Macro extends service portfolio

Macro 2000 is keeping up with
the times and continuously
developing its software to
meet industry needs.
Having recently teamed up with
IBM and Microsoft, the company
now boasts a system that can service
more industries while increasing
functionality for its established
customer base.
“We have become increasingly
concerned with moving goods right
from the time an international or
domestic purchasing order is effected.
With the development of our software
we can now tell customers precisely
what the order consists of, track
where it is and where it has to go,”
says marketing executive Anthea
van Breemen.
Launched in Cape Town in 1978,
Macro 2000 initially only offered
software packages for the clothing
and textile industry, but by 1994 it
had moved into the warehousing
industry when the country, following
its first national democratic elections,
resumed large-scale imports and
exports. It has since also moved to
accommodate the shipping sector.
“Macro was the only South African
company to have the necessary
software at the time so if you were
intent on buying South African, as
were many at the time, you bought
Macro. Many of our customers
have been using our warehouse
management software since then, and
now have to move from the old style
systems to the new Windows version.
“The old and new systems are
functionally very similar, but the
added benefits are huge,” says Van
Breemen. “There is still the usual
receipting, picking, issuing and
sophisticated invoicing there was
before, but with the implementation
of Windows each document can be
automatically e-mailed at the
same time it is printed. Added to
this, the documents reflect the
company logo and details and are
designed specifically for each
Macro customer.”
The system can also be set up
to automatically send any number
of reports, like a stock balance, or
movement reports on a daily basis.
Hand-held personal data devices and
cellular phones enable Macro to load
software, provided they come with a
Windows ‘Mobile’ feature for remote
log in and data capture, said
Van Breemen.