As a global market leader in the food industry, the name BRF stands for quality and innovation. The Brazilian food giant recently received an award for its supply chain management solution based on SAP Integrated Business Planning (SAP IBP) the SAP Innovation Award in the “Cloud ERP Champion and Industry Leader” category.
By using artificial intelligence (AI) and advanced analytics, BRF has been able to improve the accuracy of its forecasts, optimize inventory levels and fine-tune its planning. Joint forecasting with other companies and the coordination of real-time data now ensure greater operational efficiency. This allows BRF to manage its extensive business activities in over 127 countries and quickly adapt to changes in these markets.
About BRF
BRF, headquartered in Itajaí, Brazil, stands for well-known brands such as Sadia, Perdigão and Qualy. With nearly 100,000 employees and a consistent commitment to sustainability and top quality, the company has earned the trust of consumers around the world.
Project results with SAP IBP that set standards
With 44 production units, 103 distribution centers handling over 500 million deliveries per month to more than 415,000 customers – equivalent to five million tonnes of food produced per year – the scale of the improvements achieved is enormous.
“BRF sets new standards in efficiency and productivity across the entire production chain and develops solutions that make processes more agile, simpler and more efficient,” said Gilberto Andretta, Executive Technology Manager at BRF. “We are among the leading SAP IBP users in terms of daily demand planning, demand sensing, statistical modeling, forecast accuracy, integrated analytics, time series analysis and exception management. This is of central importance to our more than 400 planning employees.”
By using SAP IBP, the precise collection and analysis of demand and forecast data is now 33 percent faster.
Innovative solutionen for the supply chain
For BRF, finding innovative solutions is essential to drive its digital transformation and growth. The company sees the use of AI as an important prerequisite for overcoming the challenges in the area of supply chain management.
“Transforming the BRF supply chain with SAP solutions has made it easier to integrate processes, predict future trends and respond quickly to market needs,” said Miriam Hahn, Customer Success Manager for SAP Brazil, who is helping BRF transform its supply chain. “This transformation process shows how close the partnership between SAP and BRF is.”
With SAP Integrated Business Planning for Supply Chain, BRF is now able to analyze large amounts of data, improve forecast accuracy, monitor order trends and make proactive decisions.
To ensure the accuracy of forecasts and delivery dates, detailed and flexible planning processes are essential. They enable rapid response to changes and ensure greater operational efficiency and accuracy. In addition, consolidating real-time information, aligning financial and operational planning, and improving cross-departmental collaboration are fundamental steps for BRF’s business operations.
Use of artificial intelligence
BRF is one of the first companies to use SAP Business AI and the SAP AI assistant Joule. By integrating AI-powered data insights, the food company can accurately forecast demand, optimize inventory levels and ensure on-time delivery of products. The cutting-edge technology helps BRF anticipate market trends, adjust production schedules and reduce waste – all factors that ultimately lead to greater efficiency and customer satisfaction.
As part of SAP IBP, BRF uses the functions of demand planning, demand sensing, statistical model creation, forecast accuracy and integrated analytics, time series analysis and exception management. Here are some examples of how AI contributes to improvements:
- AI algorithms combine traditional time series forecasting, regression and forecast models, and machine learning to produce more accurate daily forecasts.
- When analyzing master data, AI ensures higher data quality, better planning processes and more informed decisions.
Further innovations in AI services planned
BRF is among the first customers to successfully integrate SAP IBP with Joule. This allows the company to use the SAP Help Portal and a chatbot to support its employees.
BRF is currently conducting a “brownfield” upgrade of the existing SAP ECC system to SAP S/4HANA Cloud based on its successfully set up SAP environment. The company integrates functions from SAP S/4HANA Cloud while retaining much of the existing infrastructure and core data services. In addition to SAP S/4HANA and the cloud-based SAP Ariba solution for procurement, BRF also uses SAP SuccessFactors software for human capital management (HCM).
“BRF is a pioneer in many of SAP’s AI services and our strategic partner in the region,” said Caio Granzotto, account director for BRF at SAP Brazil. “The next step is to use the AI assistant from SAP IBP. BRF wants to use this to improve its supply chain processes and simplify the work of its employees in planning. In addition, the company is also thinking about using additional AI algorithms for order-based planning.”
