Fast, faster, Korch – Part 2

One system for everything

The entire production process including carcass cutting is also managed through the new ERP system: This includes managing cutting lists, determining cutting yields based on actual weights, calculating material prices and production costs, weighing the actual recipe quantities across all production stages including the quality assurance inspection plans, and calculating nutritional values, allergens and ingredients in compliance with QUID requirements. In winweb-food, packaging is also planned by order and directly linked to the relevant packaging lines. Batch traceability and final package inspection complete the range of functions. All production data can be analysed quickly and flexibly. “This involves specific questions such as: How much material is lost during packaging when a new roll of film is loaded?”, explains Pascal Eckerscham. Dirk Oswald and his team are currently still verifying the actual figures directly on the production floor. The results are incorporated into the production cost calculation, enabling new and even more accurate costings.

For many major customers, the Winweb-developed EDIConverter solution for recording customer orders, electronic delivery- and freight order notifications as well as transmitting invoices was implemented – making these processes much more efficient and less susceptible to errors. Order picking is carried out largely using scanners: „This also reduces errors and ensures faster order picking“, says Eckerscham. The freight forwarding orders are transmitted from winweb-food to the freight forwarder via the EDIIFTMIN- interface after a successful load check and the required SSCC-labels are printed directly from the ERP-system. The management- information-system can be used to analyze data such as total sales volume at the click of a mouse. Sales prices are also calculated in the system with all terms and downstream costs such as annual rebates taken into account.

Paperless orders

In addition, all in-store systems at the 21 company-owned branches around Radeberg and from Dresden to Zittau are connected. Relevant master data such as item information, prices or promotions is maintained centrally and transferred to the branches’ in-store systems. Using time- and item-based order templates, each branch then orders its goods from the central office without any paperwork. All orders are processed automatically and used to control production planning and order picking. After the tills are closed, receipt data and data from the certified technical security system for cash registers are transferred automatically from each branch, prepared for the analysis of sales volumes, revenue and shrinkage, preassigned to accounts and forwarded to financial accounting.

Finally, all documents are collected in the document management system: all incoming invoices posted via winweb-food, cost invoices, supplier certificates and product passports, supporting documents or delivery notes. Everything is automatically assigned to the relevant transaction using barcode- recognition.

Costing under control

„We now have costing fully under control“, says controller Dirk Oswald with satisfaction. „We can see immediately where we have leeway, where we are under pressure, and where production losses occur?“ Felix Alber also says that all the effort has paid off: „We now have the assurance that our calculations reflect reality. We can analyze different dimensions and create a pivot- table with just one click, which makes analyzing ongoing processes much easier for us. And finally we have one hundred per- cent consistency in inventory management.“ There is now only one updateable system: „No custom solutions need to be programmed; with winweb-food I get everything from a single source“, says Alber.

Nevertheless, of course, it was not always all sunshine and rainbows, says the boss. There were times when a product enhancement designed to accommodate individual processes had to be adjusted again. “But the whole thing is also highly complex and an ongoing process that never ends,” Alber is well aware.

And Pascal Eckerscham adds: “Of course, there have occasionally been minor delays on both sides.” However, that is to be expected with a project of this scale and is taken into account in advance during project planning. “Ultimately, there were no major problems during the transition,” both sides agree.

Consumption analysis is on the agenda

The next steps planned include an analysis of consumption at the branches and the calculation of ingredients and nutritional values based on the recipes. One project particularly close to his heart can also be implemented soon: „Until now, a physical inventory has been carried out every month“, Alber explains. As a result, he does not have the financial figures on his desk until the 10th of the following month.

„Once the inventory has been fully recorded in winweb-food and the interface to financial accounting is in place at the end of the month, all it takes is the push of a button to immediately display the profit and loss for the month just ended on the screen.“ Alber can already access one of his most important key performance indicators – kilograms per labor hour – on an ongoing basis: „This constantly helps us optimize our processes so that we can become faster and more efficient.“

Radeberger Fleisch- und Wurstwaren Korch GmbH, founded in 1991 and originating from a butcher’s business in Silesia, employs approximately 400 people and processes and sells 140 tonnes of ham and sausage products per week. Its annual revenue amounts to around 50 million euros. The products are sold throughout Germany under the “Original Radeberger” brand on self-service shelves, as well as at fresh food counters in regional retail stores and through the company’s own branch network. “Original Radeberger” enjoys high brand awareness of up to 90 percent in Germany’s eastern federal states.

www.korch.de
www.winweb.de