Cape Town, 07 Jun 2006
South Africa`s largest supermarket chain, Pick `n Pay, is enhancing its supply chain management, decreasing the need for credit notes and improving on-time delivery with the implementation of Sterling Commerce`s Gentran Integration Suite. Gentran Integration Suite is a strategic integration platform designed to co-ordinate, automate and manage business processes through the integration of internal applications and external partners and customers.
IT infrastructure, solutions and services provider, Datacentrix, a Sterling Commerce partner, assisted the supermarket chain with the project.
According to Elred Lawrence, business systems manager: e-commerce at Pick `n Pay, the organisation looked closely at inefficiencies and the related administrative overheads within the supply chain, specifically from an information flow point of view.
"By zeroing in on two specific suppliers in Gauteng, we identified problem areas including invoicing and the issuing of credit papers, as well as certain `back door` inefficiencies, such as trucks waiting too long to offload stock. One of the major pain points discovered was manual order generation, for example reps calling orders in instead of submitting physical documents, which resulted in a loss of control and increased the likelihood of error.
"We implemented Gentran Integration Suite in pilot mode at the two sites, closely examining all documentation going from Pick `n Pay to suppliers, including price confirmations, electronic orders, electronic delivery advices, electronic remittance advices and electronic requests for credit.
"Within a six-month period, we managed to bring down the credit note issue from 100% to 5%. We also measured order deliveries - to ascertain whether orders have been correctly delivered - and managed to increase this figure from around 60% to 98% accuracy due to the improved translation of orders."
In addition, on-shelf availability of A-line products - of key significance to Pick `n Pay - has improved from 87% to 94%, while on-time delivery has increased from 42% to 86%.
All of Pick `n Pay`s documents linked to the two suppliers are now translated and enhanced in line with international standards. Says Trish Dicks, senior account manager at Datacentrix: "Gentran Integration Suite enables businesses to interact with partners in real-time across complex value chains and manage sensitive business data more securely."
The solution embraces the coordinated use of past, existing and future interoperable technology standards such as EDI, Web services, ebXML, BPML and emerging XML-based security and quality of service specifications.
Says Lawrence: "Pick `n Pay wanted a product to provide international standards that fit in with the existing IT infrastructure at the company. Since Pick `n Pay runs on Linux and prefers platform-independent products, Gentran Integration Suite was an ideal fit for our needs.
"We opted to partner with Datacentrix for this project as it was the only local player to have rolled out a similar project in South Africa. The company`s solid reputation in the marketplace was also key," he adds.
Pick `n Pay plans to roll-out the Gentran Integration Suite solution to its other regions in parallel with its nationwide SAP implementation.
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