Case study

Ready for take-off! RO-RA flying high with Dynamics 365

5 min read • Feb 05, 2019

Customer:
Ro-ra

RO-RA Aviation Systems, a producer of aircraft components and functional modules for the aircraft industry, began an ERP project together with BE-terna in 2017, with the aim of fully mapping and modernising all business processes in production, project management and financial accounting and shifting its IT infrastructure in the direction of the cloud.

RO-RA Aviation Systems opts for Microsoft and BE-terna

Digital progress

RO-RA is known as an innovation leader in its sector – to further expand this position and to simplify its business processes now and in the future, the manufacturer of aircraft components decided on an upgrade to Microsoft Dynamics 365 with BE-terna. Another goal that was to be achieved with the new ERP solution was to reduce stand-alone solutions in the current software landscape.

With its upgrade from Microsoft Dynamics AX 4.0 to the latest generation Dynamics 365 for Finance & Operations, RO-RA Aviation Systems decided not only on a new ERP system but also on a change in partner to BE-terna. Robert Jäger, Head of IT at RO-RA, summarises the decision:

In the course of the internal project start, we decided on a vendor and implementation evaluation. BE-terna impressed us with its industry expertise and project approach.

With the right partner

The change in partner and the project were a complete success for RO-RA. Extensive optimisations were implemented, particularly in the areas of production planning, production control and project management: Flexible production data acquisition, the replacement of stand-alone solutions and a reduction in interfaces have made RO-RA’s business processes fully pre-pared for the future. Robert Jäger sums up the vision behind the change:

We see Dynamics 365 as more than just an ERP system. It is the foundation for our digitisation strategy and a major factor for our ongoing growth as a company.

Networking and transparency across the entire supply chain

ERP, BI and CRM in one solution

The high level of scalability of Microsoft Dynamics 365 and the integration of CRM and BI in an all-in-one solution provides significant advantages for RO-RA. This has enabled RO-RA to consolidate all its applications in one solution and map the entire supply chain there. Interfaces such as high-bay warehouses and QMS could also be reduced. The graphic control panel, fully standard-compliant, allows RO-RA to see throughput times and stocks at a glance and get a handle on discrepancies quickly. Furthermore, with BE-terna's industry solution for the manufacturing industry, the business processes in production, project management and financial accounting could be modernised and fully mapped.

Extensive and innovative: BE-terna's solution for manufacturers

The system component manufacturer was particularly impressed by the extensive and innovative functions in BE-terna's manufacturing solution. Thanks to the flexible production data acquisition (PDA), RO-RA can access all production data directly in the ERP system. The graphic requirement planning in BE-terna's industry solution offers more transparency and security in complex tasks – this is done using innovative, self-teaching technologies that enable planning far into the future based on previous values. Additionally, in line with the regulations for the aircraft industry, a tracker was implemented for quality control and assurance that enabled RO-RA to fully track all materials across the entire supply chain.

With the cloud, soar to new heights

Microsoft Azure cloud

RO-RA’s ERP solution is run on Microsoft’s Azure cloud. For Robert Jäger, a major factor in deciding on the cloud was the issue of scalability:

The cloud gives us exactly the type of infrastructure that we need at this point in time. When we have new requirements for the system, the cloud model is easy to adjust. In our own computer centre, this could end up being highly complex and costly.

Alongside the flexibility and scalability described by Robert Jäger, the cloud has other advantages, which also influenced RO-RA’s decision: predictable costs, maintenance performed by experts, top security standards, geo-redundant data backup and mobile access at any time.

Project results

Variant mapping
Order visualisation/feedback (PDA)
Universal business processes
Interface reduction
Graphic control panel
Graphic requirement planning
Product traceability

Business advantages for RO-RA

Enhanced competitiveness
Homogeneous system landscape
More efficient production
Rapid and simple analyses
Greater customer loyalty

About RO-RA Aviation Systems

RO-RA Aviation Systems is a supplier for the aircraft industry. The Austrian company specialises in the development and production of components for the interior, structure and engine. At its site in Schörfling am Attersee, the system supplier and innovation leader produces aircraft components and functional modules that combine the fuselage and the individual cabin elements. RO-RA concentrates on future-focused products and solutions, processing metals of almost all grades and supplying form solutions made of elastomers and filled thermoplastics.

Industry: Aviation industry
Products: System components for the aviation industry
Headquarter: Schörfling am Attersee (AT)
Number of employees: 220