SAF-Holland relies on efficient risk management

Sector: supplier for the truck and trailer industry
Company size: 3,400 employees
Requirements: Replacement of the previous Excel solution by the introduction of a web-based tool for the creation of standard processes, evaluation options and extended simulation options; possibility to integrate an ICS and risk aggregation
Users: approx. 100 users
Project category: antares RiMIS® Risk & Opportunity Management

SAF-HOLLAND SE is one of the world's leading suppliers of chassis-related assemblies and components, primarily for trailers, but also for trucks and buses. In addition to axle and suspension systems, its product range includes fifth wheels, kingpins, landing legs and much more. These are marketed under the brands SAF, Holland, Neway, KLL, V.ORLANDI and York. With over 3,400 employees, the Bessenbach-based company is active on six continents and at 22 locations, with which they achieved sales of 960 million euros in 2020. On 8 December 2010, the Group's shares were included in the SDAX share index. Due to advancing globalisation, SAF-Holland focuses primarily on the factors of transport volume and internationality. The Group also places a particular focus on the areas of safety, efficiency and weight reduction as well as environmental friendliness. As a result, the Group concentrates on the three business units Trailer Systems (trailers), Powered Vehicle Systems (tractors, etc.) and Aftermarket (spare parts business).

In an internationally operating group like SAF-Holland SE, risk management is of central importance. For a long time, the processing and support of this area was done manually with the help of Microsoft Excel. This was no longer a sufficient solution for the group, which is not only highly complex due to its structure, but is also constantly expanding. Release processes and risk queries were complex and time-consuming. The non-automated work with Excel was to be replaced by a mature, automated and certified tool. In addition, at the end of 2020, the Institute of Public Auditors in Germany (Institut der Wirtschaftsprüfer in Deutschland e. V. (IDW) announced the now higher requirements of IDW PS 340, which made the introduction of a professional and certified software solution necessary. As part of a wide-ranging invitation to tender, providers and their software solutions were viewed and evaluated by SAF-Holland SE. The final decision was made in favour of the antares RiMIS® opportunity and risk management tool. The main reasons for this were the possibility of intelligently connecting an ICS, the expansion of the tool to include simulations and risk aggregations as well as the scalability and service quality.

Due to the ongoing pandemic situation, 90% of the project was implemented remotely and only a few meetings could take place in person. For the further implementation, jour fixes took place twice a week, which ran throughout the entire introduction phase. In these meetings, antares RiMIS® was continuously adapted to the individual requirements of SAF-Holland SE. In addition, the "Train the Trainer" concept was used to support the introduction, in the course of which two employees of the group were trained by the antares team. They acted as internal contact persons for the national and international colleagues during the implementation and beyond. The changeover from the Excel-based method to the antares RiMIS® software solution took place within one day and without the transfer of old data. In the meantime, antares RiMIS® has already been successfully implemented at SAF-Holland SE and the simulation module will be added in May 2021. In a simulation workshop, the project team was supported by an in-house mathematician in selecting the appropriate distribution functions.

The antares RiMIS® opportunity and risk management software is used by around 100 people worldwide at SAF-Holland SE, whereby ten employees can use the web-based tool simultaneously. Shortly after the introduction of the software solution, positive effects in the risk management process became apparent. The group previously used the 1-scenario assessment, which was replaced by a 3-scenario assessment. The probabilities and effects are recorded for three scenarios (best, expected and worst case). This is recommended in the course of the simulation in order to be able to represent an appropriate distribution. Another advantage, which is particularly effective for large companies with a corresponding structure, is the e-mail function integrated in the tool. Employees of SAF-Holland SE can be alerted by an e-mail reminder that risks need to be processed, with the option of using a link to access the system and assess the risk directly. Thanks to the replacement of complex Excel structures with an intelligent software solution, standard processes have been created that allow simulations and an ICS to be connected easily and flexibly.