London Fire Brigade (LFB), SAP and excelerated today announce that the Brigade has launched its new finance and procurement system in the public cloud, which will enable it to streamline its purchasing operations.
SAP was selected in close collaboration with excelerated, a global finance, procurement and supply chain transformation consultancy, who are providing both short- and long-term operational and implementation services.
With more than 6,000 employees and over 100 stations across the city, the Brigade required a modern, scalable finance and procurement platform that will drive organisational efficiencies and deliver robust control of income and expenditure.
As part of a five-year managed service, London Fire Brigade has implemented a host of SAP solutions, including SAP S/4 HANA Public Cloud, Ariba Supply Life Cycle and Performance, Analytics Cloud and excelerated’s invoice processing application Intelligent Invoice Express. This portfolio will enable firefighters to have greater autonomy and ownership of kit and equipment purchasing, while enabling the Brigade’s finance team to capture and register invoices in one application for verification, validation and efficient processing.
This partnership will reimagine how LFB’s finance and procurement systems operate, following a ‘fit-to-standard’ principle that will drive automation, minimise customisations, and support the organisation to be resilient to future service demands.
Commenting on the partnership, Catharine Gregory, Assistant Director of Finance at the London Fire Brigade, said: “This is the culmination of years of planning to find the right transformation partner. We wanted a trusted organisation with proven experience in public sector innovation that would support our drive to deliver positive outcomes to Londoners through technology. Our partnership will have an immediate impact, freeing up valuable time for firefighters to focus on serving our communities, while allowing our finance teams to focus on adding real value to the future of the organisation.”
Co-sponsor of the Project at London Fire Brigade, David Rowell, Assistant Director of Procurement & Commercial said: “The collaboration with all parties across all stages of this project has been a critical success factor. I warmly welcome the improved purchasing experience that our colleagues across the organisation will experience going forward to set them up for maximum success in meeting their requirements.”
Craig Mill, Head of Public Sector at SAP UKI, added: “London Fire Brigade is one of the city’s most treasured public institutions, bringing communities together and protecting our citizens. This cloud migration and modernised technology platform will transform its back-office functions and enable the organisation to be more efficient, agile to change, and deliver exceptional services for many years to come.”
In addition, Craig Brawn, Head of ERP at excelerated said: “Along with SAP, we are delivering real impact and improving how London Fire Brigade operates. The institution will benefit from the speed, security and reliability of modern ERP processes, as well as twice-yearly upgrades and new system functionalities as they are released, whether that’s AI or in data analytics. We are also enabling our key emergency services personnel to do what they do best with smart, efficient operational support.”
Visit the SAP News Center
About SAP
As a global leader in enterprise applications and business AI, SAP (NYSE:SAP) stands at the nexus of business and technology. For over 50 years, organisations have trusted SAP to bring out their best by uniting business-critical operations spanning finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience. For more information, visit www.sap.com.
About excelerated
As an independent finance, procurement and supply chain consultancy partner, excelerated is perfectly placed to help organizations achieve their digital ambitions. Through advisory, implementation and optimization services, combined with deep-rooted solution expertise and strong industry experience, excelerated enables organizations to overcome the many common pitfalls and achieve a greater return on their investment in technology. For more information, visit www.exceleratedgroup.com.
