Infor, an international provider of business cloud software specialized by industry, announced on 19 December that Australian retailer Coles has chosen Infor Nexus for its global trade platform to create enhanced international supply chain visibility for the organization.
The deployment of the global trade platform, planned in 2020, will streamline imports, reduce costs and modernize Coles’ international supply chain. It promises reduced working capital through lower stock in transit and distribution center stock holdings, reduced transport costs, including freight, demurrage and customs clearance, and simplified transactions with freight service providers.
Coles Executive General Manager Operations and Transformation Kevin Gunn said the Infor Nexus platform would enable real-time visibility of international stock. “Availability is a key issue for customers, and some popular items — such as light globes, herbs and spices, and kitchen essentials like foil and garbage bags — cannot be sourced domestically so we need to look to international suppliers,” he said.
“By understanding where our stock is in transit, we can better plan our stock movements to enhance availability for customers and reduce the time taken to move products into our stores, improving our use of working capital by reducing the time inventory spends in our supply chain.
“It will also support improved efficiencies through the supply chain by minimizing the need to move stock between states, resulting in fewer truck movements which will also improve road safety and reduce carbon emissions.”
“Ultimately, Infor Nexus will lead to better product availability on-the-shelf for customers,” Coles Chief Information and Digital Officer Roger Sniezek said. “We have committed to being technology-led in our stores and throughout our supply chain to reduce costs while delivering an even better shopping experience for customers, and making life easier for our team members. Infor Nexus is another investment in this.”
Infor ANZ Vice President of Commercial and Retail Brett Egglestone said the speed of business today demands a supply chain capable of controlling the end-to-end flow of documents, data and inventory.
“The Infor Nexus platform will provide multi-enterprise connectivity to help Coles digitize the flow of information between its trading partners and provide a single system of record to orchestrate the physical and financial supply chain,” he said.
