Weetabix in demand forecasting drive

Weetabix is implementing a new demand planning system in a bid to reduce warehouse stock, improve transport utilisation and drive manufacturing efficiency.

The system, from TXT e-solutions, should also help the firm manage promotions more effectively, said its head of IT services Shamesh Merali.

He said: "Like a lot of companies, we have been forecasting on multiple spreadsheets, but as the business became larger and more complex, we needed a more sophisticated demand planning system."

He added: "The TXT system looks at historical data, promotional volumes, and other factors likely to influence demand, and creates forecasts using complex statistical algorithms. It can handle far more information than our old system and look at things at a more granular level.

"The primary aim is to make sure we meet customer requirements while maintaining the minimum stockholding. However, more accurate forecasts mean we can optimise transport and production planning at the factory and predict revenues more sensibly, which is valuable in itself."

The new system, which has been running in parallel with the current system since May, will go live in August, he said.