Timeslot planning tool for ADPO

ADPO is a logistics service provider for the chemical industry, operating from the Port of Antwerp. It offers its clients a one-stop shop terminal concept. One of the most important processes at ADPO is planning the timeslots in which trucks can come to load and unload their goods. It goes without saying that waiting times are costly, for the transportation firms as well as the chemical companies that rely on these products. Thanks to TheValueChain, what used to be a time-consuming manual process has since been replaced with an application that makes planning a timeslot as easy as booking a table at your favorite restaurant.

Watch the full customer story

Digital transformation journey

This timeslot planning tool is part of a more global digital transformation journey that ADPO set off on some years ago. “We wanted to get an overview of all our current processes and the digital technologies we could embrace to make them more efficient,” explains Filip De Dijcker, Managing Director at ADPO.

“We decided to start looking for software to optimize this process,” adds Filip De Dijcker, “but quickly realized that there were no ready-made solutions available. At that time, we were already working with TheValueChain for the migration of our SAP ECC platform to SAP S/4HANA. When they informed us of all the new functionalities and applications available, they also mentioned a planning tool. This seemed like a useful starting point to tackle our timeslot planning issue, particularly because the tool works within SAP and already has access to all master data. TheValueChain managed to quickly develop and implement this solution.”

Cutting-edge technology, easy to use

“We are proud of this achievement, as we used innovative technology to address this challenge,” says Kenny Mattheyssen, Solution Architect at TheValueChain. “ADPO’s migration to SAP S/4HANA provided us with the necessary framework to develop this tool. Since SAP S/4HANA is API native, we could make use of cloud-based SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP) and more specifically, the services Business Application Studio and Work Zone. ADPO uses Work Zone as its cloud portal to provide its clients and transport firms with a single point of access to all the information they need.

We wanted to come up with something that is as easy as the tools you use to book a table at a restaurant or check how many spots are left at a given time. I think it’s safe to say we’ve achieved this goal.”

Tangible results

Thanks to the timeslot planning tool, transport firms can now use a web app to browse all available times and book their slot. If an option is no longer available, they are immediately provided with alternatives. Three months after the go-live, 900 unique users have already booked 30,000 timeslots.

“The tool means a massive rise in efficiency and a significant reduction in costs. The two FTEs who used to be responsible for timeslot planning can now work on tasks with more added value instead of constantly calling and e-mailing. Indeed, it helps us to better allocate people and resources.

In addition, we’ve received positive feedback from transporters, as the tool also improves their planning workflow and reduces the risk of long wait times. Truck turnaround time is now significantly shorter as well.” says Johan Van Sant.

Strategic insights

The timeslot planning tool is another step in the successful SAP journey that ADPO and TheValueChain are currently on. “Thanks to the tool’s integration with SAP, we can give chemical companies access to useful data on their transport firms and inform them of KPIs. This information could prove valuable in negotiations. The data also serves as a basis for future AI applications that can extract even more insights from these figures,” concludes Filip De Dijcker.