Case Voestalpine: Standardized ordering processes
“In a very short time we were able to more than double the catalogue based orders. We eliminated incorrect free-text orders and reduced the number of material numbers in our ERP-system by more than 20.000.”
Harald Kremer, E-Procurement, E-Business Specialist, voestalpine Stahl GmbH
Challenge
To establish standardized ordering processes for a variety of companies and locations. To enable independent operating of suppliers, without losing control. To make purchasing data safe and compliant. To relieve the procurement department from operating effort.
Solution
With the introduction of the new platform all processes within procurement are clearly defined and structured. The processing effort and the costs decreased. The suppliers have a platform on which they deploy and maintain their catalogs and contract data autonomously. The number of suppliers could be significantly reduced with objective criteria for evaluating the suppliers.
Standardized ordering processes for a variety of companies and locations
voestalpine is represented worldwide in 50 countries with around 500 Group companies and locations. The company’s procurement processes differ extensively in the way they have been set up. Therefore, a standard procurement and ordering portal that is easy to use has been introduced for all Group companies.
Great potential for optimization
Before the new platform was introduced, voestalpine employees used to use an SAP solution to procure products and employees. As the software was not designed for this purpose, there was naturally a lot of dissatisfaction. Finding the products required was tedious, as there was no intuitive support. Nor was it possible to order from external catalogs using the internal system, because they were not embedded. In addition, data, products, and service suppliers were stored in multiple systems.
A single procurement platform Group-wide
Now Online Product Catalog (Webshop) from OpusCapita is the centralized web-based portal that is used to search, view, and order products and services. This ensures that all processes are clearly defined and structured. The new system is easy to use, has a clear user interface, and has a range of functions tailored to the company. In all departments, the procurement processes are transparent and binding. All transactions are therefore also processed much faster. Costs and expenses have fallen, while employee efficiency has increased. The electronic procurement platform is used across the Group by more than 2,300 users.
Support and benefits for Purchasing
Further advantages of the new system are that data is stored securely and compliantly, and it also has the ability to bundle purchasing volumes. Consequently, the Purchasing Department’s operating expenses have been considerably reduced.
Linking suppliers has also been significantly improved. By using a Self-Service Manager (Catalogs), catalogs and contracts can be uploaded and managed independently. The data quality is checked automatically, which benefits the Purchasing Department. As objective criteria are now also available for the evaluation of suppliers, the number of suppliers could also be substantially reduced.
Quick acceptance and error-free orders
Following the introduction of the new system, the number of catalog-based orders has more than doubled within a short time to over 100,000. Error-prone free-text ordering can now be avoided because services can also be ordered from catalog order items.
Applications and solutions
- eProcurement: Product Information Manager, collects, harmonizes, and enhances product data.
- Webshop: Online Product Catalog, shop for purchases.
- Catalogs: Self-Service Manager, portal for supplier data
In its business segments, voestalpine is a globally leading technology and capital goods group with a unique combination of material and processing expertise. With its top-quality products and system solutions using steel and other metals, it is one of the leading partners to the automotive and consumer goods industries in Europe and to the oil and gas industries worldwide.
