Builders’ merchants can often be accused of not thinking forward, but this certainly isn’t the case for Hampshire based building and timber merchant, PC Building Supplies. Established by Bill and Joy Dunning in 1977 off the back of their successful construction business, it is a typical story of the birth of a Builders Merchant.
After many successful years trading from their town centre location in Hythe, Hampshire, the business was taken on by sons Nick and Tim Dunning in 1992 and the merchant has gone from strength to strength. Supplying local trades people in and around Hampshire, the brothers have grown the business to offer materials and services nationally to some of the best-known construction brands in the industry.
It was during this period of growth that they felt they had outgrown their old, outdated EDP software and wanted to change to something which was more modern and allowed PC Building Supplies the flexibility to improve the system in the way they wanted.
Nick commented “our previous solution didn’t allow us to be as proactive with the software as we would have liked, so we wanted something modern that would allow us to make some changes ourselves”. Simon Barber, Sales Manager at Blue Rock Systems, knew that Intact iQ could not only help to make the changes they desired, it would also modernise processes within the business.
“Intact iQ allows companies to streamline existing processes and allows users to design screens to suit individual job roles. It was clear that Intact iQ would be able to help PC Building Supplies with their goal of having the flexibility to make small changes while also streamlining work processes and improving day-to-day efficiencies” explained Simon.
The decision was taken to move forward with Blue Rock Systems and Intact iQ, and PC Building Supplies went live on their new solution in 2014. They have fully embraced the Intact iQ solution and all the automated ways it can provide them with information. They have also used the functionality to maximise the installation service they provide from their kitchen and bathroom showroom.
Following the success of this, in September 2018 PC Building Supplies moved to a new, purpose built 2.5-acre site to house the merchants alongside a hugely impressive, kitchen and bathroom showroom. The relocation (just 6 minutes from where the old site has been since 1978) has seen them able to further extend their product line offerings as well as provide much improved accessibility and parking to their customers.
Nick concluded, “an important factor in our decision was the personal, friendly approach from the Blue Rock team. We like the freedom to make our own changes to the software where we can and are confident that the Intact iQ software supported by Blue Rock will continue to assist us in confidently growing the business.”
