Driving finance and operations efficiency for a high-quality drainage, plumbing, and heating services company.

A leading company in the drainage, plumbing, and heating industry, sought to improve their operational efficiency and financial management.

In a bid to streamline their operations and enhance their financial management capabilities, the company partnered with Akita to deploy Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central. This comprehensive project aimed to address the client's unique requirements, particularly focusing on Akita's bespoke Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) module and financial management within Business Central.

Their key requirements included:

• Support for HMRC’s Construction Industry Scheme (CIS): The company needed a robust solution to manage and simplify the complexity of CIS compliance.
• Enhanced Financial Management: The customer required a comprehensive financial management system to handle its VAT setup, bank feeds, and overall financial operations.

Given the unique requirements of UK companies, the client needed a UK-based partner to provide ongoing support and consultancy.

Financial Management in Business Central

Akita began by focusing on enhancing the company’s financial management capabilities within Business Central. Key areas of improvement included:

• VAT Setup: Akita assisted the client with setting up VAT within Business Central. This included configuring VAT reconciliation, generating VAT statements, and preparing VAT returns. The setup ensured that the client could manage their VAT obligations efficiently and accurately.
• Bank Feeds: To streamline financial operations, Akita recommended and implemented the Yavrio addon for bank feeds. This addon enabled the client to automatically import bank transactions into Business Central, reducing manual data entry and improving financial accuracy.
• Managed Support: Akita provided a comprehensive support plan, ensuring that the client had access to expert assistance during business hours. This support included a guaranteed remote response time, helping the client resolve any issues promptly and maintain smooth operations.

CIS Module Implementation

The other critical component of this project was the implementation of Akita’s custom CIS solution for Business Central, designed to simplify management of tax requirements. As part of the project, Akita delivered:

• CIS Base Module: Designed to support the company's compliance with HMRC’s Construction Industry Scheme. It included features for managing CIS deductions, verifying subcontractors, and generating CIS returns.
• Integration with Teampoint: To further enhance the functionality, the Business Central CIS module was integrated with Teampoint: a tool used by the company for managing their workforce. This integration ensured seamless data flow between systems, reducing manual data entry and improving accuracy.

As a specific request from the company, we also configured the CIS module to generate credit notes – something that was desired but not necessarily in line with the CIS scheme.

Project Outcome Of Business Central & CIS Module

The successful deployment of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, along with Akita’s tailored CIS module, has resulted in significant improvements for the client. Key outcomes included:

• Improved Compliance: The CIS module ensured that the client remained compliant with HMRC’s Construction Industry Scheme, reducing the risk of penalties and improving overall compliance management.
• Enhanced Financial Operations: The comprehensive financial management setup, including VAT and bank feeds, streamlined the plumbing company’s financial operations, reducing manual work and improving accuracy.
• Ongoing Support: With Akita's managed support plan, the company has access to expert assistance at every turn, ensuring that any issues or queries relating to its ERP solution are resolved quickly and efficiently.

This case study demonstrates Akita 's expertise in delivering tailored ERP solutions that meet the unique requirements of facilities management and construction companies, driving operational efficiency and enhancing financial management capabilities.