Automated Forward-Looking Procurement

Business Case Story

Our client wanted to optimize their Forward sourcing process. The goal of this process is the timely and cost-effective procurement of new parts for vehicle projects.

Normally a forward sourcer requests finance targets from the responsible project controller, who then must navigate an archive system for engineering data to extract files and make a decision based on them. After a decision has been made the forward sourcer is notified and, according to the response, must proceed with entering the results in a system for strategic planning and implementation of purchasing processes. Additionally, he is also responsible for collecting data from BI Reports and updating a centralized database accordingly.

At first sight the process itself might seem simple, however, it includes a lot of repetitive manual labor, which in the long term often results in mistakes.

Solution Story

This business case includes navigating multiple systems, cross-referencing and collecting data, as well as sending standardized emails, making it a perfect candidate for an RPA solution.

We decided that this case calls for two distinct bots. The first one receives emails, which are validated based on pre-defined business rules. It then navigates the system for strategic planning in order to extract the necessary files. Then, almost instantly, the files are read and validated. Based on the results, the bot then searches for the particular data record in the archive, extracts the relevant information and sends an email containing all data, that is relevant for the receiver. Afterwards its job is done.

Then comes the second bot, which finalizes the whole process. It takes its input data in the form of an Excel file from a centralized location. The bot then downloads BI Reports and fills the missing data in the input file. After making sure that all available data is entered and the file is up to date, the bot begins navigating the strategic planning system. There it enters all the data from the input file that is deemed valid and informs the responsible people if any issues arise or if the process was a success. This is done in the form of emails, where each completed step is described, easing the work of the responsible person.

The input file is then uploaded to the centralized location and the process is finished.

Benefits Story

Our RPA solution automated almost the entire business process, allowing for better allocation of man-hours. The two bots have reduced the manual labour surrounding this process, so that only non-repetitive tasks have remained. This has resulted not only in resources saved but has also greatly reduced the probability of human errors.

The RPA solution is highly scalable and ready to meet increased number of requests. It reduced the interdepartmental communication and eliminated all repetitive tasks related to this business process.

• 300 man-hours saved annually
• 95% automation potential
• 0 repetitive tasks remained