Right treatment for customer service
INFORM’s add*ONE Inventory Optimizer has enabled Elekta Oncology to more rapidly forecast demand for spare parts
Advanced inventory planning and forecasting technology is helping Elekta Limited supply replacement parts on the shortest possible timescales for equipment treating cancer and brain disorders.
Elekta is a human care company pioneering significant innovations and clinical solutions for treating cancer and brain disorders, and turned to INFORM to supply this integrated technology.
Cancer patients rely on a continuous supply of treatments, so it’s imperative that equipment is always working. Elekta sought a solution from INFORM that would better predict the random demand fluctuations the business was experiencing.
Mark Purchase, global logistics manager at Elekta Oncology, explains, “We run a low-volume but complex operation to install, maintain and support 2,000 sites globally. Because of the mission-critical nature of the parts support operation, we need to ensure all of our customers maintain maximum use of their investment in patient treatment systems.”
INFORM’s add*ONE Inventory Optimizer has enabled Elekta Oncology to more rapidly forecast demand for spare parts globally and respond to the more extreme movements as soon as they registered as demand.
All planners now follow a dedicated work flow to move, increase or delay supplies in line with the latest demand pattern. This has acted as a turbo-boost to the Movex M3 ERP system, and together the complimentary systems are driving forward a more efficient planning process.
Purchase says, “We went live with the add*ONE Inventory Optimizer from INFORM less than 12 months ago and since then it’s become possible to predict fluctuations in customer demand which has reduced the overall stock levels and associated cost by over £1 million.”
Elekta has also seen improved in-region availability of spare parts to 98 per cent – allowing engineers to resolve customer problems within hours. Complaints on availability have also fallen 90 per cent within the year and global stock levels reduced by 8 per cent.
Nigel Weston, Vice President of Supply Chain Management for Elekta Oncology, says, “The capability INFORM provides through add*ONE has helped us to reduce our slow and obsolete stock by 25 per cent in one year; allowing an improvement on our overall cash flow.”
“We have also reduced transportation costs of approximately 10 per cent in the first year alone. This project has allowed us to strengthen our relationship with current customers, and expand our support for continued growth with new customers all over the world.”
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