- mXP Success stories
Tradition as a foundation. Innovation as a driving force.
Innovative collaboration: metalsXP and Hüttenwerke Krupp Mannesmann revolutionize order intake
Major upheavals are on the horizon throughout Europe. Digital transformation and the best possible implementation are crucial for the metals industry to remain competitive. We were able to take a first big step toward this new future with the HKM team at the end of 2024.
Proven roots, new horizons - first partial commissioning achieved in phase 1
The aim was to modernize the existing system landscape of legacy systems, existing EDI system and order dressing approach. The aim was to address the growing requirements of day-to-day business with an agile and robust solution. The existing solution had reached the limits of its capabilities and the constant improvements in processes and new technological possibilities had to be integrated smoothly into the day-to-day business.
MetalsXP contributed its expertise in setting up a high-performance master and metadata management system. This includes combining tried and tested blueprints for the new processes as well as best practices in setting up QPPD. The Unified Backend Connector (UBC) in turn orchestrates the necessary data streams from the subsystems and offers extensive monitoring options.
Highlights: Innovation meets efficiency
HKM and metalsXP focused in particular on building a stable and flexible solution in three areas:
- Automated order entry: We optimize the entire process using EDI and UBC. The process and the system
landscape are thus ready for automated, AI-supported order entry. - Detailed monitoring: The UBC offers comprehensive monitoring of all interfaces, both for
EDI and for L3 integration. - Industry-specific modeling: Steel-specific objects were modeled and integrated in the QPPD simply and out of the box.
Following the first partial commissioning at the end of 2024, HKM is now able to manage customers and product specifications from a single source via QPPD and S/4 Business Partner with modern master data management. The solution reduces the manual effort involved in incoming orders for colleagues in day-to-day business and the specialists can concentrate more on the specific requirements of incoming customer orders.
The rolled-out solution includes:
- Automated order entry (EDI & UBC)
- Comprehensive interface monitoring
- Industry-specific object modeling in QPPD
- Integration with S/4HANA Business Partner
The following release phases in 2025 include the complete implementation on L4 and L3 with the main focus on:
- Communication with customers via a modern customer platform
- Efficient sales order entry and overview in S/4HANA
- Interface for production planning and execution in PSI
- PSI -S/4HANA integration
- Sales order balancing in S/4HANA
- Quality management in PSI
- Output management in S/4HANA
- Inspection certificate creation in S/4HANA and with the DMP from S1SEVEN
Partnership success
This project once again underlines the strength of our teams and our approach. Only together can we bring innovation and expertise of this kind to develop and roll out pioneering solutions in the metals industry. We look forward to successfully completing this transformative project and setting new standards in the industry.
The metalsXP team demonstrated a highly agile approach to solving our requirements while maintaining the professionalism of a standardized, proven framework with QPPD and UBC. Their prototypes provided us with a clear overview and a preview of all the necessary structures that we had to design and implement in order to fulfill our requirements. No other provider in the SAP environment was able to give us such an insight. We knew that metalsXP was the best partner for this project.
This project demonstrates how good teamwork, flexibility and a clear goal orientation lead to concrete successes in digital transformation.
We are proud that this project, despite its high complexity and the collaboration of multiple service providers, remains within the time and cost framework and covers the planned scope. A detailed project design in advance, which involved all project partners, ensures a clear understanding of what the customer expects. And with the right partners who can translate these needs into outstanding system solutions and provide us with excellent support in project management, I am confident that we have found the right recipe for success.
Hüttenwerke Krupp Mannesmann
HKM is a subsidiary of thyssenkrupp Steel Europe AG, Salzgitter Mannesmann GmbH and Vallourec Tubes S.A.S. The company specializes in the production of steel and intermediate products for the processing industry. With around 3,000 employees, HKM produces four million tonnes of steel annually, which corresponds to around 12 percent of German crude steel production.
