FreshERP Sprouts ROI with Progress Partnership

Oh the life of an apple. Have you ever really thought about the trials and tribulations it goes through before you pick it up at the supermarket? It has to be picked, transported (possibly between countries), cleared through customs, delivered to a warehouse, put into inventory, pulled for a shipment, and then transported again to its final destination (possibly another different country). The logistics involved are very complex and made more so by the fact that the product is perishable. That means all of these logistics have to take place quickly while complying with strict quality control regulations. No one wants a spoiled apple.

Rather than handling this process manually, FreshERP B.V. is playing an important role in modernizing the way the fruit and vegetable distribution industry operates. Its Fresh4Fruit ERP system manages all primary and operational processes within fruit and vegetable distribution-related organizations, including purchasing, sales, warehouse management, logistics, customer service and communications.

After carefully considering a variety of technology partners, FreshERP chose the Progress Pacific Platform as a Service (PaaS) to power its application. With Pacific, FreshERP can deploy Fresh4Fruit to any platform, mobile device and cloud, leaving ample time to focus on how to innovate its application and drive a competitive edge. For example, customers will be able to perform quality assurance as soon as they receive the product. If the fruit is overripe or damaged, they can reject the shipment on the spot. Through simple touch screen devices, drivers will be able to notify a warehouse of their estimated time of arrival so the facility is staffed and ready for the shipment.

Wilco van Vliet, co-owner of FreshERP, says Progress rose to the top for a number of reasons, but the decision to choose Progress went beyond the technology.

“Progress is truly a partner-driven company. And as an ISV, I now have an even better perspective,” says van Vliet. “When we were dealing with IBM, we had to work with a different person for each technology we were interested in – the database, BPM, business rules, etc. At one point I was juggling seven different people and phone numbers across different countries. But with Progress, we deal with just one person. Progress has also helped integrate us into the broader Partner ecosystem. The guidance and best practices we have gained from talking with other partners has been invaluable.”

FreshERP has an aggressive modernization roadmap for its Fresh4Fruit application. Within the next few months the company plans to complete its rebuilt of its application. Its goal is to maintain 100% customer satisfaction across its existing customer base during this transition. The migration will have to be aggressive and flawless – conducted over a weekend, so its customers can get back to business first thing Monday morning. Once complete, FreshERP plans to incorporate Progress Corticon for business rules management and Progress BPM for business process management.

As a result of the partnership, FreshERP anticipates a significant competitive edge for both its business and for its customers. By the beginning of 2015 the company expects to realize a significant ROI, and has already put out the word that it will soon offer a cloud-based application.

Click here to download the full case study and learn more about how FreshERP is disrupting a well-established market by modernizing its application and moving to the cloud with Progress Pacific.