The complex projects and value added processes require the exchange of data and information across locations as well as its representation in an internal ERP system. A project quote valued at several hundred thousand to million euro usually involves a good 1000 different items and power components, manages services over a period of up to two years, fills several folders with paper and above all must be capable of being flexibly structured in line with customer requirements. "Working with a large number of articles over such long project times required enormous effort to represent", stresses Thomas Wilms, IT and Controlling manager in VA TECH SAT GmbH. "Representing prices and articles as they changed over time using three decentralized databases was a mammoth task in the past." Every night, VA TECH SAT used to replicate information such master BOMs, price lists and exchange rates, customer addresses and part master data in a multi-leveled process that lasted for hours. Order data that were needed and edited every day at several locations required permanent, time-intensive data export and import. Decentralized data management also made comprehensive project controlling more difficult.

This control unit is used to monitor rail tunnels. Emergency services can interrupt the power supply in tunnel systems directly and provide emergency assistance without delay.

The seamless integration of Microsoft Office into P2plus is another significant advantage for the IT managers in VA TECH SAT. The direct integration of Word, Outlook und Excel in P2plus means faster processes that are more transparent and involve less paper. Yet another advantage is improved data quality thanks to new and enhanced P2plus functions such as the Project Management module. Many extra functions that VA TECH SAT had developed over the years and added to the previous solution's features are already available in P2plus and are consistently integrated into the .NET-based system structure.

Migration and client concept
The main focus of the migration process was the transfer of data from all the current locations and the representation of a complex client concept. VA TECH SAT is considered a company for tax purposes that consists primarily of independent profit centers acting as virtual clients. In a centralized ERP system, user access rights in the profit centers had to satisfy high security requirements, particularly in view of the considerable size and length of the projects. For some business processes such as purchasing for example, an employee in one center was the responsible representative for all locations and was therefore assigned "master rights" with respect to data changes. Other employees from other locations were only allowed to read the data; they couldn't modify or receive any other form of access.

It was also necessary to strictly define who could modify masterdata with which level of priority. At the same time, management needed to be able to create meaningful analyses covering the three client-specific warehouses as well as a client-neutral warehouse at any time. "P2plus proved to be extremely flexible in terms of client management", explains Thomas Wilms. "With settings to the various server layers, database, web and application servers, we were able to fulfill all our requirements."

"Old" processes, new solutions
After ten years experience with the previous solution and numerous customizations, some significant ones of which they implemented themselves, the staff at VA TECH SAT really knew the system. "Our know-how was certainly very helpful but we still had to get the know the new technologies of P2plus first", explains Martin Ascher from VA TECH SAT's IT department. "While P2 was a classic 2-tier generation client-server solution, P2plus is based on an n-tier application structure and therefore opens up totally different possibilities. The system is not a further development but a completely new development based on the .NET platform and modern internet technologies such as XML and Web Services."

During the migration process, all the customizations implemented over the past ten years were originally meant to be integrated into the new ERP system. Problems arose due to partially incomplete documentation from the first years during which some function or other had been developed on demand. As work processes were also continuously changing, some customizations were hardly comprehensible any more or had become unnecessary. Project managers seized the opportunity and redefined some processes to make them simpler and more efficient. They were able to take advantage of the superior flexibility of P2plus' high-performing development environment as well as its open source code. A total of 75 percent of customizations were integrated into the new solution.

Data transfer
First all the transaction data from the different locations were consolidated in a central database in Munich. This was then migrated to the latest version of P2plus in a number of subsequent steps. The final step involved implementing the client concept and splitting the database into one for masterdata and one for transaction data. Data transfer came off without any major problems. Data inconsistencies were easily rectified in a test phase directly in the database. "We did have some problems here for sure, but most of them were foreseeable", explains Thomas Wilms. "Some processes are handled using different algorithms in P2plus; another system highlight is the significantly more accurate plausibility test."

In the beginning this meant tedious extra work for employees because many input fields that until then didn't appear relevant for individual processes now had to be filled in. But it was worth it. Data quality is significantly better and missed entries aren't noticed until three processes or departments later. Browser use helped users to acclimatize more quickly. Although at first employees missed their usual buttons and input masks, they were soon able to work very quickly with the clear new interface.

Conclusion and outlook
Browser use clearly clarifies the enormous benefit of the migration. All ERP data are now located centrally on servers in Munich. All the employees at the five profit centers, both in house and in the field, always have access to up-to-date data via browser and VPN. The broader and deeper functionality of the extended ERP modules for CRM, Project Controlling and Management Information System have accelerated and simplified many processes. "We now have cross-client access to up-to-date data", declares Petra Geissl in Purchasing happily. "With just a few mouse clicks I can call up the various warehouse stocks or view the part-supplier masters of all profit centers. "In addition to the enhanced functionality, VA TECH SAT is also benefiting from P2plus' comprehensive use of XML and Web Services. These make it easier to connect external systems such as the SAP solution of the parent company in Vienna and to integrate an external purchasing system seamlessly into P2plus using Web Services.

Last Changed: 03.05.2004 © Copyright by AP Automation + Productivity AG