ERP software development produces exponential growth for SME

Goal

To develop and market a new Open ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) program

Partners

brain-tec, Swiss Distance University of Applied Sciences, The Ark Foundation

Formed in 2000, the Brig-based company brain-tec offers targeted IT solutions based on communications and the Internet. Its flagship product, Open ERP, manages purchasing, finance, stock control, production and other aspects of running a company. The package is available in open source with no licence required, enabling companies to make significant savings.

Content of the project

At the end of 2010, The Ark’s Innovation service launched a project in conjunction with brain-tec and the Brig site of the Swiss Distance University of Applied Sciences (FFHS). Its aim was to develop a German version of Open ERP. This product was available only in an English version, which was not suitable for use in Switzerland. The German version had to comply with current Swiss standards, particularly those applicable to accounting, salaries, and payment interfaces. Certain modules of Open ERP therefore required some new development work.

Practical outcomes

Marketing of the product began early in 2012, after about a year’s work.

“The Ark’s project has helped create at least ten new jobs ”, explains Pascal Zenklusen, CEO of brain-tec. The company has doubled both the number of its employees and its turnover, and has also opened an office in Zurich.

brain-tec’s clients range from startups consisting of 3 people to SMEs employing several hundred. With growth set to continue, the company’s current challenge is to recruit enough suitably-qualified staff.