First Impression

Solid foundation in SAP Business One

First Impression has been using SAP Business One since 2007. "The main reason at the time was that SAP Business One allowed us to cover all disciplines in our company well and it is a scalable platform, with SAP as a solid supplier."
 

Supporting explosive growth with WMS

Over 10 years later, new clients are driving explosive growth for the busin. The AV solutions are rolled out at European and global sites of clients such as Basic-Fit and Rituals, leading to a multitude of logistical movements in the warehouse. Therefore, First Impression set up a logistics center at a new location. Aiden provides the warehouse management system (WMS) based on its own solution Aiden WarehousePro, fully integrated with SAP Business One.

Tracking goods movement

With WarehousePro, all movements of goods in the warehouse are tracked, from receipts and movements to order picking and shipping. Van Berkel: "Where previously, the registered numbers were often incorrect, we now know exactly how many of which item are located where."

Project-based procurement via MRP

Once inventory management was in order, First Impression was able to get started with MRP (material requirements planning) for project-based procurement. According to Van Berkel, this led to a better grip on stocks. "Because of the automatic ordering recommendations, we keep goods in stock for a shorter time. As a result, our stock position is more favorable, which lowers inventory costs and provides more financial control. Moreover, we can now deliver faster, often within a week. This of course has a positive impact on the customer experience!"

Improved processes

Order picking via scanners

Through the scanners, WarehousePro provides an enforced process for order picking. "Where previously, paper pick lists roamed the warehouse, order picking is now controlled and checked via scanner. This gives us much more control over the process and new employees can quickly and faultlessly pick an order after minimal instruction," said Van Berkel.

Scan portal for small material

Upon request, Aiden and First Impression developed a proprietary scanning portal to get a handle on the issuance of small materials. "The mechanics can now scan the necessary items such as cables and other installation materials to a project or to their own toolbox, so just like at the supermarket. The stock level thus remains accurate and, with the help of MRP, additional orders are automatically placed when minimum stock levels are reached. This means that materials are always available and the technician won't be missing anything. We can now do better subsequent calculation as well."

Registering serial numbers

For First Impression, serial number registration is a crucial function in WarehousePro. "That way, we know exactly which products our customers have. Our customers ask for this, but this information is also indispensable to us for remote management."

Scheduling and tracking services

First Impression has an extensive service department, which is fully automated with SAP Field Service Management. This service solution facilitates the entire administrative process of on-site service provision; from scheduling the technician to signing off on the job and invoicing. "There is no more human action involved, which allows us to plan quickly and efficiently. Through the app, our people on site have all the necessary data. We always have insight into all hours worked and material consumption, which are automatically invoiced."

Central management of all projects

Currently, First Impression is in the process of an organization-wide rollout SAP Field Service Management for all customer projects. "Whether it's installing, resolving planned and unplanned incidents, repairs or replacements; everything can be thought of as a service. Through this solution, we can plan the entire service integrally, link it to an order, create service calls and track progress."
 

Business intelligence as the logical next step

With management reports in SAP Analytics Cloud, steps are now being taken in the field of BI. Van Berkel sees this as a logical next step to get a grip and control.
"It is the capstone of our way of working, in which we always streamline and automate a new 'cell' – that is what we call a department – of the organization.
When such a process is in place, we deploy SAC to monitor and direct it.
Now that we have set up the Service cell as desired in terms of process, system and staffing, we use SAC to analyze if and when people need to be added.
As a follow-up, we want to set up an 'operations dashboard' for Procurement and Logistics as well."

Contribution to success and growth

Looking back, Van Berkel believes that the WMS solution has made a substantial contribution to First Impression's success and growth.
"Through MRP, we can purchase in a more targeted and bundled way, which gives us additional purchasing advantages and reduces our inventory costs.
Because we have the inventory position under control, we also have a better grip on liquidity.
We can also do better subsequent calculation, which in turn leads to improved pricing.
In the end, the warehouse solution provides control over the entire supply chain, which obviously has a positive effect on our profitability," Van Berkel concludes.