TCLogic’s Web Application 'ROI+' Provides Inventory Optimization

TCLogic provides an intelligent web application software solution that revolutionizes the way companies make strategic inventory decisions.

WebKnowHow
Friday, January 5, 2007; 08:18 AM

ROI+ users report an average of 30% reduction of inventory, a two-fold increase of inventory turns, and improved customer service levels.

“ROI+ fills the void created by ERP and SCM systems. Our solution is able to bridge the gap between company strategy and execution. It directly impacts a company’s balance sheet by reducing inventory carrying costs while meeting or exceeding a targeted customer service level,” said Tom Uhrig, president of TCLogic. “Today, major companies are basing their competitive advantage on operational efficiencies. With ROI+, companies of any size will be able to capitalize on inventory cost savings in sixty days. Every user to date can testify to significant savings with ROI+.”

Other solutions rely too heavily on having the correct forecast; ROI+ does not rely solely on predicting future demand. Instead, it combines inventory optimization with the latest data warehousing and analytical processes in an easy access web application.

Serving customers faster drives customer satisfaction. Having the right stock on hand is a vital component of customer service. As businesses continue to struggle with meeting rising service level commitments, a significant increase in inventory costs is occurring. “Over-purchasing, over-producing and higher inventories are common,” says Tom Uhrig. “The higher level of inventory on hand is often much more than companies need or want. Besides higher carrying costs, storage and disposal costs are greater. Tighter working capital is forcing companies to make some hard choices between customer satisfaction and cost containment. ROI+ is the response to this paradox.”

“Our planners rely on ROI+ across multiple divisions of Verizon Communications, a Fortune 10 company. One example of ROI+’s enhanced capabilities is its ability to help optimize stocking decisions for Emergency Supplies. In harsh weather seasons, our customers demand high service levels and we cannot afford to be without critical items. ROI+ makes managing this historically challenging group of items easy,” claims Paul Daniels, Section Manager – Logistics Support of Verizon Logistics.

“Customer service is one of the critical differentiators between companies and a focal point for competitive advantage,” states Gary Lemke, president of Real Market. “Customer service is a crucial way for companies to create customer loyalty and improve their bottom line. The recent explosion in CRM is evidence of the importance of servicing customers rapidly and effectively.”

“Speed is one of the areas where ROI+ excels,” explains Uhrig. “ROI+ can process one million SKUs in less than 10 minutes. It is the only system available that operates this quickly and efficiently.”

“We use the ability to turn on and turn off business rules within ROI+ frequently. We can see the impact changes will have on inventory before we implement them,” states Wally Williams, Operations Analyst of the W.W. Williams Company, one of the nation’s oldest and largest industrial distribution firms.

“In our business, you cannot ignore slow movers, especially when there are so many slow-moving parts. ROI+ got our attention as an inventory planning solution because it can plan slow-moving inventory just as well as fast-moving inventory. Being out of stock on a $1 item can have the same effect to our customer as being out of a $500 item; the customer's service repair could be delayed. We never want to shut down a service job because we are short a $1 part. We prefer the ROI+ optimization process when contrasted with others we evaluated because ROI+ can balance cost and availability.”

With ROI+, TCLogic has raised the bar for inventory optimization by using the latest internet technologies to offer global access to inventory information from any internet connection. Companies can access from anywhere, at any time, on any machine connected to the internet with complete security.

"Our IT department is quite busy supporting the technologies and systems we use to run our business. It would have been difficult to incorporate another client-server based application into the fold at this time. Because ROI+ is a web-based solution, it requires little of their time, and we can rapidly deploy the system. An added benefit was that we didn't have to invest in any additional hardware for the system,” said Williams.

The web-enabled approach lowers the costs associated with traditional inventory packages. When used on a Software-as-a-Service basis ROI+ does not require any additional hardware investment and uses the data contained in existing business systems, improving the return on investment of those systems. Web enabled ROI+ ensures that users immediately benefit from new functions and features instead of waiting for a large product revision. Improvements happen on a continuous basis and updates are automatic and transparent. TCLogic performs all ROI+ system maintenance, system monitoring, data backups and database administration.

“We are excited about what ROI+ will do for the many clients who are concerned about maintaining customer service levels while minimizing inventory costs,” said Uhrig. “ROI+ is a potent weapon for reducing costs and increasing margins. It reduces inventories without increasing costs while it maintains or improves customer service levels. ROI+ is effectively achieving an optimal balance between service level commitments and lowest cost inventory investment.”

About TCLogic

TCLogic delivers software solutions for inventory optimization and planning. TCLogic products address the unique challenges of inventory management in distribution-intensive operations and enable clients to achieve an optimal balance between customer service commitments and inventory levels.