Vicinity Helps Mayco Colors Improve Order Fulfillment and Customer Satisfaction with Available To Promise Functionality
About Mayco Colors
Mayco Colors has established itself as a prominent worldwide provider of ceramic glazes, pottery
materials and acrylic stains for artists and crafters for more than seven decades.
Project Snapshot
Mayco Colors was already running Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central with VicinityChem, but they
turned to Vicinity Software again when inventory shortages began disrupting shipments. Acting as a true partner, Vicinity helped them implement advanced available-to-promise functionality that unified data
across production and shipping. The result was clear visibility into inventory, smoother order fulfillment,
and a more proactive, confident approach to serving customers.
Highlights
- Replaced manual Excel-based MRP with real-time available-to-promise visibility.
- Improved on-time, complete order fulfillment and reduced shipping chaos.
- Shifted from reactive to proactive production planning across all departments.
The Challenge
Mayco Colors
With around 3000 SKUs and sales to clients around the world, stock levels at Mayco Colors are a constantly moving target.
Joyce Bruce, Plant Accounting Manager, explains, “We had our own MRP system based in Excel, where I manually pulled data from Business Central. While I had an idea of what products were short, it was a real challenge to help shipping know which orders received priority, and which ones had to wait or ship incomplete.”
Although Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central includes available-to-promise functionality, the outof-the-box version only shows current stock levels. It doesn’t automatically consider open sales orders, upcoming production runs, or expected purchase receipts—leaving teams without the full picture of what inventory would actually be available to ship.
Kevin Brennan, IT Director, adds, “In shipping, we didn’t know that stock would run short until we went to pick products. So I had to ask Joyce when the inventory would be replenished, then make decisions on how to fulfill orders. ”Ultimately, customer satisfaction suffered.
The Solution
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central and VicinityChem had already helped Mayco streamline
key operations—but inventory planning still had room to improve.
To plan inventory accurately and fulfill orders confidently, Mayco needed more than what Business Central’s standard ATP could deliver. So they turned back to Vicinity Software for help. With deep expertise in batch and process manufacturing—and experience from similar projects—the team was well equipped to build a custom ATP solution tailored to Mayco’s needs: one that unified inventory visibility and factored in real-time demand, future production, and inbound inventory, not just what was currently on the shelf.
The Benefits
The new available-to-promise functionality in VicinityChem for Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business
Central didn’t just fill a technical gap—it changed how teams across Mayco work together. Kevin
describes how the new system has improved visibility, streamlined order fulfillment, and brought
a new level of coordination between production, shipping, and customer service. Here’s what that
transformation looks like from the perspective of the teams using it every day.
Mayco Colors
Improved Inventory Visibility. “Now we know ahead of time when there is a product shortage. We can communicate with production to adjust the schedule and ensure more orders ship complete.
Shipping now has visibility into the production schedule so that, if they encounter an inventory anomaly, they know when the next batch will be ready. They don’t even have to ask; they know we’re
going to deliver.” Being able to look at the problem from additional angles is another benefit. He continues, “We have additional views now that allow us to see what’s missing from a single customer’s orders, from a group of customers’ orders, or we can even flip the view to see how the shortage of an item or set of items impacts all our customers.”
Improved Order Fulfillment. “In the past, shipping faced a real challenge of deciding which orders
received priority, without being able to see the ‘bigger picture’ of customer needs. Our team would
go to extreme lengths to fulfill an order on time, just to find out the shipping date had been postponed.
Now, order fulfillment simply follows ATP. They don’t have to pick and choose; it’s already decided. That
has really calmed the chaos.”
“VicinityChem lets us run a ‘what-if’ analysis on our orders. If we see there will be a shortfall, and we can adjust production to cover it, great. If not, we can have a conversation with the customer. ‘Can you wait a few days for the order to ship complete? Or would you rather the order ship on time,
Kevin brennan, director of it, Mayco Colors
but 10 units short?’ Our customers appreciate being involved in the decision.”
Proactive Production Scheduling. “We’ve seen great improvements in having stock available by the day orders are to ship. Now, instead of being reactive, we’re becoming proactive. We’re trying to get 5 to 7 days ahead of when an order will be pulled, so we can reduce the number of short items even further.”
A Lasting Partnership with Vicinity Software
Mayco didn’t just implement a software solution; they built a lasting partnership with Vicinity Software that continues to deliver value well beyond the initial rollout. From project scoping to day-to-day support, the Vicinity team has become a trusted extension of Mayco’s operations. According to the team at Mayco, here’s what makes the relationship work:
On-Time and On-Budget Deliverables. Kevin notes, “Vicinity responded quickly to keep our project moving. Although we had internal delays, Vicinity proved adept at defining a clear scope and a reasonable budget, and they stuck to it.”
First-Class Customer Service. Joyce has been Vicinity’s point of contact at Mayco from the start. “The Vicinity team is great to work with. I’ve even sent emails after hours and I always get the response I need from them.”
First-Class Customer Service. Joyce has been Vicinity’s point of contact at Mayco from the start. “The Vicinity team is great to work with. I’ve even sent emails after hours and I always get the response I need from them.”
One thing is certain: Mayco will continue to innovate, striving for greater efficiency and better customer
service. And Vicinity will be there to back them up along the way.
To download the full printable PDF of this in-depth success story, click here.
Interested in how VicinityChem can bring more visibility and control to your chemical manufacturing processes? Connect with our team today.
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