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class-A technology and service to help boost its business.”
GET CONNECTED DIGITISATION • IN-PLANT TRUCK MOVEMENTS ARE ABOUT TO BECOME A WHOLE LOT MORE EFFICIENT THANKS TO TWO NEW APPS DEVELOPED BY IMPLICO WITH THE HELP OF SAP
IMPLICO, A LEADING software developer and consulting firm for the oil and gas industry, has received certification from SAP for its ‘Connected Truck’ and ‘Connected Depot’ apps, which were built on the SAP Cloud Platform through the ‘Co-Innovated with SAP’ programme. The cloud-based micro-services provided by the apps offer tank terminal operators and their business partners significant benefits, Implico says, such as more efficient, secure and transparent truck handling from site entrance to exit. The new apps are part of Supply Chain United (SCU), an across-the-board architecture of easy-to-use web services for all supply chain
IMPLICO CEO TIM HOFFMEISTER (ABOVE) SAYS THE NEW APPS REPRESENT AN IMPORTANT STEP TOWARDS A FULLY DIGITISED DOWNSTREAM SUPPLY CHAIN
processes with multiple participants. The co-innovation program with SAP enabled Implico to tap into a global expert network and use state-of-the-art technologies and platforms. The results are two best-of-breed solutions providing oil and gas companies – such as tank farms, refineries, fuel retail networks and logistics firms – with operational process excellence and further added value. Tim Hoffmeister, CEO of Implico Group, is excited about the latest developments and the things to come: “With the ‘Connected Truck’ and ‘Connected Depot’ apps newly achieving SAP certification, we are taking an important step towards our vision of a fully digitised, intelligent downstream supply chain. The increase in process optimisation for tank farms and carriers is immense. We are looking forward to offer our new ‘Supply Chain United’ technologies to the industry soon. Here, the label ‘Co-Innovated with SAP’ will help us a lot. After all, a company that opts for an SAP-certified product can be certain to receive
WHAT THEY DO The Connected Truck app links the driver directly with the dispatching and transport planning system. This enhances trip planning and reconciliation for bulk deliveries significantly, Implico says, and raises a wealth of new possibilities. The fetch-anddelivery process can become more efficient, transparent and safe for all parties involved. The Connected Depot app addresses two crucial issues at tank farms with truck connections, namely queuing at the gate and traffic on site. Via the cloud-based functionality ‘Online Check-in’, it streamlines product loading in oil, gas and chemical terminals. The app keeps all partners in a loading or delivery operation up to date on all movements, allowing them to carry out key work steps before the truck has even arrived at the gate. This supports a seamless process from planning to execution, even in operations that involve several terminals or customers. “To boost supply chain efficiency across complex business networks by increased collaboration based on standardised processes becomes an objective that companies are pursuing in the fuels secondary distribution domain,” says Jean-Marc Delbos, director of SAP’s oil and gas industry business unit. “The ‘Connected Truck’ and ‘Connected Depot’ applications by Implico are prefiguring the evolution towards such business networks that will further develop in these times of fundamental transformation.” The Co-Innovated with SAP programme is designed to help partners through the development lifecycle that culminates in a SAP-certified and tested solution against SAP product standards. It is an end-to-end program of guided services offered by the SAP Partner Innovation Lifecycle Services organisation that helps partners take their products to market in alignment with other SAP teams, providing guidance and support to help ensure a competitive solution in the marketplace. The two apps are already implemented at pilot locations in Europe. Further information is available on the dedicated website www. supply-chain-united.com or on www.implico.com.
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