Learn How Argon Masking Keeps Dynamics GP Relevant on TMC’s Azure Cloud (TAC)

Customer
Argon Masking

Industry
Powder Coating Industry

Country
United States

For more than two decades, Argon Masking has been a leading supplier of tapes and masking materials for the powder coating industry. Since implementing Microsoft Dynamics GP 2015, Argon Masking has seen substantial business growth. However, to support this growth, they needed to ensure that both their Dynamics GP and supporting Nodus Credit Card integration were up to date to avoid any disruptions to their business. With a three-month notice from Nodus to complete the upgrade before becoming unsupported, Argon Masking was on a tight timeline to upgrade their Dynamics GP version to meet Nodus’s requirements.

Unfortunately, Argon faced another major problem when their previous Microsoft partner suddenly disappeared without a trace. This was a critical issue because at the time, getting new hardware or servers was either a long and arduous process or not available due to the pandemic. Faced with this challenge, Argon Masking needed a new partner who could upgrade their system within this short timeframe, so they turned to Technology Management Concepts (TMC) for help.

“Our previous Microsoft partner dropped off the radar unexpectedly. And at the time, getting computer hardware or new servers was either a very long window process, or they weren’t available due to Covid. We also received a three-month notice from Nodus to complete the upgrade before we went unsupported, so we had to search for a new partner who could upgrade our system on a tight timeline .”

– Mark O K. |  IT Manager at Argon Masking

The Business Process Review and Azure Migration Process

Initially, Argon Masking sought assistance in upgrading to Dynamics GP 18.4, but during the Business Process Review, Technology Management Concepts (TMC) identified that Argon Masking needed to redefine the scope of their project to include support for their server infrastructure. Given the age of the existing Argon on-premises servers, they were not positioned to handle the upgrade to Dynamics GP 18.4. Therefore, they needed a supported infrastructure to meet their business needs and long-term goals.

To ensure that the upgrade was successful, TMC recommended the following:

• Host Dynamics GP on TMC’s Azure Environment to meet their timeline and perform the upgrade to support their Digital Transformation.
• Upgrade Dynamics GP 2015 to Dynamics GP 18.4 to upgrade their third-party products.
• Migrate Exchange 2013 to Exchange Online to fully leverage Azure’s features.

“What I liked about the TMC process is that they made it very clear. They were clear and upfront about the timeframe, what features we’d need, and the step-by-step process of the Azure migration. They took care of the third-party communication with Nodus and StarShip, which resolved our issue correctly and quickly. ”

– Mark O. K. | IT Manager at Argon Masking

One of the reasons why the Azure migration process was successful was because of TMC’s well-organized and detailed methodology including:

1. TMC conducted a System Review to identify compliance roadblocks that could affect hosting capabilities.
2. TMC determined which add-on products were needed to support the business needs.
3. TMC assessed how much storage and number of users are needed to determine how many servers are needed to build and ensure there is no performance loss.
4. TMC built a one-time environment to support a GP Test Upgrade and User Acceptance Testing before moving the solution to Production.
5. Once Live, TMC continues monitoring to ensure site security to ensure all systems work as expected.

“Not only was the migration smooth, but all our data, records and third parties are now working fine. We now have the ability to work from anywhere, which is terrific. And more than that, because we’re now on the current version, that opens us up to add new features and capabilities ”

– Mark O. K. | IT Manager at Argon Masking

Argon Masking Kicks Off Their Digital Transformation on TMC’s Azure Cloud (TAC)

By the end of the migration, Argon Masking upgraded to Dynamics GP 18.4 on TMC’s Azure Cloud (TAC), which allowed them to take advantage of their third-party products, including Nodus Credit Card Advantage, Professional Advantage, and V Technologies StarShip. TMC added multiple customizations that included developing and rewriting their Sales Transaction Entry and Sales User Defined. To fully leverage the features of Azure and the cloud, Argon Masking migrated their on-premises email, Exchange 2013, to Exchange Online as part of the Microsoft 365 suite.

Hosting their servers on TAC allowed Argon Masking to bring their Dynamics GP current, fully support their use of third-party products, host their virtual machine on a more secure environment, reduce compliance risk, easily deploy and scale their system, and save on hardware and backup recovery costs. In addition, the TMC team worked diligently to upgrade their system, which would have typically taken up to six months, but was completed within 60-70 days.

“TMC stepped up brilliantly. They were able to upgrade our system, which normally takes up to 6 months, but they solved our problem and completed the project within 60-70 days. ”

– Mark O. K. | IT Manager at Argon Masking

Argon Masking was thrilled with TMC’s work, which helped them to upgrade their system, meet their tight timeline, and ensure that they were on the latest version of Dynamics GP. With their technology now up-to-date, Argon Masking is well-positioned to expand their operations and take advantage of new features and capabilities that will help them to be even more productive and efficient in their day-to-day operations. They are now on a path towards digital transformation and are confident that TMC’s expertise and support will be there to guide them through every step of the way. With a modern, reliable, and efficient technology infrastructure in place, Argon Masking is ready to tackle whatever challenges come their way and achieve success in their business.