things happen, and what we can do to
improve our business processes.”
AE Smith’s management team can now create detailed productivity reports,
drilling down into customer segments by region and business type to
identify unprofitable clients, and quickly rectifying the situation to
reduce loss.
“Business managers now save, on average, one day a month on the time
they spend completing spending and revenue forecasts,” said Ross
Cochrane. “By making faster, more informed decisions, we can spend more
time on other tasks such as business development.”
IBM Cognos software also gives AE Smith a comprehensive, company-wide
view of the performance of each of its offices, which were held in
siloed budgeting and forecasting systems. The unified and consistent
view of company information means AE Smith can align key performance
indicators, such as sales and revenue figures, and make more informed
business decisions.
In future, AE Smith plans to use its new business analytics capabilities
to improve client services. By linking its web-based enterprise
resource planning portal to dashboards generated by IBM Cognos software,
the company will enable clients to access contract data in real time.
“This service will provide building owners and managers with excellent
visibility over contract costs, which will help them to prepare and
maintain budgets,” said Ross Cochrane. “Cognos Express is an
easy-to-use, mature system that is well supported by IBM. Most
importantly, it is very flexible and will easily adapt to the changing
needs of our business.”
About AE Smith
AE Smith is the largest and most respected privately-owned mechanical
services contractor in Australia. Backed by more than 110 years of
expert experience, AE Smith is the ‘partner of first choice’ for energy
efficiency, building technologies, air conditioning and mechanical
services. The Australian-owned company has worked with numerous
high-profile organisations in Australia, including the Royal Children’s
Hospital and Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Brisbane’s Judith
Wright Centre of Contemporary Arts, and the University of Tasmania.
For more information on AE Smith, visit
www.aesmith.com.au
For more information on IBM, visit
www.ibm.com.au