Data to Dollars

Revolutionizing Supply Chain Planning: Unleashing the Power of AI & ML with SAP IBP

Join us for an electrifying session, "Revolutionizing Supply Chain Planning: Unleashing the Power of AI & ML with SAP IBP," where we delve into the transformative impact of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) on modern supply chain management, with a specific focus on SAP Integrated Business Planning (IBP).

In today's fast-paced business environment, organizations are under increasing pressure to optimize their supply chain operations for agility, efficiency, and resilience. AI and ML technologies offer unprecedented opportunities to unlock insights, automate processes, and drive innovation across the supply chain landscape.

During this session, attendees will embark on a journey through the intersection of AI, ML, and supply chain planning, exploring how SAP IBP harnesses these cutting-edge technologies to revolutionize decision-making and drive business success. From demand forecasting and inventory optimization to predictive analytics and scenario planning, we'll uncover the myriad ways in which AI and ML are reshaping the supply chain planning landscape.

Don't miss this opportunity to stay ahead of the curve and learn how AI & ML, in conjunction with SAP IBP, can empower you to revolutionize your supply chain planning processes and drive unparalleled business outcomes. Join us and embark on the journey to supply chain excellence in the age of AI.

Key Takeaways:

1. Enhanced Forecasting Accuracy:
   Discover how AI and ML technologies integrated into SAP IBP can significantly improve demand forecasting accuracy, enabling better anticipation of market trends and customer demands.
2. Intelligent Decision-Making:
   Learn how AI-driven predictive analytics and scenario planning capabilities in SAP IBP empower organizations to make informed and strategic decisions, optimizing inventory management and mitigating risks in dynamic supply chain environments.
3. Real-World Applications:
   Gain insights into real-world examples and best practices for leveraging AI and ML with SAP IBP, providing actionable strategies for driving tangible business outcomes and achieving supply chain excellence in today's rapidly evolving marketplace

Sasol Case Study: SAP CIG

Adopting Inventory Automation to Simplify Inventory Management

All you Need is an Army of 1

In today’s digital landscape, human decision-making remains heavily influenced by the information presented on screens. Individuals rely on their judgment to interpret and act upon this data. However, there’s a growing recognition that data-driven decisions can lead to more accurate and impactful outcomes.

The shift from subjective human assessments to objective data analysis is crucial. Imagine a scenario where Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are no longer colored in red or green but are instead continuously monitored. Rather than waiting for a KPI to turn red, organizations can proactively identify when a green status is about to shift to yellow. This predictive approach allows for timely interventions and adjustments.
To achieve this transformation, several steps are essential:
1. Data Collection and Integration: Organizations must consolidate relevant data from various sources. This unified dataset serves as the foundation for informed decision-making.
2. Machine Learning and Predictive Analytics: By leveraging machine learning algorithms, businesses can predict trends and anomalies.
3. Thresholds and Alerts: Establishing thresholds for KPIs ensures that deviations trigger alerts. Instead of waiting for red flags, teams receive early warnings when a metric approaches a critical point. These alerts prompt immediate investigation and corrective actions.
4. Automated Responses: When a KPI teeters on the edge of yellow, automated responses kick in. For instance:
o Inventory levels nearing depletion trigger reorder processes.
5. Human Oversight: While automation is powerful, human judgment remains invaluable. Data-driven decisions benefit from a blend of quantitative insights and qualitative expertise. Teams must interpret the data contextually and adapt strategies accordingly.
In summary, the era of relying solely on human intuition is fading. Organizations that embrace data-driven decision-making—anticipating shifts from green to yellow—will thrive in an increasingly dynamic business landscape.

Key Takeaways:

1. Data-Driven Decision-Making: The shift from subjective human judgments to data-driven insights is essential. Organizations should collect and integrate relevant data, employ predictive analytics, and establish thresholds for KPIs. By proactively identifying shifts from green to yellow, teams can make timely interventions and optimize outcomes.
2. Automated Responses: When KPIs approach critical points, automated responses kick in. Whether it's adjusting marketing campaigns, replenishing inventory, or managing financial metrics, automation ensures swift actions. However, human oversight remains crucial to interpret context and adapt strategies.
3. Thriving in Dynamic Landscapes: Businesses that embrace data-driven decisions thrive in today's dynamic environment. Anticipating changes, fixing issues before they escalate, and blending quantitative insights with qualitative expertise lead to success.

Remember, the future lies in data-driven agility, where green rarely turns red—it transitions seamlessly to yellow, prompting proactive adjustments.

And Generative AI is Just the Beginning!

Before discussing strategy and generative AI, we will be looking at some cool examples that you could even try out yourself. This technology burst onto the scene about a year and a half ago and has quickly become a part of how we communicate with each other in all sorts of ways - through text, images, video, audio, and even code. It's pretty wild how fast it's evolving.
But here's where it gets even more interesting: the idea of generative AI as your own personal work agent. Imagine having an assistant that can help you get things done faster, just like how a travel agent handles all the details of your trip. That's exactly what SAP is working on right now, putting generative AI to work for you.

Key Takeaways:

1. This technology is just starting.
2.  It's already incredibly useful.
3. When we link it to the systems we already have, it opens up a whole new world of possibilities.

Being on the Receiving End of an SAP Roll-Out

Our business unit is one of many in a multi-business unit, global organization. SAP had been implemented at the largest business unit and it was decide that the logical next step was to capitalize on the implementation successes and lessons learned, and roll-out to the rest of the business units.

Roll-outs are quicker and cheaper, and we will all benefit from the experience retained from the implementation. Sounds straight forward, right? What could possibly go wrong?

It didn’t take long for us to realize that something went horribly wrong. We were still highly dependent on Excel for our supply chain planning and scheduling, and trusting the data in our system just seemed to be an impossible task. Our adoption of the SAP system and the integrated supply chain solution was nowhere near expectation, and we soon realized that we needed a radical intervention to turn this ship around.

This presentation will reveal the framework at AECI used to transform a silo supply chain solution into a fully integrated supply chain solution.

Education, certification, and empowerment of our people are at the top of our priority list. Functional skills within best business practices along the end-to-end supply chain are essential. Breaking down silos within a system that’s the single source of the truth is necessary for integration. A strong focus on management routines within a global governance system. Valuable and trusted data is the heartbeat of our supply chain success.

Key Takeaways:

1. A supply chain optimization framework with a 360 Deg view of the components that work.
2. Get a handle on the value of daily integration routines.
3. A reliable forecast and stable demand plan are not out of reach when integrating S&OP and MRP

Sappi's Mobility Solution through SAP

Mobile Asset Management – Enhancing the User Experience & Creating Human-Centred Analytics to Maximise your Investment

Over more than a decade City of Cape Town has mobilised thousands of field workers with over 15 custom SAP PM related mobile applications developed and deployed. Numerous lessons were learned (some mostly the hard way).

If you’re considering investing in mobile asset management or have embarked on the journey but want to better leverage your current investment, this is the case study not to miss, comprehensively covering a mobile digital transformation effort.

From concept to embedding the solution and value realisation, the presentation will cover critical success factors covering the entire lifecycle of a typical mobility project. From your readiness assessment, design considerations, the human element, dashboards and analytics to drive behaviour change and enabling data driven decision making as well as mistakes to avoid. You will learn how to harness the full potential that mobility can bring to your organisation.

Key takeaways

1. Practical tips on why, when and how to go mobile
2. Easy enhancements to leverage your mobile investment
3. How to live with irrational decision making – using the wisdom of behavioural economics
4. Bonus material: Using SAP GUI scripting to reduce reporting time 10x

The Path to Continuous Supply Chain Improvement within an Integrated Framework

Ever heard the term, “Like a Cat on a hot tin roof?”
So many SAP supply chain solutions can totally relate when they imagine a cat not knowing where to step that doesn’t hurt, when they are dealing with the daily issues in their supply chain.
It’s clear that SAP is a very complex solution but is there a light at the end of this tunnel?

When you look around you, at the functions in the supply chain, how often are you presented with an excel spreadsheet in a planning or scheduling discussion?
Is it possible that this best of breed SAP solution is unable to fully cope with the requirements of our business? Are we really that different? Is our business that unique?
At the end of the day, what keeps us in business, is the ability to buy and sell products & services.

So, why does it feel as though SAP is not a perfect fit for the way we do business?

This presentation will introduce you to an optimization framework that has helped organizations do a self-assessment of all the components necessary to mature into a fully integrated supply chain.
The framework also supports the ability to repeat the self-assessment regularly, to identify the best area/s to spend limited funds, while laying the building blocks towards a fully integrated functional solution within a single system like SAP.

Key Takeaways:

1. This integrated framework will guide your optimization focus across the end-to-end functions in your supply chain, to achieve maturity in the integration between strategic planning within S&OP, production capacity planning, inventory planning, and strategic sourcing in purchasing.
2. You will be guided in the needed attention to people, systems, data, organization alignment, and management routines.
3. The framework will lead you into areas where you will deal with the issues which you never realized are that important for an integrated supply chain.

Burning Bright or Burning Out? Identification & Prevention Strategies to Navigate Burn Out

Burnout, a state of emotional, physical and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress, is a prevalent issue in today's Fast-paced world. This presentation aims to explore the signs and symptoms of burnout, providing practical strategies to identify it early on. Through an examination of the latest research and expert insights, we will delve into the proactive measures and coping mechanisms to prevent burnout before it takes a toll on one's wellbeing. Leave empowered with knowledge and tools to foster resilience, establish healthy boundaries and cultivate a supportive environment both personally and professionally.

Key Takeaways:

1. Identify signs and symptoms of burn out
2. Prevention or coping strategies
3. Cultivate a supportive environment in your teams

Don't Stay Stuck in the Dumb Days. Join the Revolution!

These are unprecedented times, and maintenance and service will never be the same again. Remote working and changing workforce; more complex equipment with servitization of products and the IoT; supply disruptions with unpredictable demand; sustainability – all are critical challenges.

Maintenance organizations are responding to these challenges with process optimization and innovation, ensuring that assets continue to serve the business and customers, driving down costs, differentiating through amazing customer service, and extending asset life and performance for sustainable outcomes.

In enterprise asset management (EAM) we see continued potential for maintenance process optimization and automation. These are achieved with the latest mobile and scheduling technologies, including artificial intelligence and augmented reality, and with integrated environment, health, and safety (EHS) policies for safe, sustainable working. In addition, there is an increased focus on asset performance management (APM) to manage risk and reliability, optimize maintenance strategies, and connect assets for real-time condition monitoring through the IoT, allowing a shift toward leaner, more efficient predictive and prescriptive maintenance.

This session will detail how SAP’s strategy is delivered through SAP Intelligent Asset Management solutions, where we bring together the domains of EAM and APM, and through process integration that closes the loop across strategy, planning, and execution.

Key Takeaways:
1. Overview of SAP Intelligent Asset Management Solutions
2. Using SAP IAM to create value for your business
3. Success is easier as a team effort.

How to Increase Planning and Scheduling Flexibility in SAP ECC and SAP S/4HANA

At most organizations, maintenance planning and scheduling processes are time consuming and prevent maintenance from reaching the next level. This is usually due to organizations creating workarounds to plan and schedule their maintenance because their maintenance planning and scheduling needs were more advanced and required more flexibility than their core system provided. However, this creates data silos in spreadsheets or homegrown solutions, preventing organizations from having complete and accurate information in their core system of truth. To improve maintenance efficiency and effectiveness, organizations need a way to increase the flexibility and visibility of their maintenance planning and scheduling while maintaining a single source of truth inside their SAP system. To achieve this, organizations can leverage a web-based planning and scheduling solution that integrates seamlessly with all versions of SAP including SAP ECC and SAP S/4HANA. With an integrated solution, organizations can maximize efficiency of work allocation, increase visibility of work, easily move work orders individually or in mass, increase preventative maintenance compliance, and maximize maintenance wrench time. In this session, we will discuss ways to increase the efficiency of your planning and scheduling in SAP, the importance of having flexibility with maintenance planning and scheduling, and the benefits of improved maintenance planning and scheduling. After this session, organizations will have a clearer view of how they can transform their maintenance planning and scheduling to address inefficiencies, maximize control of work management, and prepare their maintenance for an SAP S/4HANA transformation.

Key Takeaways

1. Areas of improvement in maintenance planning and scheduling
2. Ways to improve maintenance planning and scheduling efficiency and effectiveness
3. How to prepare maintenance planning and scheduling for SAP S/4HANA transformation

ISBN for Collaboration

SAP Business AI: Unlocking the Umami of your Supply Chain

In today's competitive landscape, a well-functioning supply chain is no longer enough. It's time to unlock its full potential and extract the rich, hidden value – the umami – that drives success. This session explores how SAP Business AI acts as the secret ingredient, transforming your supply chain from bland to brilliant.
Discover how AI can sharpen your senses, providing deeper insights into your data to uncover hidden opportunities. We'll explore how AI refines your recipe, leveraging its power to streamline operations, reduce inefficiencies, and boost overall efficiency.
Finally, learn how AI helps you predict the perfect blend, anticipating disruptions and proactively adjusting your strategy for a more resilient and responsive supply chain. Through real-world examples and practical applications, you'll see how to unlock the umami of your supply chain and experience a symphony of efficiency, agility, and profitability.

Key Takeaways:

1. What SAP Business AI is for supply chains
2. How SAP Business AI help to solves real world supply chain problems
3. The benefits customers are seeing from leveraging SAP Business AI for supply chains

The Sands of TIME, How Do You get Control of Changing Lead Times?! A CRITICAL Planning Input!

Hearding cats! That's what it feels like when trying to manage lead times (LTs) in todays world! How do you deal with fluctuating LTs in a world that feels like its a dumpster fire?! You can't afford to stock 10x of everything that you think that you will need, so what do I do? Well come along and I will help you get a grip on the situation and help you build you own cat wrangling tool!

Key Takeaways

• Master Data LT versus PIR LT versus the contract LT - how do they all fit together?
• The importance of managing lead times
• Standard SAP capability versus outside tools to help

Manufacturing Shop Floor and Connecting to the Top Floor

Choose Your Own Adventure with SAP Service and Asset Manager Mobile App

Mobile solutions can be used to handle raising notifications, work order execution, work instructions, status updates, notification history, recording of measurements, gathering of images/photos, time confirmations, and more. Sunwater has implemented SAP Service and Asset Manager for their maintenance field workers. With the aim of achieving operational improvements by data capture in near real time, they have been realising the benefits for over four years. In this “Choose Your Own Adventure” session, Vicki will use a live demo to showcase the use of the app, plus explain the configuration and enhancements they have made to get the most from SAP Asset Manager, including which functionality they are using and why. Vicki will also provide lots of tips and tricks for companies thinking about implementing a mobile solution, regardless of which mobile application has been selected (the learnings are the same, regardless of the mobile app).

Key takeaways

1. What functions does SAP Service and Asset Manager have
2. Tips and tricks for preparing to implement a mobile app
3. Tips and tricks for implementing and supporting a mobile app

People, Processes and Technology as enablers for Intelligent Asset Management

Intelligent Asset Management (IAM) hinges upon the synergy of three fundamental pillars: People, Processes, and Technology.

People are the cornerstone, bringing expertise, insight, and adaptability to the table. Skilled personnel understand the intricacies of assets, ensuring effective management through their expertise in maintenance, optimization, and decision-making. Their ability to interpret data and translate it into actionable strategies is pivotal.

Processes provide the framework within which assets are managed efficiently. Defined workflows, protocols, and procedures streamline operations, ensuring consistency and reliability. From asset acquisition to disposal, well-defined processes facilitate transparency, accountability, and compliance, driving operational excellence.

Technology acts as the catalyst, augmenting human capabilities and enhancing process efficiency. Advanced tools such as Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Machine Learning (ML) enable real-time monitoring, predictive maintenance, and data-driven insights. These technologies empower organizations to anticipate failures, optimize performance, and extend asset lifespan.

The convergence of these elements fosters a holistic approach to asset management. People leverage their expertise to design and implement robust processes, while technology provides the tools to execute these processes effectively. Continuous refinement driven by insights derived from data ensures adaptive, future-ready asset management strategies.

In essence, People, Processes, and Technology are not isolated components but interconnected enablers within the Intelligent Asset Management paradigm. By harnessing the collective power of these pillars, organizations can unlock new levels of efficiency, reliability, and sustainability in managing their assets, driving value and competitive advantage in an ever-evolving landscape.

Key Takeaways

1. 'People: Skilled personnel are essential for Intelligent Asset Management (IAM), bringing expertise, adaptability, and insight to the table. Their understanding of assets and ability to interpret data enable effective decision-making, maintenance, and optimization. Investing in training and empowering personnel fosters a culture of continuous improvement and innovation within asset management practices.
2. Processes: Well-defined workflows, protocols, and procedures provide the foundation for efficient asset management. Clear processes ensure consistency, reliability, and compliance throughout the asset lifecycle, from acquisition to disposal. By streamlining operations and promoting transparency and accountability, processes enhance operational excellence and mitigate risks associated with asset management.
3. Technology: Advanced technologies such as IoT, AI, and ML act as catalysts for enhancing asset management capabilities. These tools enable real-time monitoring, predictive maintenance, and data-driven insights, empowering organizations to anticipate failures, optimize performance, and extend asset lifespan. Integration of technology into asset management processes fosters agility, innovation, and competitiveness in a rapidly evolving landscape.

The Realm of SAP S/4HANA EAM Reports – A Perspective from the Knight in Shining Armour

When the drawbridge lowers and you finally enter the SAP S/4HANA Enterprise Asset Management fortress — as a knight, the distinct sense of responsibility falls upon you to uphold the code of chivalry and maintain order in the Society of Reports. Applied to SAP EAM, this means showing bravery in exploring new EAM reporting solutions in Fiori, demonstrating strength and skill in delivering them successfully, being generous to not only your maintenance peers but to other departments which may be affected by your decisions, remaining loyal to the EAM Product Owner, EAM super users; and last but not least — EAM end users.

In this deep-dive session, we will explore the countless, yet often under-leveraged options for building a set of operational reports and dashboards for target maintenance personas in SAP S/4HANA EAM.

As a maintenance technician — how do you easily track your daily tasks? As a maintenance planner — how do you plan and schedule proactive work in a systematic way? How do you ensure that spare parts and services are going to be ready for on-time execution? How do you commit to a frozen schedule and effectively break the cycle of reactive maintenance? As a maintenance supervisor, how do you set achievable goals? How do you measure the progress of your teams and confidently communicate the results to Management?

These are a few examples of questions which we will address as a group in this session. If you have any specific topics to raise, be bold — bring them on as a welcome challenge to resolve!

Key Takeaways

1. Which EAM operational reports are available in the latest versions of SAP S/4HANA EAM?
2. How do you customise EAM reports and make the most of the Fiori user interface?
3. Which are some of the most popular solutions to enhance standard S/4HANA reporting functionality?