eProcurement and Translation
Background of eProcurement
The world of purchasing took a significant change with the
introduction of eProcurement systems. Unbelievable ROI was promised
and the whole purchasing world was about to revolutionize, all for
a mere few million investment.
This would be done by rationalizing the supply base to an
absolute minimum and then ensuring no off contract buying was done
by enforcing purchases through the system. There were additional
savings in the reduction of administration from purchase orders
through to invoice payment.
A small problem
Then along came the rather significant problem of supplier
adoption onto these systems. Without a critical mass of spend there
would be no real ROI. The problem came in that there were so many
different proprietary systems including Oracle's iProcurement,
Ariba, Commerce One, SAP and a multitude of others that the cost of
supporting multiple catalogue formats was prohibitive for
suppliers. Even worse was when services or configurable products
were attempted to be catalogued.
Punch Out
Then along came Punch out or Round Trip depending on which you
prefer (This article will use punch out), however the principle is
the same. This allows end users to browse a supplier's website and
bring back into the system the details of the purchase, therefore
allowing all the same business rules and processes to be applied.
This solved problems for configurable products, volatile pricing
and some other key supply chain issues.
Translation
The level of translation spend in a company is often
underestimated and in most large organizations runs into many
millions. It is estimated that through the correct use of
technology and the consolidation of this spend savings of up to 60%
can be achieved. Therefore the benefits of adding this spend to
eProcurement can far outweigh even the larger spend categories.
There is however, still a problem when trying to add your
translation supplier to eProcurement systems. This comes down to
two reasons:
- Translation purchases still need to go through a quotation
stage in most instances. This is due to the fact there are so many
variables that can change the price including such things as
graphics with files.
- Most agencies will use translation memory tools,
which mean that the same document can be differently priced
dependent upon when you get the quote. This works by storing
translated units in a database and when this same unit is
encountered again it is priced lower.
These problems make it almost impossible to purchase translation
in a single punch out session.
How to eProcure Translation
Translation can be procured through the system with a slight
adaptation of the normal punch out process. This is done by
providing a standard link to the agencies secure server where a
quotation can be requested and documents submitted. The quote is
then emailed to the requisitioner with a link to return to the
secure site via the eProcurement system. This will then start a
punch out session and the quote can be added to a shopping basket
in the normal way.
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About the company
Applied Language Solutions provide translation solutions for
business of all size and have a range of solutions to meet all
needs.
Written by Gavin Wheeldon
ALS Translation Services