The Client
CN is a leader in
the North American rail industry. CN is a Class 1 railroad, employing 22,400
people, operating 15,500 miles of track and earning C$5.4 billion in revenues.
To expand its North American franchise, CN has aggressively pursued several
mergers and alliances.
The Business Challenge
CN
had old and fragmented systems, making it difficult for employees to get the
correct information to answer basic questions. The problem was compounded by
outdated processes, policies and procedures that were inconsistently applied
across the organization. This led to duplicate work, and employees spending
time digging for and validating data. The challenge was to address these issues
in the back office (finance, human resources, supply management) and in the
field (mechanical and engineering).
Facing tough competition from other railroads and the
trucking industry, CN required integrated systems and new business processes to
drive more effective decision making throughout the company.
The Solution
In 1998, CN,
Accenture and other consulting partners started to replace more than 60
mainframe computer systems with an enterprise-wide SAP R/3 solution to improve
processes across its financial, supply management, human resources and
maintenance functions. This implementation was divided into three phases to
achieve early benefits yet temper the amount of change affecting CN employees.
Accenture and CN have also leveraged ARIBA's e-procurement
capabilities to achieve tighter integration with strategic vendors, reduce
procurement costs, and simplify the procurement process. CN took advantage of
this opportunity to synchronize and integrate Illinois Central Railroad's
processes with those of the parent company.
In the future, CN's engineering and mechanical maintenance
processes will be integrated into the SAP platform to reduce maintenance costs
through better tracking of preventative and corrective maintenance on railcars,
locomotives and work equipment.
The Results
Two phases of
this SAP project have been delivered on-time and on-budget. Benefits have been
substantial:
- Improved financial reporting accuracy
- Improved access to data
- Tighter control of costs
- Greater visibility and sharing of inventory across CN
- Reduced store inventory
- Greater influence with suppliers and more volume discounts
- Reduced invoice volumes
- Operation of CN and Illinois Central as "one railway"
- A single employee management platform
When the third phase is implemented in April 2002,
significant benefits will be achieved in CN's mechanical and engineering
maintenance functions.
Value Summary
Many
companies have developed their processes and systems in a "silo" environment.
In order to make effective decisions, employees need a reliable, complete and
consistent view of corporate information. As with CN's experience, Accenture
can help companies achieve the benefits of integrating their processes within
an ERP system, ensuring that clients avoid the potential pitfalls that can
occur on these large implementations that drive massive change throughout an
organization.
Contact Information
For more information on this or related services please
contact:
Martin Chalifoux, Partner
Montreal
office
514-848-1691
martin.chalifoux@accenture.com To Top |