- SuperValu & Centra stores to gain local production of PoS material
April 8, 2003 ......Musgrave Group, Ireland's largest grocery and food distributor, is soon to complete the first phase roll-out of advanced print control software for point-of-sale materials to all SuperValu and Centra stores in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The software, which is developed by Image Computer Systems, enables stores to print their own signs, tickets and general promotional material. Previously, all this material would have been printed and supplied by Musgrave's offices in Belfast and Cork. The company expects to achieve significant cost-savings by eliminating the over-supply of materials, and the stores will benefit considerably from the flexibility of being able to handle local promotions very quickly and easily.
Musgrave took the strategic decision to upgrade support for its SuperValu and Centra stores about a year ago. Having previously engaged the services of Image Computer Systems on a consultancy basis, the company was already aware of the benefits of EnSign print control software, and judged that its ease of operation made it ideal for in-store use. Under the terms of a major order for Image, Musgrave purchased and installed 211 site licences in its SuperValu store base (178 SuperValu stores in the Republic and 33 in Northern Ireland). A further 387 licences have also been purchased for its Centra chain (327 Centra stores in the Republic and 60 in Northern Ireland), which will be installed in the coming months.
According to Des O'Mahony, SuperValu Brand Manager for Musgrave SuperValu-Centra , “Moving to decentralised printing transforms the expensive promotional material supply process from push to pull, which is inherently much more efficient. Store managers also gain the flexibility to react dynamically to local trading conditions, by employing the user-friendly software to create their own signs - all of which project an aesthetic and consistent brand image.”
The overall system architecture and project implementation currently varies slightly between the two store chains and either side of the border. For SuperValu stores in Northern Ireland, the main database in Musgrave's Belfast facility outputs all pricing data in Excel spreadsheet format, which is transmitted to PCs in all stores in the province on a weekly basis, via modems and the public switched telephone network. Store personnel then merge this data with standard templates for promotional material that are held on the PC, and print out whatever they require; the EnSign software automatically handles all text styling and positioning issues. The stock material is held by Musgrave's warehouse system, and ordered by the store on an ad hoc basis.
A similar approach is used for the Centra chain in Northern Ireland, but the pricing data is distributed to the stores once a week in the form of a booklet. The store personnel then simply key in the appropriate data prior to printing.
Background information for editors
Musgrave Group was founded in 1876, and is now one of the two largest private companies in Ireland with 15,000 people being employed directly by the group or by its retail franchisees. The group's retail franchise division, known as Musgrave SuperValu-Centra, is Ireland's largest grocery and food distributor. In 2002 the company acquired UK supermarket group Budgens plc. For more information, please visit http://www.musgrave.ie
Image Computer Systems Ltd is a leading UK-based manufacturer of specialist printing products. Founded in 1979, the company produces a wide range of proprietary hardware and software solutions – covering all mainstream printer technologies and computing environments – and has an installed base of over 70,000 world-wide. The two main divisions of Image Computer Systems specialise in barcode and labelling solutions, and in-store printing solutions for the retail sector. For more information, please visit: http://www.image-cs.co.uk
Image Computer Systems Ltd
Frenches Farm, East Wellow, Romsey, Hampshire, SO51 6FE, UK
Tel: 0845 299 7096 Fax: 0808 280 1005 Email: sales@image-cs.co.uk
Ref: ICS010
Release date: April 8, 2003
