Customer Story

Global Manufacturing Company Integrates 15 ERP Systems for Worldwide View of Operations

What we did

  • Automated the ingestion of data from 15 distinct ERP systems into Snowflake, creating a unified cloud data warehouse that serves as a single source of truth.
  • Transitioned BI functionalities from multiple platforms to a singular, more efficient Qlik Sense platform, simplifying the analysis landscape and governing reporting capabilities.
  • Employed dbt to transform raw ERP data within Snowflake into a dimensional data model aligned with the company’s business processes.

Industry

  • Manufacturing

Technologies

  • dbt
  • ·
  • Qlik
  • ·
  • Snowflake

With a single source of truth, the company reduces tech costs and empowers teams to focus on highest-value work.

“Our partnership with Analytics8 has been instrumental in transforming our company into a data-centric organization, where decisions are driven by insight, not instinct. This transformation is more than an IT initiative; it is a fundamental shift in how we view and utilize data as a strategic asset. We’re breaking down silos, enhancing collaboration, and enabling our team to unlock unprecedented value from our data.“

VP & CIO

About

This company is a global leader in wire rope, synthetic rope, and engineered cable manufacturing. Founded more than 200 years ago, the manufacturer has grown significantly through strategic mergers and acquisitions, serving diverse industries such as construction, mining, energy, and marine. Today, it operates manufacturing facilities and sales offices around the world, employing nearly 4,000 people globally.

Business Goals

The manufacturer aims to establish a central source of truth to enhance data integrity and accessibility, optimizing their decision-making — and ultimately growing their competitive edge in the market.

They set out to:

  • Consolidate the data from 15 ERPs to achieve a global view of complex operations
  • Build a scalable data platform that easily evolves with changes in the business
  • Consolidate to a single BI platform to optimize decision making across all business functions
  • Establish data governance with data system standards for a multinational workforce

Solution

We worked with their data team to streamline their disparate reporting solutions and ERP data into a cohesive, unified data platform environment. We approached it by:

  • Implementing Snowflake as a central cloud data warehouse, we automated ingestion of ERP data and created a single source of truth.
  • Utilizing dbt to transform raw data in Snowflake into a business-focused dimensional data model and ensuring business logic was applied consistently to data from each ERP.
  • Consolidating BI tools and processes and migrating into a single Qlik Sense solution.

The Results

The implementation of a unified, governed analytics platform marked a transformative shift for the company’s analytics capabilities. By addressing their strategic goals, they realized substantial immediate benefits and laid the foundation for ongoing competitive advantages, including:

  • More efficient data management and reduced costs: The consolidation of 15 ERPs into a single data platform simplifies the development process for new data requests and reduces the technical overhead. With fewer tools to maintain, the company not only simplified their technological footprint but also realized direct cost savings, notably $1 million plus from software consolidation.
  • Enhanced system performance and decreased risk: By shifting data queries away from direct ERP interactions, the solution mitigates risks associated with system overload and enhances performance. Analysts benefit from quicker access to data, reduced need for extensive filtering, and the availability of previously inaccessible data points — streamlining the analytical process.
  • A unified, scalable BI platform: More than 300 reports from various systems were consolidated into Qlik, streamlining the reporting process and making it easier for stakeholders to obtain crucial operational insights. A scalable and adaptable BI environment prepares them for future data integrations and ERP upgrades.
  • Better view into profitability metrics: The solution positions the company to realize significant operational improvements and enhanced cash flow with better data and reporting around forecasting and inventory management.
  • Common systems definitions: By prioritizing data governance, the company set a standard for consistency, quality, and transparency throughout their data and analytics ecosystem.
  • Increased organizational buy-in and adoption: C-level executives are experiencing immediate benefits from the solution, contributing to a cultural shift toward data-driven decision-making.
“I have had the pleasure to work with Analytics8 since 2019 across two dissimilar industries. I consider Analytics8 consultants as trusted and integral partners to our data team allowing us to strategically create a single source of truth for the entirety of our business entities. When we need to ramp up quickly, the Analytics8 team quickly jumps in and adds the resources and talent we need to be successful. Unlike consultants that come in and take over, the Analytics8 team works side- by-side with our data team to ensure we can stand alone when the time comes.“

Data Governance Manager

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