For more than four years, WebCIS has been helping ebm-papst consolidate purchasing information across locations and use it as a reliable basis for well-founded purchasing decisions.
The Company
The ebm-papst Group is a world-leading provider of innovative ventilation solutions for air, refrigeration and air-conditioning technology, headquartered in Mulfingen, Baden-Württemberg. The company develops and manufactures innovative components for air, heating and cooling applications, combining fan and blower technology with electronics, control systems and software & service. For more than 60 years, ebm-papst has set international standards with innovations in aerodynamics, motor technology, electronics and digitalization. With energy-efficient and intelligently networked technologies, ebm-papst supports the reduction of CO₂ emissions, digitalization and the expansion of future-proof infrastructure worldwide. The technologies are used, among others, in data centers, building and heating technology, industrial applications, and in cleanrooms, cold chains and renewable energies.
The Challenge Before WebCIS
Before WebCIS was introduced, preparing key figures from different SAP systems involved a great deal of manual effort. The PPV calculation as well as purchasing and ratio planning were also carried out manually or in Excel, which was time-consuming. Especially in indirect purchasing, suitable and easily accessible evaluation options were lacking. The company was therefore looking for a central solution that consolidates information from different systems, simplifies analyses and makes recurring calculations significantly more efficient.
„The dashboards and the more efficient evaluation options convinced us.“
Michaela Kempf - Purchasing Controlling, ebm-papst St. Georgen GmbH & Co. KG
The Solution with WebCIS
Today, ebm-papst uses WebCIS for various dashboards and evaluations, in particular in the MM and FI areas and increasingly in further fields of application. As a result, relevant purchasing information is available quickly and in a structured form. A key advantage is access across locations to data from different SAP systems. Suppliers can thus be viewed not only at the level of individual companies but also evaluated group-wide. Developments, anomalies and changes become much easier to recognize.
„WebCIS makes it immensely easier to view our group suppliers and their development and performance.“
Michaela Kempf - Purchasing Controlling, ebm-papst St. Georgen GmbH & Co. KG
This creates clear added value, especially when preparing negotiations. Purchasing can prioritize relevant suppliers in a more targeted way, trace their development and prepare discussions on the basis of reliable information. At the same time, WebCIS makes comparison across locations easier and helps recognize group-wide connections faster.
The Added Value for Purchasing
WebCIS reduces the effort for manual evaluations and creates a reliable basis for assessing purchasing performance. Clear calculation logic, KPIs and dashboards make developments traceable and support both operational purchasing and management in making well-founded decisions. Thanks to its intuitive operation, relevant information can be accessed quickly and evaluated flexibly for different questions. This makes it possible to recognize anomalies and potential earlier, assess connections better and derive measures in a more targeted way. At the same time, WebCIS creates more comparability within purchasing. Uniform key figures and evaluations make coordination between different areas and locations easier and ensure that decisions are made on a shared data foundation.
„WebCIS creates transparency, offers intuitive operation and gives management a well-founded basis for decisions through clear KPIs.“
Michaela Kempf - Purchasing Controlling, ebm-papst St. Georgen GmbH & Co. KG
„For us, SoftconCIS is a very competent and reliable partner with good availability and great solution expertise.“
Michaela Kempf - Purchasing Controlling, ebm-papst St. Georgen GmbH & Co. KG
Competent and Reliable Collaboration
Beyond the solution itself, ebm-papst particularly values the partnership-based collaboration with SoftconCIS. Good availability, technical expertise and fast support ensure that questions and individual requirements can be clarified without complications. This is not just about the ongoing operation of WebCIS, but also about the joint further development of the application in everyday purchasing work. New requirements can be discussed in a practical way and solutions designed to fit the existing processes and structures. Seminars and webinars as well as the exchange with other WebCIS users offer additional value. As a result, ebm-papst regularly receives new impetus and insights into current topics in purchasing controlling and can share experiences with other companies.
Outlook
ebm-papst looks positively on the further collaboration. Especially in the area of artificial intelligence, new possibilities are emerging to develop purchasing controlling further and to unlock additional potential from the information available.
„We look forward to more interesting and challenging years of collaboration and are curious about the further developments through AI in purchasing controlling.“
Michaela Kempf - Purchasing Controlling, ebm-papst St. Georgen GmbH & Co. KG
Result
With WebCIS, ebm-papst has reduced the effort for numerous evaluations and calculations while at the same time improving its view of suppliers, purchasing performance and developments across locations. The combination of cross-system analyses, clear KPIs and a practical application helps purchasing arrive at reliable insights faster and prepare decisions on a sound basis.
