insightsoftware Case Studies How Rental One Replaced Complex Excel-Based Processes with Robust Analytics

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	How Rental One Replaced Complex Excel-Based Processes with Robust Analytics insightsoftware

How Rental One Replaced Complex Excel-Based Processes with Robust Analytics

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Technology Category	Analytics & Modeling - Real Time Analytics Analytics & Modeling - Big Data Analytics
Applicable Industries	Construction & Infrastructure
Applicable Functions	Business Operation
Use Cases	Real-Time Location System (RTLS) Predictive Quality Analytics
Services	Data Science Services
Challenge	Rental One, a premier equipment rental company, was struggling with an enormous Excel spreadsheet that tracked key performance indicators (KPIs) for financial data company-wide. The spreadsheet was becoming increasingly cumbersome as it accumulated data and expanded. The process was partially automated, but the majority of content was added manually. As the number of variables and quantity of content increased, the spreadsheet continued to grow, becoming more unwieldy. At the end of each month, additional consolidations were prepared to provide an executive review of business performance. However, the Excel spreadsheet was producing incorrect results, and different users reached different conclusions based on how the spreadsheet was interpreted and which data stacks they ran. The Excel-based system was grinding to a halt and impacting multiple facets of the business. Read More
About Customer	Rental One, located in Colleyville, Texas, is a premier equipment rental company that provides customers locally and state-wide with a broad selection of the best construction equipment and the most personalized service possible. The company operates through 11 retail locations, serving customers from a wide range of markets. Rental One has evolved and grown significantly since it began as a family-run business over six decades ago. Despite its growth, the company's commitment to excellence and belief that good work relies on dependability, integrity, honesty, and teamwork, has never wavered. Rental One continues to support its customers' projects regardless of equipment, supply, or service need. Read More
Solution	Rental One decided to replace their Excel-based processes with a Business Intelligence (BI) platform. They required a BI platform that could negate Excel’s shortcomings, unlock and consolidate data from their ERP, simplify ad-hoc queries, and automatically produce correct, consistent results for everyone in the organization. They chose Dundas BI for its long-standing leadership in the data visualization space, and for its ability to fulfil Rental One’s key requirements specifically in regards to advanced data prep. Dundas BI’s advanced data prep capabilities allowed Rental One to be more proactive, and focus on the data they needed, and from there, easily enrich it. With Dundas BI, Rental One acquired the ability to retrieve data directly from its sources on regular intervals. This meant they could display their data in real-time on their dashboards, providing users with unfettered access to stored information and empowering them to track KPIs down to the minute. Read More Log in to view content
Contents

Technology Category

Analytics & Modeling - Real Time Analytics

Analytics & Modeling - Big Data Analytics

Applicable Industries

Construction & Infrastructure

Applicable Functions

Business Operation

Use Cases

Real-Time Location System (RTLS)

Predictive Quality Analytics

Services

Data Science Services

Challenge

Rental One, a premier equipment rental company, was struggling with an enormous Excel spreadsheet that tracked key performance indicators (KPIs) for financial data company-wide. The spreadsheet was becoming increasingly cumbersome as it accumulated data and expanded. The process was partially automated, but the majority of content was added manually. As the number of variables and quantity of content increased, the spreadsheet continued to grow, becoming more unwieldy. At the end of each month, additional consolidations were prepared to provide an executive review of business performance. However, the Excel spreadsheet was producing incorrect results, and different users reached different conclusions based on how the spreadsheet was interpreted and which data stacks they ran. The Excel-based system was grinding to a halt and impacting multiple facets of the business.

About Customer

Rental One, located in Colleyville, Texas, is a premier equipment rental company that provides customers locally and state-wide with a broad selection of the best construction equipment and the most personalized service possible. The company operates through 11 retail locations, serving customers from a wide range of markets. Rental One has evolved and grown significantly since it began as a family-run business over six decades ago. Despite its growth, the company's commitment to excellence and belief that good work relies on dependability, integrity, honesty, and teamwork, has never wavered. Rental One continues to support its customers' projects regardless of equipment, supply, or service need.

Solution

Rental One decided to replace their Excel-based processes with a Business Intelligence (BI) platform. They required a BI platform that could negate Excel’s shortcomings, unlock and consolidate data from their ERP, simplify ad-hoc queries, and automatically produce correct, consistent results for everyone in the organization. They chose Dundas BI for its long-standing leadership in the data visualization space, and for its ability to fulfil Rental One’s key requirements specifically in regards to advanced data prep. Dundas BI’s advanced data prep capabilities allowed Rental One to be more proactive, and focus on the data they needed, and from there, easily enrich it. With Dundas BI, Rental One acquired the ability to retrieve data directly from its sources on regular intervals. This meant they could display their data in real-time on their dashboards, providing users with unfettered access to stored information and empowering them to track KPIs down to the minute.

Impact #1	Rental One’s Excel-based processes were replaced with a single dashboard that updates in real-time, allowing store managers and executives to see KPIs immediately, at any time, and easily refer to any previous period.
Impact #2	Rental One was able to easily sort and visualize where collections needed to be made with the automated Accounts Receivables Aging report.
Impact #3	Rental One noticed a distinct cultural shift among store managers, who are now more aligned with the dashboards in Dundas BI than in Excel.

Impact #1

Rental One’s Excel-based processes were replaced with a single dashboard that updates in real-time, allowing store managers and executives to see KPIs immediately, at any time, and easily refer to any previous period.

Impact #2

Rental One was able to easily sort and visualize where collections needed to be made with the automated Accounts Receivables Aging report.

Impact #3

Rental One noticed a distinct cultural shift among store managers, who are now more aligned with the dashboards in Dundas BI than in Excel.

Benefit #1	Rental One saved the equivalent of 1.5 man-days per month of report creation with the automated Accounts Receivables Aging report.
Benefit #2	Current projects continue to strip hours of clerical effort previously consumed managing Excel workbooks that can be now performed with real-time results in just seconds.

Benefit #1

Rental One saved the equivalent of 1.5 man-days per month of report creation with the automated Accounts Receivables Aging report.

Benefit #2

Current projects continue to strip hours of clerical effort previously consumed managing Excel workbooks that can be now performed with real-time results in just seconds.

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Overview

How Rental One Replaced Complex Excel-Based Processes with Robust Analytics

Operational Impact

Quantitative Benefit