Familiar SAP tools, closely integrated with many processes within companies, need to be replaced after some time due to expiring usage rights. A successor solution is needed, but is it even possible to integrate the potential solutions into the existing corporate system landscape?
This was the case, for example, with a group of companies with numerous production plants in several European countries. Not all plants had even implemented the SAP standard (CM21/CM25) by then.
The challenge was to take into account the requirements of different divisions in the individual plants, which differed, among other things, in terms of discrete manufacturing, process manufacturing, and even in varying degrees of vertical integration. There was a typical system landscape with various subsystems, in-house developments and legacy planning tools such as Excel and Lotus.
For this reason, the task encompassed various project objectives: replacing SAP standard transactions, optimising detailed planning processes, harmonisation, standardisation and integration into the overarching (master) planning process, as well as flexibility and expandability for out-of-the-box requirements.
The requirements were grouped into four areas. In addition to the standard functionalities of CM21/CM25, other generally applicable and specific functionalities for automatic detailed planning and process-industry-specific functionalities were defined.
The requirements were categorised using the MoSCoW method. This means that the project team and the requesters (facilities) jointly categorise the hierarchical requirements and agree on indispensable, important (but not mandatory), and desirable requirements, as well as those earmarked for future projects.
In addition to licences and pricing, integration capability and the degree to which requirements are covered are key factors when selecting a suitable software solution.
Contact us. We can support you in the further development and re-selection of your tools for production planning and scheduling: