Case study: Pick n PayUCS Solutions deploys world competitive solution for Pick n Pay

Business Challenge

Pick n Pay needed to replace its legacy in-house system with a fully

integrated world-class packaged solution to enable a wide range

of strategic business initiatives and increase competitiveness.

Strategic Goals

To rapidly implement a world-class, integrated systems platform

to underpin strategic business improvement and competitiveness

initiatives, including:

Improved Inventory management through:

• Realtimevisibilityofinventoryacrossthewholesupplychain.

• Automated and optimised replenishment decisions – vital in

relation to the introduction of

convenience food lines.

• Improved integration with

suppliers.

• Ability to support centralised

distribution–theLongmeadow

Distribution Centre was opened

in September 2007 on a state

of the art SAP WM system

– supports all stores in the

inlandregionsofPicknPay–

up to 120 000 cases per day.

Improved Operational Efficiencies

• Increased automation of clerical functions in the Finance

Department.

• PaperlessoperationwithinWarehouses.

The Solution

What was chosen:

• SAP for Retail Solution (including SAP Forecasting and

ReplenishmentandSAPPOSDataManagement)

• SAPERP

• SAPNetWeaver®

• BusinessWarehouseComponent

•SAPBusinessOne

Why it was chosen:

• Most Integrated solution with widest range of functionality

includingRetail,Finance,WarehouseManagement,HR/Payroll,

BI.

• SAP had best support structures in South Africa and

Internationally.

• SAPisthelargestapplicationsoftwareproviderworld-wideand

hasthelargestR&Dbudgetwhichmeansthatfunctionalityand

technology platform will continue to grow and change.

Deployment Time:

• 1 year for Group Finance and HR. Running concurrently 18

months for full Retail, Operational Finance and Warehouse

Management.

Business Benefit

• A number of business processes thatwere not fully effective

wereidentifiedbytheimprovedSAPreporting.

• Accurate information and management reporting systems

enable the ability to make the “right” decisions.

• Customerservice,efficiency,productivityandcostsavings,are

always the primary goals but none of these can be properly

achieved without the right information. The overall integration

of SAPmodules and the ease of reportingmake this a very

powerfulERPsolutionforPicknPay.

About Pick n Pay

Grocery,Clothing,General

Merchandiseretailingthrough

company owned and franchised

stores.

Size of company:

• 400+stores.

Location:

• SouthAfrica.

The Solution - A World Class Deployment

“With400outletsandmillionsofcustomersacrossSouthAfrica

and its neighbouring states, Pick n Pay focused on implementing

a new retail software solution without disruption of its many stores,”

TonyNugent,SeniorExecutiveforstrategicprojectsatUCSSolutions.

UCS Solutions, as an accredited and expert provider of SAP

solutions,wasthefirstchoiceasapartnerforthismajorproject

that would see the deployment of the

latestSAPtechnology.

“Many of SAP’s components were

included in the scope,” says Nugent.

“These included Retail, Warehouse

Management, Finance, Human

Resources and Payroll. Additionally,

wealsodeployedsystemsforBusiness

Intelligence and Customer Relations

Management.

“We also used the SAP NetWeaver ®

Process Integrator (PI) and PoS Data

Manager (PoS DM) components to

build a seamless integration platform

between SAP and other systems such

as the Point of Sale and store Back

Officesystems.”

Pick n Pay has extensive IT staff

resources and expertise of its own.

For most of the company’s 40-plus

years of operation and growth, it ran a

mainly custom-built, in-house solution

for its central Merchandising and

Administrativesystems.

Eventually,expansionandtheneedto

operate cost-effectively in an always

connected trading environment drove

the need for a comprehensive retail and business process solution,

SAPbeingthevendorofchoice.

“Whiletheprimarygoalsarealwaysfactorslikecustomerservice,

efficiency, productivity and cost savings, none of these can be

properlyachievedwithouttherightinformation,”UrsulaWarner,

BusinessApplicationsDirectoratPicknPay.

Warnernotes: “Our in-housesolutionhadbeendevelopedover

atwentyyearperiod.Wewerenotgettingthedesiredoutcomes

froma recentproject to replace thatwith anew systemofour

own. The decision was made to investigate what was available as a

complete solution from software vendors.

“This had such positive results that we quickly decided to deploy

theSAPsolution–notjustforretail,butfornearlyallourbusiness

processes–andUCSSolutionswasselectedastheimplementation

partner,thankstotheirexperienceandabilitiesinthatarea.

“AmajorfactorwasthattheSAPsolutionhasbuilt-inintegration.

Often, a system this large and complex means months of

integration tweaking before it works reliably and we really needed

to avoid that possibility.”

Consideringthesizeoftheproject,itwasdecidedtorolloutthe

newsystem in theWesternCapeareafirstand then follow that

with other regions. There was also the opportunity to include

PicknPay’sstate-of-the-artdistributioncentreatLongmeadowin

Gautenginthesolutionframework.

“This project is practically a showcase of what amajor grocery

retailercanachievebyimplementingawall-to-wallSAPsolution,”

says Nugent. “UCS Solutions has a wealth of expertise in the

retail vertical and the success of this solution supports our belief

that packaged ERP solutions havematured to the point where

businessescanderiveexceptionalvaluebydeployingthem.”

“Oneofthebiggestchallengesinanimplementationofthisnature

is changemanagement,” saysWarner. “Therewereanumberof

systems and procedures that had been established within our

organisation over many years that had to be revised, especially

with the inclusion of our centralised distribution strategy and

bringingthenewGautengwarehouseintothesystem.

“UCS Solutions provided great support throughout the entire

process.”

Anotheraspect todeployingacompletelynewsystemis that it

often highlights problems which were not previously obvious.

“Anumberofbusinessprocessesthatwerenotfullyeffectivewere

identifiedby the improvedSAP reporting,” saysWarner. “When

you have accurate information and reporting to management, the

rightdecisionscanbemade.Thisisjustoneoftheimprovements

that are achieved when you have a better system in place.

“TheoverallintegrationofSAPmodulesandtheeaseofreporting

makethisaverypowerfulERPsolutionforourwholecompany,”

saysWarner.

ThefullrangeofSAPfunctionalityisnowfullyoperationalacross

the corporate head office and half of the operating regions. The

rollout to the remaining operational regions will be completed in

thenext18months.

In Pick n Pay’s recent financial results announcement Nick

Badminton,CEOof PicknPay, confirmed that the company is

seeingsignificantbenefitsfromtheimplementationofSAP.

“Those regions that have now run with the system for a full

financial year are seeing considerable benefits from the discipline

thatSAPbringstoourbusiness,”Badmintonconcludes.

About UCS Solutions

UCS Solutions is 70% owned by Business Connexion withthe remaining 30% owned by the UCS Solutions ExecutiveManagement Team. The companyprovides services to supportmany top South African and international businesses whosefocus is retail and the retail supply chain. UCS Solutions is acknowledgedtobeSouthAfrica’sleadingproviderofbusinesssolutions within the retail and wholesale sector. UCS Solutions has the expertise required to assists clients achieve better businessperformance through the delivery of turnkey solutions that span the complete range of retailers’ IT operations. The companyoffers a comprehensive range of services encompassing strategic and process consulting, implementation, applications support, hosting services and knowledge business outsourcing.

Size: • UCSSolutionshas+-350employees.

Location:• Gauteng( Johannesburg)• WesternCape(CapeTown)• Kwa-ZuluNatal(Durban)• UnitedArabEmirates(Dubai)

About Business Connexion

BusinessConnexionisablackempoweredintegratorofinnovativebusiness solutions based on information and communications technology (ICT). They run mission-critical ICT systems andmanage products, services and solutions for JSE listed and keypublic sector organisations, parastatals and medium-sized companies. Business Connexion is the largest JSE Listed ICTcompanyinAfricaandamarketleaderinitsfield.

Contact

Johannesburg:+27(0)115189000

Cape Town:+27(0)216804000

Durban:+27(0)312799860

www.ucs-solutions.co.za