An effective business process management software can transform operations by improving efficiency, ensuring compliance, and streamlining processes. That’s exactly what Brookville Equipment Corporation achieved with ProcessPro. Karan Gulati, Continuous Improvement Engineer, shares how their team overcame knowledge retention challenges and process inconsistencies using ProcessPro.
Brookville Equipment Corporation is a world class manufacturer of innovative, powered transportation solutions for mining/tunnelling, rail freight, and passenger transportation.
With a focus on precision and efficiency, the company sought to overcome challenges related to corporate knowledge and process standardization.
What specific challenges or pain points were you experiencing before implementing the process mapping software?
One of the biggest things that we had problems with was tribal knowledge and people. Certain people only knowing certain things about certain areas of the company and if they left the company, the corporate knowledge goes with them.
So we’re trying to figure out things from scratch, and that was the primary decision to go towards process mapping software—to achieve or have the ability to document things that we can have long term and get away from that tribal knowledge as we call it.
What motivated you to seek out a process mapping solution? Were there any specific goals or objectives you wanted to achieve?
This journey started about six or seven years ago when we started looking into our Lean 6 Sigma journey. During that initiation, we found out that we were missing this key aspect of not having the organization’s processes documented.
We had documents for our designs and our test procedures, but we didn’t have protocols, standards, or processes that defined how to do the overall end-to-end process.
In the absence of an end-to-end process, that was a key decision-making point that led us to acquiring a process mapping software. Additionally, we used Visio, but it is more static and one-directional and not clearly defined.
It’s good for what it was, but I think technology has come far ahead from what Visio was, and there’s more to it now with different process mapping software options.
Want a quick summary?
How did you evaluate different process mapping software options? What factors were most important in your decision-making process?
One of the biggest key factors for us was the ease of use, the flexibility of the platform, and a good path that the process mapping tool defined.
Visio was an open canvas, so anybody could go in there and do anything they wanted. We were looking for something that we could get a structure in place, and that was one of the key things we were looking for.
Process mapping has helped Brookville Equipment Corporation standardize processes and document knowledge more effectively. For companies looking to optimize operations, finding the best software for streamlining business processes can make a significant impact.
What benefits or improvements have you observed since implementing the process mapping software? Can you provide specific examples or metrics?
Bringing that tribal knowledge into being something that is documented and available for everybody to use, making standard processes and ensuring that one person is not doing something different than the other person.
A prime example would be our engineering team. It gave a voice to staff members to hold management accountable for following the protocols too.
At our organization, the engineering department is using process mapping to the fullest extent at this point, followed by our procurement or supply chain team. This has really helped us structure our engineering department and other teams.
"ProcessPro helped us turn tribal knowledge into standardized processes, ensuring consistency across teams."
The right process mapping software makes communication and process transparency easier for teams.
How has the software impacted collaboration and communication within your organization?
It’s so important to us, especially to be able to communicate with different business departments within Brookville and to have that common language and communication.
It has helped us use different swim lanes in process mapping, enabling us to talk intelligently with each other with some structure in place.
If somebody is missing something, it’s just easy to share a process. The ability to have a centralized location, so everybody knows where to go to look, is crucial.
Staff can find the right process owners and ask them if they have something pressing on their mind in relation to the processes, improving communication and understanding.
"ProcessPro gave our teams a common language to improve communication and collaboration across departments."
Can you share any success stories or notable achievements that were made possible by using the process mapping software?
One of the things that I can point out as a success is the ability to create value streams.
For example, we didn’t have anything mapped for a warranty process, and process mapping helped us define the full workflow from customer request to closing the claim.
We also improved our purchase order requisition process, helping us define how to request a purchase order, how approvals go, and what category it fits into.
Cross-functionally, it impacts multiple people and departments—procurement, finance, and accounting. We were able to capture all that information based on process mapping.
Effective process mapping eliminates confusion, reduces turnaround time, and minimizes headaches.
How has the software improved efficiency or productivity in your processes? Have you been able to identify any bottlenecks or areas for improvement that were previously overlooked?
It has taken away the ambiguity of not knowing what to do, or relying on certain people’s knowledge.
For example, in the order requisition process, we can now define purchasing categories upfront, which helps the finance group allocate funds correctly instead of dealing with issues later.
Have you noticed any positive changes in employee engagement or satisfaction as a result of using the process mapping software?
One of the positives I’ve seen is that people now talk about the need to follow processes.
For example, I was once reminded by the procurement team to follow the process because if we don’t and we are audited, we will fail the audit.
This has created accountability, where people know they are responsible for their job duties and compliance. Some might see it as a burden, but I see it as a positive change where people are held accountable and ensure we succeed as an organization.
Have there been any unexpected benefits or outcomes from using the software that you did not anticipate?
I think recently, the addition of AI to process mapping will be beneficial.
We haven’t fully explored it yet, but moving forward, I see great potential in utilizing AI-driven features.
Brookville Equipment Corporation sees great potential in AI-driven process mapping—and they’re not alone. To help businesses streamline operations, ProcessPro has integrated with OpenAI, leveraging AI-powered insights to eliminate roadblocks in process creation.
How would you describe the overall user experience and ease of use of the process mapping software?
No two software options are exactly the same, though they may have similarities.
Although the end goal is the same, one platform may be easier to navigate than another.
What I really like about ProcessPro is the ability to create a value stream. If used correctly, a value stream adds a lot of strength to your processes, and we are actively using it.
It’s great to be able to see processes at a high level and drill down into different components.
What features or functionalities of the software have been most valuable to your organization?
The ability to keep tribal/legacy data centralized within the company and the creation of a value stream has been very helpful and valuable.
Also, the ease at which a process can be shared has surprised us too.
Are there any other comments that you would like to make?
What I like about ProcessPro is that they are very proactive.
They take user suggestions and recommendations into consideration and continuously improve their software.
I recommended quite a few changes when we onboarded, and I’ve seen the majority of them implemented.
"ProcessPro truly listens to customer feedback and continuously improves its platform."
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