Novensys in Mass Media
Logistic applications, niche solutions
15.10.2008
Operations written by hand on paper are already history and the market now needs sophisticated solutions in order to be able to efficiently manage all the resources and operations of the entire supply chain. Novensys is a Romanian software company that noticed this niche and the needs of the logistics market, turning into an important player on the market of informatic solutions for logistics companies in less than a decade.
On the market since 1998, as a supplier of hardware equipment based on the bar code technology for the logistics, distribution and retail market, Novensys became in the last years one of the most important players in this sector, covering about 70% of the existing market in Romania, according to Novensys representatives. In 2000, the company extended, bringing added value to its products through software solutions dedicated to the logistics and distribution industry and also to other important industries like retail, manufacturing and utilities.
In 2002, the first 100% Romanian application Novensys for Inventory (Warehouse Management System) was built by mixed teams of Romanian consultants and programmer from the company, relying on the best practices on the local market. Novensys for Inventory was implemented about a year and two month later in the warehouses of the most important provider of mobile communication services in Romania.
Thus the logistic processes were automated and extended with specific „field service” modules, which covered all operations, from spare parts replacement and management, on site material management to remote communication with the main warehouse. New names added up to the Novensys customer portfolio starting with 2003: Centrum Oradea, Coty Cosmetics, Ferroli, Spar, Sarantis, Dedeman, Mittal Steel Galati, where standard solutions were implemented and customized according to every customer’s processes.
The Novensys-Mantis partnership, for the best solution
In order to achieve the best results on various market segments, including medium and large companies, the company decided to implement complex software solutions provided by the most important developers worldwide.
Thus a partnership with Mantis was signed, a Greek provider of informatic solutions for warehouses and a regional leader in this field.
The chosen solution, Logistic Vision Suite, designed to improve the management of the entire logistic chain, ensures increased efficiency of warehouse operations and distribution activities, by optimizing costs throughout the supply chain, ensuring a superior level of connectivity and collaboration, increasing feedback time and by covering all specific visibility and traceability requirements. The Novensys-Mantis partnership is lasting for about a year and a half now.
„We chose Mantis to be our partner because we wanted to introduce in our portfolio the best existing solution at regional level, developed at a higher level, that covers more complex needs and that can support the rapid growth of the market and the companies in this industry. It had been developed six years earlier and had already proven successful, with an impressive customer portfolio”, stated Razvan Neacsu, Consultancy, Implementation, Service and Support Manager at Novensys. The partnership with Mantis is not an exclusive one, because the company’s policy doesn’t stipulate exclusivity, benefiting of regional extension in Europe, in Greece, Cyprus, Turkey and even Poland, Slovenia and Russia.
„Logistic Vision Suite is dedicated to medium and large companies, placed somewhere between premium and top solutions regarding licenses and implementation services, as for functionalities and processes it covers they perfectly suites the requests of the logistic market at this point”, added Razvan Neacsu.
Flexibility, an important advantage
Novensys can really show off with an important customer portfolio and the Novensys for Inventory solution was recently implemented at Delamode Logistics. „When implemented in a company, the system is not closed, but flexible, enabling the addition of new customers. The capability of adapting all processes in a logistics company is a major advantage”, said Razvan Neacsu.
It is very important to benefit from a flexible solution, which can be easily modified according to the customers’ requests, especially because each logistic company has its typical processes.
„Every company follows certain procedures trying to obtain profit faster, to provide quality logistic activities, to bill logistic services differently or to bring added value and Logistic Vision Suite facilitates any kind of adjustments. It suits every customer type, whether they develop their own supply chain and distribute merchandise to stores throughout the country or they are a large company that provides services to dozens of other companies and need to change their system weekly in order to import new customers and policies.Such a company is Aquila, where we implemented Logistic Vision Suite and where the system is currently running. The billing services, invoicing to Aquila customers – Unilever and Zewa – but also the warehouse operations, like notices of receipt and delivery, put-away, picking, replenishment, and inventory are carried out with the help of the Novensys application.”
Novensys for Inventory with ERP solution
In 2004, Novensys started a spectacular evolution on the market of providers for software services. Therefore it included new solutions in its portfolio, like an ERP – Microsoft Dynamics NAV and LS Retail, a specialized software dedicated to retail companies. Equally, but some time later, at the beginning of this year, Microsoft Dynamics AX and Oracle EBS entered the portfolio, both are ERP solutions for large and very large companies.
Microsoft NAV is presently implemented at Aquila, while the first implementations are taking place for the Microsoft AX and Oracle solutions. The biggest advantage offered by the solution integrators is that, whether the software solutions are independent or not, when put to work the interfacing between the applications is guaranteed by the service provider. At the same time, the large range of products and solutions, which cover most of a customer’s needs, represents one of the supplier’s benefits when going in front of a customer. The ERP solutions provided by Novensys cover the financial & accountancy, stock management, order and supply management, suppliers, human resources and warehouse operations areas.
Customized solutions for every client
Many Romanian companies from the logistic field are looking for such solutions. But every company has its own strategy: some multinational companies chose the solution of their parent company, while others chose the Novensys solution.
The market is continuously growing and has now reached an extremely high level of competition. This is one of the reasons why Novensys developed a logistics department, consisting of 12 consultants and developers with great experience in this field.
“I believe we are among the few software companies that hold a team of consultants and developers with more than 10 years in software is more than five years in Novensys, in the division of logistic solutions. At this point many logistic companies didn’t implement such software solutions, either the implementation of automation systems is not justified by the turnover and the ongoing operations, or because they didn’t come to understand that these niche solutions, that manage the entire complexity of the business, will shortly determine the improvement of the companies performances”, explained Razvan Neacsu, and added the fact that “ there is a wrong perception that implementing an ERP solution will cover all the operations in a company, which is not entirely true. In logistics, transportation and distribution Novensys covers business processes with the aid of the niche solutions.”
Every solution is customized, adapted to the proper functioning of the company. Thus, companies with a turnover greater then 5-6 million Euros can complete their informatic management systems by implementing together with the Oracle/Microsoft AX ERP complex niche solutions, specialized and adapted for the Romanian market, critical for business survival. Logistic suppliers also need solutions to help them arrange the merchandise in the warehouses, to help them with the entrance/exit flow of the goods in the warehouse, with their rotation speed and with the optimal way to charge trucks and manage resources.
Variable costs and implementation periods
The implementation time of a system can vary, depending on its complexity, between two and eight month and the implementation services are composed of license costs, services and maintenance costs. Depending on the operations’ complexity a plan is set up where the number of hours necessary for the implementation is estimated, the work team, the training and the support period, which are highly important aspects.
The costs can vary between 40.000 and 150.000 euro, the range being pretty wide depending on the modules chosen by the customer, on the complexity of business processes and on the number of warehouses there the solution should be installed.
In most cases, the large companies understand that they must train employees who can administrate informatics programs, and in the after implementation stage they are instructed so they can support every day operations without the aid of the Novensys team. The companies that choose not to invest in their own team – who can manage the solution – can close a contract with Novensys dedicated to “after sales” services, benefiting from a dedicated support line, a telephone number and a web application where all incidents are registered which need to be solved in a certain period specified in the contract.
When starting the implementation it is necessary to have a project team, that includes, beside the project manager from the customer’s side, other key-persons, the software users, an IT employee, a warehouse manager and a shift manager who will be able to efficiently use and administer the software after the implementation. In the next period of time, Novensys will launch a new solution, simultaneous with national and international expansion, by opening two new centers in Romania, but also in Western Europe.
