From the “Gung Ho” Philosophy to Impressive Milestones
At Century AC Supply, “Gung Ho” is more than just a slogan – it’s a working philosophy built on three pillars: meaningful work, ownership over outcomes, and mutual encouragement among team members. This philosophy stems from the company’s core value: treating employees like family and customers like friends. Since its founding in 1973, Century AC Supply has grown from a small storefront to 13 branches across Texas, earning recognition as one of Houston’s Top 100 Workplaces and Top 100 Privately Owned Businesses. According to Ken Schreiber, General Manager of Century AC Supply, this success has been fueled by their people, company culture, and consistent decision-making guided by their original core values.
The ERP Modernization Challenge
A major turning point came when Century AC Supply realized their legacy software could no longer meet their growing operational needs — from data access and inventory management to overall business visibility. To ensure they selected the right solution, a cross-functional software selection committee was formed, involving representatives from various departments and frontline staff. Schreiber emphasized: “Listening and involving employees in defining and documenting system requirements was key to our successful implementation.” Century AC Supply wasn’t just looking for a software provider – they needed a true partner who deeply understood their business operations. With strict selection criteria in place, they chose Epicor Prophet 21, officially going live in early 2008.
Illustration. Source: Epicor Câu chuyện thành công Century A/C Supply
Implementation Journey – Training as the Critical Success Factor
Software deployment was far from a simple task. Schreiber recalled: “Training is essential. People always say you can never do enough training – and that’s absolutely true. Train, train again, and when you think it’s enough, train a bit more. The payoff will come at go-live.” Johan Miranda – Operations Manager – also praised Epicor’s learning resources: “Epicor’s how-to videos have been a highly effective training tool, especially for new employees learning basic tasks like creating orders. This has significantly reduced the training burden on our management team.”
Optimizing Inventory Management and Operational Efficiency
For Century AC Supply, inventory ranks as their second most valuable asset, right after their people. Epicor Prophet 21 has helped them enhance inventory accuracy, improve order processing times, and reduce transfer times between branches. The system’s tight integration with wireless warehouse management solutions enabled several branches to achieve 15–30% sales growth within a single year—without adding warehouse staff.
Moreover, Epicor’s API seamlessly integrates with Thrive, Century AC Supply’s demand forecasting system, enabling data-driven planning based on historical purchasing data. During the COVID-19 pandemic, this capability became a crucial advantage, allowing the company to manage restricted sales programs, prioritize inventory for core customers, and ensure uninterrupted business operations for their dealer network.
Scaling Flexibly with a Trusted Technology Partner
As Schreiber put it: “Epicor Prophet 21 has allowed us to scale our operations and serve more customers without significantly increasing headcount.” Flexibility in customization is another major benefit. Epicor has empowered Century AC Supply to adapt the system to fit their evolving business processes, especially when integrating with large customers that require deeper system-to-system connectivity. Despite growing into a global technology provider, Epicor continues to deliver personalized, responsive support that Century AC Supply deeply values: “When you call, you still talk to a live person – it feels like working with a local partner,” Schreiber noted.
Ready for the Future
With more customers moving online and increasing demand for system integrations, Century AC Supply is proactively preparing for the next phase: enhancing supply chain visibility and strengthening collaboration with suppliers and manufacturers. Additionally, the company is considering a move to the cloud, aiming to reduce costs, increase operational efficiency, and accelerate response times, all while continuing to enhance customer experience. The results speak for themselves: Century AC Supply achieved up to 30% year-over-year sales growth, driven by improved inventory management and operational process optimization powered by Epicor Prophet 21.
3S Software Co., Ltd.
To successfully upgrade a business, businesses need an experienced and trusted partner. 3S will be a partner accompanying businesses on their path of development, helping businesses become more comprehensive and increase productivity at lower costs. Along with compliance with the Epicor Signature Project Implementation Methodology, it will help businesses increase production efficiency and improve profits at a very reasonable cost. 3S believes that it will always bring the most satisfaction to customers.
The 5 main solutions of 3S include:
Epicor ERP – Enterprise Resource Planning
Epicor MES – Manufacturing Execution System
BPM XSOL Solution – Business Modeling Solution
ECM DOCSTAR Solution – Digital Content Management Software
Epicor CADLINK solution – The solution allows transferring information from CAD drawings such as AutoCAD, Solidworks to Epicor ERP
More references: STEEL BLUE ROOTED IN HERITAGE, BUILT FOR THE FUTURE
