Asphalt Company Integrates Estimation Application With Accounting System

Delivering State of the Art Integration

The Client

Wheeler Coatings Asphalt L.P. (Wheeler) is a full service paving and maintenance company that has been serving the greater Austin area since 1981. It is owned and operated by Jack Wheeler. In addition, Wheeler has a branch in San Antonio and Belton focusing on asphalt repairs, seal coatings, striping and paving.

The company focuses on multi-family, commercial and industrial markets providing a wide range of pavement services for existing facilities as well as new construction. Wheeler specializes in asphalt based emulsion protective seal coating to extend the useful life of asphalt pavement and provide a slate black cosmetic upgrade. The Pavement Markings division is available for refreshing worn striping patterns, fire lanes, and providing A.D.A. compliant handicap markings. Wheeler also provides car stops, signs, and sandblasting.

The Challenge

After having the estimate system rewritten and re-architecture, Wheeler sought ways to streamline many of its business processes for billing by integrating the estimate system and accounting software. Because the systems were disparate systems, there was no association to jobs created in the Estimate system to the billing in the accounting system (Great Plains).

The Approach

Wheeler approach zCore Business Solutions to provide an integration solution that would provide integration between the Estimate system and Great Plains. This integration would provide triggers within the Estimate application that would create the appropriate projects within Great Plains. The integration would provide the correct association between projects, resources and personnel. This strategy would present for Wheeler the estimated cost versus the actual cost of a job. Along with the integration, zCore was tasked to re-define and streamline the internal business processes within Wheeler.

The Solution

zCore studied and streamlined Wheeler's internal accounting and operational processes. Using custom code, zCore automated the creation of projects and invoices upon an estimate becoming a job in the Estimate system. This solution provided Wheeler with the ability to track jobs/projects closer and compare estimated versus actual cost of jobs. The comparison presents a guideline for Estimators as they continue to due the tough job of estimating jobs of similar size and type.

The Results

This solution saved Wheeler resources days of work. By eliminated the manual transfer of data to the accounting system, invoices was able to be created in a timelier manner and allowed the resources to refocus their efforts. Wheeler now has the means of tracking the budgeted versus actual cost of a job.