November 4, 2014 – Third Coast Deploys M-Files In A Hybrid Cloud Environment For Disaster Recovery Of Financial Information In Hurricane-Prone Gulf Coast Region
Petrochemical Company Taps the M-Files Enterprise Information Management Solution to Simplify and Speed Accounts Receivable and Billing Processes
M-Files Corporation, a provider of solutions that dramatically improve how enterprises manage documents and other information, recently announced that Third Coast Terminals, a leader in the petrochemical industry, has selected the M-Files enterprise information management (EIM) solution to more effectively manage and process its accounts receivable and billing documentation. Third Coast Terminals has deployed M-Files in a hybrid cloud environment for disaster recovery to ensure the company’s content is secured, protected, and available in case the company’s on-premises systems are compromised by a hurricane or another catastrophic event.
Third Coast Terminals generates and manages an extensive amount of information related to its petrochemical storage, containerization, and shipping services. Much of the company’s financial management and billing documentation was in paper format, resulting in significant time spent scanning and copying documents as well as physically transporting files across the plant. In addition, Third Coast Terminals’ electronic documents were managed in network folders, which made it difficult for staff to quickly locate the correct versions of the documents they needed.
Being located in the Gulf Coast region, Third Coast also required an information management solution that could provide disaster recovery capabilities and ensure vital content assets were protected in the event of a hurricane or other potentially catastrophic situations that could place the company’s important documents and other information at risk, such as a fire or a system or hardware failure.
Third Coast deployed the M-Files enterprise information management (EIM) solution in the cloud to create a more efficient and streamlined billing and accounts receivable process that eliminates paper and increases productivity by enabling staff to quickly and easily locate the correct versions of documents. By integrating M-Files with its on-premises Chempax ERP system, the company’s staff has the confidence that they are always accessing the most up-to-date and correct versions of accounts receivable documents and files, which they can now do directly from the company’s ERP system. With M-Files, Third Coast is now billing customers by 1:00 pm the day after product shipments, which has significantly improved cash flow and customer service. In addition, the ability to deploy M-Files in a hybrid cloud environment provided Third Coast Terminals with a disaster recovery system and continuity plan, ensuring that important business information can be accessed even if the company’s office has to be abandoned due to a hurricane or other natural disaster.
“Transitioning to M-Files from an information management process where we were reliant on paper files and network folders have provided our staff with faster access to the correct versions of accounts payable and receivable documentation, which increases our productivity and provides a foundation for better decision-making,” said Paul Glenn, vice president of human resources at Third Coast. “We’ve reaped significant benefits with M-Files that we didn’t initially project, including savings on tanker drivers’ waiting for fees because they no longer have to wait for documentation.”
“By deploying M-Files in a hybrid cloud environment, Third Coast Terminals now has the confidence and assurance that their vital business information is protected and always available, even if a major hurricane compromises the integrity of their on-premises systems,” said Greg Milliken, vice president of marketing at M-Files Corporation. “Hybrid deployments provide a more dynamic and real-time disaster-recovery environment, and with M-Files, Third Coast can simply ‘flip a switch’ to maintain continuous and uninterrupted access to important business information even after a disastrous weather event.”
About Third Coast
Third Coast is a specialized storage, toll processing, contract blending, and drumming operation serving the Gulf Coast Petrochemical Industry. Strategically located in Houston, Texas, the company is in the heart of the nation’s largest petrochemical center and major ocean shipping facilities for the U.S. Gulf Coast.
