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apsolut implements SAP Ariba Buying for Piller Blowers & Compressors
Company
Piller
Branch
Machine building
Products
Compressors for mechanical vapor recompression (MVR) and steam recovery processes
Number of employees
500
Turnover
97.3 million euros
Headquarters
Moringen, Germany
Websitewww.piller.de
No Deviation from Standard System
“One thing that impressed me from the very beginning of our discussions with apsolut was the realistic explanations they provided,” says Thomas Henzler, CIO at PILLER and Board Member for Purchasing, Production & Supply Chain Management, Marketing & Sales at the German-speaking SAP User Group DSAG. “Instead of having to listen to overblown presentations, we immediately homed in jointly on operational issues. Throughout the project, our concerns were responded to and we felt that we were in expert hands at all times.”
This goal-oriented mode of operation was totally in line with Mr Henzler’s maxim: The implementation was to stay as close as possible to the standard version of the SAP Ariba Buying cloud solution. The architecture was merely complemented by two apsolut solution modules, which closed some gaps in the SAP Ariba standard system. With the so-called Lookup Table Upload Framework, tables for approver or G/L account determination can be selected in SAP S/4HANA, formatted and uploaded directly as SAP Ariba lookup tables. And the User Master Upload Enhancement enables user master data to be loaded into SAP Ariba in an automated process.
Thanks to the high level of conformity with the standard system, PILLER will be able to benefit fully from the update and innovation cycles from the cloud. The danger of unwanted feedback was avoided and the complexity of the system landscape remains at a manageable level.
The project was realised within the agreed time and budget framework. Initially, Mr Henzler had not been totally convinced that things would run that smoothly.
“To be quite honest: I have experienced so many IT projects in the past where the ambitious original goals were eroded bit by bit. But this time, it was different because apsolut worked very systematically and always intervened promptly when something threatened to get out of hand,”
explains Mr Henzler.
Thanks to the implementation of SAP Ariba Buying, the purchasing staff at PILLER now enjoy full transparency regarding indirect procurement and are better able to focus on direct procurement. The so-called maverick buying, i.e. procurement that bypasses standardised processes, could be reduced to an absolute minimum. With a view to building one central buying and supplier platform, PILLER intends to follow its initial connection to the Business Network with further steps into the SAP Ariba universe. The next project will comprise the implementation of Ariba SLM/SLP as well as Ariba Supplier Risk, which will also address the subject of the LkSG, the German Act on Corporate Due Diligence Obligations in Supply Chains.
Lookup Table Upload Framework: Using this solution module, any type of SAP ERP table can be selected, formatted to match the Ariba table structure and uploaded directly as an SAP lookup table.
User Master Upload Enhancement: With this solution module, all the necessary user master data can be loaded automatically into SAP Ariba. The data source can be an ERP, LDAP or other central user administration system.
Implemented tools
SAP Ariba Guided Buying
SAP Ariba Snap Buying
Schnittstelle zu SAP S/4HANA
Catalog integration with Amazon Business and Mercateo
User Master Upload Enhancement
Lookup Table Upload Framework
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Martin Traxl, Head of Strategy & Digitalization, OMV
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Sarah Eve Wiedemann-Geiß, who oversees purchasing and supplier management at Bausparkasse Schwäbisch Hall
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Shibu Palakalodil, Projektleiter SAP Ariba-Implementierung
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Annette Römer, Project Manager at McKesson Europe
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Zinah Matar, Digital Business Development Manager, Juffali Commercial Vehicles
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Thomas Henzler, Chief Information Officer, PILLER Blowers & Compressors
„Despite all the digitalisation and automation, we still work in a people business. During this project, we have grown into such a resilient, unified team that we’ve managed to meet all of our deadlines up to this point, even though some of them were quite ambitious. Ultimately, that also motivates everyone involved to do their part in driving the project forward!“
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