net.com Cuts Lead Times, Accelerates Time to Revenue

Network equipment company attacks order fulfillment process in face of variable demand

Network equipment company attacks order fulfillment process in face of variable demand

Palo Alto, CA — November 19, 2003 — Network Equipment Technologies has completed deployment of a supply chain execution solution from Valdero and has already seen benefits in customer service, order lead times and on-time delivery, according to an announcement from the solution provider.

Doing business as net.com, Network Equipment Technologies develops and delivers service creation platforms for broadband, Internet protocol telephony and multi-service networks. Its more than 1,750 customers include service providers, governments and enterprises in more than 75 countries.

With a dispersed customer base, net.com needed to better manage its order fulfillment process in the face of variable demand and growing business. net.com's goal was to maximize its potential through a focus on process improvements and rapid responsiveness to the fluctuating demand picture.

Valdero announced earlier this year that net.com was adopting the provider's Supply-Demand Matching (SDM) to improve its ability to identify shortages and make more profitable allocation decisions to fulfill customer orders. At the time, net.com expected the Valdero solution to decrease fulfillment lead-times and help achieve reduced inventory levels in an effort to improve revenue and margins.

In the past, net.com managed customer commits based on a standard 20-day lead-time. Now, using Valdero's solution, the company can more quickly create a reliable promise date, which is based on allocation rules for each customer as well as the best approach for the business as a whole. They also review and revise allocations as demand and supply fluctuate and have reengineered the process of sharing demand with their contract manufacturers.

In addition, using Valdero's interactive, what-if analysis, net.com can identify potential shortages or delays and determine which orders to ship based on their business rules and priorities.

Results to date have included a 58 percent improvement in order to delivery by customer requested date, a 60 percent acceleration in revenue at order line level within the first month and a 25 percent cut in book-to-ship lead time, according to the solution provider.

"Our goal was to maximize our potential, [and] we had to focus on process change and get more involved in sales," said Jeff Range, net.com vice president of operations. "With the help of Valdero's application, net.com is meeting customer demand while maximizing revenues and margins."

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