Equipment Corporation of America saves time, money with Avalara
Growing company automates tax compliance
Results
Integrated systems
Improved processes
Tax expertise
Employee satisfaction
Summary
Results
- Integrated systems
- Improved processes
- Tax expertise
- Employee satisfaction
Tax challenges
- Tax complexity
- Compliance risk
- Company growth
- Employee burnout
- Process inefficiency
Products used
Avalara AvaTax
Dynamically delivers sales and use tax calculations, based on the latest rules and rates in our tax engine, to a shopping cart or invoicing system at the time of purchase.
Avalara Returns
Automatically gathers data from AvaTax to prepare and file sales and use tax returns and remit payments across multiple jurisdictions every filing cycle.
Avalara State Sales Tax Registration
Helps obtain most non-regulated licenses, permits, and registrations across the U.S., including state, county, and local licenses.
Benefits
- Integrated systems
- Improved processes
- Tax expertise
- Employee satisfaction
Company overview
Customer
Equipment Corporation of America
Industry
Heavy equipment supplier
Tax type
Sales and use
Integrations
Equipment Business Solutions (eBS) Next
Equipment Corporation of America (ECA) provides heavy equipment for drilling, pile driving, hoisting, rigging, slurry cutting, soil mixing, and soil stabilization projects. The equipment can be bought or rented, and the company provides parts and service along with consulting support. ECA’s seemingly never-ending list of projects include foundation equipment for the World Trade Center, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Thomas Jefferson Memorial, Hoover Dam, Washington Metro, Big Dig, Toronto subway, and nearly every stadium east of the Mississippi. Founded in 1918, the company now has nine branches from Toronto to Jacksonville, Florida, and from Washington, D.C. to Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Tax challenges
“When I started here 15 years ago, we only had 3 branches and we collected sales tax in 7 to 10 states,” says Becky Wade, an accountant at ECA. “It was already confusing. There were only 4 of us in the department and we were constantly slammed. None of the other departments could do their own billing because we kept a huge binder full of codes — for labor, freight, part sales, and equipment sales — that had to be changed or updated every day, it seemed like.” “The stress level of sales tax was huge,” Becky continues. “You’re always worried about whether you’re doing it right, and time is a factor. If you didn’t do it right and you have to amend a return, you can be on the phone with the state for … well, it was painful.” To add to the frustration, Becky says that ECA’s sales quotes were never accurate. “We had a disclaimer at the bottom that indicated ‘does not include sales tax.’” Worst of all, when the state of New York audited the company, Becky reports, both the process and the outcome were excruciating. “We all had to pitch in,” Becky recalls, “digging out invoices from boxes and chasing down numbers, and the company ended up paying a significant amount.”
Why Avalara?
Shortly after the New York audit, Becky and vice president of finance, Jamie Govey, attended a user-group meeting featuring Equipment Business Software (eBS) Next, which included an Avalara representative on the agenda. After the meeting, they met with the Avalara representative. “We wanted to learn more, and then we started to realize how much easier life would be,” says Becky, “and how much easier that audit would have been.”
Customer
Equipment Corporation of America
Industry
Heavy equipment supplier
Tax type
Sales and use
Integration
Equipment Business Solutions (eBS) Next
Tax challenges
- Tax complexity
- Compliance risk
- Company growth
- Employee burnout
- Process inefficiency
Products used
Avalara AvaTax
Dynamically delivers sales and use tax calculations, based on the latest rules and rates in our tax engine, to a shopping cart or invoicing system at the time of purchase.
Avalara Returns
Automatically gathers data from AvaTax to prepare and file sales and use tax returns and remit payments across multiple jurisdictions every filing cycle.
Avalara State Sales Tax Registration
Helps obtain most non-regulated licenses, permits, and registrations across the U.S., including state, county, and local licenses.
Benefits
- Integrated systems
- Improved processes
- Tax expertise
- Employee satisfaction
“With Avalara, I can reconcile everything for 39 states in about 4 hours,” she says. “It used to take me 3 to 5 days, and that was for far fewer states..”
“With Avalara, I can reconcile everything for 39 states in about 4 hours,” she says. “It used to take me 3 to 5 days, and that was for far fewer states..”
Results
Since implementing AvaTax and Avalara Returns, Becky and her team have saved time every month. “With Avalara, I can reconcile everything for 39 states in about 4 hours,” she says. “It used to take me 3 to 5 days, and that was for far fewer states.” Additionally, each department in the company can now do its own billing at the point of sale, rather than Becky’s team handling it for everyone. “You just can’t beat that,” she says.
After the implementation, ECA was audited again, this time by the state of Florida. “It was super easy,” Becky says. “The auditor was here for a day, maybe two. We were in compliance, the reports that proved it were easy to run.”
But the benefit that Becky emphasizes the most is her feeling that Avalara has her back. “One time I accidentally approved a return, and it wasn’t right,” she recalls. “I called Avalara in a panic, and somebody got right back to me and told me not to worry about it. By the time I got home and logged on, they had opened the return back up and I was able to correct it.”
That kind of support has made Becky a perennial attendee of Avalara’s events, like CRUSH. “I can’t recommend CRUSH highly enough,” she says. “You should definitely send at least one person from your department. I learn something really valuable every time and look forward to continuing to build my relationship with Avalara.”
