Lifting data treasures - The fastest wins

In the new world of "4.0", everything is digital, networked and, above all, in Real-time. New laws and rules apply. If you don't know what's happening in your supply chain and act too slowly, the competition will immediately punish you. Those who know how to mine the treasure trove of huge amounts of data, on the other hand, have a clear advantage. Competitive advantage. The principle of "the big eat the small" no longer applies, but rather "the fast eat the slow".

Adjusting screws for supply chain managers

But what adjustments do supply chain managers need to make? To answer these questions, business intelligence systems with innovative database technology such as
z. SAP Hana, for example, as these are capable of analyzing large volumes of data extremely quickly.

But traditional Business Intelligence-Approaches with centralized reporting structures that periodically deliver a defined set of key performance indicators (KPIs) to managers and decision-makers are no longer up to date: they are too slow and too static, and once the reports have been generated and distributed, the actual information content is long outdated. In addition, supply chain managers need an immediate and detailed root cause analysis in the event of serious deviations, which is best carried out by themselves. However, this undertaking often fails due to either highly aggregated key figures or user interfaces that are not very user-friendly. This is frustrating and results in decisions being made incorrectly or too late.

Modern supply chain intelligence system

Increasing efficiency in the supply chain does not work without employees who have the right information at the right time to make or prepare well-founded decisions. Data discovery software can help to provide clarification and make information available in a timely and targeted manner. It enables the user to easily analyze large amounts of data and thus gain new insights.

What characterizes intuitive and flexible data discovery? Ideally, it should be as easy to use as a Google search function, for example, which allows the User displays immediate results as soon as the search term is entered. This is also known as the associative environment. Through Management of links between data records, such as transportation and Stock at engine level and not at application level, this provides a very intuitive environment. Further questions about costs do not require reconfiguration, so that ad hoc analyses and reporting are possible and the query process is noticeably accelerated without the need to involve the IT department.

With data discovery dashboards and scorecards, e.g. using SAP Lumira, even large volumes of data from different sources can be analyzed. Meaningful visualizations bring previously invisible trends and data relationships to light. Managers can use dashboards and scorecards to ensure transparency across departments and divisions. Supply chain and make well-founded decisions. As a result, the supply chain is gaining importance in the boardroom and receiving the attention it deserves.

Solution in practice

By combining process know-how and IT expertise from several hundred logistics projects, Arvato Systems has developed numerous practical solutions for supply chain management. Arvato Systems is increasingly relying on the new Technologies of SAP S/4 Hana. This has resulted in a comprehensive toolbox that User to make faster and better decisions.

The Supply Chain Intelligence Toolbox consists of cross-company and cross-process applications on the one hand and applications that can be categorized as intralogistics, transport, sustainability (green logistics), gamification and production on the other. Two selected examples of solutions are presented in more detail below.

Examples:

1. improving service levels and increasing efficiency in distribution through supply chain network optimization: by reducing inventories and extending delivery times, the Supply chains With logistics costs rising at the same time, the need for efficient and agile supply chain strategies is growing. For the efficient reorganization of the supply chain, the mostly historically grown Production- The rapid and detailed examination of different scenarios requires computer-based planning tools due to the high degree of interaction and the extensive amounts of data in a supply chain. manual planning often leads to high costs and poor quality results. At present, planners often have to resort to spreadsheet programs, which generally require a lot of maintenance and are difficult to integrate into the overall process. Based on QlikView, Arvato Systems has developed an intuitive application that contains a range of analyses, including actual structures and processes, shipment and network data, distribution and returns strategies, as well as network simulation and location optimization through center-of-gravity analysis.
2. Forecasting, planning and replenishment. Complete transparency about the Supply chain and more efficient product availability: processes such as Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) and Collaborative Planning, Forecasting and Replenishment (CPFR) require cooperation within and outside the company. The aim of these measures is a uniform plan for the next period that covers or takes into account the requirements of all parties involved.S&OP & CPFR are procedures that Data consolidate a wide variety of data sources. Those involved therefore need access to information and findings from various sources in order to make well-founded decisions in good time. This also includes up-to-date status information on the location and condition of a product or batch in the Supply chainAs various value creation partners are involved along the supply chain - from raw material suppliers to producers, transport and logistics service providers to stores and customers - prompt integration from a wide variety of data sources is required. The ability to react quickly to volatile customer demand increases considerably. Forecasts become more precise, the Stock can be reduced and production capacity can be better utilized. Arvato Systems has developed applications based on QlikView for a wide range of industries, such as the pharmaceutical industry, which include the following service components: Inventory analysis for production, transit and market, forecasting of sales figures, calculation of safety and reorder levels depending on real sales figures in the market, as well as analysis of lead times per product and batch potential analysis
   (e.g. cost potential).