Bowhill Engineering is a family-owned structural steel fabrication firm specialising in heavy and complex steel structures based in Bowhill, South Australia. Founded in the early 1970s, they’ve built a reputation for delivering innovative solutions for major infrastructure projects across Australia.
- Industry: Manufacturing (Structural Steel)
- Location: Bowhill, South Australia
- Company Size: 50+ employees
- Account system: Xero
THE CHALLENGE
Bowhill Engineering was operating with an outdated, paper-based procurement system that was creating inefficiencies across their operations. As a company known for innovative solutions in structural steel fabrication, their manual procurement processes were not aligned with their forward-thinking approach to engineering.
Key challenges included:
- Paper-Based Approvals: All purchase orders required printing and physical routing to managers for approval
- Disconnected Systems: The company was using Procore for project management and Xero for financials, with no integration between them
- Limited Visibility: Tracking order status, deliveries, and matching with invoices was difficult with paper documentation
- Time-Consuming Processing: Manual data entry into multiple systems created delays and potential for errors
- Consistency With Growth: As the company continued to expand, they needed systems that could scale with their operations
THE SOLUTION
Bowhill Engineering implemented ProcureDesk to modernize their procurement processes and create seamless integration between their project management and financial systems.
Implementation approach:
- Phased Rollout: Started with a small group of staff members who became comfortable with the system before expanding to others
- Integration Setup: Created connections between ProcureDesk, Procore (project management), and Xero (accounting)
- Bulk Upload Capability: Implemented special features for handling their high-volume consumable orders
- Training Program: Developed a process to help employees transition from paper to digital systems
- Ongoing Support: Utilized ProcureDesk’s 24/5 support team to address questions during the transition period
Staff quickly embraced the new system once they saw how it simplified their workflows. “Everyone wanted to move from the paper stuff,” noted Rathnayake. After an initial adjustment period of about three months, the team settled into the new system comfortably.
THE RESULTS
After implementing ProcureDesk, Bowhill Engineering experienced significant improvements in its procurement operations, with increased efficiency and visibility across departments.
Key benefits realized:
- Streamlined Purchase Orders: The bulk upload feature allows them to process 20+ supply orders simultaneously instead of creating individual purchase orders
- Automated Invoice Processing: The system automatically reads invoice information and matches it to purchase orders with 95-98% accuracy
- Improved Order Tracking: Staff can now easily monitor order status, track deliveries, and manage invoices all in one place
- Enhanced Visibility: The company now has detailed information about what items are ordered, delivered, and invoiced
- Faster Processing: Invoice handling that previously required substantial manual effort now takes “less than a minute” for standard invoices
The implementation has created a more collaborative environment where different teams can work together efficiently through the platform. The system proved easy to learn, with staff becoming proficient quickly and questions to the support team decreasing significantly after the first three months.
When asked to describe ProcureDesk in one line, Rathnayake simply stated it was “very effective, very efficient.” She also emphasized that the platform is “easy to understand – any basic person
can learn this software in very quick time. It streamlines the processes and can collaborate all the teams together.”
