BORDER STATES INDUSTRIES FUELS RAPID GROWTH WITH ERP
SUMMARY This Summary of Border States Industries Inc., also known as Border States Electric (BSE), is a wholesale distributor for the construction, industrial, utility, and data communications markets. The company is headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota, and has 57 sales offices in states along the U.S. borders with Canada and Mexico as well as in South Dakota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Missouri. BSE has 1,400 employees and is wholly employee-owned through its employee stock ownership plan. For the fiscal year ending March 31, 2008, BSE earned revenues of over US $880 million. BSE budgeted $1.6 million and 4.5 months for implementation, which management believed was sufficient for a project of this magnitude. This time there were no problems. The new system went live on its target date and cost only $1.4 million to implement—14 percent below budget. In late 20...