We’re Helping Parker Gas…

CHALLENGES

A Business in Six Parts

While small-scale software can serve small businesses well, it’s common for larger operations like Parker Gas to outgrow their systems. In the case of Parker Gas, each of their six offices was considered a separate business that required its own fuel delivery software iteration. Data between these offices was evaluated by Controller Robert Willis, who generated an overarching P&L statement each month. However, Robert was quickly overwhelmed by this manual data management, as one P&L statement took weeks to finish. 

“By the time I compiled and got it done at the end of the month, it was time to start again,” said Willis.

Anyone who wanted to look at data from different offices had to log out of one instance, navigate to the office instance they wanted to view, and log in using a unique username and password. According to Willis, it was a time-consuming process for the company’s small back office.

The lack of multi-location consolidation impacted drivers and customers, too. Drivers from different offices couldn’t coordinate with one another to aid with deliveries. Busier regions couldn’t get the assistance they needed, and the team realized their fleet was not delivering fuel as efficiently as it could

SOLUTIONS

A Unified Approach with Cargas Energy

When the time came to search for a new fuel delivery system, the owner took it upon himself to look at the industry’s offerings. He selected several strong contenders and invited key personnel from the six offices to evaluate and test-drive these solutions. The goal was to determine which solution would fulfill their number one need: efficiency improvement. 

“We wanted to be able to function as one business, as one company.”

– Robert Willis, Controller, Parker Gas

After plenty of conversations and evaluations, the team decided that Cargas Energy would be the best fit for their business. It would eliminate service area limitations and streamline communications between the six offices, creating efficiencies and allowing customers to be shared across the whole business. In addition, Cargas Energy’s built-in cylinder exchange module was a unique feature at the time. Cargas Energy was able to meet Parker Gas’ needs in ways that other fuel delivery software couldn’t. 

Parker Gas signed on with Cargas Energy in August of 2017, and a few months later their new fuel delivery software went live. Coming from much older fuel delivery software was a challenge for the team, as they found themselves trying to recreate old processes in a new solution. However, with training from the Cargas Energy team and a bit of time, the Parker Gas team was able to embrace their new software. 

“They’ve seen the light,” said Willis.

Additional Efficienies with an Accounting Integration 

Not long after going live with Cargas Energy, the Parker Gas team decided to move to a scalable accounting solution. They partnered with the Cargas resale group to find an accounting solution that would connect with Cargas Energy and continue to add efficiencies to their business processes.  

Working directly with the Cargas team to find suitable accounting software made the process quick and painless, and one year after signing their Cargas Energy proposal, Parker Gas got up and running with Sage Intacct.  

BENEFITS

A Growing Business with a Centralized Focus

According to Willis, the Cargas Energy implementation has helped the Parker Gas team save time and resources while improving customer service. Parker Gas now puts fewer trucks on the road, as their reduced fleet can serve multiple territories by operating under multiple offices. 

“We don’t send two trucks in the same area anymore […] We’re able to act as one company. We’re able to route efficiently and save trucks off the road.”

– Robert Willis, Controller, Parker Gas

In addition, Parker Gas now needs just one dispatcher to handle the retail side of the business, and this team member consistently looks for more ways to improve routing efficiency.  

Beyond routing efficiencies, Parker Gas has also gained improved visibility. Instead of logging into different software instances for each office, Parker Gas team members can access all their company data from one solution with just one login—no gateway navigation necessary. This means Willis saves time throughout his day. “I log into Cargas and it’s there,” said Willis. “It’s a matter of time.” 

Surprisingly, efficiency wasn’t the first benefit that the Parker Gas team noticed. Willis noted that the cost savings from restructured routing was immediate, and the functionality developed since implementing the software has only made those savings more apparent. “Initially it was cost, but the functionality that we have gained through it has been a great asset for us,” said Willis. 

Several more aspects of Cargas Energy surprised the Parker Gas team. Many of the new features brought unexpected efficiency to operations across the board. In particular, Cargas Pay’s embedded payments have improved visibility for the entire business. 

“There are things that Cargas Pay has brought to the table that we didn’t realize we were missing.”

– Robert Willis, Controller, Parker Gas

On the support side, Willis appreciates the Cargas team’s ability to listen. From the planning stages through implementation and beyond, Cargas has helped Parker Gas adapt their solution to suit their needs. Willis mentioned that when new Cargas Pay features for payment facilitation were released, he called up one of his Cargas account managers and offered feedback. The team adapted that feedback into the next software update, which helped Parker Gas streamline payment facilitation even more. 

An Integrative Software Environment 

The integration between Cargas Energy and Sage Intacct has opened new doors for Parker Gas, making growth much more manageable. When Parker Gas made acquisitions in 2020, the onboarding process for their fuel delivery and accounting software was quick. Once Parker Gas had the final data sets for their acquisitions, it was only a few weeks before the business integrations were completed. 

“We had the opportunity to make two different acquisitions that doubled our divisions in Cargas, and by such doubled our divisions in Sage. And within an amount of hours, I had accounting and Cargas both up and ready to go.”

– Robert Willis, Controller, Parker Gas

Now that Parker Gas uses Cargas Energy and Sage Intacct, growth isn’t slowed by clunky software and disparate data. Parker Gas can scale faster, work smarter, and focus on exceeding customer expectations.