Speed is very important for a franchise formula such as Intratuin. The 67 branches are facilitated by a central service office and two distribution centers: one for hardware and one for greenery. “The specific dynamics of greenery required adequate automation of the ordering process,” says Frank de Groot, responsible for Intratuin Groencentrum. FreshPortal Software plays a key role in this.

Intratuin chose FreshPortal Software because the existing Order Management System (OMS) was not sufficiently tailored to greenery: products that are characterized by growth, ripening, or a limited shelf life. This has a major impact on both the purchase and sales price. Within FreshPortal Software, all of this is under control.

De Groot: “In addition, we deal with many different suppliers who offer and deliver their products in a variety of ways. This characteristic dynamic requires the right automation and logistics handling.” FreshPortal Software distinguishes itself in this regard through a number of crucial features: it is cloud-based, modular, scalable, and relatively easy to integrate based on APIs. “The software's design and functionality are based on extensive experience in our industry,” explains Vincent Romijnders, an information analyst involved in the project.

Implementation

As general manager, Frank de Groot has been in charge of the day-to-day management of the Intratuin Green Center since November 2022, which handles the purchasing and logistics of greenery for all 67 branches of the soft franchise formula. From order to delivery. He is also a member of the management team at Intratuin Netherlands, where he was responsible for the entire supply chain for just under a year prior to his current role.

“Well before I took up my position as Manager of Intratuin Groencentrum, a program was already underway to implement FreshPortal Software.” The addition of extra functionality had been delayed, partly due to a major relocation. “So a new impetus was needed,” says De Groot, who has held leading positions in the green sector and logistics since 1987. “After a period in hardware, I was back to focusing on greenery here.”

The goal was to integrate FreshPortal ERP with the existing WMS system and the associated web portal used by product managers at Intratuin stores to place their orders. Within the best-of-breed application landscape—an integrated combination of solutions that have proven themselves within the sector—the web portal, Warehouse Management Software (WMS), Product Information Management (PIM) system, and software for managing master data are complemented by software for financial processing.

The links between FreshPortal and other applications are based on modern APIs on the FreshPortal side and are accessed using the Microsoft Azure Service Bus. This Enterprise Service Bus (ESB) is an intermediate layer that allows all systems to be ‘loosely coupled’: the systems do not communicate directly with each other. “The services and data are reused, monitoring can be better organized, and the applications remain uncoupled, so that in the event of an unexpected failure, messages are placed in a queue and can still be sent and processed later. Other processes and systems can continue to run as usual,” says Romijnders.

Advantage

Frank de Groot: “Our old purchasing environment was mainly tailored to hardware and, as mentioned, lacked a number of features that are important in the green sector. FreshPortal Software is now used for supply, purchasing, and order management, where accurate data transfer for processing and the process flow within the supply chain are crucial.”

The supply from growers is enriched with a variety of data relevant to greenery, in combination with a link to the PIM system, and made visible in the aforementioned web portal via FreshPortal Software. Orders from stores are intelligently consolidated into purchase orders, again via FreshPortal, which are then sent to the various growers for confirmation. This is done, either automatically or manually, via various purchasing channels, including Floriday and direct trade. If quantities change, orders from stores are redistributed in a smart way.

According to the manager responsible, other benefits include better insight into the logistics chain and, as a result, more control over the process. “Another advantage is that FreshPortal gives us much more flexibility to change orders once they have been placed. For example, we can choose alternative products or a different delivery method or time. The peak period has already proven that, thanks in part to FreshPortal's software, our logistics have also become more efficient.”

Good addition

Frank de Groot finds working with the people at FreshPortal Software a very pleasant experience. “They have a thorough understanding of our business and are knowledgeable about the technical aspects. They are well aware of what is and isn't possible. Within the partnership, they complement our own IT team very well. Industry knowledge is essential for the success of this type of project.”

“In addition, as users, we have our specific wishes and requirements. FreshPortal has always responded well to these. Where possible, they were translated into a solution. Our collaboration has been very intensive for several months. This ensured that everyone was aware of all the important issues and requirements.”

Points of attention

The first part of the FreshPortal integration was completed in 2022, and various expansions and desired adjustments were finalized in the spring of 2023. The software has now been running satisfactorily for some time: "We are satisfied with how everything is performing now, even during peak periods. We are now going to evaluate it internally. This will undoubtedly reveal wishes and points for attention. After the summer, we will also involve the people from FreshPortal again to see what new issues we will tackle towards 2024."

Ultimately, the entire rollout, from initial introduction, demo, and workshops to actual implementation, took more than a year. After De Groot took office, things really started to move forward, and implementation was completed within a few months. “You know that automation projects always take more time than you think or hope beforehand. It was sometimes tough here too, but together with the people at FreshPortal, we managed it nicely.”