For thousands of years, beer has been more than just a beverage. It is cultural heritage that never lost its place in society over the course of history. Brau Union Österreich is committed to this deeply rooted beer culture in their country.

From nature, for the people. For Brau Union Österreich, it is a cornerstone of their work to create a high-quality product using resources in the most sustainable way possible. Meeting modern demands and preserving the world for coming generations is at no point a contradiction to the company. That is why they’ve committed themselves to sustainable development.

The company operates 8 breweries, 2 manufactories and 32 warehouse and distribution centers all over Austria. Yet, in the fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry, even a giant like Brau Union Austria needs to keep finding new solutions to improve logistics processes and their SAP transport management.

Logistics Analysis – SAP Add-On Ensures Transportation Optimization

Brau Union Austria operates in Austria, serving around 49,000 customers (cafes, bars, restaurants, retail outlets) with eighteen leading beer brands, over 100 beer types and ongoing innovations, using around 406 trucks. The market-leading company was looking to implement new standardized business processes for its SAP logistics.

They had the following objectives for their transportation optimization:

• Planning time needed to be reduced to allow the warehouse as much flexibility for picking as possible for next day deliveries.
• Faced with rising fuel prices, Brau Union Austria also wanted to reduce distance traveled per route and travel time per delivery.
• To improve data-based decision-making, they needed to implement a single, standardized solution. Brau Union Austria has been using ORTEC's SAP-integrated logistics solution since 2018.
• Provide logistics analysts the data to find improvement opportunities by analyzing historical data and improving traceability.

Optimized SAP Logistics with SAP Add-On for Route Planning Software

ORTEC's SAP Add-On provides tailor-made route planning for Brau Union Austria. ORTEC's Algorithms for transportation optimization calculate the perfect route, factoring in orders, vehicle data, transportation expenses, and rates. They are able to optimize driver schedules and travel times. The result is optimized SAP logistics with a tailor-made route plan, displayed on a digital map and/or table.

Based on this route plan, optimized by ORTEC, and additional information sourced directly from the SAP system, planners find it easier to keep track of transportation, planning and scheduling costs, distance traveled, and possible delivery times. ORTEC's SAP Add-On for Route Planning Software also incorporates return shipping and other potential factors involved in the planning and scheduling process.

More Control, reduced mileage and travel times with SAP Transport Management

Using historical data, analysts are now much better positioned to further analyze and improve logistical operations. The integrated toolset was rolled out to all distribution centers. The Brau Union Austria team has been benefiting from the use of ORTEC Add-Ons for its SAP ERP system since 2018. This enables them to make easy data-based decisions regarding their overall logistics network.

With ORTEC’s SAP Add-on for route planning software, Brau Union Austria benefits from a cost-effective planning and scheduling process. The solution is fully integrated in SAP, so no data imports and/or data exports are needed. The quality of the route planning processes has improved significantly, as data is always consistent and up-to-date.