MS ERP To Accelerate Decision Making At NR Group

The cottage industry in India is estimated at Rs 1200 crore and employs around 12 lakh people. It is interesting to note that many companies that started primarily as a cottage industry have today carved a niche for themselves in the corporate world.

The NR Group (N Ranga Rao & Sons), a business conglomerate headquartered in Mysore, is a perfect example of such a successful venture. The Group, founded in 1948, started as a manufacturer of incense sticks (agarbathis) under the ‘Cycle’ brand. Today, with revenues of over Rs 200 crore, the Group has diversified into different lines of business.

Early mover advantage

Arjun Ranga, managing partner, NR Group, says: “We have been using technology in the best way possible since 1992.” The Group moved from a LAN-based IT infrastructure to a WAN-based one. Today the application is hosted at a centralised data centre and accessed by all users from across the organisation.

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All systems were upgraded to Microsoft Windows-based clients and, wherever required, hardware was upgraded with more RAM to facilitate easier access. Most of the locations have broadband connectivity. The earlier system was Tally, which required consolidation from various depots and branches to consolidate the financials, sales and inventory information.

“We initially started with a Novell platform, but with business expansion we needed a more robust technology and better infrastructure. So we decided to go for a wholesome implementation, and Affordable Business Solutions (ABS) is working on it presently,” says Ranga.

Need for better technology

The ERP solution being implemented at the NR Group is Microsoft Dynamics NAV 4.0 (formerly Microsoft Business Solutions – Navision). It has a centralised application and database at a data centre, which is accessed over the Internet via Windows Terminal Server. More advanced features such as an employee portal and business analytics are also part of the implementation.

Ravindra Kini, founder and director, ABS, says, “The NR Group is fast growing, with operations across the globe. Without a centralised, integrated, real-time application it would be difficult to handle the growth. Real-time MIS will help accelerate decision-making cycles and address the dynamic changes in the global market. Over a period of time, complete usage of the application will help the Group optimise costs by reducing inventory levels for raw materials.”

Not using .Net a mistake

The Group went in for computerisation in 1992 and employed DOS, WordStar and Lotus 123 to provide assistance in accounting and payroll. After some years, it upgraded to Windows 98 and MS Office with Windows NT server platform.

“We opted for MS technologies because of the cost-effectiveness and easy availability of resources to develop the tools. But in the process we realised that not using the .Net platform for building our infrastructure was a mistake, as we were unable to web-enable a lot of our features and services. So last year we decided to rectify this mistake by building a .Net framework around our existing IT infrastructure. We evaluated a number of ERPs available in the market from SAP, Oracle, 3i Infotech etc. and then decided to go with Microsoft Dynamics NAV,” adds Ranga.

Accelerating the decision-making cycle

While the base modules of Microsoft Dynamics NAV have not been disturbed, certain areas have been customised to suit the nature and requirement of the industry. Some key customisations include material handling, production process, quality process, sales accounting and sales schemes.

Says Kini, “The NR Group was the first to roll out an ERP for this industry. The ERP implementation will enable the Group to get real-time access to various operations across the organisation, reduce the decision-making cycle, and adapt to market changes faster. The implementation will take a year to complete.”