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IFS Applications has provided Prodrive with the flexibility it requires to expand as it builds a global presence. Enhanced project management and improved inventory control coupled with a proactive business system are saving Prodrive time and money and making the company more efficient. The challenge
Although much effort had been made in adapting the previous system, it was simply not flexible or robust enough to support future growth. Prodrive wanted a replacement system offering the same functionality as the existing system but with the addition of
project functionality and an easy-to-use Windows interface. Perhaps more importantly it had to be flexible enough to allow operational departments to use the system independently of other departments yet remain within the corporate framework.
The solution
In 1998, following a strategic review of its IT requirements, Prodrive decided to install IFS Applications.
Graham Brook, Prodrive IT manager, noted that IFS made considerable efforts to understand Prodrive’s business processes. “We held a pretty tough process workshop with IFS. Inevitably there were some things we couldn’t resolve, but these were clearly
defined and we left that meeting with a gap analysis of where we wanted to be and where IFS was.”
These areas, mainly in respect of projects, were subsequently resolved with the commissioning of some bespoke work, much of which has now been incorporated into later releases of the software.
Every Prodrive department, almost without fail, requires a level of project functionality. This was something that was available to a limited degree within the previous system but needed to be much better in the new system.
For the Rally and Race teams, projects provide the mechanism for car development, car builds, the purchasing and manufacturing activities to support the builds, and the logistics of attending events. In the automotive technology business, projects can be
anything from a labor-only deliverable, to full-scale research, design, engineer and prototype builds of vehicles or assemblies.
“Underpinning all our activities we must have an extremely solid inventory and warehousing system. Inventory is an extremely important part of it. Each Rally car is unique for each event and we can’t get them onto the starting line without good inventory
and logistics backup,” explains Graham Brook.
Implementation
Implementation started in October 1999 with the installation of the server hardware, IFS Applications software and a training database. A project team was set up representing the various departments within the businesses.
Much of the groundwork for the implementation was undertaken during 1999 and the system went live in July 2000, with a big bang approach.
“We had no other option but doing it all at once because we were coming from an existing integrated system,” explains Graham Brook. “Although the big bang approach took a lot more planning and testing than an incremental go-live, it all went to plan with
a smooth cut-over to the new system.”
Benefits
During the spring of 2001 the flexibility of IFS was demonstrated as the company restructured from one limited company to three, complete with intercompany trading and a central finance function. Its flexibility was shown again following the acquisition
of Tickford Engineering by Prodrive.
It was the work done in enhancing the project functionality that really gives the IFS system the edge in terms of functionality. Basically this was to allow bottom-up pricing from attached bills of materials and labor estimates. The previous system could
do this from a cost point of view, but Prodrive is now able to do it from a selling price point of view as well.
As part of the initial requirement Prodrive wanted to treat business units within the divisions as individual profit centers. Therefore they had to be able to ‘trade’ with other parts of the business. This is achieved through the standard functionality
within IFS Applications, which allows a purchase order to be placed between divisions, automatically creating the corresponding customer and works orders and dealing with the intercompany postings on completion of the order.
Prodrive moves a significant amount of material every day, so keeping up with the purchasing is a constant challenge. The IFS system uses an electronic requisition that feeds through to the purchase orders, and if necessary these can also be transmitted
electronically.
Previously the weekly MRP run would produce a thick paper-based report, which would take the buyers several days to work through and re-key as individual purchase orders. Now the MRP recommendations are reviewed on-screen and converted to purchase orders
in a couple of mouse clicks, saving buyers significant time in data entry.
For Graham Brooks, one of the biggest advances of the IFS system is in making Prodrive’s business systems more proactive. “Earlier generation systems were basically passive. Since they waited for the user to review a report or screen display, this
can often mean delays of hours or days. IFS allows us to go one step further. We get the system to tell the user that something important has happened or needs checking so we can be on top of key events as they happen.”
Future developments include implementation of product data management, including activities such as drawing and bill of material version controls within projects. Prodrive is also planning to roll out customer relationship management functionality, which
will become an important tool as the company continues to build it global presence.
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