ERP and laboratory software in sync

With GUS-OS Laboratory, the medium-sized cheese specialist Alpenhain relies on a laboratory information and management system (LIMS) from GUS ERP GmbH, which is integrated into the central ERP system GUS-OS Suite. This means that all laboratory analysis data, from incoming raw materials to retained samples, can be processed electronically without media discontinuity and made available at the touch of a button.

The chance

The long-established company from the foothills of the Bavarian Alps had been using the GUS-OS Suite as a central solution for corporate and production planning since 2016, when the existing and outdated laboratory software also needed to be replaced. This had no interfaces to the ERP system, which made it necessary to enter master data twice and slowed down processes such as tracking and reporting. In view of the positive experience with the GUS-OS Suite, those responsible at Alpenhain decided to also implement GUS-OS Laboratory, the laboratory information and management system (LIMS) of the GUS-OS Suite. In 2019, Alpenhain began replacing its legacy system step by step in an agile development project in which IT and the specialist department worked hand in hand and on an equal footing from the outset.

IT - rethought

Thanks to the LIMS integrated in the GUS-OS Suite, Alpenhain has automated sampling, label output and analysis recording. This simplifies process control in production throughout the entire product life cycle. The integrated workflow control and monitoring ensures that the cheese products are taken during production and analyzed according to various parameters. Retention samples of finished end products, which must be kept in storage for up to one and a half years depending on the best-before date (BBD), used to be labeled by hand. Today, Alpenhain's laboratories can manage and automatically label them with the LIMS and analyze them again in the sensor system that is due after the best-before date has expired. Paper and Excel lists have been completely replaced - all analysis data can be processed electronically without media discontinuity. This also speeds up the process of batch tracing during statutory audits. What used to be compiled in an extensive paper folder can now be quickly retrieved in electronic form, from quantity flow and production data to analysis data. In this way, the system saves routes, time and costs throughout the company, as all data is available at the touch of a button.

Fit for the future

Alpenhain benefits from the integrated ERP and LIMS solution GUS-OS Suite and GUS-OS Laboratory as follows:

• Replacement of Excel lists, reduction of interfaces, avoidance of multiple data entry
• More flexibility and agility in production planning, including rolling monthly forecast planning in sales and distribution
• Price fluctuations for raw and finishing materials can be simulated and continuously recalculated
• Mapping of analysis processes across the entire product life cycle
• Complete documentation from incoming milk to semi-finished products to finished end products, including environmental analyses
• Analysis data is processed electronically without media disruption and is available at the push of a button
• Workflow engine provides laboratories with to-do lists and automates sample collection and label output, including for retained samples
• Microbiological values can be mapped exponentially in data fields
• Accelerated raw material tracking and batch tracing that simplifies the audit process
• Mapping of all compliance and transparency requirements
• Overall solution can be scaled to cover future requirements as well