Family-run Trout’s Boatyard is enjoying a fresh breeze billowing its sails, with the recent introduction of Pacsoft’s marina management software leading to dramatic time savings, smoother day-to-day operations and streamlined invoicing at the heritage marine hub.
Located across three sites in the English county of Devon, the 123-year-old boatyard is a comprehensive marine services provider for boat owners in the region, offering everything from traditional boat building and repairs to modern marine engineering and boats for sale.
Holly Trout, who masterminds office support at the boatyard, said the boost in efficiency since implementing PacsoftNG six months ago had been striking.
“The difference has honestly been huge – it’s completely changed the pace of the business for the better.
“Our day-to-day operations are now wrapped up by lunchtime, which means we finally have time to be proactive instead of constantly putting out fires.”
Being able to modernise the boatyard’s marina management software has helped its nine-strong team maintain their renowned personal service, with three staff using Pacsoft while the others are hands-on with the boats, Trout said.
“We’ve been around for over 123 years, and for many families we’ve looked after their boats across generations. That long-standing trust and continuity really means something to our customers.”
She said having integrated stock management and point-of-sale systems have been “game changers” for Trout’s Boatyard.
“PacsoftNG makes the retail side of things so much easier and we love how seamlessly it links with the service module.
“Being able to allocate time and materials to jobs in real time has massively improved the accuracy of our invoicing. Plus, our banking processes are noticeably quicker too – it’s all just so much smoother.”
Streamlined invoicing has led to payments being received faster and reduced outstanding debtors, Trout said.
“The invoicing tools have made a huge impact. Customers are getting their invoices much faster and they’re clearer and more professional – we’ve had a lot of positive feedback.
“Before, it used to take me an entire afternoon just to invoice each of our three locations. Now I can do all of them in just five minutes!”
The calibre of ongoing support from Richard Dowland – Pacsoft’s UK and Europe representative – has helped make the implementation smooth sailing, Trout said.
“Richard has been absolutely brilliant. He’s always quick to respond, super helpful, and never makes you feel like any question is too small or silly. It’s been really reassuring to have that level of support.”
With the winds of marine management software change firmly behind Trout’s Boatyard, it’s never been in a better position to maintain its legacy of offering traditional boat-building expertise and old-school quality service buoyed by the efficiency smart technology brings.
