in: ÖBM - Österreichischer Baustoffmarkt, 5-6/2009
According to WKÖ, the construction industry, one of the largest economic sectors in Austria, generates a good one-tenth of Austria's total economic output. It is expected that this sector will rapidly evolve and soon be comparable to other high-tech industries. corresponding process adjustments in logistics, time and resource management are thus preprogramed. The construction industry and its supply industry will therefore have to deal with the regularly changing IT requirements and react quickly.
While the sector was still confident at the beginning of 2008 and was blessed with an above-average order backlog, this optimism fell slightly in the first quarter of 2009. Although "construction potential" certainly exists, property developers have become more cautious and are looking for ways to optimize their processes. Performance / cost transparency in conjunction with increased service levels thus come to the fore.
acctus relies on industry know-how
Based on years of experience and numerous consultancy assignments in the building materials industry, acctus Consulting GmbH, a subsidiary of Plaut AG, has developed a methodology to deal with the requirements of the industry quickly and competently. PlautWorks PBM (Production Building Materials) supports suppliers to the construction site both during the implementation phase of a business solution and in the subsequent day-to-day business. Specific functionalities of the industry were prepared in such a way that many processes were taken over from similar problems. This guarantees both a reduction in the project risk and a minimization of the project costs.
The method
When introducing new software such as PlautWorks PBM, it is important to clarify for the time being which processes already exist and how they can be integrated into the new solution. The processes predefined by PlautWorks PBM are compared with the respective company-specific requirements and adjusted if necessary. The result is an integrated overall solution that can be implemented quickly and in a resource-saving manner. In a "test run", the solution must then prove itself in practice before the actual migration takes place. These well-thought-out steps with provided tools ensure the project's success.
Based on a best practice solution from SAP acctus realized a special solution for building material producers, which includes the following topics as an example:
- Integrated silo or container management. Central silo administration with direct allocation to location, means of transport, silo accessories as well as presentation of the filling history, etc.
- Multi-level business partner hierarchy for purchasing associations, clients, branches, processors, construction site, etc.
- Easy structuring of often complex business relationships in the construction industry.
- Extensive multi-level price and condition maintenance in one cockpit. Based on the partner hierarchy, the cockpit enables a clear price, condition or additional info maintenance.
- Transport handling for freighters or own fleet. Assignment of transport requirements to freighters and appropriate means of transport (for example, single / multi-compartment tankers, etc.).
- Production cockpit with extended characteristics in the mixing area (colour mixing). Management of admixtures, re-staining in conjunction with integrated capacity planning.
- Interface to building materials wholesalers and construction companies. Electronic data exchange in the business model between customers and suppliers, for data content from the building materials industry.