Allett Mowers
Infor CloudSuite Industrial (SyteLine) improves lead times by two-thirds and supercharges planning for a high-quality cylinder mower manufacturer.
Machinery & Equipment 
Infor CloudSuite Industrial (SyteLine) improves lead times by two-thirds and supercharges planning for a high-quality cylinder mower manufacturer.
Machinery & Equipment 
Founded in 1965, Allett Mowers is a British company specialising in the design and manufacture of high-quality cylinder mowers, used at the World’s leading sports stadiums and historic houses.
Headquartered in Staffordshire, its product range serves both professional users who maintain sports fields and homeowners seeking a professional finish for their lawns.
About Allett Mowers
As part of its commitment to craftsmanship and innovation, and in pursuit of best practices in manufacturing operations, Allett has recently initiated a modernisation programme as part of its journey to become a lean manufacturer. Focused on new ERP capabilities, the leading mower manufacturer needed the right digital foundations from which to manage lead times more effectively, address seasonality, and scale for growth.
Its previous software was being made obsolete, and it lacked key information for reporting, lead times and planning, which Allett needed.
This impeded visibility meant that the leading mower manufacturer had limited capacity planning capabilities and a lack of visibility of stock and order fulfilment. Responding to customer inquiries or queries can be a slow process due to data being stored in multiple silos, making it difficult to provide accurate responses that customers can trust.
Against this backdrop, lead times were somewhat of a misnomer, as the systems didn’t exist to produce schedules with any real meaning.
Having reviewed several ERP solutions, the Allett team selected Infor CloudSuite Industrial (SyteLine) based on its manufacturing-centric design, ability to underpin scale and growth through more robust, integrated processes, and faster, more comprehensive reporting.
“Infor CloudSuite Industrial (SyteLine)’s simplicity and look and feel were very compelling,” comments Tom Holmes, ERP Project Manager at Allett Mowers. “The advanced technologies which are baked into the Infor OS platform mean that we have confidence it will support whatever is next, not just the now. We can unlock new technologies as needed and pursue our growth strategies, safe in the knowledge that we won’t have another ERP project to contend with in future years.
“And because Infor CloudSuite Industrial (SyteLine) is a fully integrated suite, with quality management, document management, and service management included, we know there will be no surprise costs for additional modules.”
Beyond core capabilities, Infor’s Process Intelligence and Business Accelerators were also crucial in establishing a standardised way of working for Allett, including process flows. In parallel, API-led integrations with the mower manufacturer’s Shopify and after-sales platforms provide visibility into the entire lifecycle, enabling all departments to perform more effectively.
“Since going live, we have made substantial improvements in our productivity and planning, which has allowed us to reduce our lead times from around 12 weeks to four on average,” Tom explains. “And because we can now trust the lead times, conversations with customers are so much more informed, positive and trustworthy.
“Planning was previously run weekly and took three to four hours, whereas now it takes just one and a half minutes. This also factors in the seasonality associated with our sector, and our need to carry safety stock. Infor CloudSuite Industrial (SyteLine) allows us to manage this with greater precision, and ensure we have what we need against historical patterns and likely demand given forecasts.
“Possibly the greatest value, however, is the knowledge we have on how bottlenecks impact the entire lifecycle, so that we can divert resources where needed. The system flags exceptions quickly so that we can understand where problems or profit risks might be looming.
“Because the clarity of the data is excellent and we can trust it to the letter, we have one version of the truth. This means that we can investigate the why, rather than spending hours, sometimes days, trying to get to the what.”
The cultural change brought about by Allett’s transformation has been massive. It has encouraged a more collaborative approach to working for the firm and brought departments together in the quest to drive continuous improvement and a more customer-focused, commercially aware way of working.
Clarity in data builds trust in the processes; therefore, onboarding new starters is much more straightforward. Customer service teams can work with much more precise data, therefore can do their jobs in a more confident, empowered way.
The Inforlogic team have been amazing throughout, and supported what has been a major transformation for us. From guiding and documenting each and every step, and managing extensive data migration, they have always been at hand to steer and advise us. A breath of fresh air, any queries are addressed on the same day and nothing is too much trouble to work through with us.
ERP Project Manager, Allett Mowers
“We are excited about how the latest release with its GenAI capabilities will help us to expedite productivity further, and anticipate that this will bring even greater efficiencies to our production. Through the addition of a copilot, instead of clicking on a tab we will be able to ask the virtual assistant for details on say a BOM or bottleneck.
“Ultimately, Infor CloudSuite Industrial (SyteLine), complemented and supported by Inforlogic, has enabled us to transform our operations and move forward with a scalable, robust platform from which to better service our customers and pursue growth.”
For more information about Inforlogic or how we can help your business benefit from Infor SyteLine, get in touch or call us on 01606 720499.
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