In this session, we’ll provide an overview of PC Bennett’s Shipping Container Management enhancement for Acumatica, which allows tracking of your shipments from wharf to warehouse. It enables you to capture all your landed costs, so your margins reflect your total expense.
Register here.
Attend our May 5, 2021 10 AM PT webinar and learn about AutoFitmentPlus, a complete and fully integrated solution designed to manage your entire automotive aftermarket business effectively and efficiently from end-to-end. It is built on top of Acumatica Cloud ERP and incorporates resources that make it easy to identify parts in an industry-standard manner.
Please register here.
When we started down this Automotive Aftermarket road, we had no idea it would lead to the creation of a custom solution like AutoFitmentPlus. But we are happy it did – it is helping our clients have an edge that no other companies have.
How It Began
While working with customers, we realized a major struggle for them was centered around parts database management. Order departments were relying on paper catalogs or were looking up parts on multiple websites, which was frustrating and time-consuming. Not only were they spending more time taking orders, but they ran a bigger risk of selling incompatible parts to their customers. Which at a minimum disappoints the customer and results in costly returns. At worst, it can cost them their business. There had to be a better way.
The Birth of Fitment for Acumatica
As you know, managing fitment information is an ongoing process. Vehicle standards change often. Without an integrated solution, you are left to manually maintain your auto parts database. Not only is it a huge task, but it is prone to errors and creates a lag in accurate data, paving the way for a bad customer experience.
Additionally, customers often search for parts by brand, not realizing that there can be auto parts that fit multiple brands of vehicles.
We realized an integrated fitment lookup that connects to your web store would allow you to educate your customers on how to search and serve up more compatible options. This also keeps them on your site, buying auto parts from you instead of your competition.
We developed and launched our fitment solution earlier this year, which allows you to quickly and easily look up fitment data by year, make, model, and other filters like trim and engine type. And did we mention that it connects to shopping cart? You can also quickly create new items with images, color options, finishes, descriptions, specs and manufacturer’s data with just a few clicks.
The Evolution to AutoFitmentPlus
We know there’s always room for improvement. So, we took our Fitment product to our clients for testing and recommendations. They did not disappoint. We came away from those meetings and conversations with a host of recommended features. And we got to work.
The expanded AutoFitmentPlus tool has the go-to reference specification tables: ACES (Aftermarket Catalog Exchange Standard) and PIES (Product Information Exchange Standard) built right into it, allowing fast, easy file preparation and transmission and seamless direct access to the data.
How Good is AutoFitmentPlus?
When we talk about the features with any current or potential client, you can feel their interest grow. It’s no longer an ERP solution and our knowledge around how to implement. It’s a passion for the automotive industry that has resulted in a truly unique offering, designed from the ground up to save you time, money, and frustration.
We are 80% through phase I of development, so we are still a bit away from launching, but this product builds on a solid foundation of the fitment functionality we already created, and promises much more, including:
Why Did We Focus on the Automotive Aftermarket?
We have a passion for classic cars, fast cars and the racing industry. This love of cars and racing started a generation ago and it continues with me, my brother and my son. It’s one of the reasons people choose us over anyone else. It’s why we find it easy and actually fun to help automotive aftermarket industry. It’s why we’re continually updating and improving our solution to make sure it provides everything our clients need.
Get to know us a little better…peruse our gallery of photos, and lots of other handy resources on our Acumatica Automotive page.
Stop “Getting By” with an Outdated Fitment Process
And start using a solution that eliminates errors and takes guesswork out of fitting parts to vehicles. A solution that won’t cost a fortune, take forever to deploy, or be hard to use. A solution that:
Take a tour of our fitment module, and let us know what you think! Your comments could lead to an even better solution!
In this session we’ll review the most important features from Acumatica 2021 R1 release.
Register here.
PC Bennett, an Acumatica Gold Certified Partner, has added new team members after showing 20% growth in the last four months. The Seattle-based Acumatica partner has expanded their consulting and marketing teams, specifically with some additional manufacturing resources.
The consulting team at PC Bennett is pleased to welcome Jeremy Dobish to their ranks. In this position, which extends the reach of their consulting bench, Jeremy will focus on the Acumatica manufacturing and quality modules, along with add-on solutions. Jeremy will support the team on implementations and QC efforts, and provide Acumatica support. He hopes to use his previous experience as a Quality Manager and Operations Manager to help PC Bennett’s clients optimize their ERP systems.
Before joining PC Bennett, Jeremy spent 12 years working in the aerospace manufacturing industry, for a company specializing in complex machining for both commercial and government space programs. “I have always enjoyed the idea of being a consultant where I could help business grow and develop processes to affect their bottom line. I was looking for an opportunity to utilize my MBA and interact differently with a bit more variety of business,” said Jeremy. “Through the Certification2Hire program by DyNexus Recruiting, I studied nights and weekends to get my Acumatica certification, and was introduced to PC Bennett shortly thereafter.”
Nathan joins the consulting team at PC Bennett and brings a wealth of experience with him. In this position, Nathan will focus on the Acumatica financial, distribution and manufacturing functionality, helping clients solve their everyday issues with creative solutions.
Before joining PC Bennett, Nathan spent 16 years in the custom art and framing industry, most recently at Cali Framing, where he was the CTO. He stumbled upon Acumatica while searching for a modern ERP solution for Cali, and fell in love the with product. “I wanted to refocus my career on consulting businesses, and on my first introduction to PC Bennett Solutions, I knew right away that this was exactly the kind of outfit that I was searching for to make my move. As a big racing fan myself, the focus on the automotive industry sparked my interest.
Nathan was recently interviewed by Tim Rodman at AUGForums, an independent Acumatica online community, on his Acumatica journey. You can listen to the podcast in its entirety here.
Kelly joins the consulting team at PC Bennett and brings 20 years of ERP experience with her. In this role, Kelly will focus on the Acumatica financial, distribution and manufacturing functionality, helping clients meet their project goals, on-time and on-budget.
Prior to joining PC Bennett, Kelly spent time leading the business applications team for a global manufacturer, worked at a Fortune 1000 manufacturer to build their PMO, and became a CIO for a boutique SaaS Fintech firm. Kelly came to PC Bennett after seeing a post from her old colleague, Tim O’Sullivan, COO at PC Bennett. “I couldn’t get it out of my head. I’ve always liked working for smaller organizations where I can have a larger impact,” offered Kelly. “I think I bring a rounded perspective on why projects fail and succeed and have learned that no single approach is right for every client or project.”
Alessandra joins the marketing team at PC Bennett as a recent Acumatica certified business consultant. She graduates from UBC Sauder School with a finance degree in April, 2021. In this role, Alessandra will focus on using her Acumatica knowledge to connect and engage with the various PC Bennett audiences, helping clients and prospects become aware of the business solutions available to them.
Prior to joining PC Bennett, Alessandra helped a Canadian Acumatica partner implement Acumatica internally, and learned a great deal about the financial modules and how an ERP system facilitates financial analysis. “I realized that I could use my new certifications and experience elsewhere, and reached out to Acumatica to look for additional opportunities,” said Alessandra. “Just like that, I was lucky enough to get connected with PC Bennett.”
Patricia Bennett, the Founder and CEO of PC Bennett offered the following comments on the recent hiring surge, “We’ve been fortunate enough to grow during the last year, enough that it made sense to support our internal teams with more talent. We are passionate about our business, and we looked for others who share our enthusiasm and culture, and we believe we have found that in our new team members. The entire PC Bennett team is excited at this growth, and to provide opportunities for Acumatica resources, both new and experienced.”
PC Bennett is an award-winning Acumatica Cloud ERP Software provider, but we’re more than that. We’re innovation enthusiasts, who think about more than just technology. We think about how people work so we can provide the tools and information needed to make good business decisions.
The experienced team at PC Bennett will take the time to understand your priorities so we can recommend cost-effective solutions that achieve results.
We know there are many choices available to supply your automotive, manufacturing and distribution technology needs. We look forward to the opportunity to show you why we are the right choice for your small or medium business (SMB), whether it is business advice, implementation optimization or Acumatica support.
In this session, we’ll provide an overview of PC Bennett’s Shipping Container Management enhancement for Acumatica, which allows tracking of your shipments from wharf to warehouse. It enables you to capture all your landed costs, so your margins reflect your total expense.
Register here.
Everybody loves spreadsheets, right?
Spreadsheets are cheap, easy, and convenient — and often frequently contain errors — from a miscopied formula (or a formula initially entered incorrectly) to simple typos. They also require a lot of administrative upkeep and endless formatting.
Perhaps worst of all is that frustrating spreadsheet issue where all the spreadsheets are accurate and well-formatted — but you look at the wrong version (or the correct, but un-updated, version) by mistake and act on out-of-date information.
It’s time to talk about how to get rid of your auto parts inventory spreadsheets forever.
Spreadsheet irritations are one of the biggest issues in growing companies. However, most business leaders are so used to dealing with spreadsheet hassles that they cannot fully imagine how much time and energy they could save if they simply replaced their spreadsheets with a better tool.
Most growing automotive aftermarket manufacturers and distributors choose to replace those pesky spreadsheets with an ERP solution.
Here is why:
ERP systems are typically set up to automatically integrate your auto parts inventory information from sales orders/shipping and purchase orders/receiving data. ERP users rarely have to manually update stock counts, which significantly cuts down on errors.
Modern ERPs are built to display your auto parts inventory information properly on any device: a desktop, a laptop, a warehouse display monitor, a tablet, a phone, or even a handheld scanner – with no formatting tweaks required.
With an ERP, you can trust that you, your staff, and your customers are seeing up-to-the-second inventory data at all times, whether they’re looking at your eCommerce store website, a computer in your brick-and-mortar locations, or a mobile device.
The best way to determine which ERP will meet your needs is to work with an ERP consultant who will help you perform a fair and balanced assessment of all your ERP options.
Here are a few pointers to help you start thinking about your needs before your ERP consultation:
Ensure that the solution you choose:
AutoFitmentPlus powered by Acumatica is the automotive ERP designed by auto enthusiasts for auto enthusiasts – and it is also one of the most comprehensive automotive aftermarket ERP solutions on the market.
Developed by PC Bennett, the high-performance driving and motorsports team of Acumatica experts, AutoFitmentPlus is the right tool for the job when you’re ready to get rid of your auto parts inventory spreadsheet for good.
PC Bennett Solutions offers a personalized, full-service experience for customers by implementing business management technology. Through a hands-on approach, PC Bennett Solutions helps companies get the most out of their software system. The team provides training, implementation and customization of Acumatica. Headquartered in the Seattle area, PC Bennett Solutions is one of the largest exclusive Acumatica resellers. For more information, visit www.pcbennett.com.
If you run an automotive aftermarket manufacturing or distribution business, you deserve a better way to manage your inventory, operations, and financials.
Let’s face it: those homegrown systems and one-off spreadsheets are throttling your business growth – and those paper catalogs? Don’t even get us started on the time-wasting disaster they are.
By this point, you already know that a better ERP would help you grow your business, but you also know that finding the right ERP takes time to spare (which you don’t have). Wouldn’t it be great to learn about the one ERP that clearly stood out from all the rest as the best ERP for the automotive industry?
Let’s talk about Acumatica Cloud ERP.
A leading cloud ERP solution, Acumatica handles every aspect of your automotive aftermarket business from end to end.
From manufacturing to distribution to eCommerce to service and install, Acumatica is the one single system that houses all your data, reducing the effort it takes to manage your company. In other words, Acumatica provides the time-saving tools you need so you can focus on growing your business.
Like all ERPs, Acumatica streamlines traditional time wasters like financial reporting, inventory management, logistics, and sales. You expect that.
However, the reason why Acumatica is the best ERP for the automotive industry is because only Acumatica integrates with the one-of-a-kind automotive aftermarket management solution known as AutoFitmentPlus.
Only available with Acumatica, AutoFitmentPlus is the automotive aftermarket management solution developed by auto enthusiasts for auto enthusiasts.
Combined with Acumatica, this unique tool helps automotive aftermarket manufacturers and distributors:
At PC Bennett, we’re auto enthusiasts. We’re big supporters of the automotive aftermarket industry. We’re also the developers behind AutoFitmentPlus and we’re some of the top Acumatica experts in the world.
We agree that you deserve the best ERP for the automotive industry, and that’s why we built AutoFitmentPlus for Acumatica Cloud ERP.
If you’re ready to grow your business with the best ERP for the automotive industry, contact PC Bennett today.
PC Bennett Solutions offers a personalized, full-service experience for customers by implementing business management technology. Through a hands-on approach, PC Bennett Solutions helps companies get the most out of their software system. The team provides training, implementation and customization of Acumatica. Headquartered in the Seattle area, PC Bennett Solutions is one of the largest exclusive Acumatica resellers. For more information, visit www.pcbennett.com.
On September 15, 2020 we announced our automotive database management solution: AutoFitmentPlus. In an effort to better serve automotive aftermarket customers, we developed this comprehensive tool that combines fitment tracking and parts lookup with ACES and PIES reference specification data, packaged into an award-winning ERP system.
AutoFitmentPlus builds on the Fitment functionality that we released earlier this year, and is 80% through Phase I development. You can currently look up fitment for auto parts by year, make, model and other filters, ensuring that they get the right part, every time.
When we asked our customers what they wanted most from a fitment solution, we heard many of them lament having to enter in parts data at least twice, often more than that. Then at the end of the month some of them needed to manually create an Excel spreadsheet to send to SEMA in the PIES format. It was a huge drain on their time each month. AutoFitmentPlus allows customers to enter data ONCE, and then click a button to generate the PIES file they need, in the right format, in minutes.
The expanded AutoFitmentPlus tool has the go-to reference specification tables: ACES (Aftermarket Catalog Exchange Standard) and PIES (Product Information Exchange Standard) built right into it, allowing fast, easy file preparation and transmission and seamless direct access to the data.
“We wanted to help our customers eliminate manual lookups and have an easy way to quickly find parts that match their customers’ requests,” says our Founder, and CEO Patricia Bennett. “Integrating it with ACES and PIES just made sense, and saves our customers so much time and effort. Before AutoFitmentPlus, one customer spent upwards of 12 hours each month preparing their data file for upload to SEMA. Imagine getting that time back every month.”
In addition to parts lookup, the AutoFitmentPlus solution includes:
For subscribing members of the Auto Care Association, AutoFitmentPlus will also ensure the data you have in your ERP system is always up to date.
You can learn more in our AutoFitmentPlus blog post.
“We couldn’t be happier that PC Bennett is developing this automotive database management tool for their Acumatica audience. It speaks to their commitment to the automotive industry, and their depth of knowledge and passion for the fastest growing cloud ERP solution,” — Geoff Ashley, Vice President, Partner Strategy & Programs at Acumatica.
Remember your 18th birthday? Odds are, your answer is “yes.” After all, it was a milestone.
As we celebrate PC Bennett’s birthday, we have been taking some time to look back over everything that has happened over the past 18 years. From Patricia’s start in 2002 as a stay-at-home mom working with Microsoft Small Business Manager, all the way to becoming an award-winning Acumatica partner with offices and staff across the nation and customers around the world, it’s been great.
What a journey it’s been – and it’s all thanks to our incredible customers.
Every step of the way, customers like you (yes, you!) have been there for us, just as we have been there for you. In fact, your ever-evolving business needs are what encouraged us to grow our skills, our capabilities, and our staff so much over the past 18 years.
The skills you’ve encouraged us to build have led to multiple awards, including:
Though you may see it as simply calling us up and asking us to tweak a setting, implement a new module, or help solve an unexpected challenge, every one of your requests has pushed us to be a better company and Acumatica partner, so we know we will be there for you when you need us.
We look forward to helping you even more over the next 18 years and beyond – what an incredible journey it has been and will continue to be!
PC Bennett Solutions offers a personalized, full-service experience for customers by implementing business management technology. Through a hands-on approach, PC Bennett Solutions helps companies get the most out of their software system. The team provides training, implementation and customization of Acumatica. Headquartered in the Seattle area and with offices in Dallas, PC Bennett Solutions is one of the largest exclusive Acumatica resellers. For more information, visit www.pcbennett.com.
