Case Studies
Baustoff Union
Baustoff Union (BU),is a leading provider of building materials,
construction services and equipment rental services in Bavaria, the
largest state of Germany. BU uses SMH ERP since 1997, a solution
from LANSA's business partner S.M.Hartmann. The ERP solution's
functionality was originally RPG based, but has been modernized and
extended with LANSA technology over the years, including an
extension that provides users with mobile access. Mobile apps
created by SMH with LANSA's LongRange, allow BU's management to use
their iPads and iPhones to view key metrics and relevant company
figures. BU's customer representatives in the field are equipped
with mobile devices to access all relevant customer information and,
using GPS information, map the best route to a customer. The SMH
solution has supported BU's exceptional growth and has helped to
achieve dramatic efficiencies.
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BOSTES
The Board of Studies, Teaching and Educational Standards NSW (BOSTES), is the certifying authority responsible for the content of syllabus materials and the delivery
of high school examinations for New South Wales, the most populous state in Australia. LANSA's development and integration tools are at the heart of the BOSTES IT
infrastructure, including for its onscreen marking application, MarkManager.
Recently BOSTES has provided mobile apps, developed with LANSA's LongRange, to
those markers that need to visit schools for the marking of non-written Higher School Certificate (HSC) exam subjects, such as drama, music, dance, visual arts, design
& technology and industrial technology. This itinerant marking process involves hundreds of markers travelling by road and air to all corners of the state.
The
app allows markers to instantly record their comments and archive photos, audio and video recordings of exam works. Markers also use the app to refer back to recordings
of benchmark examples, helping them to apply strict and specific assessment criteria. In addition, the app contains the marker's travel and accommodation schedule and,
using the device's GPS, shows them how to travel to and from the school to their accommodation. The app integrates with the BOSTES IBM i based exam marking system.
Braum's Ice Cream and Dairy Stores
Braum's Ice Cream and Dairy Stores, privately owned by the Braum
family, operates 280 stores throughout Oklahoma, Kansas, Texas,
Missouri and Arkansas. Braum's used LongRange and RPG to develop a
series of native mobile apps for its 40 district and 10 area
managers in charge of the stores. The apps, developed by one of
Braum's RPG developers, run on various iOS and Android devices and
integrate with Braum's IBM i applications and data. The first app
allows managers to access and respond to customer feedback, as well
as track the progress to ensure the customer's concerns have been
addressed. This app, delivered while Braum's was still in the
LongRange 30 day trial period, provided immediate ROI as it was
replacing a cumbersome paper-based process. The other apps, also
delivered in a matter of weeks, provide managers with data regarding
sales, inventory, staffing and contacts.
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Fruberica
Fruberica, based in the Netherlands, imports vegetables and
fruits, mostly from Spain and Morocco, and distributes these to
retailers and wholesalers in Europe and the rest of the world.
Fruberica's quality inspectors test the produce on ripeness, colour,
firmness and a range of other quality attributes in order to be able
to quote the right price and to deliver the right goods to the
right customer. The produce is usually distributed within 24 hours
of receipt and it is of enormous importance to promptly record the
inspection results.
Until recently Fruberica's quality
inspectors used a paper based system to record their findings. They
then hurried from the warehouse floor to the office, where the
information was manually entered into Fruberica's IBM i-based ERP
system, Freshng from RPO ICT Solutions. This method of recording
became inefficient, especially during peak season.
Using
LongRange, RPO developed a custom mobile app to record the 14
quality attributes Fruberica uses. The app also includes a facility
to link produce photos to a delivery. Fruberica's inspectors now use
the LongRange app on iPads and their inspection results and photos
are available in real-time on the IBM i to the Freshng ERP system.
The mobile solution has improved accuracy and efficiency
significantly.
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FTZ
FTZ is Denmark's largest wholesale supplier of parts, tools and supplies to the automotive industry, with the capacity to deliver over 100,000 different items
directly from stock. Its fleet of 370 cars and trucks deliver multiple times per day both to the automotive aftermarket as well as to the assembly line at car
factories.
In addition to ordering parts on FTZ's website, customers now have to ability to use a FTZ Mobilkat, a native mobile app developed with LANSA's
LongRange. Users of the mobile app have the same userid & password and access the same products and information as in the web catalogue. Users can search for parts by
the usual search criteria, or they can use the device's camera/barcode scanner to find a part. An order created in the Mobilkat app can be saved for further processing
in the web catalogue (or vice versa), which is handy when orders created on the workshop floor need to be finalized or consolidated by someone in the office.
The app is available for iOS and Android devices and used by thousands of car mechanics at workshops through the country. The single source server component of
the app runs on IBM i and is developed and maintained by the same small in-house development team who also look after the FTZ's ERP system and web catalogue. The app is
multi-lingual and supports Danish, English, French, Japanese, Czech and German users.
FTZ is supported by LANSA partner Futura Data.

GF Inc
GF Inc is the leading supplier of industrial packaging and fastening products in Western Canada through its GF Packaging and GF Fastening divisions. GF has built a mobile app for its sales representatives that allows them to view customer details, sales history, product information and inventory status, and to update quotes and orders. The app, developed with LANSA’s LongRange, integrates in real-time with GF’s IBM i-based ERP system and is deployed on a mixture of iPhones and iPads by over 35 sales representatives. The app is helping GF to get more orders and to get orders confirmed sooner. The app has been received extremely well by the salesforce and app usage is high, averaging to about 100 to 150 touches per rep per day. The app is GF’s 3rd generation of mobile apps, replacing both a native Blackberry app and an HTML5 web app. GF’s users feel the LongRange app is the most functional and robust.
Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corp.
Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corp., U.S.A.'s consumer products
division in Lincoln, Nebraska, has replaced its card-based Kanban
system with an electronic solution. The new eKanban solution was
developed by KMM's in-house development team and integrates with
KMM's ERP system. Assembly and warehouse staff access the solution
from iPads with native mobile apps developed with LongRange from
LANSA. Staff on the floor also use the mobile apps for cycle
counting, scrap reporting, recording of inventory location moves and
other warehouse and assembly related tasks. Kawasaki launched its
first series of mobile apps in just 2 months, from installation to
going through the tutorials, development, testing and
implementation. The solution is saving over US$ 3,500 per day,
delivering very quick ROI.
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Mincron Software Systems
Mincron Software Systems, based in Houston, Texas, is a leading
provider of software and business service solutions for wholesale
distributors, logistics companies and other businesses requiring
integrated enterprise software solutions. Mincron used LongRange and
RPG code to build a native mobile app that integrates with its IBM
i-based ERP system. The app, which was built in five days, allows
travelling sales staff from companies using Mincron's ERP system to
inquire into customers and products, use the GPS to Googlemap their
route to the customer, scan barcodes using the device
camera/scanner, enter sales orders and submit them for processing,
view sales history in Google charts, and more.
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Musashino Duskin
Musashino Corporation, based in Koganei city, Tokyo, is well-known in Japan for its management philosophy and for its Duskin franchise business. Its ‘Duskin Cleaning
Service' provides rental and sales of floor mops, door mats, air & water purifiers and other cleaning goods. Duskin's sales staff visit about 150 clients each day to
collect used commodities and replace them with new products.
Previously staff used to work overtime in order to print the individual client lists and
consolidate the necessary inventory by sales person. In the evening, overtime was often required again to compare the number of expected and actual distributed items
and update the ERP system. The paper-based method was also prone to inaccuracies.
Now sales staff uses a mobile solution that allows them to download the
required client lists from Musashino's IBM i-based ERP system in the morning. During the day they can work offline and update the lists with actual numbers where
needed. Upon returning to the office in the evening, the client lists are synchronized to Musashino's IBM i, automatically updating the ERP's inventory and invoice
information.
The solution, developed with LANSA's LongRange and deployed to iPads, has helped to make the collection and distribution of products faster and
more accurate. In the past, daily data entry and account settlement used to take about 20 to 30 minutes per sales person, now it is instant.
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STRATTEC Security Corporation
STRATTEC Security Corporation, headquartered in Milwaukee,
Wisconsin in USA, is the world's largest producer of automotive
locks, keys and related security access control products for global
automotive manufacturers and the aftermarket. STRATTEC used
LongRange and RPG to build a native mobile application for its
warehouse staff that integrates with the company's System21
inventory management system. Once the solution is fully rolled out,
warehouse staff will use their iPads to scan picked orders, update
the order status and trigger invoicing.
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