More efficient scheduling through automation
Leading company in the building materials industry relies on DISKOVER
The range of products manufactured and sold by the companies in the FIXIT GROUP is very extensive: throughout Europe, the five brands in the group develop and produce a wide range of building materials for various applications in old and new buildings, both indoors and outdoors. Applications range from thermal insulation systems and finishing and finishing plasters to paints and coatings. The production facilities in the individual plants process different raw materials. The introduction of the DISKOVER supply chain management software has led to significant efficiency gains in planning and scheduling.
The FIXIT GROUP was founded in September 2006 as an umbrella organization for the five building materials brands FIXIT, GREUTOL, HASIT, KREISEL and RÖFIX. With 69 locations in 18 European countries and around 2,300 employees, the FIXIT GROUP is one of the leading system providers in the building materials sector. The customers are processors, dealers and DIY stores, architects and planners, investors and private builders, they are large suppliers, internationally oriented, represented in medium-sized companies, small regionally active companies or homeowners with innovative and ecological requirements.
In total, the Group offers over 1,000 active articles under the various brands, which must be kept in stock in sufficient quantities to meet the short delivery times demanded by customers. This requirement calls for highly efficient replenishment, which in turn depends on complete and high-quality, i.e. correct, master data.
First project demonstrates the potential of master data optimization
If there is a lack of transparency along the supply chain, inefficiencies that stand in the way of increased economic success cannot be identified. Supply bottlenecks and a lack of delivery reliability are at the top of the list of causes for sales and turnover losses in the construction materials industry. Overall, the supply chain performance of the very down-to-earth construction industry not always as requested by the customer.
The first project showed that there is still room for improvement in materials planning management. In this project on “Gaining efficiency by optimizing planning and scheduling”, which was supervised by the management consultancies Abels & Kemmner and hpossner consulting, the project participants were made aware of how important material planning data is for business success. “As part of this project, all participants initially recognized the importance of good master data maintenance,” says Bernhard Fuchs, Project Manager Logistics and Process Optimization at FIXIT GRUPPE. The initial aim of the project was to map the logistics business model by analyzing the flow of information and goods. In addition, rules and regulations were drawn up for each plant. Based on this work, the potential for improvement in terms of planning horizon, capacity utilization, stock levels, costs and delivery reliability could be simulated and a corresponding catalog of measures derived. “In the course of the project work, it became clear to us,” says Bernhard Fuchs, “that a new digital solution was needed in order to actually realize the potential for reducing stock levels while at the same time achieving the required delivery readiness.”
Digitalized disposition planning reduces manual effort
FIXIT GRUPPE has opted for the DISKOVER supply chain management software from SCT GmbH for its scheduling planning. “At the beginning of the implementation project, it was also about ensuring master data quality and making data maintenance easier,” recalls Bernhard Fuchs. Another important aspect was the transparency of the stock situation for a total of around 1,000 articles. “It’s not just about the top-selling items that are constantly needed in large quantities, but also about zero parts (zero consumption in the last twelve months) whose stock is not moved at all,” explains Bernhard Fuchs. Effective zero parts management and the prevention of the creation of zero parts in particular have a major impact on profitability. The introduction of DISKOVER was intended to ensure the optimization of stock in line with the required delivery readiness. At the same time, the seasonal nature of demand in the construction industry had to be taken into account.
When the new system was introduced, a go-live was initially carried out with selected pilot articles. The master and transaction data is transferred from SAP to DISKOVER on a daily basis. On this basis, the software determines the appropriate material planning parameters by simulation, taking into account existing rules and regulations, which are then transferred back to SAP. This automatic dynamic optimization can significantly increase efficiency and quality. After the pilot articles, all other articles were also gradually transferred to the system. The result is economically optimized availability and delivery readiness for all items. And this improvement was achieved despite the fact that the manual effort involved in scheduling and maintaining the scheduling master data was significantly reduced.
Product range streamlining and sales promotions
Bernhard Fuchs is convinced that the introduction of DISKOVER quickly had a positive impact on the FIXIT GROUP: “The identification of zero parts stocks and floor sets that are not moved at all had an immediate effect.” The various plants carried out sales campaigns and product range adjustments to reduce these stocks. According to the project manager, a large part of the success of the two projects was due to the training courses in which further knowledge on material planning was imparted: “Understanding how much stock is located where was, of course, a prerequisite for being able to realize the potential of stock reduction.”
The development of standardized key figures, such as inventory, range, inventory turnover, comparison of year 1 to year 2, etc., was also an essential part of the workshops conducted as part of the project. As part of the introduction of DISKOVER, a standardized portfolio of central reports was also developed, which are automatically sent to various recipients, such as the technical managers or management of the national companies, at set times. Even though the national companies can set the rules and regulations within DISKOVER specifically, this standardized reporting enables a comprehensive overview of material planning at Group level.
Conclusion: introduction positively received
As part of the project, DISKOVER was introduced in twelve plants in Germany, Austria, Italy and Switzerland. Ten further sites have already been technically implemented and are currently in the introductory phase. Since the project, there has been a regular exchange of experiences between the responsible colleagues from the various countries. “And our colleagues report that the results we have achieved through the introduction of DISKOVER have been positively received in all plants,” summarizes Bernhard Fuchs.
Bernhard Fuchs
SAP Projectmanager at Fixit TM Holding GmbH
