Odyssey Manufacturing Odyssey Manufacturing Co. modernizes operations and builds a flexible foundation with NexTec and Acumatica

Odyssey Manufacturing Co. is the leading supplier of disinfectant solutions to industrial, municipal, and aquatic markets in Florida. With multiple locations across the state and a fleet of over 50 trucks, Odyssey produces and delivers chemicals, including bleach and salt, as well as supplying equipment to its customers, such as feed systems and storage tanks. Basically, if it has to do with water in the state of Florida, Odyssey’s hands are in it.

With Florida experiencing a population boom, Odyssey found itself at maximum production capacity. The challenge to keep up with demand from growing municipalities and a booming pool/aquatic market was exacerbated by inefficient, manual, paper-based processes. After 25 years on an outdated homegrown accounting system, Odyssey reached a point where their legacy software could no longer keep pace with their growth. Odyssey selected Acumatica and NexTec Group to help them scale and grow.

“We were boxing up legal boxes and sending them via mail to a CPA to recreate all our bookkeeping and create financials for us. Everybody was doing manual data entry and there were piles and piles of documents. There was nothing fluid about the system.” – Dena Lowery, Accounting Manager, Odyssey Manufacturing Co.

Acumatica provides a flexible foundation for growth

After evaluating several options, Odyssey selected Acumatica Cloud ERP and NexTec Group as their implementation partner.

“Ease of use was the main factor in our decision to go with Acumatica,” Lowery says. “We needed a solution that could grow with us as we started to slowly guide our employees in different departments to integrate with the system. We didn’t want a system that was going to be so large, complex, or intimidating that it overwhelmed us.”

The ability to customize Acumatica to fit Odyssey’s unique needs was also crucial.

“Acumatica meets our requirements when we need something specific to what we do,” says Lowery. “So, our efficiency has increased exponentially. Not only that, but our accuracy as well.”

“NexTec makes it very easy for someone who is new to a solution like Acumatica,” Lowery adds. “You get a lot of guidance and a lot of support for software updates and training. You’re not expected to be an IT expert.”

Navigating change with NexTec

Moving to Acumatica has been a major cultural transformation for Odyssey. NexTec Group’s implementation approach focused on change management, user adoption, and empowering Odyssey’s team.

“There are a lot of moving pieces to an ERP implementation,” Lowery explains. “With the conversion to Acumatica, we had an opportunity to standardize processes, put new controls in place, and redefine roles and responsibilities. It was a total rebuilding of our accounting department.”

“We have a unique family of employees who are the strength of our business,” Lowery says. “We respected the fact that we have people with a lot of experience who are smart as a whip but are not necessarily computer savvy. For example, we have people who were literally doing job costing in their heads with no tracking or anything. We knew we’d have to move at our own pace and that our staff would need support and training from the patient NexTec team.”

“We had to understand that we were going to make mistakes and slow our roll to go at the slowest person’s pace so that we didn’t lose anyone. I was amazed at how people stepped up to cross-train coworkers and pass their knowledge along to others. It was a communal push. We arrived here together as a team, and we consider NexTec an integral part of that team.”

“We didn’t want to make people obsolete just to hire people with computer skills. We wanted to train the people we have, who possess invaluable institutional knowledge, and make them feel comfortable that they could do this.” – Dena Lowery, Accounting Manager, Odyssey Manufacturing Co.

Waqas Muhammad, Project Manager for Acumatica at NexTec adds: “A lot of times, we see companies come with a mindset that the consulting company they’re working with is not a partner, they’re just an IT company. And so, it always goes a long way when both the implementer and the client work as a partnership, working together towards the mutual goal of getting the customer live on the new software successfully and efficiently.”

Benefits and ROI

Since January 2023, when Acumatica was fully rolled out within the accounting department, Odyssey Manufacturing has seen significant operational and business benefits:

Streamlined processes – “Previously, it would take a minimum of two people six to eight hours to come up with shipping documents and do all of the scheduling. With Acumatica, we’re down to an hour and a half or two hours tops, and we’re not wasting time doing one-off data entry anymore,” Lowery says.

Improved customer service – “We get a lot of great feedback that our customers are much happier,” says Lowery. “Acumatica enables us to be very responsive. Billing is done much more quickly. We don’t have many billing disputes anymore, but if we do, we can rapidly resolve them.”

Boosted employee morale – “Each of our employees is very proud and happy,” says Lowery. “Acumatica has changed the accounting department and the entire company with our team enjoying their jobs instead of being overstressed. Morale has really improved, and everybody has a much better attitude, which makes them more productive.”

Positioned for growth – “We definitely see Acumatica as contributing to efficient growth and a higher profit in the future,” Lowery notes. “Even with a higher production volume, we don’t see as big an impact in needing more hours or more employees to get it done.”

“The biggest benefit of implementing Acumatica has been the pride our employees now have in doing their jobs. It makes them work harder and more efficiently. They are pleased with their work and ask for more. I can’t quantify it, but the morale factor is the biggest thing that has changed the entire dynamic of our business.” – Dena Lowery, Accounting Manager, Odyssey Manufacturing Co.

The road ahead

Odyssey is continuing to expand its use of Acumatica, with plans to implement CRM and project management capabilities. They are also exploring options for integrating mobile devices to enable paperless delivery processes.

As Odyssey prepares for significant growth including a 30% capacity expansion to their manufacturing plant, which is expected to be completed by 2028, Acumatica and NexTec provide the scalable foundation they need to scale and grow.

Odyssey also plans to add more locations in the Florida marketplace in the future, and Acumatica provides a great framework to support this future growth.

“We’re in it for the long-term,” Lowery concludes. “We bought the Acumatica software knowing that we would be able to expand and customize it across the board. We have a long-term game plan laid for where we want to go with it, and we know NexTec will support us at every step along our journey.”

“I’m not going to lie, it was stressful at times, but after the first quarter of 2023, we really reached smooth sailing. We’re now working with NexTec on system enhancements, and our other departments are eagerly waiting their turn to start their Acumatica implementation phases.” – Dena Lowery, Accounting Manager, Odyssey Manufacturing Co.