New Product Integrates Work Order, Purchasing Processes
Two
companies are partnering on a new product
intended to integrate maintenance procedures in higher education.
Grainger and School
Dude have jointly launched Click2Buy,
a cloud-based process intended to manage workflow while purchasing
products for
facility maintenance, repair and operations. Company representatives said
Click2Buy
will work across multiple departments and automate the entire cycle
from repair
or maintenance request through work order and purchase order to the
completion
of a task.
"Traditionally,
these have been disjointed
processes resulting in lost time and money, often leading to
frustration and inconsistency
of information,"said Geoffrey Robertson, Grainger vice president for
product,
innovation and business integration. "With Click2Buy, procurement and
work
order management are combined into one automated solution."
Lee
Provost, chief strategy officer and founder
of School Dude, added, "They can place orders and have the orders
automatically
linked to their work order management process without the need for
time-consuming and inefficient data entry work."
Click2Buy
aims to automate and standardize the use
of work orders, purchase orders, invoices and payment. Individual
institutions
should be able to customize their processes with unique account codes,
cost
centers and budget codes. It also allows for institutional cost
controls with
approval procedures and recording capabilities.
Grainger
is a global supplier of maintenance,
repair and operating products with a catalogue of more than 1.5 million
products. School Dude supplies cloud-based products that assist with
management
of educational institutions.
Click2Buy
will be available in three different
options, relative to the institution’s existing procurement platform
and
purchasing processes.
About the Author
Michael Hart is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer and the former executive editor of THE Journal.