a&m engineering case study

The Challenge

A little more than a year ago, A&M Engineering – an environmental engineering and construction firm – had come to an impasse with its payroll and accounting software. In order to upgrade its user's computer systems, the legacy software that it was running – a DOS-based product known as AEMAS, developed by Data-Basics, Inc. – would have to be upgraded or replaced. Faced with the opportunity to switch to myriad software solutions and combinations of software packages, A&M Engineering chose to upgrade to Data-Basics' SAM Pro Enterprise software.

"I've been here for eight years… Data-Basics' software is all I ever knew," said Cindy Stafford, Office Manager for A&M Engineering. "We knew the new system would have a lot more choices, so it seemed kind of natural to stick with what we knew."

The Solution

In upgrading to SAM Pro Enterprise, A&M Engineering quickly saw the benefits of a Windows-based software package in its back office. "The Windows version is also much easier and user-friendly," remarked Stafford. "I love the drill-down tools that take you exactly to the entry, it's a lot faster. And – it seems like a little thing – but I could use my mouse." A&M was also able to take advantage of SAM Pro's improved reporting options not possible in AEMAS. "We knew the new system would have a lot more choices on reporting… but I was surprised by the reporting tools."

The company also saw the opportunity to unify two disparate databases used by both A&M Engineering and Mohawk Drilling, a separate company under the same ownership, which specializes in geotechnical drilling. Both firms now use SAM Pro to handle accounts payable, payroll, billing and accounts receivable, among other back office accounting tasks.

Helping make the conversion process go as smoothly as possible was the support staff from Data-Basics' Kansas City office. "The service has been superior," reported Stafford. "I've never had a problem. Still, I know my support person is always available. What can I say, I'm just very happy with the service and product."

The Results

Since upgrading to SAM Pro Enterprise, A&M Engineering has improved back office efficiency. "It's absolutely saved time and money in employee hours," said Stafford. Also contributing to the profitability of the switch to SAM Pro was the fact that A&M Engineering never experienced downtime as a result of upgrading. And because the company underwent a data conversion in order to have access to its historical information, A&M Engineering got a software package with better reporting features without missing a beat.

software for service, construction, facilities maintenance + more

a&m engineering case study

The Challenge

The Solution

The Results