Russia: The IT company Optimacros has developed the software that should allow UWC to optimize the planning of production processes, as well as improve the accuracy of calculations and forecasts.
According to UWC director for production planning Gleb Kanin, the manufacturer previously carried out Sales and Operations Planning (S&OP) in MS Excel, but the effectiveness of such approach began to decline due to business growth and more employees taking part in this process. “It was not possible to organize a multidimensional area in such a way that, on the one hand, it would be convenient for users to enter data, and on the other, their structure would be clear to AI. It became obvious that the sales and operations planning system had to be changed”, says a UWC representative.
The integrated S&OP project of automated planning was implemented by Optimacros and includes an optimization module for efficient planning and resource allocation, as well as a separate order management unit. The solution is integrated with key directories (MDM) and a CRM system containing information about orders. According to Optimacros, this made it easier for UWC to add new items to the system, enhanced the company’s business intelligence and data visualization.
The interface of the Optimacros platform demo (enlarge). Source: UWC
The interface of the Optimacros platform demo (enlarge). Source: UWC
Gleb Kanin points out that the main goal of the software introduction has been achieved: the deadlines for developing production plans have been preserved without hiring additional staff, and the transparency of the S&OP process for management has increased. “Now there is no need to double-check the data and look for technical errors. The number of reports has increased as in Optimacros it is possible to create a new type of report in a few minutes”, Kanin notes.
According to Promgruz.com, UWC sold 9.6 thsd freight cars in the first 9 months of 2021 (-17% compared to the same period in 2020) and its share in the Russian market was 20%. UWC over this period was second only to Uralvagonzavod, which delivered 10.5 thsd railcars (+53%) and increased its market share from 17% to 22%. UWC CEO Timofey Khryapov reported in August 2021, that the railcar manufacturer planned to produce 16-17 thsd cars by the end of 2021.
As to official statistics, 63.1 thsd railcars were produced in Russia last year (+10.4% compared to 2020). The largest Russian leasing company, GTLK (a fleet of 100 thsd railcars), forecasts that 50.8 thsd railcars will be purchased in Russia in 2022. According to Vgudok, for 2022, UWC signed contracts for the production of 20 thsd railcars, of which more than 2 thsd are for export deliveries.
