REDMOND, Wash., June 6 /PRNewswire/ -- One of the many markets rattled bythe record hurricane season of 2005 was the U.S. construction industry. As onestorm after another pounded the Southern states, wholesale material pricesfluctuated rapidly, forcing contractors to anticipate higher expenses. WhenHurricane Katrina threatened to send lumber costs to new heights, Atlanta-based homebuilder Monte Hewett Homes moved up the deployment date of a newMicrosoft Dynamics technology solution to take advantage of temporarily lowerlumber prices.

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The goal was to create 2,700 lumber purchase orders within one week forhomes the company planned to start building the following month. Monte Hewett Homes succeeded in meeting the deadline, an achievement that saved the companytens of thousands of dollars and underscored the business value of anintegrated technology solution.

The Integration Advantage

Nonintegrated IT environments are often the result of ad hoc investmentsguided by time-to-market pressures. They can be complex and expensive to buildand maintain, can lead to operational inefficiencies due to componentincompatibilities, and can slow reaction time when companies need to movequickly. By contrast, integrated solutions composed of products built to worktogether seamlessly (such as desktops, servers, system software, applicationsand add-ons specific to the line of business) can result in a broad range ofbenefits, including faster return on investment (ROI), greater productivity,and the level of responsiveness and flexibility Monte Hewett Homes required.

Of course, not every situation will be as extreme as Monte Hewett Homes'effort to beat rising Katrina-influenced lumber prices to the finish line.However, given the negative long-term impact of inefficient technology tools,business decision-makers would do well to react just as eagerly to streamlineeveryday processes.