JD Edwards customers can optimise and extend Oracle’s JD Edwards by taking a hybrid approach and integrating Oracle PaaS, IaaS, and SaaS solutions.

Taking a hybrid Cloud approach helps you to leverage your existing investment in Oracle ERP while benefiting from the latest technology and functional advances in the Oracle Cloud.

In this blog, we look at which Oracle Cloud Supply Chain Modules make sense for JD Edwards EnterpriseOne customers. So here it is, our top 5 Oracle SCM Modules:

Number 5: Order Promising Cloud

This module has rich functionality around order promising options including:

• Available to promise
• Capable to promise
• Profitable to promise
   

With Oracle ERP Order Promising Cloud, it is possible to select the best fulfilment option for a sales order, taking into account, lead time, service rate and total delivery cost. Easy to understand graphs and visuals, reports and workbenches help the user to quickly make the best decision or to solve exceptions.

Back to back and drop shipment as fulfilment options are also available and fully integrated. Users can control the supply and delivery processes related to drop shipment and back-to-back scenarios from a single screen

Key Take Away:  Consider implementing this module if you have JD Edwards EnterpriseOne and offer multiple fulfilment options for sales orders, for example, several sources, several scenarios (standard + back-to-back + drop shipment) or if the fulfilment network is complex.

 

Number 4: Sourcing Cloud

If sourcing is strategically important for your company and you regularly issue RFI/RFQ for a wide range of product & services, Oracle ERP Sourcing Cloud is worth considering to lower costs and collaborate for better results.

Negotiations (RFI & RFQ) can be created from a template and can include a cover page, descriptions, attachments, specifications & questions for the supplier.

Qualification criteria (internal and external) can be added to the RFP/RFQ from a template or created in an ad hoc way. Tasks related to the RFI/RFQ can be created and assigned to users.

A workbench is available to review and analyze the RFI/RFQ progress. Embedded analytics allows users to award the negotiation to the most suitable supplier. 

Self-service functionalities are also proposed to invite and respond to suppliers. Auction type of negotiation is also supported.

Key Take Away: Even if the overlap with the existing JD Edwards module known as Operational Sourcing is obvious, Sourcing Cloud makes sense because of its advanced functionality. Implementation is also particularly straightforward because this module acts in an almost standalone way.

 

Number 3: In-Memory Cost Management

In-Memory Cost Management is a new module from the Oracle SCM Cloud suite. It’s a very comprehensive cost management solution which helps industrial companies to undertake advanced analytics and make better data-driven decisions

• Calculate cost to serve
• Simulate cost changes and analyze their impacts
• Compare costs between lines or plants
• Predict costs and margins

The benefits of this module for JD Edwards customers are the following:

1. Standalone module: Current information such as budget can be imported, modified or adjusted without impacting the live environment. Costing and allocation rules can also be improved thanks to set-up screens.
    
2. Advanced real-time simulation: Users can create several scenarios and compare them. It is also possible to adjust parameters related to the direct or indirect cost to be allocated, manufactured volumes (lot size) or demand volumes. In-Memory technology provides real-time calculations.
    
3. Integration with Excel: There are Several Reports where drill-down capability is available. We can, for example, drill down to purchased items and operating equipment costs. This allows users to perform cost-volume-profit analysis and what-if simulations to evaluate change impacts on margins and profits.

Key Take Away: In summary, even if in JD Edwards EnterpriseOne it is possible to simulate the impact of cost changes for material, labor, a machine on the item/inventory value, what is missing is the advanced options to review the impact of such changes on profits. JD Edwards customers can also use this module to perform real-time what-if simulation and review/publish results in easy to understand graphs and visuals.

 

Number 2: Supply Chain Planning

In the latest release of Oracle ERP Cloud (R13) the supply chain planning offer has evolved more than any other Oracle Cloud SCM offer. Three new modules have been added to the existing “planning central” module:

1. Demand Management: The Demand Management Module offers a really powerful tool to optimise demand planning. With Demand Management, users can compare and analyze the various forecasts coming from Marketing, Customers, and Sales. Forecasts can also be calculated from the sales and shipment history using algorithms and statistical methods. Tools are available to understand variances and bias by splitting them by causal factors or to easily calculate a forecast for new products.
    
2. Supply Planning: The Supply Planning Module is an evolution of the current supply planning capability in the planning central module. What’s new is that now you can compare several plans easily by performing what-if analysis and simulate the impact of changes in resources, demand or supply capacity. According to the Oracle roadmap, Constrained Master Scheduling will also soon be included. 
    
3. S&OP: The Sales & Operations Planning Module is perhaps the most interesting module for JD Edwards users. In a single set of screens, users can define a list of tasks/assignees to build the S&OP and review progress.  There are also many tools available to control the compatibility of the operational plan with the financial plan. Information about demand can also be adjusted and the impact on the corresponding supply and financial plan solved immediately.
   
    

All these modules are available in a single environment and are connected. They are based on the same logic (working by exception, navigate by drill down or drill around to easily solve the exception). They are connected and propose the same type of look & feel graphs, reports and setup logic.

​Key Take Away:  This module can deliver real value for JD Edwards Customers as it delivers all the functionality you need in one single advanced planning system.  There is no longer a need for multiple integrations with other disparate planning systems which means the user can perform all planning tasks using one single, intuitive user interface.

Number 1: Product Hub

Number one on our list is Oracle Product Hub. This module can help JD Edwards customers in the Manufacturing and Distribution sectors to solve the many data management challenges they face including:

1. Data Integrity: Product Hub prevents inconsistent coding, duplicated items, inconsistency in the item information (wrong category, parameter…),
    
2. Productivity: Accelerates item creation and revision and avoids the delays caused when because several departments are involved,
    
3. Collaboration:  Product Hub improves collaboration by facilitating better sharing of information between other systems and website(s).
    
4. Third-Party:  Importing and controlling items from third-party companies (suppliers, trading partners) is made easier.

In Product Hub, you can setup item creation rules and templates by item class. It is possible to define the sequence of departments/users that can be involved in the item creation, but also the list of fields and the information they must review. Templates can be applied to default values.

• For each item class, a coding logic can be defined, and the description can be generated automatically. Rules can be created to avoid duplication and to conditionally create default values based on the value of other fields/categories.
   
• Functionalities also exist to help users to easily publish new items to other ERP/Websites.
   
• Approval rules can be set-up for new item request and item changes.
   
• Content (documents, videos, pictures) can be attached to the item master and handle at the item/revision level.
   
• Workbenches allow users to control the import/export processes status and results.

Key Take Away: In summary, Product Hub will really benefit JD Edwards customers who previously may have grappled with integrated item creation procedure and data master control.