Wipro Partners with RELEX Solutions, Will Bring AI-Driven Supply Chain Solutions to CPG Sector

⇨ Wipro and RELEX Solutions have formed a strategic partnership that combines Wipro's retail expertise with RELEX's AI-driven supply chain platform, facilitating better demand forecasting and inventory management for retailers and consumer goods companies.

⇨ The integration of RELEX's certified solutions with SAP systems allows for seamless data exchange and real-time analytics, empowering companies to optimize their supply chain operations and improve efficiency across various distribution channels.

⇨ Recent research indicates a growing trend among companies to adopt AI in their supply chain processes, with 79% currently using or planning to implement AI, highlighting the importance of advanced technologies in adapting to market shifts and enhancing operational capabilities.

SAP Solution Build Partner, Wipro Limited (NYSE: WIT, BSE: 507685, NSE: WIPRO), a global technology services and consulting company, recently announced a strategic partnership with RELEX Solutions, a provider of unified supply chain and retail planning solutions.

This partnership combines Wipro’s expertise in the retail and Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) sectors with RELEX’s AI-based supply chain and retail planning platform. The platform enables retailers, wholesalers, and consumer goods companies to maximize sales, minimize costs, and reduce waste by optimizing demand, merchandise, supply chain, and operations planning across their value chain. The company’s RELEX Integration 1.0 solution is certified for use with the SAP NetWeaver platform. This certification enables seamless integration of RELEX’s demand forecasting, inventory optimization, and replenishment systems into SAP’s ERP landscape, utilizing SAP master data and transaction functionalities.

“Demand forecasting is crucial to retailers’ success,” said Srini Rajamani, Senior Vice President & Sector Head – Consumer and Life Sciences, Wipro Limited. “Yet, in today’s omnichannel retail environment, effective inventory planning is harder than ever before. Our clients are increasingly looking to us to help them leverage advanced technologies to better forecast and manage their supply chains. Through this partnership with RELEX, we will be able to deploy advanced analytics and artificial intelligence to help our joint retail and CPG clients stay ahead of market shifts and optimize their operations.”

Recent SAPinsider research shows a continuing focus on mitigating the rising complexities and risks within supply chains, with 53% of companies noting that increasing complexities and risks is the top driver of supply chain transformation projects. In the recent research report, Building Resilient and Agile Supply Chains via Data, Analytics and Automation, companies also recognized the significance of AI/ML in supply chain operations, with 43% of respondents highlighting its increasing prominence on the corporate agenda. External pressures also influence the need to enhance data, analytics, and automation capabilities. Evolving customer expectations and demand (37%) and the pressure to run more sustainable supply chains (36%) indicate a growing societal and environmental consciousness among supply chain leaders.

As it relates to AI in supply chain operations, SAPinsider research indicates that 79% of companies are currently using or implementing AI in supply chain, plan to implement AI within 24 months or are evaluating AI for supply chain. Leaders in the SAP ecosystem are quickly moving past the hype to leverage AI to drive tangible benefits in areas like demand forecasting, inventory optimization, route optimization, logistics planning, and predictive maintenance.

RELEX’s unified AI-based platform allows for comprehensive and fully integrated supply chain management for all distribution channels. The platform optimizes internal processes and enhances collaboration with suppliers in key areas such as demand, availability, and resource planning. Additionally, the platform supports merchandising, inventory management, and operations planning, ensuring seamless data integration and real-time analytics to drive efficiency and profitability throughout the entire supply chain.

“Our partnership with Wipro will effectively support many retailers and consumer goods companies looking to centralize their retail and supply chain operations and be best positioned to anticipate, and accurately predict and manage demand. Already, we’ve seen success of our partnership with a major U.S. grocery wholesaler who has successfully deployed a unified forecasting, replenishment, and space planning deployment, and has started to show measurable value, said Mikko Kärkkäinen, Co-founder and group CEO, RELEX Solutions. “We look forward to driving real results for our joint clients with Wipro.”

The Empik Group, a Polish omnichannel retailer, is one company that recently tapped RELEX to improve its store, floor, and space planning and replenishment operations. Empik offers products from over 20 categories, in an omnichannel model combining over 350 stationary stores and TOP4 e-commerce platforms, including the marketplace (EmpikPlace), through which over 7 million shoppers make purchases worth over PLN 3 billion annually. Empik provides customers with multicategory offers consisting of over 15 million products, including books, toys, stationery, digital products, health and beauty, electronics, home and garden, and sports. Solutions like SAP Business ByDesign are integrated with Empik to facilitate processes such as product listing, inventory management, and order tracking on the platform.

With RELEX, Empik will automate its processes, ensuring a seamless end-to-end optimization across assortment, space and replenishment, all using common data. This will reduce excess stock, streamline workloads and increase product availability, while supporting their diverse store format.  Additionally, it will bolster the rapid growth of Empik’s e-commerce channel, ensuring that both online and offline customers enjoy a consistent and reliable shopping experience.

“The Empik Group, with its over 75-year history, is one of the most recognizable and trusted brands in Polish retail. We are thrilled to support their journey to unify store and space operations,” said Jason Berry, SVP, Europe and Africa, RELEX Solutions. “Our solutions will drive cost efficiencies and provide highly accurate demand forecasts, delivering measurable value and ensuring that the Empik Group continues to meet the needs of its customers effectively.”

What this means for SAPinsiders

Participate in SAPinsider research. SAPinsider will be publishing a research report in December on AI in the Supply Chain that will explore the key drivers causing companies to adopt AI in supply chain, the primary strategies companies are deploying to operationalize AI in supply chain, the critical underlying capabilities that must be in place in order for AI to deliver durable outcomes, and the leading technology tools and providers companies are using to embed AI into supply chain processes and systems. Take the survey today and let your voice be heard!

Retail and CPG SAP customers should weigh RELEX’s demand forecasting and replenishment tools. RELEX’s AI-driven demand forecasting tools can help SAP customers account for demand variability, seasonal trends, and promotions. Companies can improve replenishment accuracy by dynamically adjusting forecasts based on real-time data. RELEX’s machine learning algorithms optimize stock levels based on demand forecasts, lead times, and product life cycles, reducing excess inventory and increasing stock availability.

Collaborate with RELEX on tighter integrations with SAP systems. Many SAP customers already use SAP ERP, SAP Integrated Business Planning (IBP), and SAP Extended Warehouse Management (EWM), so seamless data exchange between RELEX and these systems is crucial. Improved out-of-the-box connectors or APIs tailored specifically for SAP environments would streamline data flow and minimize integration efforts. Also, real-time data updates would enable customers to make faster, data-driven decisions by reducing latency. Integrations that provide instant synchronization between RELEX and SAP systems could improve demand forecasting accuracy and responsiveness to supply chain disruptions.