Renova

Manufacturer Cuts Costs and Boosts Productivity with Electronic Data Interchange

Renova is a leading European manufacturer of paper products including toilet paper, paper towels, and napkins. The company was using three applications to support electronic data interchange (EDI) with some of its partners. However, managing the different products was challenging, and they didn’t provide all the functionality the company needed. In 2006, Renova sought a new, more flexible EDI foundation built on one consolidated application. After evaluating numerous solutions, Renova joined the Technology Adoption Program for Microsoft® BizTalk® Server 2006 R2. This product provides the functionality offered by the previous solution. In addition, it supports digital signatures, XML documents, and multiple communication protocols including Applicability Statement 2. With the new solution, Renova is reducing costs, increasing agility, expanding opportunities, and boosting productivity.

Situation

We expect to realize major productivity benefits by being able to automatically integrate EDI documents with our ERP solution.... BizTalk Server automatically manages the entire EDI process for us.  Paulo Sousa Systems Administrator Renova

Renova is one of the most recognized corporate names in Europe. Since 1943, the company has sold paper goods such as paper towels, napkins, handkerchiefs, and toilet paper in unique colors like black, orange, green, and red. The company’s 700 employees work from six international locations, including the corporate headquarters in Torres Novas, Portugal. In 2006, Renova earned €111 million (U.S.$149 million).

Approximately 200 of the company's employees use an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system running SAP R/3 Enterprise 4.70. The system runs on a two-node cluster with the Windows Server® 2003 Enterprise Edition operating system and Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2000 Enterprise Edition database software. In addition to using the system to manage people and products, employees use SAP to invoice partners―including both suppliers and customers―in Portugal, Spain, and France. Every day, employees use the system, which houses approximately 400 gigabytes (GB) of data, to process between 350 and 400 invoices.

Renova has been an early adopter of electronic data interchange (EDI), using it to exchange business documents with some of the company's partners. To do so, employees saved the SAP documents they wanted to send electronically as SAP Intermediate Documents (IDocs). Next, the Gentran:Server application from Sterling Commerce translated the IDocs into the EDI format created by the United Nations. That format is known as Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce, and Transport (EDIFACT). The employee then forwarded the documents to the partner over e-mail.

After sending the electronic invoice, the employee still had to manually print and mail a copy of the document to the partner. In addition, the employee had to file a paper copy of the invoice for five years, as required by European Union law.

Over time, as more partners began adopting EDI, Renova had to add two more products to its EDI solution to meet additional requirements:

• Ediwin4 from Edicom, to add digital signatures to IDocs, as required by partners in Spain.
• XCOM-Messaging Data Transport to exchange messages with an external broker in Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions (MIME) format by using the Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) or POP3 messaging protocols.

All three EDI products ran on a Dell PowerEdge 2650 server computer running the Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition operating system and SQL Server 2000. Overall, the system managed between 100 to 200 electronic invoices each day and stored 1.1 GB of EDI information.

In 2006, Renova decided to replace its three EDI solutions with one product. The company was no longer satisfied with support services from Sterling, and using a solution based on multiple vendors created additional support challenges.  In addition, the existing system did not provide the functionality that Renova required to be able to use EDI with all of its partners. For example, the system could not create XML messages, could not automatically generate plain-text documents that were digitally signed, and could not employ the unique security certificates that were required by each of the countries in which Renova conducted business.

Solution

In 2006, Renova began evaluating EDI solutions, including Microsoft BizTalk® Server 2006. “We looked at many EDI products from small companies,” explains Paulo Sousa, Systems Administrator at Renova. “But we knew if we bought one of those products, it would be hard to hire someone who had experience working on it. There was also the chance that in a year or two, the company could be closed. But if we went with a Microsoft product, we knew it would be easy to find employees who knew how to use it, and we knew Microsoft would provide support for it into the future.”

BizTalk Server is very powerful because it allows me to adjust or add on to the platform to meet changing requirements. So, if I need a particular function ... I can easily develop it myself.  Paulo Sousa Systems Administrator Renova

In August 2006, Renova began testing BizTalk Server 2006 Standard Edition, part of the Microsoft Application Platform. However, in November 2006, the company learned about the Technology Adoption Program (TAP) for BizTalk Server 2006 R2. The new version of the product offered faster performance and a wider range of functionality, including native support for EDI, digital signatures, and radio frequency identification (RFID). Renova immediately signed up.

Renova IT personnel installed BizTalk Server 2006 R2 Beta 1 on one Dell PowerEdge 2650 server computer running Windows Server 2003 Standard x64 Edition and Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition. The system had 2 CPUs, 4 GB of random access memory (RAM), and a 300-GB mirrored hard drive. Engineers installed the BizTalk Adapter for mySAP Business Suite to facilitate communication between SAP and BizTalk Server.

To help customize the EDI environment so that it could meet the variable requirements of the company's partners, Renova engaged Microsoft Services. One to two engineers from Renova worked with one Microsoft Services consultant to set up several orchestrations and custom components in the Send and Receive pipelines of BizTalk Server. The team used the Microsoft Visual Studio® 2005 Standard Edition development system and the Microsoft Visual C#® development tool to complete their tasks. The customizations allow for the secure flow of electronic invoices between SAP, BizTalk Server, and international partners.

For example, when an employee generates an invoice in SAP, BizTalk Server receives the invoice and converts it from the IDoc format into XML. After determining which partner the message is destined for, BizTalk Server converts the invoice into an EDI message that meets the partner’s formatting requirements. Next, BizTalk Server adds a digital signature to the message and encrypts the message by using both Renova’s security certificate and the partner’s security certificate.

After the message is signed and encrypted, BizTalk Server wraps the XML message into an e-mail message that is encoded in MIME format. Next, BizTalk Server sends the e-mail message to the partner by using SMTP, or, if the partner uses the X.400 messaging protocol, sends the message to a broker. (The broker then forwards the message by using X.400.) In addition, BizTalk Server sends a copy of the document in each of the formats it was created in—for example IDoc, XML, plain text, EDI, and MIME encryption—back to the SAP system, where it is available as a business document attachment. The SAP system saves a copy of the document in an external archive system that stores offline media in a DVD recorder for long-term storage.

When a partner sends a message to Renova, BizTalk Server intercepts the message, decodes it, and converts it into XML. BizTalk Server then converts the message into the IDoc format and sends it to SAP for processing. In addition, BizTalk Server stores a copy of all document images—the original document received from the partner and the XML and IDoc versions—in the DVD recorder.

Although Renova is still working with a beta version of BizTalk Server 2006 R2, the company is using the system to conduct EDI transactions with five partners. As soon as the production version is available, Renova will use it to support EDI transactions with all interested partners.

Benefits

Renova has realized benefits as a result of its initial deployment of BizTalk Server 2006 R2. The company is simplifying its infrastructure by replacing three products with one. It is also reducing costs, boosting productivity, increasing agility, and expanding opportunities.

We know that the standards-based EDI solution made possible with BizTalk Server will allow us to communicate with more partners in new ways.  Paulo Sousa Systems Administrator Renova

Simplifying IT Infrastructure

Renova is using BizTalk Server to simplify its IT environment. “I’m integrating all of the functionality from three different software platforms onto one that is running BizTalk Server,” says Sousa. As a result, Renova will reduce its time spent on managing and supporting the EDI environment. If there is an issue, administrators don’t have to pinpoint which application is the culprit or deal with three vendors; instead, they troubleshoot the issue on one product or simply contact Microsoft. Similarly, IT personnel need expertise only in BizTalk Server—not three separate EDI applications.

Reducing Costs

Managing one product rather than three will also cut system administration costs. As Renova exchanges more invoices online, the company will reduce paper, postage, phone, and storage costs. The accelerated electronic invoicing process can also reduce rushed deliveries, which will cut freight costs. In addition, the company will save money through increased productivity.

Renova is realizing other savings as well. “The price of BizTalk Server was not as high as most of the other EDI software packages we looked at,” notes Sousa.

Boosting Productivity

By providing broader support for the different protocols and standards that its partners require, Renova will be able to expand its use of EDI. As a result, the company can lessen its use of traditional paper-based processes, which will speed up employee productivity. “Using electronic documents saves time and money compared to processes that are based on traditional mail,” says Sousa. “We expect to realize major productivity benefits by being able to automatically integrate EDI documents with our ERP solution. Our employees will no longer have to manually create multiple versions of a document, or save them in different locations. BizTalk Server automatically manages the entire EDI process for us.”

Increasing Agility

Supporting EDI transactions in the European Union can be challenging because companies use various protocols and each country has different laws that govern EDI. “BizTalk Server makes it possible for us to support all of the different communication protocols that our partners use,” Sousa explains. “The product also lets us meet our partners’ requirements for digital signatures and document formats.”

BizTalk Server can also be modified to support future scenarios. “The ability to use Visual Studio within BizTalk Server is very important,” continues Sousa. “We have to deal with many distinct requirements from partners. BizTalk Server is very powerful because it allows me to adjust or add on to the platform to meet changing requirements. So, if I need a particular function that is not already supported, I can easily develop it myself.”

Expanding Opportunities

As a result of deploying BizTalk Server, Renova is creating new opportunities for business-to-business transactions. “We know that the standards-based EDI solution made possible with BizTalk Server will allow us to communicate with more partners in new ways,” explains Sousa. For example, BizTalk Server supports RFID and the Applicability Statement 2 (AS2) protocol. AS2 will help Renova keep data secure while exchanging documents with partners over Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP).

Other opportunities will be created by implementing BizTalk RFID. This technology provides the building blocks that are required to create plug-and-play applications like track-and-trace and inventory control. And because BizTalk Server already communicates with the company’s SAP system, Renova will be able to rapidly deploy a fully integrated RFID solution when it is ready to do so.

For More Information

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For more information about Renova products and services, visit the Web site at:
www.wellbeingworld.com

Microsoft Server Product Portfolio
For more information about the Microsoft server product portfolio, go to:
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Microsoft BizTalk Server

BizTalk is a business process management (BPM) server that enables companies to automate and optimize business processes. This includes powerful, familiar tools to design, develop, deploy, and manage those processes.

Everything you need for easy installation is included—integrated management tools, support for Web services, and a new business activity monitoring (BAM) portal. In addition, BizTalk Server 2006 includes 23 application and technology adapters in the box for connecting to legacy systems (mainframe and mid-range) and line-of-business applications (SAP, Siebel, PeopleSoft, Oracle, and JD Edwards).

For more information about BizTalk Server, go to:
www.microsoft.com/biztalk

This case study is for informational purposes only. MICROSOFT MAKES NO WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN THIS SUMMARY.

Document published August 2007