Spruce vs. Global Shop Solutions ERP Software

I think my single most surprising and satisfying experience with ECI and its RockSolid Maxx and then Spruce products was the ease of implementation and rollout -- both on the hardware and software side. ECI seems to have mastered the idea of using an integrated team along with robust tutorials to make that process easy.

Incentivized

We need an all-in-one ERP system, and it suits basic needs. If you are looking to utilize reporting or utilize the CRM you will have to learn to format the information you are able to pull to make it manageable and easier to read. This ERP uses a Crystal Reports system that needs to be converted into Excel or another software program to sort and identify anything. There are a lot of advantages and I am sure the issues we are having are because of how our staff is using this system or has set up this system for our needs.

Incentivized

• lumber management.
• purchasing and receiving.
• Cloud based.

Incentivized

• We have recently upgraded to the latest version and it moves pretty quick going from screen to screen.
• It is able to capture labor dollars per work order as well as materials to each job well.
• You can track the flow of materials pretty easily.

Incentivized

• Point of sales
• P&L usability

Incentivized

• The layout is dated and hard to navigate at times. You need to go into different sections to access functions of the system, which can be confusing - this is one of the largest frustrations we face because we need to search for sections that are not commonly used.
• Updates seem to cause issues with the overall system and it takes several attempts with customer service to get issues resolved. We are behind in our updates because of this. Each update push causes us to shut down because sections then don't work correctly due to patches needing support to completely update them. We were unable to access customer transactions for a good part of the day because of the last update.
• Errors happen more often than not. We have random errors pop up that cause us to have to close out the system in its entirety, losing any work we have done. We need to restart the system and hope other errors don't populate before we can move forward. Calling customer support is not helpful with this, we are told that these errors happen sometimes. There is not a fix.
• Part/Router numbers randomly disappear. The Router/Part number will need to be rebuilt before we can move forward. It's frustrating. Again, customer support can not tell us the root cause of the issue.
• Help section of Global Shop Solutions is not helpful - it has a lot of technical jargon and at times is not easily understood. There are many sections that look to be more IT-based than user-based. Also, there are out of date sections so you might not be able to find what you are looking for. Training modules available for an extra cost.

Incentivized

For the most part when there is internet, we are able to log in and proceed to do our daily tasks which is very helpful, but we have also encountered a glitch on our laptop that we use to do inventory that switches to the last branch that was used. This, in combination with Spruce logging out of the remote connection daily, can cause issues if the person accessing Spruce does not have the remote connection password.

Incentivized

Spruce is possibly just above average. Not super impressed with usability and especially not impressed with tech support who is rarely able to answer questions on the first call.

Incentivized

This works the best for a manufacturing business. Any other type of business, I would look to other products.

Incentivized

• With $13 million in gross and 40 employees I'm able to run a full back office with a staff of two. In today's tight labor market that is invaluable.
• Being able to implement Spruce with almost no upgrading or replacement of existing computer hardware represented a huge cost savings to us. I'm not even sure what dollar amount I could attach to that.
• Dealing with both a wholesale and retail customers requires that we provide different levels and kinds of reporting and documentation. Spruce has made it easy to respond to the different demands that those customers place upon us.

Incentivized

• We have used the CRM for the last 9 months to support our sales team. Now we can see interactions, followup practices, opportunities and adjustments in one section. This has allowed us to better service our customers and make sure that followup is done.

Incentivized