Case

Digital business at Goronwy

For Goronwy, it is possible to show how the introduction of the new ICT system led to the establishment of its parent company, Rito Metals, as an eBusiness. Goronwy’s new ICT system continued in operation for a couple of years, then Rito Metals carried out an evaluation. It concluded that the system had improved the plant’s performance in a number of ways, as we have seen. Executives at headquarters made a strategic decision to roll out the ICT system to all 10 galvanising plants in the group. As well as wanting to improve the information handling at the plants, they wanted to see them using standard activity systems.
This rollout took a further two years to complete, as some plants found it difficult to adapt. When it was complete it became possible to create a management information system (MIS) at headquarters, fed with data from the individual plant ICT systems. To enable this, a dedicated wide area communication network was created, linking each plant with headquarters.
Now Rito Metals could carry out more effective strategic management of its galvanising plants, because it was able to obtain an accurate and up-to-date picture of operations and problems at particular plants, making them easier to identify and rectify. In this sense, the MIS enabled more effective control of the separate business units.
In developing an integrated ICT and information systems infrastructure, Rito Metals moved in the direction of becoming an eBusiness, because the use of ICT became critical to supporting its internal value chain. Goronwy itself also went down this route in the mid1990s. It started by introducing handheld devices for inbound and outbound logistics operatives, linked via a plant wireless communication network. The workers could use these devices to access data from the central system, and update it with data about the receipt and dispatch of goods.