The Egyptian Company for Medical Investments (ECMI) is the holding company of two of the largest importers and distributors of medicines in Egypt. They specialize in importing pharmaceutical and laboratory chemicals to meet the growing needs of the pharmaceutical industry in Egypt.
ECMI also fulfils the requirements of hospitals, universities, and research centers by providing pharmaceutical supplies and specialized scientific devices.
ECMI key objectives:
- Efficiently managing the import and distribution of pharmaceutical supplies.
- Maintaining accurate and real-time inventory records across multiple suppliers.
- Ensuring compliance with international standards for pharmaceutical imports.
- Having consolidated, actual, and updated data for decision support
- Improve operational efficiency by streamlining the order-to-cash process to.
The Pain: The Situation Prior to Project Implementation
ECMI faced a complex requirement of importing and managing inventory for the same items from multiple suppliers. The existing system struggled to manage this complexity, leading to inefficiencies and data inaccuracies. To address these challenges, we proposed implementing best practices in SAP S/4 Hana private cloud, with its standard processes in Supply Chain Management to meet ECMI's complex requirements.
The Proposed Solution:
SAP's core modules were implemented—FICO (Financial and Controlling), MM (Material Management), and SD (Sales and Distribution)—to effectively map ECMI's business requirements utilizing split valuation for items at the batch level. The solution included a seamless integration with EPTC's current system, enabling the transfer of all logistics transactions into SAP, where they could be tracked as financial results. This integration allowed ECMI to monitor the financial impact of all their operations within the SAP system.
The Steps Taken: Our Path Towards the Solution
In an effort to address the challenges at hand, we embarked on a strategic approach, ensuring that our proposed solution was effectively and meticulously implemented:
- Discovery phase: Identifying the core requirements and understanding the unique challenges.
- Preparation phase: Preparing the project team and aligning ECMI's goals with SAP's capabilities.
- Exploration phase: Exploring potential solutions and tailoring the SAP modules to ECMI's needs.
- Realization phase: Configuring and customizing the SAP system to address the specific challenges identified.
- Deployment phase: Deploying the solution across ECMI's operations with minimal disruption.
- Transition (Run) phase: Ensuring the system runs smoothly and providing ongoing support to ECMI.
Challenges Faced During Implementation
- Deep understanding of ECMI's complex business processes and their unique needs.
- Translating all ECMI requirements into standard SAP functionality without losing any critical details.
- Uploading master data and opening balances using SAP's new MDC method.
- Ensuring seamless integration between SAP and ECMI's existing systems.
- Managing change within ECMI's organization to ensure a smooth transition to the new system.
Situation After Successful Implementation
The implementation of the project brought significant enhancements to our system and addressed the issues we previously faced:
- Improved accuracy and real-time visibility of inventory across multiple suppliers.
- Streamlined order-to-cash process, reducing delays and errors.
- Enhanced financial tracking and reporting, providing better insights into operational performance.
- Successful integration of logistics and financial data, ensuring a unified system of record.
- ECMI's ability to meet compliance standards improved, ensuring smoother operations and reduced risks.