CLIENT SPOTLIGHT: ACCUTEST LABORATORIES TESTS THE ERP WATERS

ACC Software Solutions helps Accutest Laboratories leverage the powerful reporting tools of Sage 100 (formerly MAS 90)

Accutest Laboratories has been in business for over 60 years and has become the third largest provider of environmental testing in the United States. Established in 1956, they deliver a full range of water, soil and air testing services to industrial, engineering/consulting and government clients.  Headquartered in New Jersey, Accutest relies on 340 employees and over 110 thousand square feet of laboratory space across four locations to deliver exceptional services to a broad range of customers including many Fortune 500 companies.

Testing the Waters

Accutest has been a long-time user of Sage 100 (formerly MAS 90).  According to Vince Russo, CFO, “We’ve been running MAS 90 (now Sage 100) since 1986 and it has worked beautifully for us.”  On a daily basis, Vince relies on Sage 100 to manage accounts payable, streamline receivables, process payroll for over 340 employees and generate detailed reports from the general ledger that provide a financial snapshot of the four operating companies that fall under his management.

A New Element in the Mix

Having built an outstanding reputation for exceptional quality and customer service, Accutest developed a growth strategy that would allow them to expand their footprint in the environmental testing industry and ensure long-term success of the business.  Vince explains, “We felt that we were at a point of considerable opportunity in our industry and wanted to take our business to the next level by expanding our presence and market leadership.”

Great Chemistry with ACC Software Solutions

As a privately-held, independent company, Accutest used a modified cash basis of accounting.  However, with a new capital investment came a new corporate form and a change to the accrual basis of accounting.  According to Vince, “We had to make some changes and re-engineer the way we were using Sage 100 in order to support the new reporting and internal control requirements.”

Accutest immediately turned to their existing technology partner and Sage 100 provider ACC Software Solutions (formerly ACC Software Solutions).  Vince says, “We’ve worked with ACC for over 15 years and our experience with them has been fantastic.  Their consultants are responsive, diligent in their follow up, really care about the success of our business, and do an outstanding job of keeping our Sage system up and running reliably.”  He adds, “I had no doubt that they would provide a quick and simple solution to help us get through the transition to an accrual basis.”

The Results

ACC immediately went to work on the chart of accounts structure, leveraging the flexibility of Sage 100 to better support consolidated financial statements for the four operating entities.  Vince states, “The changes that ACC implemented have put me in a position to better leverage the powerful reporting tools of Sage 100.  I used to export data from the system and consolidate the financials in Excel which typically took me four days.  Now, I can run consolidated reports straight out of the Sage software and it only takes me one day.  I push a button and it’s done!”  He adds, “Pulling data directly from the system also offers better internal control, accuracy, and piece of mind.”

In addition to improvements in reporting, accounts receivable had to be customized to meet unique billing requirements.  According to Vince, “Because of the nature of our business, we rely on a custom aging system and report that ACC build that allows us to look back one year.”  ACC also enhanced the Sage payroll system to account for special 401K reporting requirements.  As Vince puts it, “I can’t overstate the importance of how reliable our Sage Payroll system is.  If i can’t get checks out on-time to our 340 employees, there is going to be a problem.”

A Clean Report

Vince closes in saying, “ACC did a fabulous job of keeping our system up and running during the transition because we couldn’t afford to stop doing business.  The changes they implemented have made my life a lot easier.  The way we were using MAS 90 before was like driving a Ferrari in first gear.  Now we have a full range of gears and can leverage the power of Sage 100 to take our business to the next level.”