The Client
One of the world’s largest door and window manufacturers, operating 117 manufacturing facilities in 19 countries located primarily in North America, Europe, and Australia.
The Challenges
- There was a need for an effective scalable system that could help the client to manage different functions smoothly.
- The existing Progress-based ERP system required the development of additional modules.
- The company’s ability to serve its clients was severely compromised because there was a backlog of bugs reported in the ERP.
- Need to integrate progress-based ERP with internal as well as external systems of the company.
- Too many tickets were raised in key ERP modules and the ageing of tickets was a big concern.
- More than 40 Databases across different countries required continuous monitoring, automation, and performance improvements.
The Objective
With the changing business dynamics, the client sought to modernize their technology infrastructure to address these operational inefficiencies and build an operating infrastructure that would support their growth objectives. There was a need to enhance their progress-based ERP to streamline business operations, organize workflows, and optimize customer experience.
JK Tech aimed at helping the client with Progress application development and management, integration framework, database administration, and IT infra support.
The Solution
JK Tech being a leader in Progress Services has been associated with the client for over a decade. We carefully evaluated the business challenges faced by the client and devised a solution that would enhance internal business processes and help save on costs with higher efficiency and increased productivity.
The major developments performed as part of the ERP System were:
- Physical inventory improvements – Improved inventory count accuracy, enhanced web UI, port other applications, and Improved material tracking are some of the key featureswe implemented under this project.
- Central finance(SAP module) integration – We developed an integration layer to handle both incoming and outgoing payloads from Central finance via Sonic ESB and direct web service connect.
- Vertex and OneSource tax engine integration – Vertex is a third-party tool to calculate tax. We developed an integration layer for the ERP to send the required data to Vertex and get the tax calculated. Similar exercise but this time migration has been done from Vertex to OneSource.
- EDI enhancements – EDI(Electronic Data Interchange) was used throughout the ERP system to interact with customers, vendors, and between plants. Various enhancements have been done in most of the EDI documents (850, 810, 855 etc.)
- JK Tech team developed various integration layers & APIs to support the modules of the ERP system.
- The solution also included 24×7 application support using the ITIL framework to reduce ticket numbers and aging, and database management with automated early warning systems.
Business Process Diagram:
The Benefits
- Reduced the cost of development and support services by a margin of 35-40% without impacting the quality of service.
- The developments and enhancements in the application have led to:
- Enhanced inventory and supply chain management
- Improved user interface & system quality
- Access to real-time order information
- Analysis of customer feedback to resolve complaints
- Enabled the client to utilize the key resources in more strategic tasks rather than mundane work, thus greatly enhancing their ability.
- 70 % performance improvement in critical functions of ERP.
- The age of backlog tickets was brought down to under 5 days and the system was secured against bugs which ultimately improved the user experience.
- Various RCAs have been done to reduce ticket count year on year basis.
- 50% ticket reduction.
- The solution brought in increased operational and cost efficiencies.
- Database performance was enhanced.
