Cromology. Optimising processes and evolving business with our ERP

SAM was also instrumental in the success of the Italian branch's initiatives. In particular, the establishment of a new logistics hub of 24,000 sq.m. in Santa Croce sull’Arno, in the province of Pisa, about thirty kilometres from the production plant in Lucca, required new functions to complete the management system. In fact, the hub was already intended to replace the six existing peripheral warehouses so as to better serve the country, thus revolutionising the way Cromology operates. Support was required for: - the new picking system; - integration with other applications; - organisation of deliveries over twenty-four hours; - radio frequency connections to dialogue with the terminals used by the operators. SAM’s Warehouse Management System was thus redesigned completely to meet the changing needs of Cromology Italia. The project was completed between 2010 and 2014, and resulted in the development of user-friendly dashboards which enable warehouse staff to handle a variety of operational flows. The Webgate400 modernisation tool revolutionised RPG applications by making them Internet-native and enriching them with numerous additional functions. The operators are now able to use the management system’s modules more easily and productively, having all the information they need for their business available from any device and even when on the move.

The modernisation potential of Webgate400 was also extended to other application functions, in order to optimise processes at all levels. In particular, thanks to its partnership with Sirio, Cromology developed the Paper out project to digitalise order lifecycle tracking, previously managed with printouts. The principal benefits were in savings of time and resources.

SAM is a highly flexible software, and its integration capability serves as a springboard for the improvement and design of useful business applications. A further project enabled the Wolf sales automation application used by Cromology's agents to connect in real time with the SAM database. This makes it possible for the agents to view a whole range of sales information in their web browsers.

In general, making SAM information available to other technologies allows the creation of new business opportunities, thus generating competitive value. For example, the integration features of the management system also enabled direct connection to colorimeters (the equipment that mixes paints to obtain a predefined colour from the sample book), despite the fact that these are extremely vertical and closed solutions. Building on these foundations, Cromology decided to exploit the potential of the management system for a series of innovative applications:

• Paint availability - ERP data gives a real time view of the inventory of the paints required to create a given colour;
• Upselling actions - A dedicated mobile app suggests a colour from Cromology's database for the customer to match, thus enticing them to make the purchase.

Data is the lifeblood that any organisation in step with the times must know how to exploit in order to remain competitive. The ERP system plays a central role as a driving force for business, because it enables the management and control of strategic corporate assets and, above all, stimulates the implementation of innovative solutions, integrating with other technologies and sharing information. For this reason, a new management software must be chosen with care, since it must be able to evolve over time and interface with other devices and applications. Sirio and SAM are a guarantee of quality, because they know how to support businesses in satisfying their present and future requirements.