Cape Town, 28 Jan 2013
Financial control in the highly competitive education sector with its inherent tight profit margins combined with the critical nature of the business of educating requires a strictly streamlined operation and stern fiscal oversight on every aspect of procurement and spend management.
Fraxion's intelligent procurement solution specifically services the unique needs of this complex sector, assisting educational institutions from pre-primary schools to tertiary institutions to reduce their costs and increase profitability.
Fraxion's latest software ensures sector-specific challenges, such as enrolment campaigns, courseware compilation, grant-funded projects and IT expenditure relating to student services, as well as bigger capital projects, are easily managed.
Using Fraxion, educational institutions are able to:
* Track and report against grant-specific spending
* Manage courseware content providers and authors
* Enable better visibility and budgeting on enrolment campaigns
* Standardise IT equipment ordering
* Improve operating efficiency to offset personnel reductions and budget cuts
* Enable centralised control over schools and educational facilities at numerous locations
These industry-specific services practically mean schools are able to manage both typical expenditure as well as project or grant-related expenditure with Fraxion's leading software. Fraxion's solution also consolidates supply orders into an efficient and well-managed system, with real-time budget visibility.
"Schools often initiate capital projects such as building a new pool or classroom or implementing grant-specific spending, with IT systems that lack the necessary oversight and can't accurately track these projects or grant-specific expenses," said Daneel Cilliers, Head of Professional Services at Fraxion. "Fraxion's easy-to-use solution tracks the institution's indirect expenditure as well as any project or grant expenditure. It allows educational institutions to initiate projects on the software, and track the spend related to that project against that project's budget in real time."
Fraxion also allows educational institutions to consolidate supply orders. "At the beginning of every term, teachers are often required to place orders for the supplies they will need; this is usually done manually," said Cilliers. "Fraxion allows institutions to automate the requirements, down to each teacher. Fraxion will consolidate the orders by supplier and track relevant information, such as whether all teachers have placed orders, and when the orders are received.
"This efficient system provides management with full spend oversight, meaning teachers do not deal directly with suppliers and ensures there is no unexpected expenditure. It also saves teachers and management a lot of time. The consolidated orders mean schools and tertiary institutions are able to place larger orders with one supplier and negotiate a discount," he said.
Cilliers added: "Educational institutions will benefit from Fraxion's customised spend management solution, as it increases earnings by protecting operating profit. The savings generated allow more capital to be reinvested in the institution, its technologies, and future growth."
CEO of Fraxion, Stanton Jandrell, said: "I believe strongly that education is the key to a positive future for our country, and we cannot underestimate the importance of the educational institutions entrusted to educate our youth. Our tool allows principals and department heads to proactively control and manage their budgets in real time.
"Fraxion has several customers in this sector and we have been driving the process to develop a solution that deals with this industry's specific challenges. Fraxion's customised solution will allow all educational institutions, from those teaching the youngest toddlers, to universities and technikons, to have full control of their spending, manage operating costs and ultimately improve their returns."
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