w w w . s c e m a g a z i n e . c o m - Supply Chain Europe

warehousing
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Warehousing
Corporate Express Europe gains improved visibility and processes with JDA Software’s Advanced
Warehouse Replenishment solution.
Corporate Express is one of the world’s
leading suppliers of office products to
a variety of businesses and institutions,
serving as a one-stop-shop for office essentials
via its e-commerce and distribution businesses.
Acquired by the $27 billion office-products
powerhouse, Staples, Inc., in 2008, Corporate
Express employs approximately 18,000
associates in 21 countries throughout North
and South America, Europe, Asia and Australia.
Global companies such as Corporate Express
typically operate as a series of independent,
geographically dispersed divisions, often as
a result of expanding their global presence
and product portfolios through acquisitions
and mergers. Corporate Express Europe, like
its parent company, expanded its presence
with a multitude of acquisitions, which
resulted in fragmented business systems as
each acquired company maintained its own
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system
and warehouse management solutions. To
optimize supply chain planning and business
40
performance, Corporate Express Europe
sought technology that would enable it to
improve global supply chain visibility and agility
by taking a synchronized, cross-functional
and strategic approach. “We recognized the
need for a slick, uniform system to maintain
and improve our customer service levels,”
explained Jan van Noord, project manager
Logistics, Corporate Express Europe. “With
that understanding, our criteria consisted of
finding a proven solution that could be rolled
out across Europe and serve the needs of
every country, as well as integrated with our
enterprise-wide ERP systems.”
Inventory Management Excellence
To streamline its supply chain management
processes, Corporate Express Europe turned
to JDA Software’s Advanced Warehouse
Replenishment (AWR) solution. The bestin-class
solution provides accurate visibility
into the warehouse, helping buyers to create
accurate forecasted demand and order
projections, as well as stable order patterns.
AWR provides purchasing requirements for
more stock by feeding a rich mix of data into
Corporate Express’ ERP platform, which is
then transferred to suppliers. By ensuring that
the right product is delivered to the right place
at the right time, Corporate Express Europe
is driving top-line growth and bottom-line
savings. According to Van Noord, the decision
to implement AWR was a simple one given
that Corporate Express’ United States division
was using it. “After evaluating the system in
use in the United States ourselves, we were
very pleased with the robust functionality of
JDA’s AWR solution. We were also fully aware
that most of our competitors were using AWR,
including Staples prior to its acquisition of
Corporate Express,” Van Noord added.
Corporate Express Europe established a
phased project plan to implement AWR in
12 warehouses across 10 countries during
a 3-year period, which coincided with the
company’s phased ERP implementation.
www.scemagazine.com May/June 2009