Electrical Distribution Software

The IBS solution for the electrical products industry is based on selected modules from the IBS Enterprise suite of supply chain execution software. IBS Enterprise is recognized by independent analysts like AMR Research as a world leader in its class. It has been chosen by companies the world over to manage their business.

The IBS solution for electrical products wholesale and distribution has been developed over the years in close cooperation with leading companies in the industry. The solution provides ready-made standard functionality and key features needed by the industry.

Distribution and warehousing

• AUTOMATED SHIPPING OPTIMIZATION

  Includes automatic disposal check of stock, capacity, components and transportation, picking and dispatching based on shipment plans, delivery advice and route plan creation and notification at order entry, alternative delivery address for freight documents, complete shipping documentation and loading area instructions

• BAR CODE AND RADIO FREQUENCY (RF) SUPPORT

  Bar code and RF support give you quick tracking and communications for serial and lot numbers or batch codes, reducing paperwork and improving both accuracy and speed

• CABLE AND DRUM MANAGEMENT

  Powerful tracking capabilities are especially beneficial for distributors of wire products, who must minimize scrap and maximize profits through tight control of cut wire and reels

• INVENTORY SEGMENTATION

  Identify and classify products as high-turnover, low-margin, high-value and slow-moving. This can enable a more efficiently managed inventory, with positive effects on such KPIs as inventory days supply and cash-to-cash cycle time

• ITEM CROSS-REFERENCE

  Electronic parts often have short product lives. Automated cross-referencing helps you define replacement products and customer or supplier item codes. The IBS solution helps you manage thousands of SKU numbers, helping to reduce overhead costs

• KITTING AND BUNDLING

  Automated kitting and bundling functionality helps you assemble products that meet your customers' specifications in less time, with more accuracy and a positive impact on operational costs and customer satisfaction. Easily handle products packaging that enables you to promote a set of products together and develop new sales

• NON-CONFORMING GOODS

  Goods used for demonstrations or that have packaging defects must be handled. IBS software can automatically define unusable goods and provides follow-up capability

• RECEIVING, CROSS-DOCKING, PUT-AWAY, PICKING, AND PACKING

  The IBS solution helps to increase throughput velocity for faster receipt and delivery. RF and bar-coding help to ensure that stock movements are recorded as they occur. Volume picking, priority pick-list printing and preferred pick and put-away unit handling are just a few automated features that help move large volumes of goods with top efficiency

• SERIAL NUMBER TRACKING

  Total, automated tracking lets you track individual items through serial number from stock receipt through to customer invoicing. Lot and batch tracking is also supported

• STOCK OPTIMIZATION

  IBS Inventory Control contains functionality for dynamic demand forecasting for different item segments, automated replenishment suggestions, inventory analysis and simulations, helping to ensure that the right components are available in stock at economical levels

• TRUCK ROUTING AND PLANNING, NON-FLEET SHIPPING

  Automated shipping optimization lets you dispatch stock efficiently based on system-supplied shipment plans, delivery advice and route plan creation, along with freight documents and loading area instructions and support for non-fleet shipping management

• WAREHOUSE DIVERSION

  The system can automatically divert or block shipments from a warehouse location or change shipments for a specified line in case of a warehouse emergency, helping to ensure uninterrupted delivery and customer satisfaction

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CRM and sales order management

• AUTOMATED DELIVERY SCHEDULES

  The IBS solution automatically calculates required stock levels and creates orders based on customer forecasts transmitted via EDI. Forecasts are based on net or gross forecasts and current inventory, helping to ensure optimum stock levels and accurate deliveries

• AUTOMATED REQUEST FOR QUOTES (RFQ)

  Automatic generation of quotations for customers who want price information on a job-by-job basis, with fast communication via EDI, XML and web services, especially suitable for on-site contract sales of electronic products

• BACK-TO-BACK DELIVERY

  Customers of electric products often order large volumes of parts from suppliers, or made to order in their own facilities. Often, they want to split the order to be delivered at different times or addresses. Automated back-to-back delivery lets you coordinate direct deliveries from suppliers to customers, helping to avoid the costs of receiving and picking sold goods

• BACK-TO-BACK ORDERS

  Customers often request large-volume orders to be split for delivery to different addresses, often at different times. Your sales reps can offer this IBS automated service to customers, helping to secure more orders

• CREDIT CHECKS AND PAYMENTS

  Automatic support for credit overdraws percentage helps fulfill orders without permanently increasing overall credit exposure. A warning informs you when a customer's ordinary credit limit is exceeded, and orders are held if the overdraw percentage is also exceeded. Credit holds on order line level allow efficient management of orders based on sales order lines

• ELECTRONIC CATALOG SUPPORT

  Easy, quick access to web-based catalogs, online pricing, personalized shopping lists and product availability. Rapid parts search by stock number

• FAIR SHARE HANDLING

  When demand outstrips supply, distributors can often ship only partial orders to buyers. IBS software supports automatic fair share handling, dividing existing stock among current customer orders, which helps you satisfy customer needs

• INTERNET CUSTOMER SELF-SERVICE

  With IBS NetStore, web-enabled customers can place and track orders, reducing your administrative costs. Credit card payment is supported

• LAPTOP AND REMOTE ORDERING

  Sales reps can enter orders from remote locations, using laptops and handheld devices, enabling quick service and order entry and promoting customer satisfaction

• ORDER ENTRY AUTOMATION

  The IBS solution automates the entire order entry process, including service and warranty information, price calculations and online credit checking. This information is shared throughout the system, helping to reduce multiple data entry and ensuring top customer service from sales through to delivery

• PRICING FLEXIBILITY

  IBS software handles multiple pricing methods to help attract and keep customers while providing you with margins that keep your business healthy and successful. Price by unit, volume, basket and apply discounts, special offers, and purchase bonuses or add surcharges for value-added services like express delivery or extended warranty

• PRODUCT CONFIGURATION

  IBS PRODUCT CONFIGURATOR helps to ensure component accuracy and integrity for creating made-to-order BOMs that fit customer specifications, leading to better customer satisfaction and product quality and reducing the need for technically trained staff to complete complex order structures

• REVERSE LOGISTICS

  Automated transporting, handling and returning used products from end customers to a processing facility is a must-have for electrical products businesses. IBS Requests and Returns is specifically designed to manage returned product in sync with your warehousing operations, helping to accelerate the returns and credit process. Returns handling is also streamlined through return reason codes at the order line level, along with automatic return collection notes on delivery lists

• SHIP AND DEBIT

  High-volume customers often obtain significant discounts from distributors, frequently below your cost. The IBS solution automates Ship and Debit processing, streamlining reimbursements to you from manufacturers

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Supplier relationship and procurement management

• AUTOMATED PURCHASE SIMULATION AND SUGGESTION REVIEW

  Procurement simulation and suggestion, with review codes for product lines, helps to ensure accuracy, maximum line value, stock levels and optimized values. Additional functions include special buy evaluation, interactive line buying and graphical planning tools that give a complete overview of procurement information

• CENTRALIZED PROCUREMENT SUPPORT

  Requests for quotations are generated automatically and sent to suppliers through EDI, XML, web-service communications, fax or email. This quick creation and transmission can result in lower administrative costs, better prices and the ability to negotiate more favorable terms and conditions

• DISTRIBUTION ANALYSIS

  Based on current information from through-out the system, this analysis capability helps you to determine real procurement costs, with the capacity for direct automatic replenishment based on the analysis results

• PROMOTIONS, REBATES AND CHARGE-BACKS

  Seasonal promotions and campaigns play a huge role in the sales of electrical products, especially for the retail sale of televisions, CD players and other electrical goods. Automated support for on-invoice and off-invoice discounts, mark-ups, rebates, charge-back promotions, co-operative advertising promotions and other incentive programs helps you maintain margins with fast processing of charge-backs to manufacturers

• PULL, PRIORITY AND SHORTAGE EVALUATION

  Automatic analysis and monitoring of urgent stocks, plus the capability for automatic order generation, help keep procurement processes on top of the just-in-time situations common in electrical products distribution

• SUPPLIER AGREEMENT AND PRICE NEGOTIATION

  IBS Supplier Marketing Support handles complex supplier rebate rules and can help you negotiate the best supplier agreements and prices

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Service management

The IBS solution has automated tool management capabilities that help you with the efficient distribution of service and repair tools, including tracking, costing, pricing and replenishment.

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Integration and collaboration

• BREATHE LIFE INTO EXISTING SYSTEMS

  Bring existing hidden data and services to light and make them available throughout your organization and to your partners. Connect your existing systems to new software that leverages the Internet and gives your business a more efficient, customer-friendly face

• CONNECT PROCESSES IN NEW WAYS

  Link up previously disconnected business processes and discover new and more efficient ways of doing business. Cut administrative overheads by reducing the need to re-key the same data in different departments

• MAKE NEW CONNECTIONS

  Simplify the demands on your suppliers and customers by allowing them to connect to you in the way that they want. Connect your partners' existing ordering, invoicing, billing, shipping, inventory, or any other system to your business. Make your data available to other systems, including Internet portals, and open up new marketing opportunities

• MULTIPLE TRIGGERS

  React to business events in real-time. Trigger actions further along the supply chain when goods arrive in the receiving area. Use SMS and email communicate important business events. Get systems to act autonomously when events occur

• REDUCE IT COSTS

  Cut both the Time and costs of IT integration projects. Your system developers will enjoy both the simplicity of IBS INTEGRATOR's Design Studio with its visual drag-and-drop interface and its powerful Java programming mode – with security, authentication and non-repudiation features built in

• STANDARDIZE INFORMATION

  Read, create and convert data to and from common industry standards like XML, MS Excel, Lotus Notes, Domino, DB2, SQL Server and SOA to help to ensure a rapid return on your IT investment and keep your systems future-ready

• SYNCHRONIZE, VALIDATE AND REPLICATE

  Compare information in databases, files, emails and EDI messages to make sure that information is consistent across your business. Check data entry against global business rules. Copy mission-critical information from one department database to another, safely and securely

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Financial management

• ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE

  IBS Financials helps you reduce bad debt and improve accounts receivable and payment statistics. You can monitor and administer customer account balances through automatic statements of account, reminders for overdue invoices and collection handling. Reduce A/R days outstanding and your cash-to-cash cycle time

• ACTIVITY BASED COSTING REPORTING

  Measure and improve the efficiency of CRM and SCM processes. The IBS solution calculates net profitability from an Activity Based Costing (ABC) approach. The equations used can include any type of IBS balance, whether these are pre-defined in the system, quickly and easily defined by users, calculated or redistributed

• ASSET MANAGEMENT

  IBS helps you obtain maximum value from assets – including physical property, warranties and service contracts – through IBS ASSET MANAGEMENT

• AUTOMATIC TRANSACTION CREATION AND TRANSFER

  Each event in the operational system has user-defined accounting rules for automatic transfer to General Ledger and sub-ledgers

• CONSIGNMENT STOCK / VMI ACCOUNTING

  Buffer stocks of high-delivery electrical products are often kept in your warehouse but are still the property of the supplier, and should not be reflected in your accounting. Similarly, customers might request buffer stock for their own warehouses, especially when large quantities of lighting fixtures, household appliances or other electrical products are ordered for a contract construction site. The IBS solution lets you set up separate accounting for consignment stock or VMI

• Cross-company reporting

  lets you choose a range of your system companies to include in financial or other reports. Reports can include assets analysis, profit and loss per division, and figures vital to a multi-company environment for any period

• TAX HANDLING AND CONTROL

  The IBS solution uses country-specific VAT rules to provide calculation and accounting of ingoing and outgoing VAT for international business. The system also gathers information for full Intrastat reporting and Tax declarations. This helps reduce overhead costs related to VAT obligations in the form of administrative costs. The system also handles North American taxation and other GST (general sales tax) orders

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Business Intelligence

Pre-loaded client applications with OLAP (On-Line Analytical Processing) tools for data marts are included, and the IBS solution uses SCOR (Supply Chain Operations Reference-model) to help measure business performance.

Contact IBS for more information on Electrical distribution software. »