SPSA grocery chain improves logistics with Oracle

Supermercados Peruanos S.A. (SPSA) is one of Peru’s largest supermarket chains, with annual sales of almost $1 billion. Experiencing rapid growth over the past few years, the firm recently added a new distribution center in the southern region of Lima. SPSA has fueled its rapid growth and increased market share with store formats appealing to different market segments, from high-end specialty shops to discount stores.

Supermercados Peruanos’ sales channel diversity added a level of complexity to its supply chain execution after experiencing rapid growth over the past few years. The company needed to redesign and improve some of its logistics operations and integrate a new solution with its existing SAP ERP system in order to ensure fulfillment in its different market segments, all while leveraging a low-risk, pay-as-you-go solution that would not only solve its immediate challenges but also expand gradually with its growth.

Implementing traditional WMS and SCE software solutions for small- to medium-size and large enterprises have typically been a high-budget proposition. Cloud-based solutions can eliminate upfront hardware and software and database licensing fees, costly modification and long implementation and integration time frames, additional hardware and system maintenance and upgrades costs, and often, the need to increase or at least allocate in-house IT resources to manage and support the system.

The multitenant operating environment and SaaS pricing reduce upfront capital investment while providing increased flexibility, scalability, and agility to keep pace with business growth and changes as well as shifts in global supply chain management. Oracle Warehouse Management Cloud allows companies to reduce IT and overall operational costs and resources and focus resources on core business activities that foster growth and competitive advantage in this fiercely competitive marketplace. And that’s a goal worth everyone’s focus.

The company also wanted to redesign and improve some of its logistics operations and integrate the new solution with its existing SAP ERP system.

One of the biggest requirements for SPSA was the need to be up and running in just four months, ready to handle the company’s high-volume peak season. Had SPSA chosen a traditional licensed WMS system, that timeframe would have been impossible to meet, not to mention considerably more expensive to deploy and support. With Oracle's cloud-based delivery model and SaaS pricing, however, the goal was challenging but achievable.

After evaluating potential solutions in the marketplace, SPSA’s management team selected Oracle Warehouse Management Cloud. The cloud-based solution also leverages a software-as-a-service (SaaS) pricing model, so that SPSA did not have to pay for the software upfront nor pay annual maintenance fees. Instead, the chain pays a monthly fee based on the volume of logistics services needed.

SPSA's results delivered by Oracle Warehouse Management Cloud have been overwhelmingly positive. Efficiency, shipping productivity, product traceability, and customer service have all increased significantly. Moreover, the ability of workers to access the WMS system on tablets and other Internet-connected mobile devices on the warehouse floor, rather than from fixed workstations, has greatly improved productivity and the speed and quality of communication throughout the operation.

In addition to improving warehouse processes, the selection of the Oracle SaaS-based WMS solution over a traditional licensed solution has also benefitted SPSA financially as well. The advantages include reduced startup costs with no licensing fees, faster implementation time, and continuous technical support and upgrades at no additional expense. In operation, the flexibility and scalability of the cloud-based solution pay additional dividends.

SPSA Vice President of Supply Chain Gabriel Ortiz says, “Oracle was able to train and certify our operators with new and improved functionality and processes never before used at SPSA.”

Oracle Warehouse Management Cloud is an ideal fit to support SPSA’s mission-critical logistics and distribution requirements. With more than 70 retail locations with diverse formats and sizes of products, the solutions have been successfully implemented by manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers, and logistics services providers/3PLs, regardless of their size and complexity, providing robust Tier 1 functionality with cost-effective SaaS pricing that all can afford.