Excel Case Study for a Quarry Company
Overview
The rock quarry company approached eSoftware Associates, a Microsoft Excel software consulting company, to optimize their Excel quote management app. With a workforce of 50 employees, the company generates dozens of quotes daily, which determine the number of truckloads of stone needed to be delivered to different job sites. However, the current quote management app is tedious and has a lot of manual processes, resulting in data silos and errors. Moreover, only one user can access the app at a time, creating bottlenecks for those generating quotes. The average user is not an expert in technology, making the process even more time-consuming.
The Issue
The current Excel quote management app had numerous limitations that were hampering the company’s growth. It was a manual process that required users to copy and paste information between numerous worksheets, resulting in data silos and errors. The app was also limited to one user at a time, causing bottlenecks for those generating quotes. Moreover, the process of generating a single quote took over an hour, which was too time-consuming for the company’s daily operations.
Our Recommendations
To address the challenges faced by the rock quarry company, eSoftware Associates recommended gathering all the current business process requirements and anticipating future needs. We then prioritized these requirements and mapped them into specific project phases and deliverables. Once the requirements were fully vetted and approved, we created a detailed timeline for delivering the new tool and began development with our senior Excel development team.
The Solution
eSoftware Associates created a new rock quarry Excel quoting tool with a SQL backend database hosted in Microsoft Azure. The new application consolidated and optimized multiple worksheets and data sources using SQL in Azure. We created streamlined, reusable data queries throughout the Excel quoting application to deliver the necessary data from a centralized location. This centralization allowed multiple users to access the tool at the same time.
To improve speed and accuracy, we added data protections and validations to the app, which helped reduce the quote generation time from 1 hour per quote to just 15 minutes, resulting in a 75% reduction in time. The app’s improved functionality and flexibility allowed the rock quarry company to focus more on business growth in other states.
Conclusion
The implementation of the new rock quarry Excel quoting application created by eSoftware Associates was a game-changer for the rock quarry company. The application’s streamlined, centralized data, and added data protections and validations helped reduce the time needed to generate quotes, saving the company hours of work each day. Additionally, the improved functionality and flexibility of the app allowed the company to focus on growth in other states, knowing that their quote management system was efficient and reliable.