ERP Case study Import Commodity MULTI-NATIONAL DISTRIBUTORS (SOUTH AMERICA &
AFRICA)
Due to Globalization, many multinational companies find themselves operating large
and complex organizations worldwide including in emerging economies. With limited
infrastructure in these countries, multinationals organization are left with no
choice but to run non-automated systems causing inefficiencies, lack of access to
information and therefore mismanagement; such problems inevitably cause hindrance
to growth potential and profitability. Datasoft’s ERP solution combined with Datasoft
experts availed the solution to these issues by integrating and automating the entire
organization.
Client at a glance
Client Profile
- $700 million in sales
- Supply chain in Europe, South America & Africa
- Distribution centers in Middle East & Africa
- 40 distinct product lines with over 400 products
Customers Served
- Retail stores
- Wholesalers
- Distributors
Business Description
- Wholesale of commodities and perishables to domestic buyers via warehouses
- Marine transport and Import and Export intensive processes in various countries
- Several dedicated international procurement agents and vendor managed inventory
The Situation
The enterprise has grown tremendously in the past few years and has operated on
non-integrated technology and software seeded on manual paper based processes. The
growth explosion has caused significant issues throughout the business:
- Demurrage costs due to mismanagement of importation logistics;
- Unexplained inventory leakages;
- Redundant overheads incurred to operate simple audit and control of business processes.
- Inability to report current real-time financial information to company executives.
The client selected Datasoft to engineer and implement an ERP solution that would:
- Operate considering infrastructure issues in emerging economies;
- Reduce costs.
- Increase control and transparency
The Solution
Datasoft recommended a centralized ERP model to better manage business processes,
increase cost efficiencies, and enable control and transparency in every level of
the enterprise.
- This approach would further enable the Client to:
- Focus on increasing their customer base and better manage product procurement and
profitability.
- Standardize and track in real-time importation logistics and workflow
- Control inventory, expenses and treasury.
- Allow necessary data for decision making to be accessible from every dimension of
the organization
- Empower executives with real-time financial reporting driving better accountability
and control
The Doing
Datasoft implemented the following modules:
- Multi-organization, Multi-currency Accounting
- Accounts Receivable
- Inventory Management
- Retail Point of Sale
- Importation and Dispatching
- Procurement
- Cash Management and Treasury
- Audit, Control and Limits
The Result
Irrespective of the technological limitations in South America and Africa, the entire
Enterprise has integrated into one system. With the integrating purchasing, sales,
finance, inventory and treasury information, the client has completely eliminated
the duplicate entry of data. The client now has the ability to get to any information
needed from one source.
The integration of information has also resulted in operational benefits across
the organization. The visibility of information gives the client the ability to
streamline their business processes. For example, using the sales targets and trending,
the client can now anticipate shortages and proactively manage market demand and
supply factors.
Unnecessary leakages and expenses have been minimized through better controls and
transparency. Business processes have been automated eliminating redundant human
resources and overheads. The client has increased financial performance with Datasoft
ERP