It was a busy holiday weekend for the staff at the $414 million First Credit Union in Chandler, Ariz.

After months of planning and warning, the 47,000-member institution shut down its remote account access channels for a couple days and converted its core processing operation from an Open Solutions Inc. platform to the Symitar Episys system.

The online and telephone teller systems were back live Monday morning. The credit union offices opened for business as usual Tuesday.

“All the months of planning made this conversion projection a huge success. We're very proud of our staff and appreciate our members’ patience during the process,” said Lori Gallegos, the 47,000-member credit union’s executive vice president and chief operating officer.

First Credit Union began notifying members of the coming change in February, using the website, a printed and online “conversion guide”, newsletter articles, in-branch posters and banners and direct mail, statement messages, emails and employee T-shirts.

“The core processing system is more or less the operating system for any financial institution. It houses and processes all data and transactions. Converting to a new system is a big deal. In fact, that’s the theme First Credit Union used to inform members of the change, “It’s a Big Deal,”’ Gallego said.

Jay Curtis, the CU’s president/CEO, added, “Converting to a new core processing system has been a long time in the making. Both our members and our employees will enjoy all the new system has to offer. This comprehensive and integrated system will ultimately help us better serve our members."