85 percent of the data is superfluous

Performance problems and numerous duplicates in the master data prevented optimal system use at the hospital and nursing home bed manufacturer Stiegelmeyer. The Datavard Fitness Test brought clarity: Now 700 in-house developments can be shut down and 86 percent of the data archived.

The Stiegelmeyer Group stands for high-quality beds for the hospital and care sector. The company, headquartered in Herford, Germany, exports its products to over 60 countries and maintains sales companies in Belgium, Finland, France, the Netherlands, Poland and South Africa.

Stiegelmeyer has been using SAP ERP as its business software since 1998. Over the years, many in-house developments were added, the flood of data grew and performance problems in the ERP system became noticeable.

"System performance slumped at times. In addition, we received feedback from our sales staff that the system was confusing due to duplicates in the master data and that the right customer could not be found straight away."

is how Sebastian Frensemeier, IT Application Manager at Stiegelmeyer, describes the initial situation.

"That was a legitimate reason for us to take action."

With the help of a system analysis, the existing weaknesses in the grown ERP system were to be uncovered and starting points for optimization were to be found. In addition, Stiegelmeyer wanted to use the results of the analysis to review and benchmark the performance of the SAP hosting provider.

"We were aware that there were vulnerabilities in the system, but we didn't know exactly where they were and whether they would match what our users were saying"

says Frensemeier.

The IT expert expected a system analysis to provide detailed insights into system performance and stability, data storage and quality, and compliance and security aspects.

System analysis with aha effect

The decision was made in favor of the Datavard Fitness Test analysis tool from the software and consulting company Datavard. The application had been developed by Datavard as a standard product to analyze and optimize running SAP systems in the most resource-efficient way possible.

The tool combines an automatic in-depth analysis with benchmarking that includes data from over 300 SAP systems from international companies. On this basis, Datavard Fitness Test identifies the strengths and weaknesses of the system and creates actionable recommendations.

The data volume of all contained data is analyzed together with a prediction of the expected growth, the system performance in terms of speed and reliability as well as the data quality.

Furthermore, Datavard Fitness Test checks compliance and security aspects and uncovers areas with particularly high archiving and housekeeping potential. In addition, potential Abap code conflicts are analyzed and presented.

Running time shortened by adjustments

The project got off to a smooth start.

"We had a fixed contact person and weekly status calls to prepare. It was all very resource-efficient."

says Frensemeier. First, a test run was to take place in the quality assurance system, since it exactly mirrors the production system. For this purpose, the transports were imported and checked to see if they were compatible with the system.

"We initially started the analysis in the Q system. It quickly became clear that with some program modifications by Datavard itself, the runtime could be reduced to one month"

Frensemeier reports.

At the turn of the year, those involved in the project at Stiegelmeyer prepared for the start in the productive system.

"We consulted with our hosting service provider to be able to ensure the desired performance through minor system optimizations in advance.

It was agreed to double the batch processes and reduce the dialog processes. After all, the fitness test was to be carried out during ongoing operations and the day-to-day business was not to be affected".

says the IT expert.

Finally, at the beginning of March, the four-week run of the Datavard Fitness Test started in the productive system, which went off without a hitch. During an on-site presentation, Datavard consultants explained the results of the system analysis and provided concrete recommendations for action.

Optimization potential uncovered

The results from the system analysis show a clear need to catch up with regard to data archiving and application decommissioning. In the benchmark, Stiegelmeyer was in the lower third of the 300 comparison systems in some points.

"The aha effect was particularly high in the SD area and in the CO environment"

Frensemeier sums up.

"In both areas, we can archive 85 percent of the data set, which is 55 GB."

Another surprise was revealed by the in-house developments. The Fitness Test had determined that 700 of the 1500 in-house developments were no longer in use. Decommissioning these applications would close potential security gaps, save costs. The number of modified standard programs was also surprising:

"We knew we had touched some standard programs, but then the actual number of 918 modifications stunned us"

says Frensemeier. The IT department was less surprised by the data quality of the master data, as the results confirmed the users' statements.

In this case, the results were helpful for the discussions with the specialist departments. This was because the master data quality was to be significantly improved for the planned introduction of a new CRM system.

Conclusion: "Very resource-efficient" rating

The system analysis had gone smoothly and took up little time of Stiegelmeyer's IT department.

"What impressed me most was that the project was very self-sufficient. We didn't have much internal effort because everything was managed by Datavard. Over the entire duration of the project, there was an internal staff requirement of about two days."

Frensemeier summarizes.

The goals associated with the analysis had been achieved: With the help of the analysis, the "blind spots" in the system could be identified and optimization possibilities pointed out.

"We knew there was potential for optimization at our company, but not where. What surprised us was that we could achieve so much with so little effort."

says Frensemeier.

The task of the IT department is now to implement the recommendations for action. The fitness test is to be started again in a year's time to see whether all the homework has been done and what effect it is having on the system.