Rügenwalder Mühle Relies on Intelligent Demand Planning Software ADD*ONE
As the market leader for vegetarian and vegan meat alternatives, Rügenwalder Mühle's product range has been growing steadily for years.
However, as the product range has grown, so too has the complexity of planning. To optimize this, the family-owned company opted for INFORM's decision-intelligent business software ADD*ONE.
Since then, demand planning has become more efficient, forecast accuracy has improved noticeably, and the team benefits from a clearly structured and reliable database.
Many people have known Rügenwalder Mühle since childhood, whether as tea sausage or liver sausage on their lunch sandwiches or later in the form of vegetarian classics such as Mühlenschnitzel. The family business was founded in 1834 in Rügenwalde, Pomerania, and has been based in Bad Zwischenahn, Lower Saxony, since the early 1950s. Since 2014, the company has been known not only for its traditional sausage products, but also for a steadily growing selection of vegetarian and vegan alternatives. In 2021, Rügenwalder Mühle generated more revenue with meat alternatives than with meat products for the first time. With this development, the company has established itself as one of Germany's leading food manufacturers and the market leader in vegan and vegetarian meat and sausage alternatives.
Growing diversity, increasing complexity
However, the increased product diversity is not only evident on the shelves, but also has an impact on internal supply chain planning at Rügenwalder Mühle. With each new product, the coordination effort increases: more data, more dependencies, and thus more potential sources of error. Precise and flexible planning is crucial, especially in the dynamic market environment of the food retail sector, which is characterized by fluctuating demand, seasonal influences, short-term promotions, and tight lead times. “We have introduced around ten new products every year in recent years,” explains Robert Wilck, Business Development Manager Supply Chain/Logistics at Rügenwalder Mühle. “Added to this are higher expectations on the part of customers and in terms of delivery performance, which means greater complexity in planning. This combination simply leaves no room for error.”
Challenges at Rügenwalder
- High complexity due to rapidly growing product diversity
- Inconsistent, error-prone, and manual planning processes
- Dynamic demand with fluctuating sales, seasonal influences, and promotional influences
Results with ADD*ONE
- Massive efficiency gains and reduced workload
- Greater transparency and improved delivery performance
- Significantly more accurate and stable forecasts, especially for promotional items
The long-established company quickly realized that its existing demand planning structures were no longer adequate. Different forecasting methods used by different departments, multiple Excel spreadsheets, error-prone calculations, and media discontinuity repeatedly led to inconsistencies and made the planning process time-consuming and confusing. Rügenwalder Mühle therefore decided to further professionalize its demand planning. A key objective was to standardize forecasts and better link relevant data sources such as SAP, promotional calendars, and sales figures from retailers. At the same time, the new system was intended to provide both sales and supply chain management with a sound, simulation-based basis for decision-making and improve cross-departmental collaboration. Last but not least, the aim was to simplify day-to-day work, reduce the amount of coordination required, and ensure greater transparency in the figures, particularly when distinguishing between base and promotional quantities and other influencing factors.
From Excel to an intelligent solution
Since the end of 2024, Rügenwalder Mühle has been working with INFORM's decision-intelligent business software ADD*ONE. The decision was made to operate in the cloud, which allows all authorized users easy access via a web browser. “We chose INFORM because, in the end, the overall package was just right for us,” Wilck summarizes. “The quality of the forecasts, the personal approach of the colleagues on site, and the price-performance ratio convinced us.” The introduction was successfully implemented by a small project team from planning, sales, IT, and project management in around six months from the start of the data connection to live operation. Training courses and initial training sessions took place during the test phase, enabling users to quickly familiarize themselves with the new system. “Sure, at the beginning, some fine-tuning was still needed in the configuration, but our colleagues were happy that we finally got away from Excel spreadsheets,” says Wilck.
Our forecasts have become much more accurate, which is particularly noticeable with promotional items. Incorrect planning is now a thing of the past.
Since the introduction of the intelligent software, everyday work at Rügenwalder Mühle has become noticeably easier. Instead of having to coordinate with long email chains or various Excel spreadsheets, the twelve users of the software now have access to a central, reliable database. The system enables all departments to plan at exactly the levels that are relevant to them, such as articles for specific product groups, customers, and regions, or even specifically for certain sales, budgets, or quantities. “In the past, when we wanted to adjust quantities, we did so individually for each region in a separate Excel spreadsheet, which quickly took ten minutes or more per region,” recalls Wilck. “Today, this can be done in one minute, centrally and for all regions at the same time. The ability to pass on plans from the top to the bottom customer level in a targeted manner is one of the biggest advantages for us,” says the Business Development Manager.
More reliable forecasts thanks to intelligent planning
But it's not just the processes that are more structured and time-saving today; the quality of planning has also improved noticeably. “Our forecasts have become much more accurate, which is particularly noticeable with promotional items. Incorrect planning is now a thing of the past.” This is thanks to the software's intelligent forecasting algorithms. They continuously analyze historical data stored in the SAP ERP system used by Rügenwalder Mühle and use it to create a daily demand plan. If deviations or bottlenecks become apparent, the system automatically recognizes them and suggests appropriate measures to which the team can respond immediately.
The clear separation between base and action quantities creates additional transparency and makes planning more robust overall. For selected customers, this has even improved the delivery rate, primarily through the ability to plan earlier and in a more targeted manner. “Our goal was to become more efficient and better manage complexity, and that's exactly what we've achieved,” says Wilck happily.
Our goal was to become more efficient and better manage complexity, and that's exactly what we've achieved.
Next steps in view
Rügenwalder Mühle already has specific plans for future developments. Among other things, the agenda includes improved inventory management to control stock levels even more proactively and avoid bottlenecks at an early stage. In addition, the company is preparing for the switch to SAP S/4HANA ERP software. ADD*ONE can be easily connected via specialized and certified interfaces, ensuring seamless integration in the future.
Important developments are also currently underway in the area of AI support. INFORM is currently working on a new solution that uses advanced language models and AI agents to automatically record and evaluate external influencing factors such as advertising campaigns, market changes, or economic fluctuations in advance and incorporate them into planning in a targeted manner. In the future, unstructured information, such as from teams or ad hoc consultations, can also be systematically processed and used to further improve forecast accuracy. For companies with complex planning requirements, such as Rügenwalder Mühle, this opens up new opportunities to manage uncertainties in an even more targeted manner, communicate forecasts more transparently, and make their demand planning more robust.
Gabi Auerbach
Expert for Supply Chain Optimization
Gabi Auerbach has been working for INFORM GmbH since 2000 and is mainly involved in the topic of integrated supply chain planning.
