AXON SOFTWARE REALLY STREAMLINED MY MAINTENANCE, WORK ORDERS AND INVENTORY TRACKING
“If we didn’t have Axon, we would have to hire two more people to take care of inventory and keep track of the work orders and the mechanics. It helps me to keep my inventory level lower. It used to be around $140,000 and now I am down to about $100,000.”
FREE BOOK – “HOW WE TRIPLED OUR FLEET SIZE WITHOUT ADDING ANY OFFICE STAFF”Trucking companies who run their own maintenance shops have some unique requirements. We caught up with the parts manager of Rising Sun Express, Rick Howerton, to get his thoughts on what Axon Software has done for that end of the business.
My name is Rick Howerton and I am with Rising Sun Express, Inc. out of Jackson Centre, Ohio. I am the Parts Manager, and I pretty much take care of all the work orders.
Tell us about the company.
Rising Sun has been around for about twenty-some years. I have been with them for about 14. They started out with one or two trucks, and now we have 63 trucks and about 120 trailers. Mostly dry van. We go across the continental United States and might go into Canada someday.
What made the company start looking for software?
We actually went to the ATA show in Las Vegas to buy software, and we looked at three or four different kinds. We decided that Axon was the best bet for us.
How has Axon Software helped you?
It has really streamlined my ordering, entering the maintenance work orders, and keeping track of inventory. It works quite well.
Most of the reporting I do is on what I have in inventory. I can go in and see what we’ve used, how many trucks use it, and know whether I really need to stock that or not. It’s made it a lot easier.
We used to use a maintenance program that would crash on a weekly basis and we would lose most of our data. The guy would have to come in and rebuild it. It wasn’t a very good program.
Has it made your department more efficient?
If we didn’t have Axon, we would have to hire two more people to take care of inventory and keep track of the work orders and the mechanics. It helps me to keep my inventory level lower. It used to be around $140,000 and now I am down to about $100,000.
Are the reminders working well for you?
Really good. Annual inspections especially. When a truck is due for service, or when you schedule overhauls, you know when that is coming up. It has really helped us. If you run the reminder reports you’ll know exactly what you have coming up.
If someone in the industry were to ask you about Axon Software, what would you say?
Hands down, it’s the best. From a maintenance standpoint, I’d tell them they need it. And Axon’s support is incredible. Every time I have had a problem they get right on it.
