Armada, the supply chain optimisation company in the Labat Informatics group, has secured the distribution rights for the value chain management range of software solutions from US-based Logility Inc. Jerome Chalice, technology director at Armada, says Logility incorporates the most advanced analytical scheduling techniques enabling application of the theory of constraints.
"This collaborative management software covers demand, inventory, replenishment and manufacturing planning," says Chalice. "It is Internet-enabled, allowing for business-to-business communication and the graphical displays make for easy identification of key indicators with summary and drill-down techniques."
Demand chain planning allows supply chain participants, even the most remote retailers, to feed demand figures directly into the system. The graphical display allows multidimensional views of entities, to individual retailers and wholesalers. Historic demand and forecasts are analysed and deviations between actuals versus planned are applied. Elements such as seasonal demand, trends and promotional events are factored in.
Inventory planning incorporates numerous constraints, including warehouse capacity and transportation constraints.
Replenishment planning takes into account distribution lead times, stock availability throughout the value chain and future demand.
A breakthrough in manufacturing planning brings planner and scheduler functions into alignment. Built-in alerts to the other party when tolerances are exceeded allow the most appropriate intervention to be applied. There is greater cohesion between distribution planning, inventory planning, replenishment planning and manufacturing planning. Chalice says Logility incorporates international best practices and has earned ISO 9001 certification. Armada consultants have been trained and certified in Logility. The solution is available on leading client-server platforms including Windows NT and Unix. Alliances with key ERP (enterprise resource planning) and application execution vendors ensure more effective data sharing.
"Rapid return on investment results from reduced value chain costs, including reduction in inventories and improved turnover ratios," says Chalice. "Better customer service means high customer retention figures. This is robust, enterprise-strength software that rapidly repays investment. Case studies show return on investment in three to six months, with some companies with very high inventories going so far as to recover the cost of their ERP investment."
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