About Us

Case Studies | Early Learning Centre

“Efficiencies gained, productivity improved and more importantly we feel secure with Halcyon's robust solution; it does everything!”

Halcyon Products

Message Manager
Message Communicator

Objectives

Ensure stable environment for systems and applications. Dissemination of alert messages & business information to remote technicians and business users.

Business Benefits

Increased productivity and efficiencies in IT Services, as well as high quality
information services for business managers.

Application Software

JDA Retail Ideas and MMS
Coda Financials
Infinium

Servers

IBM iSeries 530
IBM iSeries 730
IBM iSeries 620
IBM iSeries 170

Mobile Services

Paging out of problems
Paging out sales information

The Early Learning Centre is, truly, an original business. It is run as a
completely integrated organization with IT Services underpinning all the critical process and day-to-day operation of a substantial and growing business.

In 2000, Halcyon Software was chosen by the ELC IT Team to support the Help Desk Function in the first instance. Installing the Halcyon Message Manager meant that the team no longer had to dial in to make sure the end of day tasks were running smoothly and that the network processes were in order.

While looking at processes and procedures, the IT Services team started
to investigate other ways in which the Halcyon technology could benefit the business.

Every day the 212 stores in the UK feedback sales information from the tills
to the IBM eServer. This polling process is now monitored by the Halcyon Message Manager so that failures are quickly rectified and the 8am daily distribution of sales information to the directors and line of business managers is delivered successfully. This information is now considered business critical.

Not only does the Halcyon Message Manager help the ELC IT Services team
deliver improved levels of service to the business; it has also helped the team address its’ own processes and productivity.

The IT Services team now provides an efficient and effective service to underpin the organisation with reduced number of failures and the proactive management of the few failures that do occur.

Frank Bridges said: “We can manage the expectations of our internal customers and help ensure our business has the right goods in the right place all the time.” He continued: “Our management team receive a
full report of yesterday’s sales activities at 8.00am on their mobile phones using the Halcyon Message Communicator. This is now considered a standard business service”

The Halcyon Message Manager helps the logistics team at ELC. The polling of sales at each store has become more reliable and failures rectified in a timely manner. The distribution team is now able to replenish stores more efficiently due to accurate and, more importantly, up-to-date sales
information.

“After two years, we believe that we are only just scratching the surface of what the Halcyon Message Manager can do for ELC,” adds Frank Bridges, “it only takes imagination and an understanding that this product is not just about reactive management; it helps to trigger events too.”

For example, ELC Help Desk has set up the Halcyon Message Manager to make a console ‘buzz’ when a user disables their user profile. The Help Desk then calls the user to let them know, before the user can call the Help Desk! “Halcyon Software has not only delivered a reliable, robust and
overall excellent product to ELC, their support services are unparalleled and we feel as much part of Halcyon’s team as their product is part of ours”

The Halcyon Message Manager also has a seamless interface into BTI’s Observer, which in turn monitors the ELC Computer Room environment, including temperature, power, humidity, the generator and smoke alarms.

About Early Learning Centre

Early Learning Centre is the number one, pre-school brand in the UK, manufacturing and retailing a range of over 1,600 toys for children aged 0-6 years. There are 212 stores in the UK, 56 Debenhams concessions,
a thriving mail order business and a recently re-launched internet site which achieves nearly 3% of total sales.

The brand was launched in 1974 as a mail order business in response to the founder being unable to find “educational” toys for his small children. Today, the ELC brand values remain true to the founding principles
and are encompassed in the phrase “enriching the lives of children”.