Messer Fedgas, South Africa`s second largest gas producer, has opted for Siemens Nixdorf as its technology partner to provide "one stop shop" for products and services, in a contract valued at about R10-million over three years, centred on migrating to SAP`s R/3 package. The company is implementing SAP`s R/3 enterprise resource planning package throughout as its business application package of choice. Implementing R/3 groupwide is Messer Group policy intended to carry the corporation into the new millennium. (Messer Fedgas, is part of the international Messer group, which is represented in more than 140 countries around the world.) While several potential implementation partners were considered, Alrode-based Messer Fedgas selected Siemens Nixdorf for a variety of reasons. "Our mandate was to select a one stop shop environment," says Messer Fedgas IT manager Keith MacDonald. "We selected Siemens Nixdorf for its ability to support us during implementation, to provide networking skills and ongoing service and maintenance after installation. There`s also no uncertainty on who to approach if problems do arise." Siemens Nixdorf also had previous experience with Messer Fedgas sites, as a preferred supplier of desktop products, and is able to offer nationwide support. The initial phase of the SAP project, worth about R4,5-million, marks a continuation of a long association between the two companies. Messer Fedgas has been using Nixdorf`s Comet system for 20 years, which offers SAP-type functionality although on a smaller scale. A large part of Siemens Nixdorf`s contribution to the project is systems integration and consulting. "There are about 30 packages available on the market which may be capable of meeting our needs, but what was crucial was Siemens Nixdorf`s ability to integrate the technology in a solution that works," says MacDonald. Benefits Messer Fedgas is expecting from the SAP implementation, says MacDonald, include having a system which will support the enterprise over the next 20 years, with ongoing development and enhancements. Another perk is that desktop and business enterprise users will be using the same type of technology, with SAP catering for packages such as Word and Excel. Although Messer Fedgas`s users are on a system which emulates Windows, it doesn`t offer full Windows functionality. In addition, several of Messer Fedgas`s large trading partners have embarked on SAP implementations, which creates scope for simplifying end-to-end business transactions, which should translate into competitive advantage for the gas giant. Messer Fedgas`s 15 branches across the country will go live in a "big bang" implementation which will see 100 users up and running on R/3. While the estimated project time span is one year, MacDonald is "hoping for the option" to go live earlier. The company has invested heavily in desktop training as well as business system training, with the view to transferring ownership of the technology from the hands of the IT department to the end-users. In phase one, R/3 will be rolled out for financial and managerial accounting, sales and distribution, and materials management. The second phase will bring production planning and plant maintenance requirements on-line. he SAP rollout is a vital element of Messer Fedgas`s five-year technology plan, which was launched three years ago and has seen network and infrastructure development geared for R/3. MacDonald is scheduled to attend a Messer Fedgas conference in Philadelphia in April, where the company`s technology strategy for the next five years will be assessed. Among other technology innovations implemented by the local operation to date are voice over data transmission, centralised fax server, data warehouse with extensive drilldown facilities and a company intranet. For the R/3 implementation, Messer Fedgas`s business process re-engineering will be restricted to a natural realignment to suit the software and organisational change is being held back for the duration of the project. Training on the package is being conducted primarily through SAPSA, although Siemens Nixdorf consultants will be available for "shoulder to shoulder" training as the system goes live. "We`re very aware of the confidence Messer Fedgas has placed in Siemens Nixdorf and are proud to have been brought on board as technology partner," says Siemens Nixdorf managing consultant Garth Beavon.
Share