Iveco Drives Innovation Across Vehicle Management Processes With SAP

Commercial Vehicle Maker Achieves Improvements in Financial Closing Cycle and Purchase Order Accuracy With Vehicle Configuration Solution From SAP for Automotive

TURIN, Italy, Feb. 16 -- SAP AG today announced that Iveco, the industrial vehicles arm of the Fiat Group, is driving innovation across its vehicle ordering processes and accelerating its global revenue cycle with a unique vehicle management solution. Based on the SAP for Automotive industry solution set, Iveco's vehicle configuration portal enables importers and distributors worldwide to custom-order vehicles online, setting in motion an end-to-end process chain that has shortened Iveco's worldwide financial closing cycle to one week and reduced purchase-order errors by more than 50 percent.

With its January 2004 go-live of SAP(R) software for 2,000 users, Iveco achieved the first milestone in its initiative to unify a global business network spanning 23 production sites, 250 dealers and more than 5,000 suppliers. Among the several hundred legacy applications slated to be replaced by SAP solutions, the company first zeroed in on its global dealer network and supply chain applications. The goal was to streamline and improve revenue cycle management on its sales of more than 150,000 commercial vehicles and 400,000 diesel engines each year. Key to enabling Iveco's integrated process flow is its new dealer portal, created with the SAP(R) Vehicle Manager application from SAP for Automotive.

"Our portal solution from SAP is truly a first in the automotive sector; it puts the vehicle at the center of our ordering processes, the customer in the driver's seat and our revenue cycle in the fast lane," said Mario Leone, CIO and senior vice president, Iveco. "With the end-to-end SAP system, we have greatly improved the way we serve our global dealer network while achieving faster financial reporting and fewer purchase order errors. SAP for Automotive solutions are helping us reduce complexity across our global operations and will continue to be key enablers of business change and profitable growth for Iveco."

The new solution integrates all information and processes from the front-end to the back-office, so that each order Iveco receives is now a valid order for a buildable vehicle. When Iveco dealers access the new Web portal and vehicle configuration applications, they can personalize a vehicle that is fully supported and able to be built within Iveco's plant systems. The integrated solution also provides users across sales, production and financial departments with comprehensive visibility into the vehicle pipeline and helps reduce sales costs, optimize warehouse stock and improve delivery times.

To enable further enhancements in customer service, the company is building on its dealer portal by deploying applications from mySAP(TM) Customer Relationship Management including the SAP(R) Interaction Center and SAP(R) Warranty Management applications.

"Iveco clearly demonstrates the strategic business value companies gain with SAP's integrated automotive solutions," said Claus Heinrich, member of the executive board, SAP AG. "SAP for Automotive provides the scope of functionality automotive companies need to unify widespread business networks and efficiently execute end-to-end business processes."

About Iveco

Iveco is a Global Company with a full range of vehicles and engines committed to the world of transport and customer satisfaction through leading-edge technologies, reliable performance and quality excellence of its products and customer global services. The strategy of Iveco is to generate profitable growth by focusing on customers and markets, strengthening the technological content and competitiveness of our products. Transport Safety, Environmental Care and Productivity on the Road are inherent to our strategy as well as Technological Innovation and Lean Enterprise. With annual sales above 9 billion euros, Iveco manufactures and markets more than 140,000 commercial vehicles and 420,000 engines annually on a worldwide basis. Iveco serves its customers with 31,000 employees and 49 plants in 19 countries, 15 Research and Development centers and 843 dealers.

About SAP for Automotive

SAP for Automotive is an industry solution that combines mySAP(TM) Business Suite solutions and tailored functionality to help automotive companies integrate the entire engineering, procurement, manufacturing, sales and service value chain. With more than 1,300 automotive customers worldwide, SAP for Automotive supports industry specific business processes within all types of automotive companies, including original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), suppliers, and sales and service organizations. Built on the open architecture of the SAP NetWeaver(TM) platform , SAP for Automotive helps companies collaborate with business partners, acquire and service customers and attain competitive advantage by meeting today's dynamic business demands. (Additional information at http://www.sap.com/automotive/ )

About SAP

SAP is the world's leading provider of business software solutions*. Today, more than 26,150 customers in over 120 countries run more than 88,700 installations of SAP(R) software-from distinct solutions addressing the needs of small and midsize businesses to enterprise-scale suite solutions for global organizations. Powered by the SAP NetWeaver(TM) platform to drive innovation and enable business change, mySAP(TM) Business Suite solutions are helping enterprises around the world improve customer relationships, enhance partner collaboration and create efficiencies across their supply chains and business operations. SAP industry solutions support the unique business processes of more than 25 industry segments, including high tech, retail, public sector and financial services. With subsidiaries in more than 50 countries, the company is listed on several exchanges, including the Frankfurt stock exchange and NYSE under the symbol "SAP." (Additional information at http://www.sap.com/ )

(*) SAP defines business software solutions as comprising enterprise resource planning and related software solutions such as supply chain management, customer relationship management, product life-cycle management and supplier relationship management.

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