Inergex Helps To Streamline Logistical Processes for Rich Products Corporation’s International Division Using a Microsoft Access Based Solution

Client: Rich Products Corporation
Client Location: United States
Client Industry: Manufacturing Food and Beverage

Client Profile Founded in 1945, Rich Products Corporation is known around the world as the founder of the non-dairy segment of the frozen food industry and a leading supplier and solutions provider tothe food service, in-store bakery and retail marketplaces. Rich’s manufactures and markets quality products including: toppings & icings, breads and rolls, finished desserts and cakes, pizza dough and sweet goods, beverages, Italian specialties, barbeque, seafood and appetizers. As one of the world’s premier family-owned food companies, Rich’s posts annual sales exceeding $2 billion.

Business Situation & Challenge
Coordinating the deliveries to domestic ports, international ports, and sometimes international cities is complicated. Like any complicated process involving multiple people, companies, and locations, unintentional mistakes often happen. Mistakes in such a process can cost Rich Products time, money, and/or customer satisfaction which results in potential loss of marketshare. Late or lost shipments, changes in scheduling, and using the wrong carrier can be very costly in both the short and long-terms.Therefore, it was imperative that Rich Products control and track their international processes.

International Logistics needed a quick and reliable way to track information pertaining to customer orders. This information, not currently contained in Rich Products’ SAP system, is centered on target dates required for a perfect order to be delivered to a customer. Information such as Estimated Load and Sail and Arrival dates are critical to effectively capture and measure the success of International Logistics’ ability to satisfy customers.

To help manage this process, Rich Products had developed a variety of spreadsheets to assist in tracking orders. The spreadsheets were being used by International Logistics to schedule distribution center shipments. While this process initially assisted Logistics with their scheduling needs, it soon became ineffecient— prone to human error and highly ineffective for more than one user. Something different had to be done to avoid any customer delivery or scheduling issues.

Solution & Project Benefits/Value Due to the longstanding, trusting relationship between Inergex and Rich Products, Inergex was selected to help them determine, develop, and implement a new solution for the International Logistic process. Ultimately, a Microsoft Access application was written, providing Rich Products with the ability to:

• Enter and acknowledge customer orders as they were received
• Verify specific items ordered in SAP
• Enter pertinent information into the Access database for comparison and confirmation of the order to the customer
• Request and track bookings on shipping lines

To aid in this confirmation, a listing of the shipping documents required by various customers (due their shipping destination/ country) was compiled and would automatically print with the order confirmation. Both the acknowledgement and the order confirmation generated automatic emails to the selected client's email address, specifiying the detail of the order in an attached .rtf file. This streamlined email functionality was a tremendous time saver in that no additional typing was required by the International Logistics Department in order to acknowledge and confirm orders that were entered into the tracking system. It also provided a consistent process for acknowledgements and confirmations, as desired by Rich Product’s management and metrics concerning the staff's commitment to acknowledging and confirming orders within a set period of time.

The secondary functionality provided was to track the booking requests made to the freight forwarders for the various orders. When selecting a vessel and shipping line, the logistics coordinator takes into account the destination, type of freight container required, the requested delivery date and any cost savings they can take advantage of by utilizing shipping contracts with specific lines. The Access application transfers the information from the order and allows for input of the warehouse, shipping destination, and various other shipping information required by the freight forwarder. Based on that information, a listing of shipping contracts that are applicable for that request is displayed allowing the Logistics coordinator to use various shipping lines' online schedules to select and request a specific voyage and load date, along with a secondary choice as needed. Once this information is selected, an automatic email can be sent to the freight forwarder requesting the booking. The freight forwarder processes the request and returns a confirmation of the availability of that voyage and load date. This automation, again, expedites the transaction and requests for bookings with freight forwarders and allows for tracking of the effectiveness of the various freight forwarders.

Other functionality provided in the Booking Request portion of the application is to allow tracking of the order once it has shipped. The actual quantity shipped, actual load and sail dates, and the actual arrival dates can be easily and quickly tracked. Any issues or complaints brought up by the customer are also tracked in a separate area.

Overall, the robust reporting of the application allows Rich Products to gather metrics and look for ongoing improvements in a variety of areas—all of this is part of an effort to continously better their internal processes and client relationships. For more information about the Rich Products Corporation please visit www.richs.com

Inergex_Rich Products IntLog CS_SellSheet_LowRes.pdf