One stop shop logistics for On the Dot with IBS IntegratorCustomer Story IBS Integrator and Web Services make the process of updating customer and supplier data easy and efficient for South African 3PL service provider On the Dot. Reduced administration, less errors and improved customer service are just a few of the benefits. On the Dot is a ‘one-stop-shop’ logistics company providing fully integrated warehousing and delivery fulfilment. The company distributes various products, from books and music to decoders, electronic equipment and stationery for its customers. On the Dot’s growing workforce is based in Cape Town, South Africa.
One-stop-shop provider
The pace of movement towards economic maturity in Africa can, in some cases be quite startling. Generally the concept of offering a ‘one-stop-shop’ service - taking the product from the end of the production line, warehousing it and delivering it to the customer - is an eminently sensible strategy for the market.
“The service we offer enables our customers and suppliers to concentrate on what they do best and pass the downstream activities to us,” explains Alfred Landman, IT Manager at On the Dot.
On the Dot’s customers can buy into the company’s entire portfolio of services or simply pick and choose the ones that are most appropriate to their needs. The company is focused on products that can be handled manually. Their target market consists of small consumer items such as CDs, school material, electronic devices, stationery and other high volume sales products.
Speed and efficiency
Even though the products can be handled manually, On the Dot’s facilities demand a speed and efficiency that can only be provided by a leading-edge software solution.
In fact, On the Dot boasts one of the biggest and most advanced book distribution centers in South Africa, guaranteeing customers service excellence as signified by their slogan ‘’Distribution on time, every time.’’
The successful implementation of IBS Bookmaster, a leading ERP solution for publishing and book distribution, has provided the company with much needed supply chain visibility.
Business partner collaboration
As a fast moving and technology-driven company, On the Dot realized that more collaboration with its customers and suppliers was required. The company decided to use Web Services to facilitate the process. The search for an IT solution that would connect On the Dot with information from its customers and suppliers in any format was on.
“After discussions with IBS we found that IBS Integrator was the ideal solution to our collaboration problem,” says Landman. “The software allows us to speak with our customers, suppliers and business partners in their own language as well as the technology to use information from external systems and applications.”
IBS Integrator allows for flexibility in a constantly changing business climate. By integrating information and processes efficiently and quickly, On the Dot is better able to respond to business demands.
“Thanks to IBS Integrator our customers are able to create items, purchase orders, stock updates, stock-take information and returns authorizations instantly and efficiently over the Internet,” explains Landman. IBS Integrator and Web Services make the process of transmitting, validating and transferring customer and supplier data to IBS Bookmaster easy and efficient.
SOA and Web Services
The current business environment calls for different levels of integration between IT systems and applications using varying standards. The Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) of IBS software offers convenient measures to integrate with other applications that use or can be made to use SOA.
Different types of services with different complexity levels are available. This range includes high-level services such as ‘Create Order’ or low-level services like getting prices for an item. One of the main applications that On the Dot uses Web Services for is to communicate information to and from its customer and suppliers.
For example, when suppliers need to ‘add a title’ they simply use the Internet to enter the relevant information and the files in IBS Bookmaster are validated and automatically updated. The interfaces to the services are available in several technologies according to what best fits the requirements.
A world of opportunities
The combination of IBS Integrator and Web Services has opened up a whole new world for On the Dot. Communication to and from customers and suppliers is more and more automated, leading to less errors and faster updates to IBS Bookmaster.
“With IBS Integrator in place tasks such as stock adjustments from customers are now performed much faster and more efficiently,” explains Landman. Even On the Dot’s couriers use this process. Every parcel that leaves the company’s premises is tracked, resulting in better customer service and greater reliability of information.
SOA has a potential for exploration in many areas that yield tangible benefits for On the Dot’s business, including reduced administration, improved communications and streamlined processes. As more suppliers of IT systems become SOA-enabled, it opens up a new world of possibilities where the only restraint is imagination.
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