Lueg: Dealer Management System for Fahrzeug-Werke LUEG AG

Large CARBON implementation order

Another leading light in the German car dealing sector, Fahrzeug-Werke LUEG AG, has chosen to implement CARBON, the Dealer Management System from IMG, the consulting services of the S&T Group. CARBON, the Dealer Management System based on SAP DBM, is scheduled to be installed and in operation at all of LUEG’s 17 regional locations, as well as at the company headquarters, by early next year. LUEG will then have a flexible and integrated system that forms the basis for future business success.

Fahrzeug-Werke LUEG AG, the largest Mercedes-Benz dealership in Germany, is investing in the future by modernizing all its business processes and its IT environment. The core of this modernization consists of the CARBON Dealer Management System (DMS) from IMG, the Consulting Services of the S&T Group. “We have a clear vision: by 2011 we want to be one of the top ten best Mercedes-Benz dealerships in Germany and thereby ensure long-term success and jobs at LUEG,” comments CEO Jörg Scharwald. One goal in particular is associated with the implementation of CARBON – the integration and meshing of all corporate processes and programs that have so far been used in isolation. This will result in significant improvements in efficiency and productivity across the whole group.

Rapid implementation
CARBON is based on SAP Dealer Business Management (DBM) and completely fulfills all the requirements. It integrates corporate data and arranges the data in a uniform database. The previous, time-consuming task of entering data multiple times will thus be consigned to history. The system is also adaptable to future requirements as further modules can be added at any time. “We can therefore react with great flexibility and quickly buy in resources when necessary,” explains Joachim Hubinger, Head of IT/Organization at LUEG. The time available between the project start on March 9th and the start of live operations in early 2010 is short – such a rapid implementation is only possible with close cooperation between LUEG and IMG as well as the implementation skills of IMG and the consistent application of best practice processes.

360° view
The major investment will bring huge benefits for LUEG; CARBON gives users a complete view of customer information, with all the relevant data available at a glance – from basic customer data, factory orders and any open sales quotes to billing and financial accounting. Furthermore, the customer data can be analyzed and queries can be initiated, for example for customer acquisition campaigns. The LUEG service department will also benefit from the system: damage claims can be handled more quickly as many entries are already preset. Usually, all the prices will be available via the online access and the data completeness will allow immediate issuing of invoices. In addition, further manual steps involved in warranty processing will be superseded by the system and it will be possible to promptly make statements regarding any assumption of costs. All the LUEG brands will be integrated, starting with Mercedes-Benz and Sportivo, which includes the Ferrari and Maserati brands. This will be followed, in 2010, by smart and a third phase will also allow the operational inclusion of Opel.

Greater transparency
The new system will not only facilitate day-to-day operational work and cooperation at LUEG, and thereby improve the quality of customer service, but it will also provide management data for strategic decision making that has better quality and greater transparency. Georg Komornyik, COO BS S&T: “LUEG is not allowing the economic crisis and the falls in automobile sales to slow it down and, with this investment in CARBON, it is establishing the basis for future success. This project, in which we have overall responsibility for the implementation of the proven CARBON standard processes and also for the LUEG-specific requirements that result from, for example, the A representative status, is an exciting challenge for our consultants. This shows that our Dealer Management System perfectly matches the needs of the industry and, in this particular case, the Daimler world.”

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