General Dynamics streamlines with Oracle Cloud ERP and SCM
By automating manual processes in the cloud, the original equipment manufacturer improves operational efficiency.
“We wanted to streamline our processes and make our processes as efficient and error-free as possible. A top priority was to reduce the time employees spent digging for data and manually syncing systems and reports.”
Business challenges
General Dynamics Mission Systems is one of 10 business units of US aerospace and defense company General Dynamics. The company is a technology integrator and original equipment manufacturer with deep domain expertise in ground, sea, air, space and cyberspace. It has industry-leading technologies and a unique combination of products and capabilities that are purpose built for C4ISR (command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance) and cybersecurity applications.
Having grown over the years, General Dynamics Mission Systems needed to modernize and integrate its patchwork of legacy on-premises finance and supply chain applications.
Previously the company didn’t have central dashboards for management to view finance and supply chain performances. That reporting was done manually, and employees had to collect and consolidate data from different divisions and business units before printing out a report for management to review.
Why General Dynamics Chose Oracle
The organization decided to standardize a consolidated set of cloud-based ERP and supply chain management applications. Among the goals: streamline and integrate acquired companies while improving the ability to make decisions based on near real-time information.
Recent acquisitions posed the opportunity for General Dynamics Mission Systems to move from its on-premise apps to the Oracle Cloud ERP, Oracle Cloud EPM, and Oracle Cloud SCM suites, including their core financials, order management, manufacturing, procurement, inventory management, supply chain planning, and product lifecycle management modules.
Results
The General Dynamics Mission Systems management team now gets near real-time visibility from online dashboards into a range of metrics and KPIs around sourcing options, procurement, pricing, order orchestration and status, product configurations, inventory, lead times, demand forecasts, and more, in order to make better decisions.
Oracle Cloud streamlined the company’s entire order-to-cash process by integrating sales, order fulfillment, and finance functions into one unified management system, helping them capture orders accurately, get order fulfillment statuses, match demand with supply from all available sources, use production schedules to estimate delivery times, and centralize pricing management to ensure profitability.
By automating previously manual processes, General Dynamics Mission Systems improved its operational efficiency. One example: Factory floor work orders, engineering change orders, and quality management are now processed in the Oracle Cloud SCM manufacturing module, which allows for better visibility to manage the labor force and plan resource capacity.
The organization is also realizing the core benefits of the cloud model: reduced system maintenance costs and responsibilities; regular, automatic updates for the latest application features and security patches; speed to innovation; unlimited scalability; and anytime, anywhere access to the applications, particularly important during the pandemic.