National Book Network Live with IBS Bookmaster

The National Book Network, one of the largest independent book distributors in the United States, went live with IBS Bookmaster ERP software in November 2008.

From our perspective the most interesting facet of this implementation was that NBN's distribution operations experienced no down time during the switch-over.

For details on this system conversion, read the following excerpt from National Book Network's October 2008 Newsletter:

SYSTEM CONVERSION FORTHCOMING, by Jed Lyons, CEO

"Almost four years ago, we made a decision to convert our distribution center in Blue Ridge Summit, Pennsylvania from what was then a manual operation into an automated facility with state of the art technology and equipment. We are now preparing for the culmination of our four year plan and conversion to an enhanced computer platform, IBS/Bookmaster, this Fall.

During the past four years, we have invested over $5 million in new computer software and hardware, conveyor systems, racking, and other equipment designed to improve our order fulfillment and distribution capabilities. Many of you have visited Blue Ridge Summit, but for those of you who have not, here is what you will see today if you come for a tour:

1. A 285,000 square foot facility supplemented by 190,000 square feet of storage for slow-moving inventory.

2. A paperless warehouse environment which relies entirely on handheld computers (“RFD’s” radio frequency devices) that direct pickers to pick locations using machine readable barcodes.

3. An automated conveyor system which propels orders throughout the picking area carrying cartons from the warehouse floor up to a three story mezzanine where orders are picked by zone and then diverted to gravity slides that consolidate orders by national account.

4. A workforce of 350 individuals working two shifts a day five days a week and on weekends when necessary.

As the publishing industry’s supply chain has become ever more sophisticated, the requirement to invest in new technology and equipment has accelerated. The 13 digit ISBN, license plating, automatic shipment notification (ASN) and other recent developments mean that we are constantly investing money in our systems in order to stay competitive.

Our operations team has spent the last two years planning for the conversion to a new computer platform, IBS/Bookmaster. We have invested thousands of hours and $2.5 million in the new system. We are pleased to report that we are on schedule to go live this Fall.

IBS Bookmaster was developed specifically for the book industry and includes many improvements I’m confident will please you.

We know from experience that computer conversions are always challenging which is why we started in 2006 to prepare for this one. In anticipation of the Fall go live date, we have been testing literally every module and every component of the new system in real time on the warehouse floor and throughout the other departments in Blue Ridge Summit.

The distribution team has been running the system for several months now with actual order picking that utilizes the IBS/Bookmaster technology. The Credit and Collections department has been using the accounts receivable collection module with great success and the customer service department has been keying test orders and processing EDI test orders for the past three months.

One of the areas that has received a great deal of attention is the reporting that you will begin receiving in the Fall. The new, enhanced reports are web-based......They also include a host of new features you will learn about in one of the publisher report training sessions we are scheduling in the coming months."

To learn more about National Book Network visit http://www.nbnbooks.com/