Aptean Food & Beverage ERP Foodware Edition
Enrico Food Modernises Operations with ERP Mediterranean product manufacturer jumpstarts digital transformation Industry
Food & Beverage
Challenges
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Lack of visibility on processes and management information Old Dynamics AX system with high annual costs and extensive customisation
Benefits
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Growth ambitions possible with a uniform ERP system From local servers to a flexible and secure cloud solution Solution provides platform for all operations, allowing staff to focus on key differentiators
Enrico Food is a producer and supplier of distinctive and tasty foods. Their product range is wide: Mediterranean specialties, toast, mayonnaises and dressings are all important parts of their lineup. Their goods, both branded and under private label, are supplied to small- and large-scale retailers, wholesalers and foodservice operators in the Netherlands and neighbouring countries. Over the past 30 years, the business has grown into an international organisation with various locations in Europe operating under the headquarters in Weesp.
Beginning Their Digital Transformation Enrico Food has been an Aptean client for almost 10 years. The collaboration started in 2013 when Udenhoutse Glasbest, now part of Enrico Food, wanted to make the transition from spreadsheets and a simple accounting programme to an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system in order to further professionalise and modernise their operations while also enabling growth ambitions. Glasbest is best known for their Jean Bâton (truffle) mayonnaise. The full spectrum of production functions take place within the walls of the production facility in Udenhout, including creating brands, developing products, manufacturing, filling, preserving and labeling finished goods.
“With the growth we experienced at the time, we increasingly needed to get a grip on our processes. We also wanted more management information in the form of reports and analyses,” says Robin Heetkamp, now managing director at Enrico Food, with which Glasbest has merged in 2017. “Order flows, finances, sales data and reliable stock availability must be quickly accessible in order to be able to make decisions. That is simply not possible with just an accounting package and some Excel lists. That is why we chose to implement the food-specific ERP solution Aptean Food & Beverage ERP Foodware Edition.” After the merger between Glasbest and Enrico in 2017, Enrico’s existing operations also made the switch from Microsoft Dynamics AX to Aptean’s food solution built on the Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central platform. Meanwhile, the Enrico Food portfolio was expanded again at the end of 2020 with the purchase of the Bertolli brand.
Great Opportunities for Growth Despite the differences between the various brands the business has acquired, the activities under the umbrella of Enrico Food are highly complementary, according to Robin Heetkamp. “Glasbest’s production capacity and innovative strength are linked to Enrico’s commercial strength. This results in great opportunities for growth,” he says. Enrico Food has worked hard in recent years to expand, increasing from around €23 million in turnover in 2016 to over €50 million in 2021. In order to optimally facilitate this growth, they had the foresight to start implementing an ERP solution at an early stage, ensuring all business processes are connected, including inventory systems, production, business administration and logistics.
Case Study | Enrico Food
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Starting Point: Food-Specific ERP System without Customisation Enrico Food opted for a standard solution without customisation hosted in the cloud. This provides agility and the ability to quickly and easily upgrade to the latest version. Robin Heetkamp states that conforming to the standard with a food-specific ERP system a major advantage. “As long as you can adapt the business processes to the [ERP] system, it’s the best way in our opinion. Adjusting everything to existing business processes according to your own wishes sounds nice, but is far from ideal,” he says. “You often see that organisations with a custom solution get stuck with an outdated system at some point in time because a custom solution does not entail the flexibility to grow along with the business, especially when it comes to updates and the addition of new functionalities. The integration of the Bertolli brand in the ERP system was therefore not a major challenge. The foundation was already in place, which made it easy to integrate Bertolli’s business activities.”
“With the growth we experienced at the time, we increasingly needed to get a grip on our processes. We also wanted more management information in the form of reports and analyses. That is why we chose to implement the food-specific ERP solution Aptean Food & Beverage ERP Foodware Edition.” Robin Heetkamp, Managing Director at Enrico Food
Innovation at Your Fingertips Even with a turnover of more than €50 million, 800+ different products and just as many ingredients and raw materials, their ERP system runs smoothly. “ERP is never an issue for us. Nobody talks about it. Or worse: complains about it. That’s good because we should be making mayonnaise and selling pasta sauce, not troubleshooting the ERP,” Heetkamp says. “We are happy with it, but we are not standing still. We are also growing, and information and forecasting data is becoming increasingly important in this respect. “We are increasingly moving towards a data-driven organisation. Data helps to keep costs as low as possible and to keep the business running effectively at a fast pace. The implementation of Power BI is therefore also on the wish list for the coming year,” he concludes. Case Study | Enrico Food
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About Enrico Food Enrico Food is the largest manufacturer of Mediterranean food products in the Netherlands. With 55 employees between the head office and factory and 24 authentic brands in the portfolio, the company has now realised a turnover of over €50 million in 2021. The production facility in Udenhout is currently being renovated so that there is room to grow further at home and abroad.
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About Aptean
Aptean is one of the world’s leading providers of purpose-built, industry-specific software that helps manufacturers and distributors effectively run and grow their businesses. With both cloud and on-premise deployment options, Aptean’s products, services and unmatched expertise help businesses of all sizes to be Ready for What’s Next, Now®. Aptean is headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia-Pacific. To learn more about Aptean and the markets we serve, visit www.aptean.com. Copyright @ Aptean 2022. All rights reserved.