Epicor Software Corporation, the business software solutions provider for manufacturing, distribution, retail and services organisations, has announced that the privately-owned designer, developer and manufacturer of advanced drug delivery devices, Scandinavian Health Ltd (SHL), has chosen Epicor 9 next-generation enterprise r esource planning (ERP) solution to streamline its operations worldwide. The implementation will help SHL to enhance overall efficiency.
As part of the agreement SHL will implement Epicor in all its offices and facilities located in Taiwan, Sweden, China and the US. SHL's primary business is the manufacture of medical devices such as pen injectors, auto injectors and inhaler systems, but the company also develops a complete range of other products for the healthcare and technology industries. The company has grown steadily over the past ten years and now employs 1,600 people worldwide, operating through manufacturing facilities in Taiwan, China and the US, and key sales offices in Europe and North America.
In the first quarter of 2010, SHL began an extensive review of its ERP solutions to ensure that the company was prepared to support significant organizational growth with a wider range of functionality. "With this new system in place, SHL will benefit from improved analytical processes," said Peter Wilhelmsson, project manager for SHL. "We need to stay ahead in a very competitive market and this investment in Epicor is one step in this effort."
As a medical device company, SHL has to work according to strictly detailed processes, for example, compliance with FDA regulations. When selecting an ERP partner, SHL went through a rigorous evaluation process. Epicor came out on top in the evaluation partly because the product functionality fit SHL's requirements, but also because it's designed to continuously deliver benefits well into the future.
SHL General Manager Frank Isaksson also commented on the importance of having a comprehensive ERP system and solutions that get the job done. "As one of the established suppliers of drug delivery devices, such as auto injectors, our business processes follow strict workflows," said Isaksson. "It's important that our ERP system can support this so that we can generate concise and timely reports. Furthermore, we must be able to view the various events in 'real-time' that affect the manufacture of our customers' products, especially when dealing with the world's largest biotech and pharmaceutical companies. Dealing with product volumes in the tens of millions is a challenge for any company in this field, and we as a company will always seek out solutions that help to streamline our processes and enhance efficiency."
SHL already has very good control over its business processes and they have also developed in-house systems that, for example, handle purchase authorizations. SHL expects to quickly utilize this one single integrated Epicor ERP system to handle its entire range of business processes around the globe.
Wilhelmsson further explained, "We have extensive business operations and a vast range of products and customers. Epicor can help us to make our order and material flow even more efficient. We also believe that its modern SOA platform will allow us to fine tune the system support without programming any code. This will decrease our dependence on consultants because our IT department can now easily build our own business processes that are customized to suit our needs. Epicor's smart industry best practice solutions and experience dealing with the medical device industry also contributed to our decision."
"Medical devices companies today need to not only make sure they comply with stringent regulations but they also have to deliver superior products cost effectively," said Stefan Westelius, vice president sales for Epicor. "Epicor offers a comprehensive platform for companies to manage product innovation, using solid product data management, quality process controls, and cradle-to-grave product traceability. Coupled with its global functionality, it is the natural choice for international medical device organizations."
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