Overview
Nu-Mega Ingredients Pty Ltd (Nu-Mega) is one of the world’s leading suppliers of microencapsulated omega-3 and omega-6 powders, emulsions, and nutritional oils. A subsidiary of ASX-listed Clover Corporation, it has achieved several world-firsts in its three-decade history.
For instance, in 1996, it introduced polyunsaturated fatty acids via capsule for infant formula. This was followed by microencapsulated omega-3 in 1988. In 2002, it was the first to launch the next-generation 50% oil-loaded technology.
Nu-Mega focuses on improving health through good nutrition from the earliest years to adulthood. Its products delivering the highest purity, stability and performance standards. It has sales offices in Australia, New Zealand, China, Southeast Asia, the USA and Europe, and a dedicated research and development facility in Australia.
Fast Facts
- Australian-based food and beverage manufacturer
- Import and export business
- Upgraded to QAD Adaptive ERP (QAD AERP)
- Significant efficiency and productivity gains
Challenge
Nu-Mega was running the 2018 version. This meant many business processes were still being performed on external systems and spreadsheets, and data was regularly double-handled.
Nu-Mega’s Manager of Information Systems saw the need for the business to be more agile and use an ERP that could reduce manual tasks. Having worked with the Cloud version of QAD in a previous role, he knew it had greater usability, along with an Excel integration that allowed information upload for better quality inputs.
While the company had previously considered implementing the newer version, the timing and cost were misaligned with business goals. A year later, Nu-Mega’s growth demanded a more robust solution. As a long-standing IT solutions partner, Atturra was engaged to drive its QAD AERP upgrade in July 2023.
Solution
Atturra managed the upgrade project end-to-end, including planning, design, testing, deployment, and change management.
Working closely with the business, it quickly became clear that while Nu-Mega shared many similarities with other manufacturers and most of its processes fit within QAD. It also had several nuanced ways of working that required the solution to be uniquely adapted.
For example, Nu-Mega stored sales budget data outside QAD for reporting purposes. To further improve efficiency in its applications, Atturra implemented a custom component where KPIs can be created and actioned through the QAD Business Analytics tool.
To ensure the best value for Nu-Mega, Atturra negotiated the use of limited QAD licenses for data entry users who only use part of the system—e.g., Purchasing, and Quality Assurance.
This implementation project had robust governance. This included weekly and monthly meetings, teams regularly communicated, ensuring everyone was on the same page, and any disconnect between Nu-Mega, Atturra, and QAD was mitigated.
Outcomes achieved
QAD AERP successfully went live for Nu-Mega in Feb 2024. This followed additional User Acceptance Testing and training after the end-of-year break.
Improved usability means things are now faster and easier to find. The Excel integration has created productivity efficiencies, with higher levels of accuracy. Now, staff no longer need to manually enter data or double-handle work across different systems and spreadsheets.
Atturra’s extensive manufacturing knowledge and deep understanding of Nu-Mega’s business enabled it to suggest smarter and better ways of working, reducing effort and improved output.
Nu-Mega is now examining all business processes to optimise these using QAD AERP, driving even more significant time and cost savings and further improvement on ROI. With a Cloud ERP, Nu-Mega is very well positioned to continue its growth trajectory.
Technologies
- QAD AERP
