Global Talk Web 2009 Third Quarter

8/14/2019 Global Talk Web 2009 Third Quarter

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Industry focus: Food and Beverage

Don't make a meal out ofFood Production

Satake selects SYSPROfor the long haul

SYSPRO givesLombardi

food forthought


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CEOsmessage

Finding the rightingredients forsuccess

As youve probably noticed by now, ourGlobal Talk newsletter has chosen tofocus on certain markets as themes for

the individual editions of 2009. So far, we have

progressed from Machinery and Equipment toElectronics and Green and now its the turnof the Food and Beverages industry.

Although the information in this columnrelates to the Food and Beverage market sec-tor, I am confident you will find that it is equallyrelevant to other industries. While looking atthe issues which impact food manufacturers, Icould not help but notice that they are com-mon to many other vertical markets as well.

For example, new technologies and theInternet are impacting the way food manu-facturers operate and bring their products tomarket. Connectivity enhancements stimulatethe way manufacturers design, market, pro-duce, fulfill and support their products. Themarket is demanding wider product lines withgreater flexibility while simultaneously requir-ing optimized supply chain connectivity andincreasing service levels.

Sound familiar? Also, while each productionprocess is unique, food manufacturers share

common issues relating to the industry. Theyall face the challenges of modern-day manu-facturing and strive to build a sustainablecompetitive advantage. At SYSPRO, we haveidentified three primary drivers for our foodand beverage clients: compliance, traceabil-ity and recipe management.

In addition to the many other vertical mar-kets whose requirements it addresses, SYSPROoffers considerable benefits to the food indus-try. These have been continually enhanced

over many years through implementations inleading food manufacturing organizations fromproducers of specialty items, such as gourmet,organic and natural products, to alcoholic

beverages, wines and juices, to mass pro-duced candies, pizzas, tortillas, frozen foods

and other packaged goods.

SYSPRO provides functionality for the manu-facturer to determine where to make product,on which resource, and to plan and sequenceproducts correctly to pull variable cost out ofthe process. All of this functionality facilitatescompliance with regulations. Changeoversand clean-outs of production equipmentcan also be planned and scheduled throughSYSPRO, resulting in higher productivity andreduced costs.

As is the case for most of our clients, achiev-ing compliance is a major issue for food manu-facturers. They are constantly seeking ways toreduce the costs of compliance with regulato-ry bodies and product specifications. SYSPROenables manufacturers to keep finished goodsin inventory at an absolute minimum throughdemand and inventory planning. The manu-facturer is therefore better equipped to pre-dict what they are able to sell and when theyare going to sell it, then plan manufacturingaccordingly to avoid accumulating and stor-

ing unnecessary, often perishable inventory.

The second primary driver, lot traceability,is a critical supply chain and internal manu-facturing issue surrounding most food manu-facturing plants. In this area, SYSPRO is ableto offer full backward and forward lot trace-ability across the extended supply chain,from supplier to ultimate customer. This trace-ability or product genealogy documents allthe changes a product goes through fromthe time raw material is received through to

manufacture and storage of the product and,ultimately, delivery to the customer site.

SYSPRO Lot Traceability monitors the product

SYSPRO Global Talk I Vol 6 No.31

Phil Duff CEO, SYSPRO

TECHNOLOGY INSIGHT Phil Duff


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TECHNOLOGY INSIGHT Phil Duff

SYSPRO Global Talk I Vol 6 No.3 2

life cycle from raw materials to final product.Because SYSPRO is an integrated enterprisesolution, the lot traceability is tightly integratedto all supply chain aspects, not to just one

manufacturing location. Again, this is a hugeadvantage regardless of the type of productbeing manufactured.

With regards to the third primary driver,SYSPRO offers comprehensive recipe manage-ment through the Bill of Materials. The systemdefines the bill of material, routing and capac-ity in a single item. As a result, these elementsare woven together in the context of a recipeor formula. All the resources, materials andoperations that go into producing a product

based on a recipe are defined together. Theseinclude: process, materials, labor, equipmentand miscellaneous items such as utilities andwater into one common entity and processspecification. In SYSPRO, these entities exist astightly coupled stages rather than separate,vertical silos of information.

Furthermore, SYSPRO allows all measure-ments of the components or ingredients usedin the recipe to be specified as quantities oras percentages used in conjunction with spe-cific gravity, providing the flexibility required tomatch the current business process.

SYSPRO has the ability to track codes andto manage inventory based on code-datedproducts for effective replenishment planning.The system can calculate an expiration datefor a product based on the batch-creationdate and the typical shelf life for the prod-uct. A manufacturer may have thousands ofunits in stock today, but if the expiration of theproduct is tomorrow, inventory could go froma thousand units to zero overnight, causing

stock-outs. SYSPRO provides the ability to planbased on code dates.

SYSPRO is experiencing significant growth inits food manufacturer customer base, as com-panies take advantage of the scalability andextended feature set of the SYSPRO offering. Iwould like to take this opportunity to thank allour clients across every industry for your loyalsupport. We look forward to continuing to playan integral role in your success. v

Phil DuffCEO

SYSPRO


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The UK food and drink manufacturing sec-tor is the countrys single largest manufac-turing sector, with an annual turnover of

70 billion. This represents 15% of the UKs totalmanufacturing turnover. Efficiency within thissector is a must with traceability, on-time deliv-ery, human resources management and recipemanagement ranking as high agenda items.

Food manufacturers are looking for businessinformation solutions that deliver real-time datawhich is centralized within a single enterprise-wide system. Many food industry customers arereaping the benefits of SYSPRO in this environ-ment, endorsing the need for effective business

systems to underpin their operations.


INDUSTRY COMMENTARY - SYSPRO UK

Dont make a meal out of

Food ProductionSYSPRO provides the tools to gain control and tightly managetraceability, recipes and costs.

To give you a clearer idea of the scope, theUKs food and drink manufacturing industryranks fourth largest in the world and employs470,000 people. This is 13% of the UKs totalmanufacturing workforce, with an estimated 1.2million people employed in related industriessuch as food retail and hospitality.

Each year, the UK exports 10 billion of foodand drink products, more than two-thirds ofwhich goes to the European Union. This makesthe UK the fifth-largest food and drink exporter

worldwide. Furthermore, the industry is a keypartner to British farming as it purchases two-thirds of all the UK's agricultural produce. Thisactivity is carried out by 6,530 food and drinkcompanies.

Traceability is a mustOne of the most important issues faced by

the food industry is traceability. The govern-ment and consumers require that food com-panies - producers and manufacturers alike- must be able to trace products throughout

the supply chain back to their source. Theserious outbreak of E.coli food poisoning inSouth Wales due to contaminated meat prod-


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SYSPRO Global Talk I Vol 6 No. 3 4

ucts showed how important traceability is forpublic health. This involves keeping accuraterecords and making them available to FoodStandards Agency inspectors or other officialsif required.

A range of systems for traceability is avail-able, from paper-based to fully automated

solutions. Many of the larger food companiesrecognize that the increased efficiency, effec-tiveness and security of automated systemsare superior to paper-based systems and haveadopted these with gusto. Investigations showthat there is much for food manufacturers togain from such systems.

For example, SYSPROs Lot Traceability fea-tures deliver comprehensive track-and-trace

capabilities. In addition to enabling users totrace items back to source while maintaining

"It was clear that we needed major

improvements to many aspects ofmanaging the business, especiallyproduction and inventory control, andthat the existing systems were just no

longer up to the job."

assurance certification and tracking expirationdates, the software allows one-to-one trackingbetween component serials/lots and parentitem serials/lots. This enhanced performance

means manufacturers can track products andingredients to finite levels if required. The systemalso maintains a history of traceable items andkeeps detailed notes on inspections.

Bradbury Cheese, based in Buxton, Derbyshire,is us ing SYSPROs traceability features and func-tionality. John Williamson, IT Consultant forBradbury Cheese, says: As a food-based com-pany we have to track and trace our productlines from when they enter our distribution cen-tre to the moment they are displayed in shops

all over Britain.

The 100-year-old company uses a compre-hensive and fully integrated SYSPRO suite ofmodules covering manufacturing, distribution,general accounts and Lot Traceability. SYSPROhas enabled us to meet stringent customerservice levels, and we now have so much morecontrol over our stock. In fact, we gained areturn on investment through proper stock man-agement alone. Plus, we have more visibilityon what we are selling to customers in terms of

product lines. There is so much more informa-tion in SYSPRO compared to the old system,Williamson says.

Recipe management supports innovation andbusiness development

For some companies, traceability is part ofthe bigger picture of managing the entiremanufacturing process using the overarchingprinciple of recipe management. This links prod-ucts, components, processes, resource require-ments and manufacturing constraints of theproduction facility. Recipe management is cru-

cial in managing each of these areas to ensurethat what goes into the manufacturing processproduces the desired product at the end.

For example, Victoria Foods rapid growthproved to be a double-edged sword when thecompany launched a new range of products. Itsoon discovered that the demands and expec-tations of customers - created by its new prod-uct success - brought with it major operationalchallenges that were difficult to cope with inthe early stages. The underlying problem lay

with a significant increase in production com-plexity - more ingredients, additional processes,


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and items having to be produced in muchsmaller batches.

At this point the company had not automatedits recipe management process. The manufac-turing operation was reliant on a labor-intensivecombination of manual systems and multiplespreadsheets, which were typically fed datathat was rarely up to date, and provided nodetailed view of Work In Progress (WIP) or ofwhat was being held in the on-site or third party

off-site stores.

Attempting to meet the requirements of a98.5% on-time delivery service for its growingproduct range soon created a never-endingcycle of schedule intervention, wastage, overstocking and obsolescence - not the idealrecipe for any business!

John Blackledge, Commercial Director ofVictoria Foods, comments: "It was clear that weneeded major improvements to many aspectsof managing the business, especially produc-

tion and inventory control, and that the existingsystems were just no longer up to the job."

Victoria Foods found its solution in SYSPRO.Having one set of integrated, up-to-date data,plus the right systems to control all stock hold-ings and track movements through the factory,soon brought significant improvements in termsof stock accuracy and production visibility.

Stephanie Macdermott, Victoria FoodsPlanning Manager, says: "The key first step was

to make sure the core SYSPRO system achieveda clear and accurate understanding of what



needs to be, what can be, what is being andwhat has been produced. This represented amajor advance for the business, but, just asimportantly, it gave us a platform from which to

move forward and introduce crucial new prac-tices and systems.

For a start, pick and kit production has nowbeen successfully introduced. Picking lists ofthe ingredients are produced by productionschedulers, printed off in the stores, and thekits for each production batch are then builtready for transport to production when needed.Previously, someone from the cell would haveto go to the stores and try to take out the mate-rials needed for the next production batch.

However, even if everything was available,some items could easily be stored awkwardlyand not be immediately accessib le.

As a result, production would regularly beheld up due to not having the right materials inplace in time. Moreover, the lack of preparationmeant that bulk or pallet loads of some ingredi-ents would often have to be moved out of storeto production, and anything not used wouldhave to be returned.

With its new-found data accuracy, VictoriaFoods extended its ERP system to integrate APS,thereby improving the links between forecast-ing, sales and production. This provides a realbreakthrough in terms of overall business effi-ciency. Through direct integration with the coreERP, the APS application is regularly fed new jobinformation, along with WIP data from the shopfloor, and from this the system automaticallyand very rapidly creates and updates produc-tion schedules.


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As well as removing what was previously aslow and labor-intensive task, the system alsooptimizes production, so minimizing set up andcleaning times and maximizing utilization.

Meeting customer service requirements andmanaging growth were the key drivers of theERP implementation. Our super-streamlined

operation is already meeting these challengesfar more effectively. But at the same time, dataaccuracy and visibility through manufacturinghave had an equally dramatic effect in termsof delivering bottom line gains.

In the first full year, we have seen improvingyields and a rise in overall equipment effec-tiveness. Even more dramatically, we havewitnessed a massive reduction in waste andoverproduction as shown by the fact that ouroverall stock levels are down by 16%, obso-

lescence has been cut by 13% and WIP hasbeen slashed by 63% - a massive reduction,Macdermott says.

Managing the cost of production

Companies within the UK food sector supplychain face massive challenges. Processors areunder increasing pressure to produce moreoptions, meet volatile changes in demand andconstantly improve quality while still keepingprices to a minimum. In such an environment,effectively managing the workforce and keep-ing a tight rein on production costs is essential,especially the labor element that still tends topredominate in many food businesses.

Lincolnshire-based QV Foods is one producer

that is now in a far better position to achievethis necessary control, having significantlyenhanced its HR and cost control capabil-ity through the implementation of SYSPROs HRsolution.

QV Foods is a leading supplier of potatoesfor major retailers, major food manufacturersand food service companies. With a turnoverof around 42m per annum and a workforce ofover 300, the company has to manage volatiledemand levels. With margins very tight, its busi-

ness efficiency is highly dependant on bothworkforce flexibility and cost control.

Tina Knowles, Group ManagementAccountant, says: The production require-ments on the different business units canchange significantly on a daily basis and somanagers have to constantly match demandwith resources. This can mean moving people,even part way through a shift, between pro-duction lines within a unit.

In this environment not only do managers

need to be able to establish who is workingwhere and when, but any movements have tobe tracked to ensure labor costs, which are akey indicator, are allocated accurately, andthat managers understand what costs they areincurring.

As Mike Porter, IT manager, reports: We pre-viously used an independent T&A system thatwas loosely integrated to a payroll package.Job costing was undertaken manually using aspreadsheet, with data transferred manually

from payroll.

SYSPRO HR gives QV Foods a single source of


8/18SYSPRO Global Talk I Vol 6 No.37


HR data and a seamless process for updatinglabor and cost. Not only have time-consumingadministrative activities been eliminated, asdata for all new workers only has to be enteredonce, but the system also accurately capturesall the work movements of both the workerswho clock in and from temporary staff. Thesystem enables the company to rapidly andaccurately allocate payroll overhead to eachline within each business, irrespective of work-

force movement, on a daily basis.

As a result, operational management at QV

Foods has been significantly enhanced. The

job costing data we now have enables eachunit to closely monitor cost against budget,especially the labor cost per ton, which is amain Key Performance Indicator (KPI), andquickly act on any production issues whichcause any variances. Essentially, the dataensures any production problems, which canquickly eliminate margins, do not stay hiddenfor any length of time, Knowles says.

The final analysisClearly the food industry has to contend with

a lot of pressures. IT in itself cannot solve all the

issues. Indeed, successful food companies arethose which fully understand their markets andare willing to ensure that their managementand manufacturing processes are as in tunewith customer requirements. These processesmust be as streamlined as possible so that theyare able to run profitable businesses.

Such companies have identified that toattain their business goals they need solutionsthat fully support their needs. SYSPRO has dem-onstrated its prowess and understanding of this

market by supplying these forward-thinkingcompanies with tailored solutions that enablethem to aim high and reach their goals. v

"SYSPRO has enabled us to meet

stringent customer service levels, andwe now have so much more controlover our stock. In fact, we gained areturn on investment through properstock management alone. Plus, wehave more visibility on what we are

selling to customers in terms of productlines. There is so much more informationin SYSPRO compared to the old system."


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WORKING WITH SYSPRO SYSPRO USA


"In addition, the checks often contain a tableseating diagram, which facilitates proper deliv-ery of the prepared food to the customer, insur-ing accuracy, Hartigan says. Our WAITRPADline also helps the waiters build larger ordersand input them accurately into a Point of Sale(POS) system.

National maintains two manufacturing plants

in the St. Paul area. The West St. Paul plantmanufactures REGISTROLLS, while the St. Paulplant produces all the other lines. The com-pany manufactures both to stock and custom-ized products, maintaining several warehousesthroughout the United States.

Industry prominence is maintained via trade

show appearances and food service magazineadvertising, and the company sells its productsthrough a worldwide chain of distributors. Thesales representatives and brokers employedby the distributors are typically trained by

National.

In 1997, National decided to migrate from itsaccounting software package to an ERP solu-tion that integrated accounting, manufactur-ing and distribution functionalities. I went outlooking for something that was text-based andalso offered a Graphical User Interface (GUI). Idiscovered SYSPRO, says Hartigan, who likedthe fact that SYSPRO encompasses functional-ity to enhance the efficiencies of both manu-facturing and distribution operations.

I sold the National Checking executive teamon SYSPRO by showing everyone how easy it

National Checking Company, a 100year-old company based in Saint Paul,Minnesota, manufactures products that

enhance table service, waiter efficiency andrestaurant operations while increasing profit-ability in hospitality settings.

The companys offerings include the

GUESTCHECK, WAITRPAD, REGISTROLL anda complete line of DATEIT food rotation labelsand portion bags.

While its probably safe to assume that indi-viduals eating out rarely equate their diningexperiences with the type of order pads usedby the resident waiters, National Checkingbelieves that writing it down does make a dif-ference.

Dennis Hartigan, National Checkings Director

of Information Systems, says: Our GUESTCHECKSimprove table service, promote suggestive sell-ing, help waiters avoid mistakes and are lessexpensive than scratch pads. GUESTCHECKSprovide the power of positive input, fewererrors, better service and increased profits.

Furthermore, the Menu Prompt feature actsas a reminder for the waiters to suggest menuitems such as beverages, appetizers and des-serts. This feature gives the waiters a powerfulnew tool to increase sales, service and profits.

National Checking Company

serves up savings with SYSPRO



STRATEGIC INSIGHT SYSPRO USA

was to get the specific information required byusing the GUI, he says.

Today, Hartigans selection of SYSPRO is con-tinually reaffirmed, thanks to both the deepfunctionality inherent in SYSPRO and the excel-lent support provided by SYSPRO resellersBusiness Technology Partners and RTE of St.Cloud, Minnesota.

With SYSPRO weve eliminated separatedatabases. We can now pull out the data weneed to track customer and distributor salesout of the SYSPRO database. This is particularlyimportant for our promotional allowance pro-

grams, he says.

An important benefit delivered by SYSPROwas the availability of manufacturing numbers.The software also enables National Checkingto reconcile inventory figures against purchaseorders. In fact, to begin with the company wasfinding several thousand of dollars in lost rev-enues every month.

With the old system, there wasnt sufficientdocumentation, whereas with SYSPRO theresa true trail of everything thats going on. We

are able to track every single transaction,Hartigan says, citing sales orders and the abilityof SYSPRO to match open sales orders for theperiod against open purchase orders. Thisenables us to align inventories against PurchaseOrders and bills of lading to ascertain whetherall invoices have been issued.

More importantly, because we also know allour manufacturing costs, we can easily deter-mine gross margins to see how were doing.

SYSPROs Electronic Data Interchange (EDI)is particularly critical to National Checking, asthe company has made several acquisitionsover the years and its invoices have grown by

more than 50%. SYSPRO EDI enabled Nationalto handle this growth without having to hireadditional personnel. At present, about 68% ofall the companys invoices are going throughEDI.

The company is positive about its switchto running SYSPRO on an SQL platform. Wedeveloped a lot of third-party programs thatwork with SYSPRO through SQL. We can lookat a customer, and we can pull in all data onthat customer from any one of our databases.We can look at sales orders; we can look atthe PODs; we can look at custom print; we canlook at everything on one screen, but the big-gest advantage is the way we use the report-

ing server of SQL. Thats the main advantagewe had in moving to SQL. We can use SQL topull numerous reports out of SYSPRO, Hart igansays.

Hartigan admits that while SYSPRO is a verysophisticated program, National has yet tofully exploit its potential. But we do use asignificant amount of it to the fullest. The SQLportion has allowed us to take that extra step,as it helps us to manage our data. When youuse SQL Reporting Services, you just state the

parameters and pull in the report. When thereport changes, the programming automati-cally changes as well. With Crystal Reports, youmust write a separate Crystal report outsideof Visual Studio and you must also create onewithin Visual Studio.

Like many responsible US corporations,National Checking Company has adopted anaggressive green initiative. We are introduc-ing an ongoing stream of new eco-friendlyproducts, including the new EARTHSAFE line,says Hartigan. I have no doubt that SYSPRO

will play an important role in helping to securesales of the new line. v


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WORKING WITH SYSPRO SYSPRO CANADA


Since its inception in 1924, Purity Factorieshas been supplying the province ofNewfoundland in Canada with many of its

traditional food staples and treats. For the bet-ter part of a century, Purity has been makinghard bread as well as regional classics such asPeppermint Nobs, candy kisses, flavored syrupsand a variety of crackers, biscuits and jams.

During the 1950s, the company moved to itspresent location in St. Johns, Newfoundland,which houses the company's bakery and admin-istrative offices. Today, with 70 employees andmore than 50 products, Purity's reputation hasspread beyond Newfoundland, and its productsare now available in stores across Canada.

An important part of Purity Factories' recentgrowth has been the strength of its relationshipwith Wal-Mart, which began in 1994 when the

retail giant first entered the Canadian mar-ket. All across North America, Wal-Mart hasbeen a major force behind the proliferationof Electronic Data Interchange (EDI). EDI helpsbusinesses partners achieve just-in-time order-ing objectives by facilitating the automaticexchange of transaction information. Using theInternet to automatically transfer data such aspurchase orders and invoices allows retailerssuch as Wal-Mart to lower expenses, increaseproductivity and improve customer service.

In 2008, despite having used SYSPRO for more

than a decade, Purity Factories, like manysmall- to mid-sized companies, was still manu-ally importing and exporting its transactions toand from the Wal-Mart system. After a gooddeal of thought and consultation, RhondaKelly, Purity Factories' Controller, decided totake the plunge and implement SYSPRO's EDImodule.

The decision to adopt EDI made good busi-ness sense, but the technology involved wasoutside Kelly's comfort zone. When I came

to work here 22 years ago, she remembers,we still had rotary phones. Going into the EDIimplementation process, I didn't understandwhat the technology was or how it worked.

Purity Factories

benefits fromSYSPRO EDI

As the date set for the EDI implementationapproached, Kelly had second thoughts. I wasnervous, she admits. During the implementa-tion we had to cut off our Internet connec-tion with Wal-Mart, and I was worried that wewouldn't get paid.

When implementation day rolled around,however, everything went smoothly. SYSPRO didall the background work and set-up, and the

testing took only a day. We could have gonea lot quicker, laughs Kelly, but I was slowingeverything down with my nervousness. Just thesame, it went ahead, and I'm very glad that itdid.

Now, instead of Purity manually keying in itsinvoices, code numbers and quantities, thecompany receives and sends EDI transactionswith virtually unattended import and exportoperations. SYSPRO EDI reads the invoice docu-ments and transfers the data into Wal-Mart'snetwork for processing by the retailer's compu-

ter systems. When human response is needed,users are notified of EDI activity via e-mail.

In addition, says Kelly, when Wal-Mart paysour invoices, the SYSPRO EDI module automati-cally posts the payments into each Wal-MartAccounts Receivable account. That was abonus we didn't expect.

With their Wal-Mart transactions fully auto-mated, Kelly and her colleagues can focuson the jobs they were hired to do. We're

delighted with SYSPRO EDI, says Kelly, and wehaven't had a hitch. We're getting paid faster,and we're saving time which also saves usmoney. v



SYSPRO Global

Increasing world travel, changing demo-graphics, multinational business, and greaterdiversity at home have whetted our appe-tites for international flavors whether innational dishes or creative culinary fusions.Anyone entering the food service industrytoday must be prepared to meet this grow-ing demand. Taste truly has gone global,and SYSPRO has been there every step ofthe way. Here is a selection of quotes from

just some of our customers in the Food andBeverage industry.

Two Chefs on a RollI attribute the companyssurging growth to a for-

mula that includes creative,high quality food solutions,top-of-the-line ingredients,flawless manufacturingtechniques, resourcefulmarketing and an enter-prise resource planning(ERP) software solution fromSYSPRO, Costa Mesa, Calif.

Over the past 16 years, TwoChefs on a Roll has evolvedinto a full range factory of

custom savory and bakeryproducts. Products rangefrom cinnamon rolls andcheesecakes to spicy hum-mus, specialty dips andsauces. This rapid growthcan be attributed to mas-terful research and devel-opment combined withflawless manufacturingtechniques. Two Chefs ona Roll supplies food service

clients and specialty retail-ers throughout the US with awide range of extraordinaryand creative foods.

"SABMillerSYSPRO is the per-fect fit for the brewer-ies requirements. Wearranged for top man-agement to visit ourTanzanian operation,and they were deeplyimpressed with theSYSPRO solution. In Indiawe loaded a demoversion, and I showedthe management

accountant how to usethe basics GeneralLedger, journal entries,and so on. The nextmorning I discovered

that he had spent thenight teaching himselfthe system through theonline help facility andno longer needed my assistance.

SABMiller is the worlds second-largestbrewing company with a presencein more than 40 countries across fourcontinents. The company has a port-folio of over 100 strong brands, includ-

ing Pilsner Urquell, Fosters LagerTM,Henry Weinhards and, of course, Millerbrands. SABMiller has leading marketshare in many of the countries in whichit has brewing operations. Outside theUS, SABMiller is one of the largest bot-tlers of Coca-Cola products in theworld. SABMiller Africa & Asia has beenpursuing a strategy of standardizingon SYSPRO software for a number ofyears. SABMiller currently runs SYSPROin a number of African countries and

India, allowing them to better leverageopportunities in those countries.

SYSPRO:

The Global Gourmet


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SYSPRO Global

SYSPRO Global Talk I Vol 6 No. 3 12

Walsh Family FoodsWe chose SYSPRObecause it had a wide

user base - it was triedand trusted - with a fair balance betweenprice and performance. It also had goodintegration with Windows technology andshowed a promising development path.We have European Food Safety InspectionService (EFSIS) higher level approval, andour record-keeping and record systems haveto be up to scratch to support that. Withthe current upgrade, were turning on thetraceability aspect of the system with theintroduction of bar-coding and RF technol-

ogy.

Founded in the early 1950s, Walsh FamilyFoods has grown into the market leaderin Ireland for chilled handheld snacks, fro-zen crispy garlic mushrooms and tempuracoated natural onion rings. The companyalso markets an innovative range of chickenand appetizer products. Based in Finglas onDublins north side, the company operatesfrom a state-of-the-art production facil-ity. The company manufactures to Hazard

Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP)and the higher level EFSIS standard.

KencraftThe software is really exceptional. It expedites entry of our high vol-ume of orders. Additionally, it provides the f lexibility to extract thedata we need for better decision-making purposes. We can custom-ize reports, flag items that need to be looked at and readily calculate

re-order levels to optimize inventory levels. We can manipulate dataand project forward. This is very important for a company such asKencraft that does a high volume of business.

Kencraft from Alpine, Utah, gained national recognition in 1974 at atrade show in Chicago as a result of its handmade sugar Easter eggsand Christmas decorations. What began as a home business mak-ing handcrafted confections for friends and neighbors expanded intoicing decorations for bakeries and confection products for Disneylandand retail stores across the US. Their trade names Lollipals, CandyClimbers and Bubble Gum Buddies have become collectors items,not just candy.

Bont FoodsThe ability to see at a glance whats in eachwarehouse and whats available for sale

is a real time saver. HACCP is a lot like ISOCertification in that it is very detailed anddemanding. Excellent tracking of products bylot is critical for us. SYSPRO gives us the tools tomeet the current and future HACCP require-ments. Theres always something new to makeour work even better. I would recommend it toanyone in our industry.

Bont Foods began operation in 1977 as themajor supplier of pizza and Donair productsto its sister company Greco Pizza, Atlantic

Canadas No. 1 pizza delivery chain.Twenty-five years later, Bont isbuilding its fifth plant expan-sion, doubling its plant sizeyet again, and aggressivelygoing after markets acrossCanada and into the US.Bonts products includeDonair meat products, pitabread, bagels, GreccoPizza products, Mrs. Bssalsa and soups made in its

federally inspected Dieppe,New Brunswick plant. Bont hasrecently undergone a new state-of-the-art expansion of its freezer and bak-ery as a direct result of a successful drive toexpand the sales base with new products.

"



Crosby MolassesThe new screen layout for Structure & Routingmaintenance (defining how to manufactureany product) presents both ingredients andlabor operations to the operator in a singlewindow. This makes viewing and updatingproduct definitions very convenient. Crosbymakes good use of SYSPROs powerful what-if

costing for financial projections and its backflushing facilities for materials management.

Crosby Molasses isa long-establishedfamily firm whosebeginnings dateback to before theturn of the cen-tury. Crosby hasremained consist-ently up to date in

its operations to meet modern demands. Thefirms main processing plant in Canada usesthe latest in automatic filling and packagingequipment. Crosby diversified its business dur-ing the 1960s to include the manufacture ofpancake mix and flavored crystals, the pack-aging of table syrup and the marketing of theCapn John line of seafood products. Sincethe early 1980s, the companys flavor crystalbusiness has expanded greatly. Crosby hasbecome a signature name and is synonymouswith molasses and other quality foodproducts.

Forkless GourmetSYSPROs Trade Promotion Managementmodule is a best-in-class solution to thehost of trade promotion and deduc-tion management issues facing ConsumerPackaged Goods (CPG) companies today.

In 2003, when Chicago, Illinois-basedForkless Gourmet introduced its new lineof authentic ethnic meals in a bun, thecompany set out to fill the unmet need forhigh quality, authentic ethnic frozen food

in a convenient, handheld form. ForklessGourmet has a proven team of senior foodexecutives and a dynamic group of addi-tional staffers many of whom workedtogether in the past to successfully buildemerging food brands such as Boca Burgerand Brooklyn Bagel Boys. Together, they setout to pioneer the creation of the Bun Mealcategory in the US and set the new goldstandard for taste in frozen ethnic food. Forthat reason, they call themselves Bun MealPioneers. In 2004, Forkless Gourmet was

awarded Best New Product at the FoodMarketing Institute (FMI) show in Chicago.

"

DeltaAfter growing into an industrial and commercial conglomerate, Delta unbundled its opera-tions to become a focused beverage company, supporting several product groups andbrands. This led to a complete re-engineering of bus iness processes, and an enterprise-widesuite of resource planning, execution and analysis tools was recognized as an essential suc-cess factor for the new organization.

Delta Corporation is a holding company that has invested in and taken management respon-sibility for a broadly-based portfolio of businesses which operate throughout Zimbabwe. Fromthis small beginning the brewing company developed into a major commercial and industrial

operation. By 1950, it was producing pale ale, milk stout and Sable Lager. Over the years thecompany continued to expand its portfolio of businesses and diversified its brewing base.Deltas interests focuses on the mass consumer market and includes lager and sorghum beerbrewing, the bottling of carbonated and non-carbonated soft drinks, supermarket and furni-ture retailing, tourism and various agro-industrial operations. Delta has 700 SYSPRO users. "

SYSPRO Global


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WORKING WITH SYSPRO SYSPRO ASIA


Satake selects SYSPRO

for the long haul

S

pecialist food equipment manufacturerSatake is reaping the benefits of com-

plete project management support, theability to capture all costs related to its equip-ment imports and improved foreign exchangemanagement thanks to its implementation ofSYSPRO.

Satake designs and constructs a wide rangeof specialised machines that ease the millingand bulk processing of cereals, pulses, nuts andeven plastics. Its equipment and processes areused to speed and improve almost every areaof agricultural processing from cleaning andsorting grain through to conditioning, de-hull-

ing, polishing or pelletising, weighing, blendingand bag packing.

A wholly-owned subsidiary of the Japanese-based Satake Corporation, Satake Australiahas developed a well-deserved reputation forinnovation in the way it adapts existing equip-ment to meet the needs of Australia's nicheproducers.

Although Satake is a manufacturing com-pany, the high degree of customisation makes

it a services-intensive operation. Every sale isdescribed as a project and the company aver-ages between 15 and 20 projects each year.

Mahesh Patel, Satake's accountant, describesit as .. a very specialised process engineeringbusiness. If a customer wants to mill something,we design that process. He gives the example

of a bio-ethanol plant which employed Sataketo develop processes and technologies atthe plant's front end, preparing the sorghumin ways that maximise the fermentable grainentering the processing system.

Back in 2002, Satake's management relied ona small MYOB-style business software packageto handle its day-to-day financial activities andbusiness reporting. Despite limited functional-ity, the suite met the company's needs andPatel was happy enough with the solution.

Unfortunately the IT industry rarely stands stillfor long, particularly for small developers, andduring that year Satake was advised that thesoftware vendor would soon cease support ofthe suite.

It was time to seek a new solution with alonger lifespan.

Patel used the opportunity to consider arange of software offerings from tier one ven-dors down to small packages. His requirementsincluded strong landed costing capabilities to

help track the progress of the company's spareparts and machinery imports, and to captureall costs related to each imported item. Wesource machines not just from Japan but fromall around the world, Patel explains. For thesame reason, support for foreign exchangemanagement was critical.

Given the custom preparation that goes intoeach machine, a comprehensive contract orproject costing module was necessary. Thesoftware had to allow Satake to record labour,

stock items and a variety of other costs againsteach client project, and reconciling projectestimates to actual costs was crucial.



WORKING WITH SYSPRO SYSPRO ASIA

While Satake's inventory is not particularly

huge accounting for only 3,000 standardstock items inventory management capabili-ties were also investigated. The business needsto track a total stock file of approximately10,000, with non-stock items ranging from majormachines to small washers.

In the end Satake selected SYSPRO. One ofthe main reasons for choosing SYSPRO was Iwas able to test demonstration software on mycomputer. Another good reason was that theprice was well within our budget, Patel says.

Once the decision to move to SYSPRO hadbeen made, the implementation took just sixweeks.

Because all the modules are so solid, wedidn't require any modifications. And becauseit is so easy to understand, we were able toinstall SYSPRO without having to do a parallelrun. There was no phasing in period. We justturned on all the modules on day one. It soundsbrave, but because of the volume of transac-tions we were able to make that decision, he

says. SYSPRO is very easy to learn and to use.All the modules follow a similar pattern so onceyou learn one it becomes very easy to under-stand all the other modules.

The switch in software has made customerservice much faster and more accurate, withthe SYSPRO customer enquiry screen beingused by all staff whenever someone phones in.If the customer doesn't know a part number orthe exact details of his or her equipment, thesystem readily supplies all the necessary infor-

mation.

SYSPRO's tight integration with standardMicrosoft Office applications makes it easy

for staff to extract and review data for greateranalysis using familiar tools. Inventory data,for example, is extracted into Microsoft Excel

where it is used to reorder items and examineold stock.

The cash book module has also proven itsworth. The foreign currency bank accountis always reconciled to our foreign currencystatement, Patel says. Foreign currency canbe a problem to reconcile and when we werefirst looking for a solution, this was an area thatother software vendors' modules didn't handleparticularly well. With SYSPRO it is very easy todo and to control.

SYSPRO has given us much more functional-ity than our previous software, especially in theareas of inventory and project management.Compared to five years ago, it has becomevery easy to find non-stock items or to track thecost of making that non-stock item.

Although Satake receives support fromSYSPRO partner and business solutions providerTeam Computing Australia, the company hasremained largely self-sufficient. We've hardly

ever had to call for support. The software is verystable, Patel says.

Having a reliable and well-performing ERP sys-tem is important to Satake management. In acompany of just 20 people, nobody can affordto waste time on inefficient processes. Thehighly skilled staff remain free to con-centrate on developing Satake'spresence.

Australia represents asteady market with someinteresting challenges.

We work on a lot ofniche products suchas pyrethrum, which isonly grown in a fewcountries in the world,Patel points out. Thecontinual demandfrom projects suchas this means thatSatake staff are likelyto remain at the fore-front of new process

development, build-ing on their reputationas specialists with world-leading expertise. v


17/18

WORKING WITH SYSPRO SOUTH AFRICA


SYSPRO gives

Lombardi foodfor thought

Lombardi Foods, a privately-owned compa-ny, supplies a large range of fresh foods toleading South African retailer Woolworths.

Lombardi produces more than 250 finishedproducts, all of which are manufactured on adaily basis. Lombardi Foods has enjoyed sub-stantial, sustained growth and is recognizedas a top Woolworths Foods supplier. It faces a

number of key challenges including short leadtimes, varying product volumes, Just in Timeproduction and material usage variation.

Roberto Lombardi, MD of Lombardi Foods,says the companys existing software systemand manual processes could not support itslarge growth or demand for more accurateand real-time information. Consequently, ateam was dedicated to finding an integratedsoftware solution to replace Lombardis currentdisparate systems and enable control of all the

core business processes.

Key to this control was a system which wouldcater for Lombardis complex recipe manage-ment and costing model. The system neededto be able to accurately report on costingand usage variances within production whilebeing user friendly and customizable. Largevolumes on forecast and order input fromcustomers needed to be imported electroni-cally to reduce costly man hours and manualerror. Daily production output, material usageand finished goods dispatch needed to be

controlled within the integrated system in realtime. Finally, a proactive management teamrequired powerful, real-time reporting whichwas easily accessible and customizable.

Together with EOH, a leading SYSPRO imple-mentation partner, Lombardi Foods createda structured implementation plan to roll outSYSPRO in all areas of its core business. Adoptinga multi-phased approach ensured the organi-zation was prepared for the change at eachmilestone of the implementation. Several small-

er projects ran concurrently to ensure a mini-mum implementation timeframe.

We needed an integrated system which

enabled us to focus on one version of thetruth. Our legacy systems were falling over andwe needed a new feature-rich system whichwas fast and relatively easy to implement,Lombardi says. Its imperative that the set-upis done properly and you follow a structuredimplementation. The benefits from the software

and powerful real time reporting are endless.The successful implementation has delivered afull return on project cost investment within twoyears.

Sales orders and forecasts were importeddirectly from Lombardis portal into SYSPROusing the Document Flow Manager, savingsubstantial time and reducing human error. Adedicated team within Lombardi Foods har-nessed the feature-rich Bill of Materials moduleto create detailed and accurate recipes for its

products, incorporating various cost elementsfrom direct raw material costs to overheads andpackaging.

SYSPROs MRP and Work In Progress moduleswere used to suggest, plan, create and man-age large numbers of daily works orders, whilealso providing suggestion into the procurementof raw materials. Customized reporting anddetailed factory documentation provided thelink between system, management and shopfloor. This enabled information collected fromthree previous disparate systems to be elegantly

presented from one system on one document.

Commenting on further benefits, Lombardisays there has been a remarkable reduction inprocessing time as well as a reduction in humanprocessing error. Accurate costing and usageanalysis has enabled management to focusits energies on the derived information andreporting, drive cost reduction exercises andempower staff in the process, he says.

In addition, Production benefits from the effi-

ciencies provided by the fully integrated soft-ware, and the management team can react toinformation quickly and make changes whereproductivity needs to be improved. v


18/18

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No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,including photocopying, recording,or by any information storage or retrievel system, without prior

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SYSPRO (Pty) LimitedBlock ASunninghill Place9 Simba Road

SunninghillJohannesburg2191South AfricaTel: +27 (0) 11 461 1000Fax: +27 (0) 11 807 4962Email: [email protected]

Asia Pacific

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Tel: +61 (2) 9870 5555Fax: +61 (2) 9889 5566Email: [email protected] enquiries:Australia: 1300 882 311Singapore toll free: 800 616 2209Malaysia toll free: 1800 812 655Indonesia toll free: 0018 0306 121 62

Canada

SYSPRO Software Limited4400 Dominion Street

Suite 215Burnaby (Vancouver)British ColumbiaCanadaV5G 4G3Tel: +1 (604) 451-8889Fax: +1 (604) 451-8834Email: [email protected]

UK & Europe

K3 Business Technology GroupBaltimore House50 Kansas AvenueSalford Quays

ManchesterUnited KingdomM50 2GLTel: +44 161 876 4498Fax: +44 161 876 4502Email: [email protected]

USA & Americas

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USATel: +1 (714) 437 1000Fax: +1 (714) 437 1407Toll free: (800) 369-8649Email: [email protected]

Global Talk Web 2009 Third Quarter

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