“Opportunities have opened up that we would never have thought we needed until now.”

Ecovent System Ltd. has had a relatively short, yet adventurous life so far. Its product portfolio and activities have been steadily expanding and it has been very agile in its pursuit of business opportunities over the years. Could you share with us where you are now and what exactly are the products and services you are currently present in the market?

Zoltán Csipszer: I started my business three and a half years ago, basically cleaning, maintaining and inspecting air duct networks. Later, in order to be energy conscious, we optimised our portfolio and added hydraulic and control services to the cleaning. Then came the sale of air filters. Initially, we contracted with domestic suppliers, but later we thought that we needed a more complex solution to meet all the needs of the market. So we found a Dutch filter manufacturer and became their distributor in Hungary, a relationship that has worked well ever since.

You have also implemented a number of IT improvements in the last three years - what is the reason for this open attitude to innovation?

Cs. Z.: At the moment the company has two employees besides myself, so it's not a really big organisation. However, my previous experience is related to a multinational environment. I definitely wanted to build a system that could help us in the short and medium term. We try to do everything online, we started with online invoicing from the very beginning. Previously we used Google platforms to track projects and keep in touch, later we moved to Microsoft solutions, followed by Business Central.

When and what was the purpose of this transition?

Cs. Z.: The decision was taken in early 2020, but the real work started around May. It became operational in early October. In that time, we have completely customised the system to meet all our needs. The primary aim was to increase efficiency and to be able to work with minimal staff. The other reason was to focus on building for the future. With this ERP system, it doesn't matter whether we operate our own warehouse or a contract warehouse, inventory management will be transparent with both solutions. Now we have one interface to run the company, to bill and to do admin. With Business Central, it is possible to run daily, weekly or monthly statements, and to see the company's operations as densely as you want.

You launched this development around February, which means that the need to move up a level was there before the pandemic. How has the home office affected business and changed customer demand?

Cs. Z.: Practically nothing. We were immediately prepared, providing all colleagues with the portable devices and software they needed to work. Microsoft applications are available on virtually every device, so staff can work from anywhere, and sharing data between them is secure and fast.

What specific changes have you noticed from customers?

Cs. Z.: Building personal relationships is one of the cornerstones of a company and especially of sales. Unfortunately, due to the pandemic, these face-to-face meetings have either been cancelled or moved online. We were not unprepared for this, but I think there were a lot of companies in Hungary who did not really know how to do this. What we saw in the first wave was that people were using different web platforms and there was a big confusion because one party was used to a different platform than the other. Because of that, there was a loss of efficiency. What I notice is that since then there has been a divide between the use of these and the most common is Google Meet and Microsoft Teams.

You mentioned that the system started to be fully personalised at the beginning of the autumn. What are the functions that Business Central offers more than the systems you used before?

Cs. Z.: When a company is launched, the leader has a vision of the direction in which to take the work. Excel spreadsheets, Word templates, and other solutions come along to try to manage the processes. After a while, however, this is not enough, and as quick as thought you need a management system that can rethink operations and help you make decisions. This is where Business Central provides much more.

Which part of the process required the greatest investment of resources at the time of implementation?

Cs. Z.: Business Central, like most business management systems, has very high data requirements. The migration only works if you say, "Well, from now on, no more spreadsheets or anything else, we're going to manage everything in this. This has given me more than Excel right from the start: it has streamlined the accounting, the submission of tender, and I can track the status of orders in real time. I can see the entire sales and purchasing process in one platform. I know which customer I need to invoice and how accurate we are on a day-to-day basis in terms of accounting.

Could it be said that, in addition to solving everyday problems, it also helps with planning and decision-making?

Cs. Z.: We can absolutely say that. "Opportunities have opened up that we would never have thought were necessary before." One example is the use of dimensions. A dimension system is imagined as a cube, on each of whose tiles information-carrying data is loaded. At the same time, the administrative burden on traders is reduced. In effect, the customers/suppliers/items themselves carry the information. If we keep these in dimensions, we will also have an insight into what areas we are strong in and what we should open up to.

Does this build into your business planning? Are you listening less to "gut feeling" and more to data?

Cs. Z.: Yes. In fact, Business Central also has a business planning module where I can plan my expectations in advance and I can monitor the deviations continuously. It also has an artificial intelligence module for inventory management and business planning. We are not using this yet because it needs more time to make suggestions. But we definitely expect it in the future, it is worth introducing it into the company's operations. For example, it can help us to decide how much and at what throughput speed to run our warehousing, but it also makes data-driven recommendations for business activities.

As an innovative company, what other IT developments are planned in the near future?

Cs. Z.: I believe that IT renewal should never stop. From the moment when development stops, the company is immediately left behind and can only make up for it later on the basis of higher costs. That's why we try to keep up our level. Right now we are in the background finishing up Business Central, fine tuning the accounting. Business Central has a camera/OCR module so that you can hold the invoice in front of the webcam and upload it into the system, the accountant doesn't even have to be notified, he sees that there is an open invoice and can book it. It's a small thing, but it saves a lot of time by uploading the data in real time, so you don't have to wait for it to be submitted once a month, and it helps the accountant by not having to do it all at once.