Chemigate – Increased efficiency and productivity for the whole order-supply chain

High quality starch products for industrial applications

Chemigate Oy is a Finnish company manufacturing and selling native and modified starch-based binders as well as specialty biopolymers for technical use. The company’s goal is to serve its customers with renewable, natural, and ecologically sustainable alternatives that meet the highest standards of sustainability.

Chemigate is constantly investing in development to meet the changing needs of its customers and to provide even better service and business benefits for all stakeholders. A major part of this initiative is the Cerveza project, which was launched in 2020 to provide a new service concept for a digitalized and automated order-supply chain for Chemigate’s customers and transport partners.

Bluugo’s hyperadaptable Tracking Cloud® platform acts as the foundation for the whole service concept.

The goal

• Develop a cooperation model that increases the degree of automation in Chemigate’s order-supply chain and logistics
• Increase delivery reliability, cost efficiency, business predictability, and productivity of the entire order-supply process

The solution

• A digitalized and automated order-supply chain solution for Chemigate, its customers, and transport business partners
• The solution connects all the different parties and data sources in Chemigate’s order-supply chain on the same platform, automates key transactions and enables real-time data sharing between different parties

The Results

• Significant time-savings through automated order routines, inventory, and invoicing
• Elimination of manual entries and duplication of work across multiple systems
• Real-time overall visibility and tracking of deliveries for all stakeholders
• Increased delivery reliability
• Improved customer service
• Increased procurement efficiency of raw materials
• Streamlined production control and planning

Seamless data flow and increased efficiency

The collaboration between Chemigate and Bluugo started in early 2021 as a part of Chemigate’s Cerveza project. The main goal was to develop a cooperation model that increases the degree of automation of the order-supply chain and logistics, and thus increases the delivery reliability, cost efficiency and productivity of the entire process. One of the key goals was also to improve business predictability.

Bluugo’s Tracking Cloud® runs at the very core of the new service concept. It connects all the different parties and data sources in the order and supply chain on the same platform and provides digital tools for automating key transactions and enabling real-time data sharing between all stakeholders.

“In this solution, the systems inside companies communicate with each other through secure interfaces, producing and transmitting data to the various parties in the logistics chain, such as inventory surface or paper machine operating data, product consumption and consumption forecasts. In the future, Chemigate’s raw material flows can also be combined with this information”, says Kalle Kainu, Sales Director at Chemigate.

Using a common platform eliminates duplication of work and manual entries across systems, making everyday life easier for customers and reducing the possibility of errors. When information flows seamlessly between different stakeholders, Chemigate’s products will always reach the customer at the right time and all parties can focus on the core processes of their business.

Tracking Cloud® connects all the different parties and data sources in the order and supply chain on the same platform.

Streamlining logistics, procurement, and production

Automation, digitization, and transfer of orders between different systems are essential for streamlining Chemigate’s logistics processes. With Tracking Cloud®, the transport organizer can book and schedule the consignments in a shared system where the electronic transport documents are available to all parties throughout the process, including post-delivery documentation like cargo receipts and invoicing.

Shipments and reliability of delivery can be monitored in real-time, including order points, delivery limits and alarm limits. Supplementary orders are handled automatically with the help of IoT sensors that monitor the surface levels of silos. The real-time visibility and automation greatly reduce the time spent for manual processes such as routine inventory or manual data transfers from one system to another.

The solution also provides significant improvements for procurement and production. It facilitates the monitoring of product consumption levels and thus helps to improve the efficiency of the procurement and use of raw materials, as well as the planning and control of production.

“With real-time maintenance and monitoring of consumption forecasts and downtime data, we are able to produce information for production planning – and this also helps to maintain good reliability of delivery”, Kainu elaborates.

A good user experience is everything in customer-facing digital solutions

One of the key objectives of the Cerveza Project has been to develop a cooperation model that provides added value for all involved parties – Chemigate, the customers, and the business partners. With multiple different stakeholder groups collaborating on the same platform, special attention must be directed towards user experience.

Tracking Cloud®’s hyperadaptability allows everything in the system to be easily modified to match existing business processes and requirements of different user groups – workflows, views, transactions, terminology, etc. Different user levels can be easily created, for example, for the customers and the transport companies, where the contents and functions related to one’s own job description are clearly available and accessible. Fully customizable terminology and workflows allow all user groups to work with familiar processes and business language inside the solution from day 1 without the need for extensive user training.

Customers can easily manage and view their orders in real-time with a cloud-based application, transport partners can book and schedule consignments independently, and Chemigate always has a clear big picture over the complete order-supply chain process. To put it simply, everyone can always access all the information that is relevant for them.

The implementation of the new solution is made easy for the customers:

“The implementation of the system does not require significant efforts from our customers, only some time for both cooperation and initial technical configurations on the IT side. However, it is small in relation to the benefits of the concept”, Kainu promises.

Using a shared platform enables seamless communication between all stakeholders – Chemigate, the customers, and the transport partners.

On the path to even wider digitization of cooperation

According to Kainu, the Tracking Cloud® platform has proven to be an efficient solution that adapts to a wide range of needs.

“Compared to traditional surface monitoring tools, for example, it has a lot more functionality. In addition, the system can be developed flexibly, and more features will certainly be added in the future. As a whole, this concept contributes to the increasing digitization and automation of everything we do and collaborate in.”

The user experience gained through the new solution has also been very positive. According to Controller Jaana Karvonen, who has been a key person in the implementation process, the digital platform already proved its potential in the autumn of 2021 when the sales of Anora’s native products were transferred to Chemigate.

“The introduction of the cloud platform facilitated the integration of the new business area into existing systems, saving many manual work steps. The processing and invoicing of native barley orders are already highly automated. The same possibility already exists for the receipt of future raw material deliveries.”

Company Profile: Chemigate Oy

“Chemigate Oy is a Finnish company manufacturing and selling native and modified starch-based binders as well as specialty biopolymers for technical use. The Company’s main goal is to serve its customers with renewable, natural, and ecologically sustainable alternatives that meet the highest standards of sustainability. 

As a supplier for the paper and board industry, Chemigate’s main markets are Finland and Sweden for modified starches, and Europe and Asia for the bio-based speciality chemicals.  

The company bases its success on the solid expertise of the staff and close cooperation with its customers and other stakeholders. It strives to meet the customers’ high standards, and to be a cost-competitive organization by using flexibly the widest possible starch raw material base to provide functionality and security of supply. The good logistical location of the production in relation to the market area, and the latest production technology, are supporting the strong growth. 

Chemigate is committed to continue the investments in development to meet the changing needs of its current customers also in the future, and to strengthen the product portfolio in other industries.”

Founding Year: 2010

Number of Employees (2021): 70

Revenue (2021): 73,9m€ (+21,6%)

Locations: 4 production locations in Finland: Lapua, Kaipiainen, Kokemäki and Mietoinen. HQ located in Lapua.