Procurement 4.0

The procurement has a special role for the implementation of Industry 4.0. Due to its natural position in the supply chain, the procurement is an active driver of digitization, individualization and autonomy of the product portfolio and related processes in a market that is increasingly dynamic with changing socio-economic and political conditions. It is the interface internally into the company and externally to the partners of the entire supply chain.

As a result, the procurement is developing into a networked Procurement 4.0 enriched with new tasks, which is characterized by the digitization of its internal processes, the design of a modified procurement portfolio consisting of increasingly digital products and services, and by the provision of innovations for the company, which leads to an increase in effectiveness and efficiency for the entire company. It is characterized by agility and ensures individualized customer needs, which are implemented by qualified and sensitized employees.

Get to know the possibilities, potentials, and fields of action of Procurement 4.0 and work with us to determine the individual added value for your company.

The most successful companies of our time make their profits from unconditional exploitation of the potential of their supply network. Many companies are currently pushing ahead with the implementation of applications based on distributed ledger technologies, e. g. blockchain technology. Especially in the field of logistics and its related functional areas, the possibilities of use cases are promising and may lead to profound changes in business processes and a significant increase in efficiency in cross-company collaboration soon. Thanks to its outstanding position in the supply networks, the procurement can actively shape these changes. Modern procurement organizations must see themselves as innovators and actively deal with these potentially disruptive new technological approaches. It is necessary to clarify which added value distributed ledger technologies generate for the procurement and how these can be carried into the company.

Some use cases for procurement are shown below as examples including use cases that already went live:

• Transparency in the supply chain (Proof of Origin)

Authorities are increasingly demanding proof of origin for products and their components. This requires complete tracking of the components. Blockchain technology can provide security by providing a tamper-proof network for your data that collects information according to your needs and shares it with selected partners.

• Complete automation of the Procure-to-Pay process

The blockchain allows data to be backed up in real time, enabling analysis of all relevant products, inventories, and the entire supply chain. In this way, stocks can be managed daily, and bottlenecks can be avoided. In addition, companies can control supplier’s compliance with contract conditions based on automated if-then conditions (smart contracts).

• Incident Forwarding

Today’s supply chain networks are characterized by their high complexity and numerous network participants. If a problem occurs, e. g. in the form of a component defect in a company, it threatens the stability of the entire supply chain. Blockchain technology can help to reduce these mostly unpredictable problems by, for example, capturing status information about components at an early stage and automatically initiating predefined prevention measures. In the event of a damage, its origin can also be clearly traced and claims for compensation can be processed automatically.