Twenty-five years of custom development. Hundreds of specialized processes. Millions of euros in sunk costs. When Habufa’s Operations Director Bernd Niessen faced the reality of modernizing their ERP system, he confronted the same dilemma that paralyzes many established manufacturers: How do you move forward without abandoning everything that got you here?
“Habufa has always believed in keeping IT capabilities as much as possible in-house,” explains Niessen. “We built our IT infrastructure over the last 25 years – both the systems and the software functionality. But we don’t close our eyes to the possibilities that external partners could offer.”
The solution wasn’t abandoning their legacy investment, but strategically integrating it with modern cloud capabilities. The result was a seamless transformation that preserved their competitive advantages while gaining the benefits of modern ERP capabilities.
The Legacy Investment Dilemma
Habufa’s journey began in the 1990s when they made a strategic decision to build rather than buy their ERP capabilities. Over two and a half decades, they had developed custom software tailored to furniture manufacturing complexities, built specialized modules for their unique business processes, created integrations with suppliers, customers, and logistics partners, and trained hundreds of employees on their proprietary systems.
By 2020, this legacy system had become both an asset and a liability. While it provided precisely the functionality Habufa needed, it also limited their ability to adapt to new market demands and technological advances.
“Every year or two, I would look at possibilities to improve our own ERP or buy modules that could improve our entire IT system, both qualitatively and quantitatively,” recalls Niessen. The annual evaluation process consistently showed that certain capabilities they wanted to implement would be difficult to realize with their existing infrastructure and resources.
The Integration Philosophy
Rather than pursuing a disruptive replacement strategy, Habufa adopted what Niessen calls a “make-or-buy” philosophy for each component of their system. They would keep what worked, maintaining existing systems that provided competitive advantage and functioned reliably. They would upgrade strategically, replacing or supplementing components where external solutions offered clear improvements. Most importantly, they would integrate seamlessly, ensuring new and legacy systems work together without operational disruption.
This approach required finding a cloud ERP solution with superior integration capabilities – something that could coexist with their existing infrastructure rather than replace it entirely.
Why NetSuite Won the Integration Challenge
When evaluating cloud ERP options, Habufa assessed what Niessen calls the “usual suspects” – Microsoft Dynamics, SAP, and other enterprise platforms. Most fell short of their integration requirements.
NetSuite distinguished itself through its API-first architecture. “The openness with which NetSuite can communicate with others – customers, suppliers, third parties – was very welcome because that was a bigger challenge with our old ERP system,” explains Niessen. The platform’s modular implementation capability meant they could implement gradually, module by module, rather than requiring complete replacement.
Through their partnership with Rsult, they found examples of similar manufacturers who had successfully integrated NetSuite with existing systems. Perhaps most importantly, John Schrijvers from Rsult provided an honest assessment of gaps. “John was very realistic – he said we didn’t have to go with them, didn’t have to go with NetSuite. We would look together to see if NetSuite was a solution.”
The Step-by-Step Integration Strategy
Habufa began with a proof of concept, implementing two critical but contained modules: financial management and warehouse management. “We started with finance and warehouse management system and allocated a specific timeframe for that,” explains Niessen. “We mapped out the entire process together.”
This approach allowed them to maintain modern accounting processes while preserving existing financial data, and implement enhanced inventory control integrated with existing production systems. The success of this initial phase proved that gradual integration was viable and built confidence for subsequent phases.
The second phase expanded to customer-facing processes with EDI integration for seamless connection with existing customer communication channels, modern order processing that interfaces with legacy production planning, and automated customer communications that integrate with existing CRM data.
The third phase focused on supply chain integration through API connections for direct integration with PostNL and logistics provider JCL, automated supplier communications including purchase orders and delivery confirmations, and real-time inventory synchronization between NetSuite and legacy production systems.
Technical Integration Approach
Rather than migrating all historical data at once, Habufa maintained parallel systems with synchronized key data. They synchronized master data including product, customer, and supplier information, shared transactional data in real-time for orders, shipments, and financial transactions, and maintained the legacy system for historical reporting while new transactions flowed through NetSuite.
The API-driven integration proved crucial. “For up to 30% of our customers, we work with EDI modules that are seamlessly connected to NetSuite,” notes Niessen. “We’ve achieved seamless integration with PostNL and our logistics service provider JCL through NetSuite APIs.”
Instead of changing all processes simultaneously, they migrated workflows incrementally. During the first weeks, finance teams learned new processes while legacy systems remained active. The following weeks involved parallel processing to ensure accuracy, then full transition with legacy systems as backup, and finally retirement of legacy systems for completed modules.
Managing the Human Side of Integration
Rather than massive training programs, Habufa implemented contextual learning where employees learned new systems as they became responsible for those modules. Staff could reference legacy systems while learning NetSuite, and no one had to learn everything at once.
Building confidence through success proved crucial for user adoption. “When you’ve worked with your own software for 25 years, you always wonder how outsiders with other solutions will be received,” acknowledges Niessen.
The step-by-step approach proved crucial for user adoption. Early successes with finance and warehouse built confidence. “It spreads like an oil slick – trust develops, and other users become enthusiastic,” explains Niessen. Each successful module implementation created advocates for the next phase.
Overcoming Integration Challenges
Two major functionality gaps emerged during evaluation: NetSuite lacked sophisticated purchase planning tools for furniture manufacturing, and complex multi-component furniture products required specialized configuration tools that weren’t available.
Rather than abandoning NetSuite, Habufa and Rsult developed a roadmap to address these gaps through custom SuiteScript development, third-party application integration, and gradual enhancement of NetSuite’s native capabilities.
Project management evolution also presented challenges. “We should have switched to the second project manager sooner,” reflects Niessen. “The first project manager led us through standard setup, but the second focused on process optimization and adaptation.” Different integration phases require different expertise – technical implementation versus process optimization and change management.
Measurable Integration Success
Most importantly, Habufa never lost a day of operations during the transition. They experienced zero downtime during module transitions, no customer service disruptions, and maintained all existing customer and supplier relationships.
Integration didn’t just maintain existing functionality – it enhanced it. “A much more professional impression of Habufa has emerged,” notes Niessen. Automated processes reduced customer disputes and clarification calls, while skilled staff were freed for strategic initiatives.
The integrated system provides capabilities that weren’t possible with legacy-only infrastructure, including real-time integration with new partners and platforms, scalable architecture for international expansion, and a foundation for AI and advanced analytics implementation.
The Five-Year Completion Roadmap
With successful integration proven, Habufa has mapped a complete transformation over the next five years. They’ll integrate logistics modules, replace sales and inside sales modules, and modernize purchase modules in the first two years. The following years will focus on marketing and communication module integration, complete legacy system retirement, and advanced functionality implementation. By year five, they’ll achieve full NetSuite operation with custom enhancements, AI and predictive analytics implementation, and next-generation integration capabilities.
“We have a timeline for the next five years to gradually replace all remaining ERP modules and functionality one by one,” explains Niessen. “Then we’ll have everything running on NetSuite Oracle combined with customizations we’ve added through SuiteScripts.”
Integration Best Practices
Habufa’s success provides a proven framework for similar transformations. Companies should assess integration capabilities first, evaluating cloud ERP systems based on integration architecture and API capabilities rather than solely on functionality. Starting with high-impact, lower-risk modules like finance and warehouse management provides significant benefits while limiting operational risk.
Planning for parallel operations is crucial – budgeting for periods where both systems operate simultaneously represents an investment in redundancy that pays dividends in risk mitigation. The technical integration is often easier than the human integration, so companies should plan accordingly.
Embracing iterative problem-solving proves essential. “We worked in mini-sprints,” says Niessen. “When we encountered problems, we brought in the right players and pushed the project in the right direction immediately.” Companies shouldn’t rush the timeline either. “The delivery of NetSuite finance and warehouse modules took place somewhat later than planned, but in the quality that was needed and even more than that.”
The Strategic Value of Integration Over Replacement
Habufa’s approach demonstrates that successful cloud ERP adoption doesn’t require abandoning legacy investments. By strategically integrating new capabilities with existing strengths, they achieved minimized risk with no operational disruption during transformation, maximized ROI by preserving valuable legacy investments while gaining cloud benefits, accelerated timeline through faster implementation than complete replacement, enhanced capabilities by combining strengths of both systems, and sustainable growth with a foundation for continued evolution.
More importantly, they’ve created a framework that other manufacturers can follow to modernize their operations without the risks associated with complete system replacement.
For manufacturers struggling with legacy system modernization, Habufa’s story proves that the path forward doesn’t require abandoning the past – it requires strategically building upon it.
