IGM Resins keeps focus on customer with SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud

For growth, you need satisfied customers. “The focus should be entirely on the customer, not on internal processes that do not add value for the customer”, states Bart Oude Vrielink, IGM Resins’ Chief Operating Officer. To minimise ‘internal distractions’, the Dutch chemical company is moving to SAP S/4HANA in the public cloud together with partner delaware.

IGM Resins specialises in the development and production of high-quality chemicals for the production of inks, coatings and adhesives. Think, for example, of the ink on packaging materials. What makes IGM Resins unique is its advanced UV-curing technology. This technology ensures that coatings and inks dry at lightning speed when exposed to UV light. This not only speeds up production, but also ensures a sustainable process as no water needs to be evaporated by heat as with water-based coatings and inks.

Service level further up
IGM Resins is a well-known name in the world of UV-curing technology. What started 25 years ago in Waalwijk with a one-man business has grown into a global market leader with a global supply chain. The company now employs more than 700 people and has factories and offices in the US, Brazil, Italy, China and Japan, among others.

‘To grow further, you need satisfied customers,’ notes Oude Vrielink. “The service level has to increase further. For this, the focus must be entirely on the customer, and on improving internal processes that impact the customer, and not on things that do not benefit the customer. If the customer wants or asks for something, you need to be able to respond immediately. For that, you need insight into both customer needs and your operational processes.”

One platform for more insight
In the past, gaining data-based insights was a challenge for IGM Resins. The rapid growth of the company, driven by mergers and acquisitions, led to increased complexity in managing and integrating data across different systems. Oude Vrielink: “We were working with six different ERP systems, which led to a lot of manual and duplicate work. Moreover, some of these systems were outdated. It was clear that we had to change something.”

To realise better insights and efficiency, IGM Resins decided to migrate the different ERP systems step by step to one unified platform: SAP S/4HANA Cloud Public Edition. This platform is used for all primary processes, such as purchase to pay, production and order to cash. SAP Datasphere and SAP Analytics Cloud provide IGM Resins with a unified system for data management, reporting and analysis. This supports planning and decision-making throughout the organisation.

Scalable implementation
IGM Resins found the right partner in delaware for the migration. “The cooperation is strong. For instance, delaware has consultants who know what they are talking about. You have to put your best people next to them yourself; then you can gain momentum with such a project”, says Oude Vrielink.

According to Oude Vrielink, it also helps that SAP S/4HANA is scalable in implementation, which is also the strength of GROW with SAP. This programme provides scale-ups with all the necessities for a digital transformation. “In the initial implementation, it takes a lot of time to set up the process parameters properly. But once those processes are defined, you can get to work faster on subsequent entities with collecting and completing master data and training employees in the new standard. And with the regular updates, you are always working with the latest version of the system.”

IGM Resins is reaping the benefits
IGM Resins has completed the migration to SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud for the United States and Europe, with Asia and Brazil to follow. However, the company is already noticing the benefits of the new platform. Efficiency has greatly improved: processes such as automatic processing of analysis certificates and order entries save time and resources, giving employees more time to focus on customers. Systems consolidation also provides instant access to crucial information.

The platform provides continuous insight into company data and enables real-time adjustments. Automation allows the company to respond faster to customer requests and supply-chain fluctuations, resulting in improved service levels.

Business AI
Business AI is said to be the next step in digital transformation. “We want to save time and be able to focus on customer-focused tasks,’ concludes Oude Vrielink. ‘We are looking forward to the integration of AI into SAP Datasphere and SAP Analytics Cloud, where a co-pilot provides immediate answers to complex data questions.”