Amsoil JD Edwards Inventory Reconciliation

About the Client

The story of AMSOIL begins in the mid-1960s, when Lt. Col. A.J. “Al” Amatuzio, a jet fighter squadron commander, was impressed by the superb performance of synthetic lubricants in jet engines and began considering their possible automotive applications. In 1972, after an intense period of research and development, Amatuzio founded AMSOIL and introduced the first synthetic motor oil to the market that exceeded API automobile service requirements. Since 1973, the company has seen rapid growth and constant change. As the years passed, an increasingly broad range of automotive and industrial lubricants and filtration equipment was developed, with each new product exceeding industry performance specifications. In addition, the ALTRUM division of personal care items and household products was created, and the AGGRAND line of natural, organic lawn and garden products followed. The state-of-the-art facilities, located at the AMSOIL corporate headquarters in Superior Wisconsin, reflect a commitment to excellence. AMSOIL employs cutting-edge technology in all aspects of the business, from the newest high-speed blending, bottling, and packaging lines to the state-of-the-art information systems behind the scenes. A team of over 275 275 highly-skilled employees works to create the highest quality products and innovative services which keep the company at the forefront of the industry. AMSOIL, supported by a system of strategically located warehouses, distributes the products to customers throughout North America and around the world. AMSOIL’s synthetic motor oil is distributed throughout the country and the world by its independent AMSOIL Dealer network.

Challenges the Client Faced

AMSOIL was spending significant time going through intensive manual processes attempting to reconcile perpetual inventory to the general ledger in JDE each month. There were numerous issues causing these variances including manufacturing work order variances, standard cost differences, sales orders not being updated, Cardex transactions discrepancies, timing issues, and posting problems. Much of the reconciliation work was being done offline in Excel, requiring lots of manual research and data entry. Even after the reconciliation process was completed at the end of each month, unexplained variances would be carried forward since it was difficult and time-consuming to research, troubleshoot, and resolve every issue.

GSI's Solution

AMSOIL first saw a demonstration of RapidReconciler during a public webcast. They immediately saw the benefits that could be achieved with such a tool and scheduled a demonstration for their organization. After justifying the solution internally, they purchased the product. Once the implementation was scheduled, it took less than two days to implement – one day for setup and one day for training. Resolving variances began during the training session. Greg Smith, Cost Analyst, was most impressed with the immediate results achieved: “Using RapidReconciler, we were able to reduce the time it took to reconcile inventory to the general ledger each month by 94%.” Greg went on to say, “RapidReconciler has allowed us to easily identify the cause of each variance, take corrective action and implement procedures to prevent future occurrences. It is a fantastic solution for reconciling JD Edwards’ inventory. We absolutely love it and wish we could have found it years ago.”