PSI Repair Services specializes in the repair, re-manufacturing, and engineering of electronics, hydraulics, and mechanical components while saving their customers millions of dollars. PSI recognizes its on-site customer focused program as a Repairable Asset Control (RAC®) Site responsible for handling the lifecycle of a repair along with providing exceptional customer service and support. They provide their repair and re-manufacturing services to large manufacturing companies in the Automotive, Industrial, HVAC, and Semi-Conductor world.
Due to their tremendous growth, PSI needed to adopt a system that allowed them a higher level of customization and the ability to tailor their processes around that system. Through collaboration with the EZOfficeInventory team, they successfully deployed EZOfficeInventory for their daily operations, including integration with their ERP system, Epicor. For the last two years, PSI Repair Services has been flawlessly driving its operations using EZOfficeInventory – our asset management software.
Keeping PSI’s successful use of EZOfficeInventory in mind, Brian Upchurch, RAC Division Manager and the Administrator of EZOfficeInventory at PSI said:
“Once we get through year three [of EZOfficeInventory], we are going to be saving around 20% per year over what we were paying with the previous company.”
A journey of innovation: PSI Repairs x EZOfficeInventory
The collaboration between EZOfficeInventory and PSI Repair Services has been nothing less than a joint venture of innovation and development. After extensive research and exploring other options, PSI had a detailed discussion with our sales team about the future of this collaboration.
The sales team was enthusiastic about the possibility of working with the development team to materialize PSI’s need – designing a unique workflow that enabled them to track and monitor the life cycle of assets under maintenance in conjunction with Epicor.
That was a real game-changing moment for both EZOfficeInventory and PSI Repair Services. Brian defines the experience as incredibly satisfying.
After considerable efforts, the EZOfficeInventory team combined the work order module in EZOfficeInventory with their ERP system via API integration to enable PSI to merge their work order data. This integration proved a huge success as it allowed Brian and his team to seamlessly import data of more than 16000 assets and hundreds of work orders into EZOfficeInventory.
However, this successful collaboration yielded several other benefits for PSI.
Tracking repair lifecycle with constantly updating Work Orders
The work order module is the most critical feature for PSI to have full visibility into their repair cycle. EZOfficeInventory provides them a perfect platform to log all their ongoing repairs using the custom designed work orders. The tracking process for PSI is simple yet nuanced.
As soon as an asset arrives at the PSI facility, their team cross-checks and assigns it a 7-digit barcode (if it’s a new asset). PSI then enters all the important asset information and creates a work order in EZOfficeInventory. The asset information and work order modules enable them to capture details like part information, pictures, issue descriptions, and shipment logistics. Using custom templates, PSI generates a packing slip to attach to the part before sending it for repair.
The part is then evaluated, and PSI sends a repair quote to the customer to proceed with the repair. Once approved by the customer, purchase orders are updated in EZOfficeInventory, allowing PSI to consolidate purchase details. As the part goes through vital stages of repair, the work order automatically updates with details like repair type, quote information, and scheduled due dates.
Once the repair is complete, the part is shipped to the customer and the work order is updated with the shipping information. The work order module tracks each stage of the repair and ensures that the part is in great working condition before returning to the customer.
Barcode labels for quick tracking
The company assigns a 7-digit barcode to every part it receives from customers to track and trace them throughout their lifecycle using EZOfficeInventory. This barcode enables them to track what facility a part is being serviced at, the associated cost, the cause of repair, and how many times it has been serviced by PSI before.
PSI uploads pictures of the parts and related documents, like purchase orders, repair reports, and quotes, along with the status and location of the assets to maintain a detailed log in EZOfficeInventory. This information allows the PSI team to track an asset’s repair history if it is brought back again in the future for repair.
Transforming asset management with API integration and Custom Fields
PSI heavily relies on asset details and work orders to track its repair process. Using various custom fields in its EZOfficeInventory account, it records critical information, like job type, quote amount, case number, and repair notes, to efficiently and effectively conduct the repairs.
With the API integration, their team saves significant time by not having to manually enter the information. The company’s repair team uses Epicor and updates the software throughout the repair process, while EZOfficeInventory pulls this data and updates the fields automatically. The interface updates thrice a day to ensure that PSI’s team has the most live data on these 10 key pieces of information.
“The fields can change up to 10 times before the repair completes and the asset is back in inventory”, said Brian.
Overall, EZOfficeInventory enables PSI to capture updates on repairs, quotes, purchase orders, and shipping, without manual intervention, with the Epicor integration. As a result, PSI has improved its efficiency by more than 75% and has been able to provide top-notch service to its customers.
Dynamic customization with Custom Reports
PSI uses the Custom Reports feature in EZOfficeInventory to seamlessly track the repair process of parts at different RAC sites. From the time an asset arrives for repair to when it’s delivered, the progress of the work order is actively tracked through the reports. The reports encapsulate information such as:
- When the part was received
- When it was quoted for repair
- Whether a purchase order was issued
- When the repair was completed
- Shipping and delivery status
The Custom Reports provide a comprehensive framework for the PSI team to utilize the most updated repair data for data analysis. The team can filter through large datasets in just a few seconds to create the most relevant reports. These reports serve as the foundation for further data configuration in Excel Power Query and are also scheduled to be sent on a specific date and time to relevant stakeholders.
These cross-functional reports reduce the need for manual intervention. Brian mentions that if he creates a report for a facility for about 3000 assets, then he can consolidate that information into 3000 lines rather than 25000 using EZOfficeInventory.
Reporting used to be a time-consuming process for PSI, but now they have been able to greatly eliminate the time needed behind the computer creating reports and better service the customer. “There are some reports that would take us over an hour plus several thousand mouse clicks to complete and now we are down to less than 7 minutes,” said Brian.
Customization as the new way forward
PSI has been able to leverage customization in EZOfficeInventory to its fullest advantage for enhanced efficiency. They have been successfully using the Groups, Custom Filters, and Custom Fields to better filter their data.
For instance, PSI has multiple RAC sites, each with its own custom fields. Brian describes the situation as, “previously, we had one giant list that had every manufacturer we’ve ever worked with on any RAC Site”. With EZOfficeInventory, the team has been able to create custom drop-down menus for each RAC site, so the teams are able to access data specific to their site. The custom columns allow the PSI team to cater better to the needs and wants of a specific site and be more efficient. With this level of automation, the team saves almost 30 seconds per part in processing the repair.
When presenting the RAC program to new customers, PSI shares their partnership with EZOfficeInventory and customizations available to let the potential customer know that “PSI & EZOfficeInventory will build a custom tracking, tracing and reporting program that fits your needs”. The RAC Team with PSI is more than satisfied with EZOfficeInventory, especially the level of customization and exceptional customer service. Brian said:
“RAC is looking forward to the longevity of our partnership in order to grow and better service the needs of our expanding customer base.”
