Reflecting its ongoing commitment to the African supply chain community, and to growing and developing the industry's skills and body of knowledge, IMPERIAL Logistics will contribute a diverse line-up of presentations to the upcoming SAPICS Conference and Exhibition for supply chain professionals.
Chief Integration Officer Cobus Rossouw says the Group will present success stories and case studies spanning information technology, logistics, manufacturing and procurement, and addressing topics from business transformation to corruption across multiple industries. Two IMPERIAL Logistics partners, Vodacom and ONE Network Enterprises, have also joined as sponsors this year, he adds.
Exploring the extent to which integrated supply chain management could be leveraged to achieve overall organisational transformation is the topic of a 50-minute presentation by Rossouw. He notes that while integrated supply chain management is not often considered as an enabler for change management, his presentation will test the hypothesis that it is a catalyst for organisational transformation.
“Most supply chain professionals focus on the improvement of the supply chains of the organisation, or at most, the value chains in which the organisation operates. Few professionals consider their potential impact towards the overall transformation of the organisation.”
The issue of fraud and corruption will be covered in a presentation by IMPERIAL Logistics member company Volition Consulting Services. “This presentation deals with an international fuel and lubricants supplier's experiences of what can happen when collusion is rife and transactional information is not available to be verified on a real-time basis.”
An enlightening case study, by IMPERIAL Distribution, will give SAPICS delegates insights into the company's experiences in implementing integrated distribution planning and execution management.
Rossouw elaborates: “This presentation covers the benefits, pitfalls and crucial learnings gleaned during the implementation of different processes, technology and skills in several secondary FMCG environments.”
The manufacturing industry comes under the spotlight in a presentation on “ZupS”, which, Rossouw explains, refers to “Zero Unplanned Stops”.
“ZupS is geared towards improving the efficiencies and reducing costs associated with manufacturing organisations. The presentation will guide the attendees through the steps from the initial assessment, to the collection of data, to the focused improvement process. The key learnings will be through the case studies discussed at each step, where practical examples will be shown by Pragma, an IMPERIAL Logistics associate company,” he says.
An IMPERIAL Online case study outlines the challenges of moving two data centres, but goes deeper to discuss how any new initiative can be successfully delivered while still continuing to maintain operational excellence.
“Operational managers are faced daily with the test of rolling out new initiatives, but they do not have the luxury of being able to freeze the organisation, apply the change and then unfreeze it,” Rossouw explains. “This case study aims to take the scare out of in-line operations projects.”
Lew Roberts, director of the Supply Chain and Logistics Programme at the Gordon Institute of Business Science (GIBS), will present global risk management practices, with a focus on the State of Logistics Survey of South Africa, conducted by the CSIR and the University of Stellenbosch. IMPERIAL Logistics is actively involved in both these important supply chain and logistics research initiatives. The Group's education specialist member companies, Commerce Edge and TIDASA, will be involved as SAPICS Approved Education Provider and strategic advisor on the design of SAPICS education offerings.
“SAPICS remains one of the most important providers of specialist supply chain and operations management education and training in Africa,” says Rossouw.
One Network Enterprises will also be participating in the conference and has secured the participation of David Allen, who served as senior supply chain executive at Del Monte, Royal Ahold, Dell, Frito-Lay and American Italian Pasta Company. He will share his extensive supply chain collaboration experience in the US with the delegates. One Network has partnered with e-Logics, an IMPERIAL Logistics member company, to provide a value network platform in Africa.
Ideas exchange sessions facilitated by IMPERIAL Logistics member companies include a session on inventory management and a discussion on supply chain transformation across the African continent in the new Africa Café – a new and interactive inclusion in the conference programme for 2012.
The content planned for the 34th SAPICS Conference – which takes place at Sun City from 3 to 5 June - is an excellent mix of case studies, new thinking and structured research, says Rossouw.
“This event provides an unrivalled opportunity for companies and industry players to get together and learn from each other, and together offer astute, world-class solutions to African supply chain challenges. It is a privilege for IMPERIAL Logistics to be so intimately involved, and we trust that many previous and new delegates will find as much value in it as we do,” he concludes.
