Supply & Demand Chain Executive Magazine Names School Furniture Manufacturer “Green Supply Innovator”; Magazine Recognizes SYSPRO As Green-Enabling Solution Provider and the Company Columbia Credits for Helping Facilitate Green Practices

COSTA MESA, Calif. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — November 8, 2011 — SYSPRO, a developer of best-of-breed, award-winning enterprise resource planning ( ERP) software for on-premise and cloud-based utilization, has announced that SYSPRO ERP user, Columbia Manufacturing, has been cited by Supply & Demand Chain Executive Magazine in the publication’s November/December Green Supply Award issue for outstanding green and sustainability practices. The issue also recognizes SYSPRO as the provider of a supply chain solution that assists customers in achieving measurable sustainability goals.

This newest award is the latest in a list of green leadership awards garnered by Columbia, which credits the company’s utilization of SYSPRO ERP software as the key factor in the company’s ability to adopt green sustainability practices.

Ali Salehi, Columbia Manufacturing Sr. Vice President, references the ways SYSPRO software functionality has been instrumental to the establishment of Columbia’s green practices, noting, “We could not operate without SYSPRO.

“This is a very cyclical business,” he says. “The schools get out in May and June, and they want their products in the very short window of July 1 through Labor Day. Therefore, we get a huge demand in an 8 – 12 week period. SYSPRO functionality, however, expedites material resource planning and purchasing while SYSPRO forecasting, enables, as it were, our ability to ‘see the future’ so we can regulate our purchase of chemicals, water usage, electricity and all the items related to our manufacturing of school furniture.

“For example,” he says, “SYSPRO data contributed to our plating operation’s water usage reduction – from 150,000 gallons per day to 3,000 gallons per day – also reducing chrome usage by 93% and nickel purchases by 75%.” Columbia’s environmental safeguards also include the recycling of all waste steel, corrugation, wood and trash. The latter goes to a plant, where it’s converted into fuel cells for power plants.

Salehi points out that Columbia has been utilizing SYSPRO ERP software since 2004, selected on the recommendation of a search committee tasked with seeking a replacement to the company’s incumbent, outdated ERP system. SYSPRO was the choice from a field of 15 candidates. “We found SYSPRO to be the most adaptive to the nature of our business and unsurpassed for flexibility, ease of use and training,” says Salehi.

The following is a list of Columbia’s environmental achievements, many of which were facilitated utilizing SYSPRO ERP software:

• Elimination of 100% of all V.O.C.'s with a painting operation that is 100% powder coating.
• Reduction of water usage from 150,000 gallons/day to 3,000 gallons/day.
• Using 100% recycled wood flour in hard plastic seats, backs and tops.
• Using up to 25% recycled post industrial products in soft plastic components.
• Recycling 100% of excess wood products and pallets.
• Recycling 100% cardboard and paper products.
• Recycling 100% of scrap steel.
• Recycled wood and paper products are converted to fuel cell cubes replacing coal in power generator plants.

About Columbia Manufacturing

Columbia Manufacturing, Inc., is a privately owned company located at One Cycle Street, Westfield, Massachusetts. Columbia, originally founded in 1877 by Colonel Albert Pope, established itself as the premier bicycle manufacturer of America’s First Bicycle. As a way to diversify its product line and to help keep the factory busy in the slow periods, Columbia started manufacturing school furniture in 1952 and today is considered to be the manufacturer of the finest school furniture in America.

Columbia’s facility sits on 36 acres with the original factory as its core. Over the years it has expanded and currently has approximately 300,000 square feet of usable manufacturing space.

For more information: call: 413-562-3664 or go to: www.columbiamfginc.com

About Supply & Demand Chain Executive

Supply & Demand Chain Executive is the executive’s user manual for successful supply and demand chain transformation, utilizing hard-hitting analysis, viewpoints and unbiased case studies to steer executives and supply management professionals through the complicated, yet critical, world of supply and demand chain enablement to gain competitive advantage.

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