Global S/4HANA Migration in a Big Bang
By migrating its SAP ECC system to the private cloud, DEHN is laying the foundation for future digitalisation projects.
DEHN is a leading, internationally active family-owned electrical engineering company headquartered in Germany. With a comprehensive portfolio, DEHN addresses the megatrends of our time – from electric mobility and renewable energy to the protection of critical infrastructure. The company offers solutions and services in the areas of lightning protection, surge protection and occupational safety. With more than 900 patents and utility models, DEHN is an innovation leader in these fields. Its products protect people and buildings, plant and telecommunications equipment, the process industry, as well as photovoltaic and wind power systems. DEHN’s steady growth is based not only on more than 115 years of experience, but also on the highest quality standards and a consistent global focus on customers and markets.
DEHN decided to replace its SAP ECC system with SAP S/4HANA as part of a brownfield project, supported by coaching from CONSILIO, across four continents. As part of this process, the application remained on-premises during the initial phase. Following the successful global go-live, DEHN migrated to the private cloud and, with it, to the RISE environment.
Moving Towards the Future in a Coached Approach
Project Objectives
The goal of the project was to ensure a streamlined and controlled migration of the existing SAP ECC system to SAP S/4HANA, completed on time and within budget, using the following approach: first, a go-live on-premises as preparation for a purely technical “lift and shift” to the private cloud, which DEHN subsequently coordinated independently.
The migration focused on a technical system conversion while maintaining existing business processes and systematically phasing out in-house developments that were no longer necessary from a business or technical perspective.
In addition, the migration from SAP APO PP/DS to SAP S/4HANA embedded PP/DS (ePP/DS) was part of the project scope.
Project Assignment/Role of CONSILIO
CONSILIO played a central role in the project as part of the brownfield approach, acting primarily as a coach to guide DEHN through the complex system transformation in a targeted manner. The project methodology was consistently aligned with the SAP project standard, SAP Activate.
CONSILIO provided us with significant support during our S/4HANA migration. Our big-bang go-live across four continents took place with full production operations and no significant limitations.
Challenges
The project’s main challenges involved organisation, technology, production planning and finance. These included:
- the very tight schedule;
- the complete migration of all inventory data as part of the system conversion;
- the replacement of the CIF integration, which required the harmonisation of master and transaction data, as well as the adaptation of existing planning processes;
- the ledger structure, which was not consistently uniform, as well as its integration with asset accounting due to varying assignments and a lack of standardisation;
- the implementation of Margin Analysis, which entailed adjustments to existing processes and structures – particularly with regard to the integration of relevant controlling and reporting requirements, as well as the harmonisation of data flows between Financial Accounting and Profitability Analysis; and
- the implementation of SAP Credit Management (FSCM-CR).
The go-live, as a global “big bang” spanning four continents and therefore four time zones, placed high demands on coordination, stability and availability. At the same time, it was necessary to ensure that production operations could continue without significant restrictions following the go-live.
Unrestricted Production Operation after Go-live
Key Project Benefits for DEHN
- Integration of ePP/DS into S/4HANA, resulting in a simplified system landscape, more consistent real-time data and more efficient planning processes without redundant interfaces.
- Standardisation of data structures in FI/CO, including a uniform ledger structure and logic across all company codes and countries.
- A strategic platform for functional development at DEHN.
- Long-term assurance of SAP support.
- Access to innovations and new features.
Next Steps
DEHN is partnering with CONSILIO to implement EWM at a new plant in Romania.
