Welcome, Digitalized Delivery and Goodbye to Paperwork

With its network of well-known sales brands such as Raab Karcher, Melle Gallhöfer, Muffenrohr Tiefbau and Keramundo, Stark Germany offers a wide range of building materials and services for various construction trades. As part of the international Stark Group, the German business unit operates around 260 locations in Germany and has over 600 truck drivers on the roads.

Every day, the drivers transport building materials from the sites to the respective construction sites or branches, load and unload pallets and document their collection and delivery activities. Knowing when products have reached their destination and where they have been unloaded is important for the sales and scheduling departments. Especially in the event that the customer is not at the construction site.

Away from pen and paper

Completing all these steps efficiently and without delays prompted Stark Germany to digitize its goods delivery. Particularly in conurbations with several branches, where trucks often do not return to their starting locations, the tried-and-tested pen-and-paper recording system caused delays in internal processing and occasionally resulted in transmission errors or even delivery bills that were lost, whereas today the data can be transferred to SAP without errors and in real time for further processing.

Digitized goods delivery

Delays in processing are a thing of the past thanks to digital goods delivery. Truck drivers now use a mobile device to document all the necessary information, such as the signature of the consignee on delivery, the storage location using photos of the delivered goods or the time of delivery, in the FIS/LastMile goods delivery app. Additional information, such as the condition of the goods on delivery, can also be added to the app. As this is connected to Stark Germany's own SAP system via an interface, all recorded documents are automatically transferred to the system as an attachment to the delivery via online communication and are immediately available. This makes it possible to see which goods have already been delivered and which are still being delivered. Follow-up tours can be planned, accounting tasks processed or, for example, invoices created and sent directly.

"For us, for example, the digital delivery note returns in the form of a proof of delivery including photo function and GPS data were the greatest benefit. But the so-called collective signature for the delivery bill and tour mode developed for Stark Germany is also extremely practical. Now, each delivery bill no longer has to be signed individually by the recipient; instead, one signature is sufficient for several deliveries if the same goods recipient is involved," says Christian Haas, SAP application consultant at Stark Deutschland, describing the improvements.

Convenient operability

The simple and user-friendly operability of the FIS/LastMile mobile app also scored points with the project managers of the building materials retailer: "Simply logging in with an account, scanning the delivery bill or entering the tour number and then directly downloading all deliveries for further processing is very convenient for our truck drivers," explains Mathias Giesers, IT Project Manager Digitalization at Stark Deutschland. It was precisely this ease of use that made it possible to explain both how the app works and how to use it to the first truck drivers during the pilot phase at the Muffenrohr Tiefbau and Melle Gallhöfer sales brands within a very short space of time.

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"The operation is so simple that our truck drivers appreciate its convenience."

Mathias Giesers,
IT Project Manager Digitalization,
Strong Germany

Customized development

FIS/LastMile was customized and further developed for Stark Germany because an additional function was required for the further processing of the digital documents: verification of the data by the sales department, which makes it possible to check and possibly correct data.

In order to develop this control function, the project team worked hand in hand with its long-standing IT service provider FIS Informationssysteme und Consulting on a customized solution: while the sales teams from Raab Karcher, Muffenrohr and Melle Gallhöfer defined the challenges and tasks as part of the pilot project, the colleagues from FIS worked on the technical development and implementation, resulting in the release monitor. "The uncomplicated cooperation, fast response time and problem handling throughout the entire project on the part of the FIS colleagues was particularly positive. If we had any problems or queries, our contacts were always available to help us," adds Christian Haas.

Using a status traffic light system, every employee can immediately see how far processing has progressed, can react accordingly and adjust values directly in the release monitor. This means that all proofs of delivery automatically stored in the asset list can now be processed quickly and efficiently and released to the office staff without delay.

The way is clear for the roll-out

Thirteen locations and 8,000 deliveries processed using the goods delivery app. After a year of testing at the pilot sites, during which additional branches and their drivers were gradually integrated into the new system, those responsible are certain: "The FIS/LastMile app saves us a lot of time. We work much faster and more efficiently than before the changeover. The paperless documentation of our goods delivery eliminates work such as the subsequent recording and scanning of documents. It is so easy to use that our truck drivers appreciate its convenience," explains Mathias Giesers. "We also have drivers from many different countries working for us. The application from our partner FIS can also master this multilingual challenge. The app is now tailor-made and ready for the next step - the roll-out to the entire company."

While the pilot phase required several personal training sessions, meetings for further development and time for questions, tests and improvements separately for the two areas of "truck drivers" and "sales", the roll-out of the Muffenrohr Tiefbau and Melle Gallhöfer sales brands now involves two dedicated process managers touring the sites and training both truck drivers and sales employees so that they are then able to instruct their colleagues themselves. In addition, explanatory videos and other training materials are being developed and made available.

Conclusion

Faster, simpler and less error-prone - mobile goods delivery has made Stark Germany's desire for greater efficiency a reality. By recording and processing all goods delivery steps via app, a modern, time-optimized workflow has been established in the company. Activities such as scanning documents, printing out delivery bills twice or manually collecting signatures have been eliminated, and it is now possible to send invoices or clear goods more quickly. "With the digitalization of goods delivery, Stark Germany is taking another strong step towards becoming a modern, digital logistics company," comments Sandra Cararo, Head of Sales based Customer at FIS.

Strong Germany

The building materials distributor Stark Deutschland, based in Offenbach am Main, has a network of strong sales brands, including generalists such as Raab Karcher and specialists such as Keramundo (tiles), Muffenrohr (civil engineering) and Melle Gallhöfer (roofs and façades).
The company offers a wide range of different building materials and services via its sales brands. The cross-trade product portfolio ranges from shell construction and building construction to drywall construction, gardening and landscaping, construction equipment and tools, work clothing, tiles and floor coverings through to civil engineering and road construction. The building materials retailer has various own brands that are sold at locations throughout Germany. Stark Germany is part of the international Stark Group based in Copenhagen.

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