FDBusiness.com

More than 40 delegates from some of the UK’s leading food manufacturing and distribution companies were captivated during an information technology seminar in Holbeach on Thursday of last week.

Intrigued by the growing reputation of the Microsoft based LINKFresh package in the food sector, they attended a half day seminar at the National Centre for Food Manufacturing where the system was put through its paces. As one delegate commented “finally, we have seen an easy to use food solution that provides us with the degree of costs transparency that we have needed for some time”.

At the moment, the food sector is under the cosh of margin pressure, increased regulation, shorter lead times and escalating costs. During the seminar, delegates were shown how product and process transparency throughout the supply chain could reduce waste, automate administrative processes, track and trace costs, efficiently manage packaging and optimise transport resources. Delegates heard how existing LINKFresh users reported significant business benefits by being able to use real time information as a competitive advantage.

“During the past six years, we have made significant investments in developing and refining the LINKFresh suite to meet the demanding requirements of the fresh food sector” explained Anglia’s Commercial Director Robert Frost. “Cost effectively tracking and tracing low value items with short shelf lives moving at high velocity through the supply chain have always been a challenge for the IT sector. The speed, sophistication and ease of use of our mobility and touch screen technologies have meant that this is now a reality. These have helped transform many food supply chain businesses by reducing unproductive costs while improving customer service. Customer experiences plus the delegate feedback from the event suggests that we are listening and getting it right”.

Apart from the LINKFresh developments, Microsoft provided attendees with an update on Microsoft Dynamics NAV which provides the LINKFresh ERP base technology. With over 80,000 global customers and 4,000 solution centres, the product is now the world’s leading mid-range ERP system. An annual R & D investment of $2.8 Billion in the Microsoft Dynamics product range as well as a clearly defined development roadmap should ensure that it increases its global lead.

After the seminar, delegates were treated to a guided tour of the impressive facilities of the National Centre for Food Manufacturing by principle lecturer Mike Dudbridge.