Foss Manufacturing: JD Edwards Inventory Reconciliation

About the Client

Founded in 1954, Foss Manufacturing Company, LLC (Foss) is a well-known leader and pioneer in the use of non-woven fabrics and specialty synthetic fibers as well as one of the world’s largest needle-punch manufacturers. With headquarters in Hampton, New Hampshire, Foss also has a manufacturing facility and a distribution facility located in Georgia and will be expanding. All of their seven business units are ISO 9001 certified. Using state-of-the-art, computerized production, they are unrivaled in their ability to efficiently and effectively design, manufacture, convert, package, and distribute a vast array of products worldwide.

Challenges the Client Faced

Foss uses Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Financials, Manufacturing, and Distribution applications to manage their supply chain activities. The tracking of products both in the warehouse and between facilities proved to be quite a challenge. During their month-end reconciliation process, it was taking two cost accountants three days to tie out perpetual inventory to the general ledger. During the course of the month, they spent an additional hour each day checking to see if any issues had occurred. Furthermore, they were also having difficulties with In-Transit inventory, having to spend five hours each month addressing various issues. Foss was also required to provide timely and accurate inventory valuations to their financial institution on a regular basis as well as be prepared for audits. Unfortunately, it took extensive manual effort to make sure all of the i’s were dotted and t’s crossed. In an effort to streamline the process and gain confidence in the results, Foss looked at established products that could help. After it was determined that their initial choice was ineffective and difficult to use, they discovered RapidReconciler® while viewing a webinar. Claims of improving inventory accuracy and significant reduction of manual effort were all they needed to hear to get the process rolling!

GSI's Solution

Foss was fully functional on RapidReconciler® shortly after purchase and only required 2 days of training. Erica Rahn, Cost Accountant, was most impressed with the immediate results achieved. “What use to take us three days to reconcile at the end of the month now takes us three hours, a 96% reduction in time. Our direct labor-saving amounted to $2,000/month which we could now use more effectively towards other business initiatives. We were also able to reduce the time that was spent each day during the month addressing transaction issues from 1 hour down to 20 minutes.“ Foss now feels very confident with the inventory valuations that they are providing to the bank without having to spend lots of manual effort, and are always prepared for audits. Finally, Erica absolutely loves the In-Transit feature of RapidReconciler®. “The In-Transit functionality is an extremely useful feature with anyone that has multiple plants. What use to take us five hours a month addressing these issues now takes 5 minutes. We always know what items make up the balance and what has not yet been received.”