Epic Foods, a leading supplier of edible oils and food products, achieved something of a record when it implemented the JD EdwardsOneWorld enterprise resource planning system at its headquarters in Aeroton, Johannesburg. The entire system, from planning to go live, took two months. The total value of the project was more than R1 million including both hardware and software.
Says Mohamed Docrat, financial director for Epic Foods: "Our number one priority in an ERP system is the ability to derive accurate information in real-time. While Epic`s previous software was adequate for our needs at the time, we often had to operate blindly in terms of the data we had on sales, inventory and other aspects of our operations.
"Epic was purchased by Willowton Oil from Premier in 1998 with the agreement that we would continue to use our existing system for a year. Willowton is an existing JD Edwards customer and it was logical to standardise across the group. Epic has purchased OneWorld`s Financials, Distribution and Manufacturing modules with Financials already up and running and the remaining modules in the process of implementation.
"The entire project was started from scratch, with the purchase of server and workstation hardware to match the back office software. We run on Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 using Compaq ProLiant servers, and Microsoft SQL Server database. The initial number of users is 30 with a view to increasing this to about 70 once all of the modules have been deployed.
"A strong factor in favour of the JD Edwards system is the accurate and data-rich reporting. With real-time information at our fingertips, we should be able to improve margins through better planning on a number of our product lines, which compete in a fiercely competitive market."
Adds Docrat: "The most impressive aspect of the project was our ability to come in on time and within budget. While we were able to achieve a go live of only two months, it is noteworthy that this was achieved through the complete buy-in by all stakeholders from management and employees to the consultants and suppliers and the fact that we knew from the start what we wanted to achieve from the system. For the future, we expect to expand our local market share through enhanced planning and more efficient operations with the help of our information systems."
Ron Behrmann, professional services manager at JD Edwards South Africa, says: "The Epic project clearly illustrates what can be achieved with ERP implementations if there is a commitment by all the parties involved. ERP, despite undergoing a number of radical changes in the last few years, is a reality that few companies can ignore and is certainly the best means of improving competitiveness by enhancing the flow of information through the enterprise and along the supply chain."
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