Company Name: Simtel Group
Location: Romania, Europe
Industry: Renewable Energies, Telecommunications and Engineering
Implemented Apps: Accounting, Invoicing, Purchase, Project, Employees, Contacts, Calendar, CRM, Sales, E-mail Marketing, Time Off, Production apps.
Number of employees: 100+
Number of users: 100+
Implementation partner: Sampa Mind Com SRL
Founded in 2000 as Romania’s first telecommunications startup, Simtel embarked on a mission to create a sustainable future through innovative engineering and technology. Over the years, the company evolved into a market leader in constructing and maintaining photovoltaic power plants, installing one of five solar panels in of Romania. With operations spanning 11+ countries and a reputation for quality and expertise, Simtel exemplifies what it means to drive change through innovation.
By 2021, Simtel became a listed company on the AeRO market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange. In 2023, their shares earned a coveted spot in the MSCI Frontier Markets Small Cap and MSCI Romania Small Cap indexes, underscoring their influence in the renewable energy sector. Since August 2024 Simtel is listed on the Main Market of the Bucharest Stock Exchange.
The Challenge: Scaling Operations to Meet Growing Demands
Simtel’s rapid growth brought a few challenges. Managing separate systems for project tracking and financial resources created inefficiencies, while the lack of real-time analytics and traceability hindered decision-making. Information silos and limited document-editing flexibility compounded these problems, making it clear that the company needed a unified system capable of supporting its expanding operations. Simtel’s vision was looking for an ERP solution that could:
- Provide real-time communication and reporting across modules
- Enable seamless project and financial integration
- Scale with the company’s growing workforce and project portfolio
- Ensure data accuracy and audit compliance
The solution used at that moment was Pluriva, an integrated business management system used to control, organize and optimize business processes. But due to Simtel’s fast growth, the company was looking for something more integrated and comprehensive.
Finding the Right Implementation Partner
Before adopting Odoo in 2022, Simtel considered other solutions like Sage, Monday, Socrate and Microsoft Dynamics 365. One of the key factors that influenced Simtel’s decision to adopt Odoo was the partnership with Sampa Mind Com SRL, an Odoo Gold Partner. The company is an experienced business solutions provider having in depth knowledge of customer processes and business best practices. Years of experience gave them a unique perspective in addressing robust business process decisions for customers, so that they can avoid pitfalls and also be ready for growth.
Implementing Odoo ERP to Address the Challenges and Keep Growing
The implementation process was designed to tackle the company’s most pressing challenges and align with their ambitious goals. The company followed the recommended project methodology. In the first phase, they went live with almost the full suite of apps: Sales, Purchases, Inventory, Accounting, Projects, CRM, Subscriptions, Timesheets, and Approvals. They went live in 8 months, followed by a 4-month stabilization period. Within the first year, Simtel onboarded four additional companies from the group into the system. Successfully passed an external audit, validating data accuracy and system robustness. Furthermore, Sampa Mind developed a custom module specifically for Simtel, in order to manage demands for materials: Project Material Request.
A New Era of Operational Efficiency
Simtel’s adoption of Odoo’s ERP marked a new era of operational efficiency by addressing core inefficiencies and enabling growth across its renewable energy operations. Key outcomes included:
- Improved decision-making through real-time reporting
- Streamlined processes via unified financial and operational data management
- Enhanced scalability to support a growing team and project volumes
- Seamless audit compliance that bolstered stakeholder confidence.
Looking ahead, Simtel plans to upgrade to Odoo 17, introduce new modules for Marketing, e-commerce, Payroll, and Recruitment, enhance project planning capabilities, and expand dashboards with advanced reporting templates for actionable insights.
The company’s success is driven by visionary leadership focused on innovation and sustainability, a dedicated team of 70+ certified experts, robust operations across 11+ countries a subsidiary in Republic of Moldova, one in Essen, Germany and a steadfast commitment to quality through rigorous standards and strong supplier partnerships.
Simtel’s journey with Odoo ERP exemplifies the transformative power of technology in achieving operational excellence, merging sustainability with success, and inspiring continuous innovation.
Last but not least, Simtel is the first company in Romania to fully use Odoo for accounting thanks to Sampamind’s effort in developing the Romanian localization to be compliant with the Romanian laws.
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