Mr Ian Martin, managing director of the 15-strong Martin Hygiene Services firm in Dublin, decided some time ago that he was going to be ahead of the posse when it came to the euro.

He decided to go for the "Big Bang", converting all his systems to euros from pounds as of September.

As a business-to-business company supplying hygiene and first-aid products such as toilet rolls and plasters to other firms, and medical supplies to doctors, he was in a position to make the change.

Pushing him to do so were mistakes that were cropping up because of dual invoicing in pounds and euros, an August 31st financial year-end and the ready availability of system support at that early stage.

Since September, Mr Martin's firm has been invoicing its customers in euros and settling its bills in the single currency. Just four of his British suppliers and one Irish supplier have failed to make the changeover along with him. Ironically, Mr Martin plans to identify the Dublin-based firm that insists on billing in pounds as a "foreign supplier" on his payment systems.

However, the changeover process was not without hiccups. Ahead of the move, the company went to upgrade its computer systems but found they still fell short of the specification required. Fortunately, falling computer prices allowed the group to remedy this without too much extra cost.

The changeover involved a steep learning curve for computer staff, Mr Martin says.

The process started at lunchtime on a Tuesday, with the firm first tackling its customer database of more than 2,000 firms. It involved a lot more than simply pressing a button. All the data, including purchase and pricing histories for all client companies, had to be rigorously checked.

"There was a lot of work involved, a lot of preparation. By Friday morning we were totally compliant," Mr Martin says.

However, two to three days of work were lost before the system was fully up and running, and other aspects of the business such as stock inventories still had to be tackled.

In all, Mr Martin reckons the company lost about a week of routine work because of the need to devote resources to the changeover.

His advice to other small firms is to embark on the process as soon as possible, giving themselves time to iron out any problems they may encounter.

Another significant advantage of embracing the euro well ahead of the official date is the ready availability of assistance from information technology professionals.

"The computer guys were totally available to us. We had their attention 100 per cent," Mr Martin said.

"By December, the resources might not be there."