Customer Story: Real-Time MSP Visibility for Purchasing and Customer Commitments

What changes when an EMS team gains real-time visibility into demand, allocation, kit clearing, and long-lead materials? In this customer story, Tracy Birkbeck explains how Engent uses ShopCQ and Material Supply Planner to overcome ERP limitations, improve purchasing decisions, and provide customers with more reliable delivery commitments.

Tracy Birkbeck, Materials Manager, Engent
Tracy Birkbeck
Materials Manager, Engent

Tracy discusses Engent's journey to real-time material visibility and explains how improved planning and allocation processes help the team make better purchasing decisions. The session highlights inventory improvements, customer communication benefits, and lessons learned during implementation.

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Key Takeaways

ShopCQ and MSP filled a visibility gap

Engent was using Manix ERP and wanted better live data for purchasing decisions, allocation, and kit clearing. 

  • The previous kit-clearing process was homegrown and manual 
  • Build decisions were being made weekly 
  • MSP created a more live view of demand and material readiness 

 

Purchasing shifted from job-by-job to holistic demand

Engent moved from buying by job to looking at what the business needed holistically and when the product was needed. 

  • Economies of scale improved 
  • Demand flow exposed the longest-gating item 
  • Inventory timing became more intentional 

Inventory turns improved significantly

Engent inventory turns have almost doubled in the year on MSP.

  • Less time sitting on inventory 
  • Better alignment to the longest-gating item
  • More visibility before committing to build dates

Trust accelerated adoption

Tracy links the project to a long relationship with CalcuQuote and confidence that the team wanted Engent to succeed. 

  • Trust reduced the risk of moving MRP activity elsewhere 
  • Service history mattered in the buying decision 
  • The change was not treated as a generic software purchase 

Data cleanup was the hardest part

The session makes clear that implementation was not just a plug-in project; ERP data needed serious cleanup. 

  • Old work orders had lingering data issues 
  • Bills of material needed unit-of-measure cleanup 
  • Location data affected purchase-order routing 

Real-time visibility improved customer conversations

The team can identify problem parts, longest-gating items, and realistic dates before making commitments to customers. 

  • Customers can be asked about available inventory or alternate sources 
  • Dates can be adjusted with a clearer reason 
  • The result is fewer surprises after a PO is received