Choosing SAP Standard to Gain Extraordinary Benefits

In 2016, Fertin Pharma concluded that their ERP platform could no longer support their continued growth and business strategy. The old platform was made up of five separate systems and had been vastly modified to match the company’s specific needs, making it both complex, time-consuming, and expensive to upgrade.

Together with NTT DATA, Fertin Pharma made an active and bold decision to go for a standard SAP S/4HANA solution as one of the first companies in Denmark. This was a major change, requiring the willingness to adapt their processes to the solution – rather than the other way around. They insisted on using the system the way it was intended – leaning on NTT DATA’s expertise along the way – and in 2020, they went live with their new platform.

“We made a choice that not many companies dare to make – and that was only possible because our top management stood firm and backed our decision. Today, we reap the benefits of a 99,9% standard solution – and we haven’t looked back since,” says Anders Smedegaard, Director of Group IT & Strategic Procurement.

System upgrades at half the time and cost

By sticking to standard, Fertin Pharma is now able to run and complete annual upgrades for either new versions or service packages in just a few months – without interfering with their daily business. In fact, the company’s top management hardly noticed the most recent upgrade.

Jan Stokholm, Senior Manager, Business Solutions, explains: “With the SAP Standard solution, we can upgrade our system 50% faster than companies similar to us – and at half the cost – but also even 30% faster than we had originally expected.”

Moreover, the company can activate and benefit from new versions and functionalities right away and significantly faster than other companies in industries also facing strict documentation requirements.

The fact that everything standard released by SAP is already thoroughly tested and documented before it is released, eliminates the risk of something going wrong or creating unnecessary noise. Plus, Fertin Pharma doesn’t need to have SAP technicians on staff. Instead, they have appointed a number of super users in the different departments. This also means they can react quickly when new needs arise – like the time they needed to set up an all-new and 100% separate SAP string.

This was implemented with new master data and was up and running in less than four months.

A solid partnership leads the way

The 100+ year-old Fertin Pharma is no stranger to change, including its transformation from confectionery to pharma – and they have no plans to slow down. But this requires a partner with in-depth understanding of their business and needs. Since the beginning of their collaboration, Fertin Pharma has experienced NTT DATA’s willingness to be that partner and today, they are their SAP one-stop-shop.

According to Anders Smedegaard, the key is the close collaboration and continuous dialogue with NTT DATA: “We use NTT DATA for problem-solving, optimization, and support in our daily work, but first and foremost, we use them as a proactive sparring partner that can help us get to where we want to be – also five years from now.”

With their SAP Standard solution, Fertin Pharma has a solid foundation to continue building on. And no matter what challenges they may face in the future, they will continue benefiting from the constant development and new opportunities of SAP Standard.