NIPPON STEEL Steel Processing (Thailand) Co., Ltd. installed the accounting ERP system " mcframe GA " through Material Automation (Thailand) (hereinafter referred to as MAT). We talked about the process leading up to the adoption of this product and the points that have improved after the installation.

■NIPPON STEEL Steel Processing (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

It is Nippon Steel Corporation's operating company in Thailand (established in 1997). As a secondary steel processing manufacturer, we supply CH steel wires and polishing rods to automobile parts manufacturers and bearing manufacturers in Thailand and neighboring countries.

Background of the accounting system update project

Editor:
Please tell us how you chose "mcframe GA" as your accounting system.

General Manager of General Affairs:
Due to the unique accounting system in Thailand, we have been using Thai local accounting packages since the company establishment. However, there were many paper-based processes, and there were functional issues of monthly and annual settlement which requires longer time.

In addition, our company was established in 2013 by the merger of the two predecessor companies. As a result, the number of BOI projects was large and the settlement of accounts and data processing became more complicated, but we had to deal with it by labor intensive method.

Therefore, in 2017, we formulated a long-term business system improvement plan. The reason for the installation was to find an accounting system that meets the following conditions.

◾️ Provide full support for Thai accounting and tax system and updated versions are handled by the software company.
◾️ BOI Easy settlement
◾️ Fixed assets, purchasing, inventory management possible
◾️ Long-term operational support

Editor:
Did the project go smoothly?

General Manager of General Affairs:
It was difficult for me to incorporate business issues into accounting system requirements and functions. Therefore, we asked MAT to provide short-term research and analysis consulting for business and its forms, and to make overall proposals and estimates based on the output.

In addition, MAT's Japanese expert, who is fluent in Thai, joined us between the local accounting staff and the Japanese accounting GM, so we were able to fully communicate with each other. Thanks to this, we were able to efficiently implement our unique requirements, Thai accounting and taxation system, functional matching with ERP package, and avoidance of restrictions.

Advantages and disadvantages of "mcframe GA" system

Editor:
Please let us know if you have any good points or bad points with using "mcframe GA" so far.

General Manager of General Affairs:
"Mcframe GA" is Japan made ERP system for the global market, but it has enough functions and business forms only for Thailand, and there are no major problems until now. Since it is a web application, it can be used with a web browser, and working from home is also possible. It is also safe to make inquiries and consultations such as repairs in Japanese. I have no particular complaints.

For fixed asset management, we have additionally installed a handy terminal linkage software developed by MAT and managed it with barcode labels. As a result, the annual fixed asset inventory can be completed in a short period of time. A significant time reduction of over 80% has been achieved.

In the past, we used to make purchase requests on paper for non-material purchases, so there were problems in terms of accuracy, speed, and ordering mistakes. We asked MAT to develop a purchase request workflow system using kintone and solved the above problem. The approval sign is now electronically approved, reducing the workload of Japanese expatriates. In addition, the purchase history function makes it easy to check trends in purchase prices, making it possible to scrutinize application details.

Evaluation, Satisfaction and Others

Editor:
How about a comprehensive evaluation?

General Manager of General Affairs:
For this project, we set the following goals.
① Significant reduction in monthly settlement hours
② Cut back accounting staff by more than 30%

As a result, I am satisfied that I was able to achieve all of them. Local accounting staff are also welcoming this system in terms of improving work efficiency and reducing overtime. In addition, by linking the production management system with "mcframe GA", it is possible to manage not only the conventional functions (material warehousing and product shipping time management) but also work-in-process, and inventory management has been strengthened.

Editor:
We heard a good example of an accounting system project with ERP at an overseas corporation of a Japanese manufacturing industry. Thank you for today.