Wiadomości

Marzec 2010
Van Loo chooses ReflexSystems

Source: Food Industry March 2010

A (new) ERP package usually has such far-reaching effects on how a business works that the implementation is spread over several months. However, at Vleeshandel van Loo, ReflexSystems has recently proven that this can happen at a rapid pace as well. Due to delays in the building of the new production facility, this ERP supplier had no other choice than to carry out the implementation in one week. An additional challenge was that each installed part of the 'Reflex 3000' application had to be ready to operate immediately...

In 1958, Willy Van Loo decided to start a new course in the world of the pork industry. His company has grown steadily which has chiefly been the result of the continual effort to meet the requirements of the customer as closely as possible. This is why, in the seventies, Van Loo began cutting the pork as well. This proved to be so profitable that, in the eighties, Willy Van Loo decided to concentrate his efforts solely on this activity. This proved to be a wise choice as Van Loo became a well-established name in Belgium's pork industry. The company continued to grow under the realm of son, Garry and established a firm footing in the Netherlands and in Germany. He was also the one to start the process of turning pork into minced products (tartar, minced pork, sausages, hamburgers…). This was a strategic move that proved to be extremely successful as well. Over the last few years, Van Loo no longer cuts for third parties: the pieces are sold to retail and butchers and the rest are processed internally. The on average five hundred pigs that the company processes weekly are now not enough: today fifty percent of the base materials for the processing section are bought as cuts. In addition, Garry van Loo would like to add more variety to the selection, which is why he is currently developing a series of pre-prepared meals. However, he had to wait until the company had moved to its new premises in Hulshout, which holds the infrastructure for a hot kitchen. "We had the idea of bringing a similar selection to the market for quite a while," recounts Garry Van Loo. "Because we have full control over the whole meat part of the process, we can provide high-quality meals at a very reasonable price. And with the rising trend of convenience, this is exactly what the market demands. Nevertheless, the step towards pre-prepared meals cannot be taken on a whim. The FASFC (Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain) requires that there be a separate hot kitchen. "Our branch in Itegem that we built eighteen years ago could no longer be expanded any further. Because our processing activities showed substantial potential for growth, we decided immediately on building a brand-new factory."

ERP as heart of the business

The new factory has expanded the floor area from 1,200 to 4,800 m2. And thanks to almost brand-new machinery (with extensive automation), the capacity has multiplied by about six. The investment in a new ERP package has also contributed to this considerably. As a result of this application, all the administration, invoicing, production, tracking & tracing, picking and stock management will be fully integrated and automatically controlled. Garry Van Loo: "Thanks to this investment, we can achieve a considerable growth without having to recruit extra employees."
"In addition, the package allows us to obtain the BRC and IFS certificates, which will help increase our sales in retail and export considerably. This way, an ERP package, which has a fairly large price ticket, will pay for itself after a few years. And not to mention the decrease in errors which indirectly results in profit. An integrated ERP package makes it almost impossible to enter orders incorrectly. In addition to this, the application is linked to the weighing scales, which means that the weights are registered automatically. The labelling is also fully automatic. All of this leads to less production loss, less time wasting and a greater customer satisfaction. Furthermore, the system ensures that the invoicing can be monitored carefully in order to implement quick and minimum recalls in cases of any food safety issues. Listings can also be created so that you can re-adjust the range of products and take measures to generate maximum sales. Even working with stock is now a possibility. This was previously a problem because we could not register anything in the production. If we list all the benefits, you may well ask why we did not invest in an ERP package sooner. The answer is simple; the disadvantage to this is that such an application has a huge impact on the methods of working. This is why we decided to wait until we had moved into our new premises."

ReflexSystems is chosen

After thorough market research, Van Loo decided to choose 'Reflex3000' from ReflexSystems. "I left the search for the programme to my accountant and the quality manager," recounts Garry Van Loo. "They both had a list of requirements which the ERP supplier had to meet. I only had one requirement and that was that the application had to be very user friendly. The intention from the outset was that the solution would also be used on the work floor. Unfortunately, the workforce is not accustomed to working with IT equipment which meant that a complicated ERP package would not be accepted and the investment 		would have been for nothing. According to my project team, from the results of the market analysis, 'Reflex 3000' from ReflexSystems stood out as being the best for our type of activity. It also scored extremely high on its user-friendliness, which I was able to experience myself at a comprehensive demo. This is why I almost immediately gave the go-ahead to proceed with this system."

No easy task!

Initially, this project progressed in the same way as by every other user of 'Reflex 3000'. The requirements were specified whereupon the ERP supplier put forward a total package of modules. These were examined along with the various functionalities during a few of the customer-oriented demo sessions. Jan Ickx, Business manager of ReflexSystems: "This way the customer can decide which modules are required initially and which are required later on. Because each module can be integrated afterwards, it is also possible to spread the costs." However, there was a hitch. The building work experienced delays, which meant that the move had to take place almost overnight. As a result, ReflexSystems was faced with an enormous challenge. Instead of carrying out the implementation in stages and then testing it over the course of a couple of weeks, the ERP supplier had to start the installation on the first day that Van Loo started working from its new premises. 		Jan Ickx: "Furthermore, the package had to be fully-operational immediately given that the new working procedures were fully geared to ReflexSystems. It was a stressful and hectic task for both us as well as the users. At that point, not only did they have to get used to the new premises, the new method of working and the equipment but they also had to be trained to work with Reflex 3000. Eventually we brought this task to a successful conclusion. The system worked properly and thanks to an intensive training on the work floor, the entire Van Loo workforce had mastered the application in less than a week. Of course, there is still some readjustment and optimising work on the ERP package to do but these are just small details. Furthermore, the business managers would like us to fine tune the listing functionality in the short term as well as introducing stock control and order picking using scanning equipment. But that is small fry in comparison with the implementation of the other modules. This is why we are extraordinarily proud to have brought this tremendous challenge to a successful conclusion…" Garry Van Loo is also extremely satisfied with ReflexSystem's performance: "This ERP-supplier knows exactly what he is doing and demonstrates extreme flexibility when faced with unforeseen circumstances. Our daily operation has not suffered one bit because of the implementation. On the contrary, after just one week it was as if our workforce had never worked with anything else. That is what I call a fine example of professionalism and skill. I am extremely satisfied that we chose to do business with ReflexSystems..."