Openup - Case Studies - Dawn Farm Foods Ltd

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Dawn Farm Foods Ltd.
Company Details
Industry	Food
Number of employees	350
Year Established	1984
Contact Name	Richard Mc Nally
Telephone	+353 45 875555
Contact Email	rmcnally@dawnfarms.ie
Website	www.dawnfarms.ie

Company Description

Dawn Farm Foods Ltd. is a leading manufacturer of cooked meat ingredients for use by meal manufacturers in convenience sectors - ready meals, pizza & sandwich industries and food service providers across the globe. The company also manufactures cooked meat products for the retail sector in Ireland.

The company is part of the extensive and very successful Queally group of companies.

eBusiness Objectives

This company's eBusiness project was conceived as an integral part of it's IT strategy, and vital in it's overall business strategy. It was initially planned around a software system in use in the company at the time. ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) implementation of this system was almost complete.

It was planned to develop visibility of inventory, on-line ordering, order confirmation, tracking, production planning and fulfilment. It was planned to ultimately develop the ability to model different order combinations and their resultant delivery dates.

The company's web presence was to be developed as a fully interactive site with on-line ordering facilities.

An innovative partnership approach with (key) customers was planned in which interactive solutions in NPD (new product development) would be created, based on testing product concepts virtually, prior to launching a final brief.

It was envisaged that procurement and payment processes would be automated, resulting in increased efficiency and savings in both processing and material costs.

Implementation

There was an initial large investment (cost and time) in developing the existing system. However, it became evident as the project progressed and needs became better defined that this system was too rigid and would not fully meet the companies needs.

A review was undertaken and a brave decision was made to abandon the original system for another - NAVISION (and Sysco Systems).

This new system proved to be very flexible and permitted the development of modules which could be integrated. It was much less bureaucratic than the original system and catered for the need for local intervention / decision making in the various processes.

The new system was integrated with Scanvaegt production system, and Vertex data logging (all at a cost). It was also integrated with maintenance facilities which were out sourced, but with a physical on-site presence.

An active web site was developed with some on-line purchasing facilities.

It might be considered that the work carried out in developing the existing system (which was then abandoned) was a waste of time however, the company consider that there was very considerable learning which permitted much more detailed and focused specifying of the needs of a suitable system and this led to the eventual success of the project.

Real benefits have come in communications, planning, gathering real time information in sales, purchasing and R+D, in the management of key customers, and in customer satisfaction.

Whilst there was much pain and frustration in obtaining the "right" system and in developing and implementing it, with a lot still to do, the company is satisfied that the very significant investment is beginning to pay back and puts them in a very good position to exploit both the system itself and developments in the ways in which business will be conducted in the future.

The system put in place has opened up a new way of thinking, and has resulted in an enthusiasm for, and generation of, new ideas to increase efficiency and maximise the return on investment.

The investment (in cost and time) has led to significant improvements in customer servicing and management and in customer satisfaction. This is essential in keeping accounts in a competitive market.

Lessons Learned

Spend time determining the "real" ebusiness needs of the company, and what likely impacts they will have on the business.
Thoroughly vet proposed consultants and suppliers.
Make sure that "the system chosen is one that meets the company's needs, and not one where the company has to meet the system requirements."
Design the project to maximise ownership and skills transfer.
Communicate with all staff, bring them on board early on, involve them in determining needs and specifying systems.
A modular approach to developing systems and introducing them can be beneficial. A step by step introduction to ensure that the system is steady, safe and secure is important in maintaining customer confidence.
Whilst maintaining a real commitment to the project, review it regularly and modify it as required. Be aware of the need to maintain and constantly update systems.

Future

The company are continuing to develop further inter-activity in the systems. They feel that there are big benefits just around the corner, and plan to have a capability for customers to make production plans based on real time interaction with Dawn Farm Foods Ltd.

As customer systems and needs evolve there is a need to constantly make changes / improvements to in -house systems to reflect and accommodate these.

Some of these improvements would include instant access by customers to online- specifications of their products. The implementation of further systems into Warehousing and Logistics, incorporating bar-coding, and instant recognition and location of product being transported, by people in-house, and by the customers.