Takasago Boosts Work Efficiency with Kintone for Approval Processes

Takasago Engineering Mexico, S.A. de C.V. was established in 2014 as the Mexican subsidiary of Takasago Thermal Engineering Co., Ltd. Based in the city of Querétaro in central Mexico, the company engages in the design, construction, and installation of air conditioning, sanitary, electrical facilities, and building works, as well as intermediary services for equipment and materials. Targeting diverse industrial sectors such as automotive, aerospace, household appliances, and medical equipment, it has evolved from establishing a foundation in air conditioning technology to becoming a comprehensive engineering firm.

Prior approval processes which required paperwork and manual entry of data with Excel was transitioned with ease to automation through the adoption of Kintone. By using Kintone for their approval processes. Takasago achieved an large increase in their work efficiency.

Increasing Work Efficiency with Kintone

Problems Faced Before Introduction of Kintone:

We were managing purchase requests and contract-related applications using paper and Excel. Because the approval process required paper applications, there was additional work transferring the information to Excel templates. This duplicated workflow led to inefficiencies in operations. It was also difficult to understand the status, such as who was performing which tasks and where the approval process was stalled. Consequently, there was a significant increase in unproductive internal communication within the company. Additionally, sales data collection and analysis were stored in Excel, resulting in valuable data being underutilized.

Improvements with Kintone:

Based on a project management app from Kintone, various approval-related apps were linked, enabling rapid approval workflows within the company. In the PO app, after internal draft approvals, approved items are issued by sales managers using Kintone. In the contract management app, contracts are confirmed at project initiation, and approval routes differ based on contract amounts, thus managed separately in two apps. Projects above a certain amount also require approval of budget sheets. Despite these complex approval workflows, integrating multiple apps has enabled seamless processing of our approvals.

Approval status can be quickly checked on the list screen of the Kintone app. We can see how many are in progress, where any bottlenecks are, and which ones have been completed in real time. Once approved, the process progresses to the finance department, updating its status, which then allows PO issuance from the Kintone app. This not only significantly reduces the time for getting an approval but also achieves visibility of overall project status.

By centrally managing data from estimates to contracts using the Kintone app, daily activities became more seamless than ever. There's no longer a need to individually aggregate data or create graphs, as predefined graphs can be visualized with a single click. As a result, immediate analysis of sales trends has become possible, making it an indispensable source of information for internal discussions.

Currently, various internal documents such as legal materials are stored in dispersed locations. In the future, we aim to integrate detailed tasks like document management into Kintone. Moreover, we intend to use Kintone as a catalyst to instill a mindset for business improvement among locally hired employees at our Mexican subsidiary.

Why Takasago Engineering Chose Kintone:

In the process of considering operational efficiency improvements, visualizing internal processes emerged as the most critical challenge. Eliminating duplicate tasks of transcribing information into documents and Excel files required centralized information management. By reducing transcription tasks, errors can be minimized, and the verification process can be streamlined. Introducing Kintone allows us to integrate registered data with optional services, enabling one-click report generation. Moreover, completing the entire process from application to approval within the app facilitates rapid approval workflows, leading to increased productivity. This is why we decided to implement Kintone.

Interview Date: March 2024