Optibelt Group
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As the OPTIBELT Group grew, manual reporting in Excel or using lists from the AS/400 ERP system became impractical. Generating detailed information or performing a plan-actual comparison was only possible with considerable effort. Manual data consolidation and processing inevitably led to a high risk of errors.
The Company: High Performance in Quality
The Arntz OPTIBELT Group (OPTIBELT) is one of the world's leading manufacturers of high-performance drive belts. The group is characterized by continuous international growth.
OPTIBELT products are used wherever durability and uncompromising quality are required: in mechanical engineering, the automotive industry, the agricultural machinery sector, and the home appliance industry. The family-owned company employs over 2,500 people worldwide. From its headquarters in Höxter (North Rhine-Westphalia), the Arntz Optibelt Group manages eight production sites in six countries.
The facts at a glance:
✓ Significant time savings
✓ More detailed information processing
✓ Flexible plan-vs.-actual comparisons
✓ Automatic data consolidation and preparation
✓ Automatic, reliable sales forecasts
✓ Targeted production control
✓ Optimized delivery capabilities
✓ Targeted inventory and purchasing analyses
The challenge: An application that displays all data at a glance
"As data consolidation became increasingly difficult, we decided in 2002 to look for a solution that could provide reliable reports on an ongoing and ad hoc basis to all relevant departments—such as sales, marketing, controlling, and production—as well as to senior management," explains Wolfgang Kosubek, Head of Marketing at OPTIBELT. In addition, the solution needed to enable a comparison of planned versus actual figures at any time. The consulting and implementation partner celver impressed the manufacturer with its industry expertise and a prototype based on the all-in-one Board toolkit. In addition to robust planning and simulation capabilities, the toolkit offers the ability to implement individual applications tailored to specific departments and link them together using an integration-based approach.
“Everyone involved works within the same software and uses the same interface. “This is a factor that, in our view, leads to high user satisfaction,” says Elisabeth Finke, Marketing Manager at OPTIBELT. Using the prototype, all requirements were documented in a subsequent analysis phase in collaboration with the relevant departments. The result was a specification that provided details on the data structures, the interfaces to the AS/400 legacy system, and the analyses and planning screens to be implemented.”
The solution: Up-to-the-minute information in a comprehensive system
Before the reporting and planning solution could be implemented, a central data warehouse had to be set up to create a consistent data foundation. Microsoft SQL Server is used for this purpose. Using SSIS packages (SQL Server Integration Services), the data is transferred, consolidated, and verified nightly. The resulting database serves as the foundation for the required data model, which is stored in the Board database. In the next step, the analyses, reports, and planning screens were implemented according to the specifications. With the completion of the system, the group now has a comprehensive reporting and planning solution as well as a scenario environment. Here, all participating departments receive up-to-date information on sales down to the lowest level of detail, such as customer or item. Thanks to the rolling forecast, which serves as the basis for annual and five-year planning (bottom-up approach), trends and developments are visible to planners at all times.
Approximately 150 sales representatives worldwide forecast expected revenue in local currency for about 11,000 customers. The rolling forecast takes into account the actual data for each completed month within the current fiscal year as well as the current order backlog.
An overview screen provides a clear view of the current planning status at all times. Once planning is complete, the sales area managers review the data entered by the sales representatives, make any necessary adjustments, and approve the plan. The next step in the defined workflow is approval by the sales manager. Only then does Controlling transfer the planning results to the scenario environment to generate reliable forecasts for production. This also includes automatic conversion to the group currency. To calculate the expected sales volumes per item, item/customer combinations from the previous fiscal year are used. Average prices are determined using an algorithm that takes into account a previously defined price increase rate. These average prices are used to convert planned sales into required sales volumes, which serve as a key input for production planning . Quantity factors for production are already stored in the item master data for each item, allowing sales volumes to be automatically converted into production volumes.
In addition, inventory analyses provide information on current inventory trends, the stock coverage of each item, and the coverage group to which the item belongs. This determines the time frame during which the item will be available, taking expected sales into account. Purchasing also uses this information to place orders based on demand. In addition, purchasing has access to analyses of average prices per item and purchase volumes per supplier.
With celver’s solution, the company not only receives reliable, continuously updated sales forecasts, but can also precisely manage production volumes, ensure its own delivery capacity, and maintain sufficient material reserves. Inventory and purchasing analyses further help ensure optimal stock levels.
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