SWAN records successful trade fair appearance

LogiMAT 2023: Project House for SAP Logistics Draws Satisfactory Conclusion

Augsburg, May 4th, 2023 – SWAN GmbH is pleased to announce a successful exhibition at this year’s LogiMAT. The numerous visitors showed great interest in SWAN’s innovative and automated intralogistics solutions based on SAP modules SAP EWM and SAP TM. Many visitors were particularly interested in the necessary migration of their current SAP systems to SAP S/4HANA. Automation projects, software retrofits, and a gradual SAP LE-TRA replacement with SAP TM Advanced were in high demand. Another highlight was the joint panel discussion with a representative from SAP on “The Future of Intralogistics: Flexibility and Automation along the Supply Chain with SAP.”

From April 25th to 27th, the intralogistics and process management trade fair experienced a record attendance with over 62,000 visitors in the exhibition halls in Stuttgart. SWAN presented its user-centric portfolio to an international specialized audience and is extremely satisfied with the fair’s progress, visitor count, and individual contacts. In addition to existing customers, many new prospects, logistics planners, and network partner companies visited the booth. The business fields of SAP EWM (Extended Warehouse Management) and SAP TM (Transportation Management) were particularly in focus, allowing SWAN to establish many new contacts and receive specific project inquiries. The necessary migration from SAP EWM 9.5 to SAP S/4HANA represents significant demand for which SWAN offers tailored solutions.

Specialist in Innovative, User-Centric SAP Logistics Solutions

Visitors were impressed by SWAN’s extensive expertise in manual and automated logistics solutions. SWAN offers highly usability- and performance-oriented automation solutions for intralogistics, including innovative add-ons in areas such as material flow, direct coupling, IoT integration, and Real Time Location Systems (RTLS). All of this makes SWAN the perfect sparring partner for pending automation projects.

Special emphasis is placed on the modernization of clients’ SAP environments, as old solutions in SAP EWM 9.5 were discontinued by SAP until the end of 2027. Companies must migrate their systems to SAP S4/Hana by then to be prepared for the future. “Since SAP does not transfer movement data, migrating the data is a more complex undertaking. Our intralogistics experts develop the right solution for every need to migrate all relevant data,” emphasizes Andreas Brand, Managing Director and Director of SAP Realization at SWAN. Many prospects currently opt for software retrofits – a trend of the economically challenging years. Increased construction costs have led most businesses to prefer modernizing existing warehouses and related software. However, a slow trend reversal is emerging. “The construction industry has calmed down somewhat, and new warehouses requiring new SAP intralogistics solutions are emerging. This adds many orders to our short-term planning,” adds Andreas Brand.

From Basic to Advanced: Gradual SAP TM Introduction

To achieve high process performance across the entire supply chain, the integration of SAP TM and SAP EWM is getting closer. SWAN offers companies bundled solutions for efficient transport processing – an offer that is generating increasing demand. Once again, the impending major SAP migration sets the tone. Widely used systems SAP ECC 6.0 and SAP LE-TRA are discontinued by the end of 2027 and 2030, respectively. With SAP TM Basic and SAP TM Advanced, successors for integrated Transportation Management are already available. Additionally, solutions for transport and load space optimization, such as freight tracking, GIS integration, or graphical route planning, have been increasingly requested.

The Future of Intralogistics: Panel Discussion with SAP

Together with Matthias Nater, Solution Advisor, SAP Digital Supply Chain Management & Manufacturing at SAP Deutschland AG & Co. KG, SWAN invited to a panel discussion at the booth of strategic partner SSI Schäfer. Nater has 21 years of SAP experience and is responsible for the development and implementation of SAP EWM. The core of the discussion on “The Future of Intralogistics” was increasing flexibility and automation along the supply chain with SAP. Companies using SAP rely on a platform that allows them to develop, adapt, and optimize solutions to remain competitive in the coming decades. With SAP, integrated solutions can be realized – from ERP functions to logistics and production to the control of automation technology and robotics. A field that generated great interest among the audience and meets the needs of customers.

“We look back on three days of concentrated knowledge and interest exchange. It is inspiring to connect with people who have similar interests and goals to ours at SWAN,” summarizes Alexander Bernhard, Managing Director of SWAN. “LogiMAT is not the largest and most influential trade fair in the logistics area for no reason; not only to acquire new customers but also to establish and deepen partnerships. I look forward to the coming weeks and months, during which we will nurture and strengthen our new contacts.”