Posted on

The FORWARD journey continues as ABA Logistics Goes Live with the ERP system

Driving the FORWARD journey ahead, Ali Bin Ali (ABA) Logistics went live with the ERP system on Thursday, April 19, 2018. Operations in the two main sectors of ABA Logistics – financial and purchasing – will now be automated through the FORWARD system. 

 

Considering ABA Logistics’ importance in the operation of most of our businesses, this Go Live has special significance for the Holding.

 

The added value that FORWARD will bring about in Logistics involves a shift from a manual process to more structured, accurate and centralized operations. After an intensive series of training sessions and data collection over the last one month, Logistics is ready to embark on this new journey.

 

In order to celebrate the successful launch of FORWARD in Logistics, a gathering was organized on Thursday at the ABA Logistics head office in the Industrial Area.

 

Apart from the Logistics team led by General Manager Jon Mayson, present at the event was FORWARD Project sponsor Mr. Mohamad A. Ebrik, ABA Group PMO Manager Mr. Youssef Farajallah Mahmoud and other members of the top management.

 

Opening the event and welcoming all, Mr. Mayson said: “Although the implementation of the FORWARD Project in Logistics has not directly involved the same number of staff as our recent Warehouse Management System (WMS) upgrade, it is still nonetheless a significant transformation project which will streamline our processes and bring improved efficiency to our transactions with internal and external customers.  It has taken a lot of effort to get us to this point and a big thank you must go to the Finance Team who put in many hours to guarantee things went smoothly so far and at the same time ensured all their routine activities were completed as normal.  I am proud that Logistics is once again taking the lead as one of the first Divisions to take on this transformation challenge.  This is only the start however, no doubt there will be further difficult challenges before we complete our journey but I’m certain as a Team we can get there.”

 

 

Mr. Ebrik thanked the management of Logistics and said; “Even a month ago, we had debates and concerns about Logistics being the second division of the rollout. However, the project team and I gave our commitment that we should move forward because the scope is a lot smaller than previous other divisions. We succeeded in convincing them and the Logistics team that worked on the project proved that they were ready to Go Live on the Financial part. Once you start using the system, you might find some roadblocks, but I am sure that the FORWARD team along with your positive assistance will ensure the success of the project in Logistics.”

 

The event was also a perfect stage for handing over certificates of appreciation to the heroes at Logistics who went that extra mile to confirm the successful implementation of the system. Mosharraf H. Mridha, Suresh Nagarajah and Md. Mahmud Khan received the certificates from Mr. Mayson.

 

To add a fun element to the gathering, a small game was organized for the Logistics team working on the FORWARD Project. Mr. Mayson drove a forklift to bring in some cartons and the team had to organize and assemble these cartons to create the FORWARD and ABA Holding logo. It was a perfect initiation and enthusiastic flag-off for the Logistics new journey.

 

Posted on

Growing with the Group, ABATS Goes Live with FORWARD system

Ali Bin Ali (ABA) Group’s FORWARD project reached a new milestone on Sunday, April 1, 2018 by welcoming another division – Ali Bin Ali Technology Solutions (ABATS) to the FORWARD family. After the pilot divisions, ABATS is the first division of the FORWARD first batch roll-out to Go Live.

True to the slogan, ‘Growing together to reach new heights’, ABATS has grown and evolved in its journey with the successful implementation of the FORWARD ERP Application.

The added value that FORWARD will bring about in ABATS involves the introduction of the Project Costing & Billing module. With the help of this module, the division will be able to perform costing and billing operations more efficiently by having an overview of all its projects and activities. This will be a key milestone, and will enhance the core business of ABATS.

On Sunday, a gathering was organized to celebrate the successful launch of FORWARD at ABATS. Apart from the ABATS team, present at the event was Chief Operating Officer-ICT Mr. Mohamad A. Ebrik, ABA Group PMO Manager Mr. Youssef Farajallah Mahmoud and Intrasoft Project Manager Mr. Amer Dakhqan. Top management from the Head Office also attended the event to mark their support for the FORWARD Project.

Congratulating Team ABATS on its achievement, Mr. Ebrik said: “Whenever there is a new system implemented there are hiccups, we face troubles in business but slowly we start to realize its benefit and start utilizing it. Similarly, with FORWARD we are bringing the latest technology to ABA and investing a lot. But the biggest investment we are making is in our people who are running the application. Now, the challenge is to make sure that we can utilize the FORWARD system and take advantage of it.”

Mr. Ebrik also added: “The team has put in great efforts, spending weekends and nights to make sure that everything was up and running before the scheduled Go Live.”

Mr. Youssef and Mr. Amer also thanked the ABATS team for their dedication and cooperation throughout the transition period.

While the achievement was a result of substantial efforts of the whole ABTAS team, two heroes stood out during the transitional phase, namely Mr. Shafquat Zubair, Finance Manager, and Mr. Shaleh MD. Mridha, Management Accountant.

Certificates of appreciation were handed over to them by Mr. Ebrik. Mr. Zubair accepted the certificate on behalf of the entire ABATS team and said the actual journey has begun now with the Go Live.

To mark the journey to new heights, ABATS & FORWARD team members put a small note on the symbolic tree to mark their contribution to the ABA FORWARD project. It was also a sign of unity and cooperation, which is the basis for the success of the project.

The FORWARD planning and transition phase for ABATS was made possible by the sheer dedication and commitment of the ABATS team complimented by excellent guidance and teamwork by our PMO team.

Lined up next for the roll-out is ABA Logistics Division. FORWARD PMO and the Logistics team are putting in every effort to Go Live, as scheduled, in a few weeks’ time.