Cosmo is a company on the fast track. As a specialized garment accessory manufacturer supplying the high-tech lining materials used in athletic shoes, Cosmo has long been the trusted partner of some of the biggest names in the sporting goods industry. Now the company is also applying its expertise to global textile trading and manufacturing, providing a range of quality fabrics for various applications, including clothing and upholstery.

"When you have some of the world's leading companies tapping into your resources, supply chain management takes on a whole new importance. We needed to make a great leap forward with an integrated and flexible supply chain management solution that we could quickly customize to meet our specific needs," explains Richard Simpson, Vice President, Marketing and Customer Service, Cosmo Hong Kong Limited.

Cosmo identified three major shortcomings of its existing supply chain management (SCM) solution:

Fragmented corporate data, housed on individual PCs, was difficult to consolidate, access and use. The Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, based on manual data entry, was inefficient and error-prone. Dealing with China's complex customs requirements was causing a supply chain bottleneck.

"Bringing the Microsoft Dynamics AX SCM solution online so quickly, Cosmo has very rapidly benefited from more accurate and up-to-date data and reliable performance tools. We are now a more productive and responsive organization, capable of making much more efficient use of our resources and better able to position ourselves in terms of marketing, sales and financial control, as we support our continuing business expansion," says Simpson.

Enhanced Customer Service
Microsoft Dynamics AX allows Cosmo end-users to view business information from any angle and at any level of detail - tracking products, customers or brands as required. Microsoft Dynamics AX can track unlimited dimensions and adding one makes it available in all modules.

With this functionality across a broad range of business areas, Cosmo is now able to rapidly recognize and react to market changes and provide more personalized customer service.

The easy customization of Microsoft Dynamics AX has helped Cosmo virtually eliminate potential bottlenecks in the supply chain. By attaching a customs clearance code to each of its products in Microsoft Dynamics AX, indicating the specific requirements for shipments of that product, Cosmo has greatly enhanced the efficiency of its customs clearance department.

Says Tang: "To make further efficiency gains, we will implement a barcode system in the near future. With simple drag-and-drop customization and intelligent upgrading procedures, Microsoft Dynamics AX empowers our IT team to handle these and any other changes we need."

Easy Access to Business-Critical Information and Analyses
Microsoft Dynamics AX gives Cosmo a one-stop-shop solution for the recording of diverse business information - from delivery notes, invoices and inventory to accounts receivable. This minimizes the need for other systems and also provides a range of pre-installed additional functionality, such as support for human resources, that Cosmo can activate as required.

Since introducing the electronic supply chain, Cosmo has seen a marked reduction in data input errors. With automatic data entry and sophisticated control functions bundled with the application, data accuracy can be assured and tracking individual transactions is fast and simple.

The Microsoft Dynamics AX deployment process has been helped by staff's enthusiasm for the new system.

"Our people have embraced the new supply chain solution and we are now achieving much closer interaction between our sales, finance and manufacturing groups," concludes Simpson. "With up-to-date and accurate information from sales, warehouse, purchasing and production, we are empowered to offer our clients our best delivery times and then keep our delivery promises - every time. Plus, with an integrated system to manage business-critical information, we are now even better equipped to serve our demanding global clients and manage our continuing growth."