Peer-To-Peer

An ERP solution for Endurance

Endurance Systems, a player in the automotive components industry, has implemented the SSA Baan IV c4 ERP solution. Faiz Askari reports

After making a strong impact on the Indian automotive market and meeting global standards, Endurance Systems India (ESI) decided on implementing an ERP solution. The company is part of the Endurance Group (EG), and was incorporated in 1996.

ESI is aiming at a turnover of nearly Rs 120 crore in the current financial year. It manufactures shock absorbers, front forks and clutch assemblies at its production unit in Aurangabad, and currently supplies its entire production output to auto major Bajaj Auto. The company now has plans to begin supplies to other two-wheeler manufacturers in India, and has entered the generic spares market for the purpose.

ESI started with 12 concurrent users of SSA Baan IV c4 but has now acquired 15 more licences in order to meet its growing requirements. As part of an expansion plan, a sister company of Endurance has been set up in Aurangabad—Endurance Transmissions India—which recently acquired 15 concurrent licences of SSA Baan IV c4 and implemented the same. This company manufactures gear boxes for two-wheelers.

Elaborating on the importance of an ERP solution for his business, B M Dhasmana, President of EG says, “We are a multi-location, multi- product company, employing complex engineering processes in manufacturing. We needed an ERP solution for accurately monitoring our financial status, movement of inventories, and so on.”

Anurang Jain, Managing Director of the group says, “In the next five years our company will be the largest auto accessories manufacturer in the country with a wide range of products under one roof; we shall also be one of the largest exporters of automobile parts. Though we are multi-locational we shall maintain excellent connectivity for the flow of technical and financial information with transparency, accountability and delegation of authority.”

Jain explained how they use IT as a key tool for materialising this five-year plan for the business. “IT is definitely a tool which creates confidence in the minds of top management...they get to know the profit and loss account on a day-to-day basis. They know where their resources are stuck or lying idle. By integrating various data they can visualise the directions in which they could move.”

In terms of systems that have been implemented by ESI, 27 are concurrent users of SSA Baan IV c4 and the NT operating system with “Oracle RDBMS. Endurance Transmissions has 15 concurrent users of the same configuration.

Vendor selection process

Jain explains the reasons for selecting a particular IT vendor for implementation. “The most important parameter was the number of implementations carried out by the vendor in the same segment i.e. automotive engineering. Another was the total cost of implementation. We also considered the service reach of the vendor by taking into account the number of branches and support centres across the nation. Manpower, localisation, module integration, total coverage, hardware requirements, user-friendliness, company ownership and alliances were the other aspects.”

Final choice: SSA Global

Thus, there were several reasons for the company to choose SSA Global for the implementation. Jain provides the details: “The solution they proposed was cost-effective. It met international standards, and the expenses on hardware and related infrastructure were low. The company is giving us good support. It assured us satisfactory post-implementation services and upgradation support. Localisation being important to us, we realised that the solution was apt as it was strong in the manufacturing module.”

RoI factor

The company also took into account the RoI or return on investment factor. “RoI cannot be overlooked, hence we were particular about factors such as automation of manual activities, avoiding repetition of data punching, execution of planning engines, and integration of biometric devices. We were careful about integrating and automating through Web integration, and centralising and sharing. We have in-house customisation, and focus on saving time due to the implementation. Further, MIS report generation can keep track of all such changes.”

Version upgrades

“The relation with the IT vendor, specially in implementation, is all-encompassing, with upgradation topping the priority list. Version upgradation is a regular practice at SSA Global, and delivery is as per the AMC terms in the contract,” notes Jain.

Adds the Sales and Marketing Head of SSA Global (India), Rajeev Kumar, “Endurance is satisfied with this implementation, and the next line of action with regard to upgradation will be SSA ERP LN. The migration will be a zero-cost affair for them.”

Post-implementation benefits

Jain narrates the benefits of the implementation. “We are able to maintain the unique information flow across the organisation. The solution is easy to customise and expand. It seems to be user-friendly and does not need much maintenance. It has good integration capabilities in all modules, and automation and integration of various processes have been done through it.” As a result, Endurance achieved the online data availability which it was looking for. The solution also ensured GUI support, a simple menu system and hardware requirements, and data connectivity with world-class standards. “We are getting a large number of MIS reports, effective planning engines, and integration with third-party solutions like bar-coding, SCM, CRM and CAD,” adds Jain.

Vendor’s views

Comments Alok Tandon, Country Manager, SSA Global (India), “It has always been our endeavour to help customers such as Endurance by delivering them the right solution, implementing it quickly, and making it pay. Our extended ERP solutions give our customers the expanded global business process management capabilities they need to support new business initiatives, respond to changing business environments, and make informed enterprise-wide business decisions.”

faiz@expresscomputeronline.com