Promising a Dream Sleep

A lot goes behind manufacturing the mattresses that promise us a good nights

sleep. Right from the raw materials to production till distribution of the

finished products, the entire cycle is highly process oriented. And to make it

more methodical and efficient, a strong IT infrastructure could be of immense

help. Sheela Foam, makers of Sleepwell mattresses, is one perfect example.

Business Enabler



Under the able guidance of Pertisth Mankotia, head, IT, Sheela Foam

developed and implemented its home-grown ERP system, Greatplus. It provided a

single platform to the company on which the entire business divisions are

running across the globe.

It not only gave a consolidated view for all the business processes and

integrated entire distribution channels, the application also helped to track

secondary sales and delivery efficiencies. "We have a huge distribution network

comprising 100 authorized distributors and 4,000 dealers. Managing this was a

big issue since a proper tracking method was unavailable leading to emergence of

several unauthorized dealers indulging into improper selling," explains Mankotia.

"This was naturally hampering the interests of our authorized partners," he

adds. By implementing Greatplus sales tracking became possible and price

undercutting was thus tackled.

All our business divisions across the globe are running on our homegrown ERP, Greatplus	Pertisth Mankotia, head, IT, Sheela Foam

To track tertiary sales, mobile applications integrated with the ERP is being

done. The dealer just needs to send SMS details of each mattress sold (serial

number and customer mobile number). The data center checks the validity of the

dealer and the product and sends guarantee acknowledgement directly to the

customer. This has not only speeded up the process with great transparency but

has also improved customer service. Other benefits include prevention of

unauthorized selling and product duplication, cost reduction and generation of

an automated customer database.

The system has enabled synchronization and standardization between the

channel and the enterprise. Since channel stock is now easily assessable, scheme

roll-out and handling price revision has become smoother. "Tracking of the

entire product cycle, from procurement till customer purchase, has become

easier. We can also measure both secondary and tertiary sales on real time

basis," says Mankotia.

Integrated Approach



The system has integrated all the seven manufacturing units and offices.

Online orders from the distributors automatically get processed in the

factories, thus optimizing production processes. The company has recently

consolidated its severs and shifted to the open source platform, reducing

operation cost and enhancing performance. "Our data center presently runs on

thirty-five servers only. All our factories and offices are connected through

VPN MPLS in India and IPLC connectivity for our Australian operation," he

informs.

Sheela has a 2-tier back-up structure (servers and tapes) but is soon

planning to set up a DR site implementing cloud technology. "Our entire IT

infrastructure has been designed to facilitate cumulative business growth and

optimized result. Interestingly, the maintenance cost is as low as benefits are

high," says Mankotia with a smile.

Piyali Guha



piyalig@cybermedia.co.in