Stockholm Exergi had a challenging starting point three years ago when the ownership structure changed and it had to acquire a completely new IT environment.

The previous IT environment was shared with another energy company, which had now sold its shares in Stockholm Exergi. They needed to both procure and implement their own new business system in a relatively short time. There was also an internal desire for better process compliance and better control of fuel management for the CHP plants it operates.

Stockholm Exergi

Stockholm Exergi supplies district heating and cooling to Stockholm, where electricity is a by-product. Customers are companies and organizations in Stockholm, mostly housing associations. To do this, Stockholm Exergi has five heating plants plus temporary storage facilities for fuels:

• Värtaverket
• Hässelbyverket
• Hammarbyverket
• Högdalenverket
• Bristaverket

The fuels burned are wood chips, waste and bio-oil, which are transported to the plants by boat and train.

Bristaverket outside Märsta. Photo: Stockholm Exergi

Anchor's mission

Anchor came in early in this work and did a feasibility study (Quick Assessment) that gave a good picture of Stockholm Exergi's situation and needs. An important result was that not all areas had been included in what the new business system should cover. It was also clear that the previous system environment was scattered with different data from different systems, which meant that a lot of time was spent on manual verification of figures. Since the customer was forced to leave the previous IT environment within a certain period of time after the change of ownership, they needed to acquire their own IT and business system. Anchor was given the procurement assignment including developing process and system descriptions as well as making requirements and selections for a new business system. During the procurement process, several supplier rounds were held where all suppliers were invited to present themselves to a large group of employees at Stockholm Exergi. In a later round, six suppliers were each given a full day to come and show their systems. This led to the selection of the right system for Stockholm Exergi, and those who will be working in the system from the start have gained an insight into how it will work once the system is in place. This creates greater confidence in the process and makes the introduction easier when so many have been involved in making the decision. During implementation, Anchor has been project manager and project support. They have helped in configuration workshops, training of employees and with commissioning. The project has been run with a strong focus on keeping the planned dates, which has been achieved. Some functionality has had to be moved to later releases of the system and these will also be introduced gradually.

The Värta plant in Stockholm. Photo: Stockholm Exergi

Outcome

After the introduction of the new ERP system, Stockholm Exergi has more efficient processes and receives its figures almost in real time. You can therefore rely on the figures being correct, which creates greater efficiency in all administrative work. Invoicing and financial statements are easier to do. Purchasing is also handled more efficiently with better forecasts so that Stockholm Exergi does not have to buy expensive fuel at the last minute or have too large stocks. Most people are very satisfied with the project and the new system. Some lessons learned from this implementation are to make good preparations before starting projects and to keep track of the maturity and competence of different people is important. Make a clear distribution of roles and project phases so that communication is clear. It is also important to have impact assessments, what ifs and worst case scenarios before the project starts. At Stockholm Exergi, the project involved over 100 people and was thus well established. Such a wide spread is a success factor for a successful system implementation. A number of people from the business system supplier IFS have also constantly supported the project and such close cooperation with the supplier is of course a prerequisite for the success of such projects.
Anchor challenged us to see the big picture.

Jimmy Renström

CIO, Stockholm Exergi