Monday, January 27, 2020

Erp Implementation At Lupin Information Technology Essay

Erp Implementation At Lupin Information Technology Essay Lupin is a transnational pharmaceutical company producing an extensive range of quality specific generic and branded formulations and APIs in more than 70 countries like India, USA, Japan, South Africa, Australia, Philippines, with its headquarters located in Mumbai. Lupin was found in the year 1968 by Dr. Desh Bandhu Gupta who had the vision to fight life threatening infectious diseases and manufacture drugs which had superior quality. His dream has steered Lupin to be a part of Indias top 5 pharmaceutical companies. Lupins success story begins with the manufacture of tuberculosis drugs followed by a range of intermediaries and APIs and it also strengthened its position by making innumerable formulations. Financial Performance The following statistics about Lupin have been impacted by the recent changes in its business integration processes. In FY 2010, net sales grew by 26% to INR 47,405 million up from INR 37,759 the previous year and net profits grew at 36% to INR 6,816 million compared to INR 5,015 million in FY 2009 Manufacturing facilities Lupin has formulation plants at 5 different locations namely Aurangabad, Jammu, Mandideep, Goa and Indore and API plants at Ankaleshwar, Mandideep, Tarapur and Vadodara. Its ultimate aim is to deliver quality and scale, with successful integration of their capabilities and capacities to deliver a wide product portfolio that caters to the varied needs of diverse markets. Precisely committed to quality, safety and the environment, most of their manufacturing facilities have been inspected and approved by the US FDA and UK MHRA, WHO, Australian TGA and Japans MHLW. RD Research will continue to be the main driver for Lupins success. Lupin has a state of art Research and development centre at Pune, Maharashtra. It is a 19 acre land with more than 320 scientists working there. Lupin has 145 patents filed and 53 patents granted worldwide. BACKGROUND BEFORE ERP IMPLEMENTATION As we see above, with extensive manufacturing facilities and products coming in mainly from research, to sustain its position in the market it was essential for Lupin to integrate its manufacturing units by enhanced connectivity between them. In the year 2002, it had operations spread across 5 plants and more than 30 depots to manage. They were at this time using the FoxPro based systems. This system would not work online and the key issue with it was it used to take almost 10 days to get the month end sales figure compiled together and presented to the authorities. With this key problem in the backdrop, Lupin felt the need to adopt and implement an ERP system for its operations. At this point, Lupin initially went for a localized ERP version which was specific for every location and as per location specific requirements. But the problem here was decentralization. Lack of cohesion hampered the successful implementation of this. Thus a ERP software which would help Lupin set up, implement, monitor and evaluate business processes and then make it possible to integrate that information so that management may take a review of efficiencies was required. TIMELINE FOR IMPLEMENTATIONS OF VARIOUS ERPs AT LUPIN IMPLEMENTATION OF SAP ERP Impact SAP ERP package has benefitted LUPIN by streamlining business processes increasing accessibility and connectivity. From the time of implementation, Lupin has not required any additional staff in the service areas like accounting, IT, finance and HR. The 4 main modules, namely materials, production and quality management, have been adapted into the system. After implementation the company has doubled in size but this was possible with the same number of people. It also improved ease of access to available information. For instance, now even a sales manager has access to real time data with respect to the inventory levels which was not possible earlier. Online connectivity has improved the online accounting system considerably. It has also enhanced the inventory tracking and helped in materials planning as now the required raw materials can be ordered online, resulting in cost saving to a large extent. Implementation Problems and its overcoming Lupin had to overcome certain hurdles for the successful implementation of this ERP package. Some of these included user training including basics such as the mere operation of a computer; master data supervision, day to day trouble shooting and configuring new business processes coming into the system as per requirements. All these problems were mainly done by several rounds of user training, interaction, discussions which was mainly done by IBM. Also the 1st problem faced for implementation included to get all the disjoined systems connected online. This was done by establishing a complete VSAT network and Lotus workflows. This implementation was done by IBM and the initial investment including up gradation of network, hardware installations and cost of implementation cost Lupin around Cr.15. NEED FOR MORE ADVANCED AND SPECIFIC ERP MODULES Between the years 2003 and 2008, Lupin had successfully got US FDA approvals for plants in 5 places across India. These approvals specified stringent quality levels which needed to be measured and tracked daily. Sales and order management, travel and expense management and environmental and safety compliance management also become more and more important. It had started operations in Japan, South Africa, Australia, Germany and others through acquisitions. Regulatory compliance across these different countries needed to be managed. Accounting and financial reporting compliance was also a requirement. It had started its own research centre in Pune which required extensive information protection and security. Management of investigator sites, proper documentation, site agreements and contracts management were some other problems faced by the company. Increasing end-user productivity, product design cost estimations, shared services for HR, talent retention and attraction, procurement were some other business need faced. SOLUTIONS There were 4 major technology changes that were made to overcome a majority of these problems. Upgradation of existing SAP software to SAP ERP 6.0 Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) from LabWare Quality Management System Enterprise version from Novatek International Language Independent Proof Reader Enterprise version from Novatek International Lupin has been successful in gaining a competitive advantage by using enterprise resource planning systems in combination with its existing systems. The major reason for this success lies in the fact that it decided to choose an ERP vendor which was familiar with the pharmaceutical industry and this gave it the advantage of financial savings and increased efficiencies. ERP IMPLEMENTATION SAP ERP 6.0 BUSINESS CHALLENGE ERP 6.0 ENHANCEMENT IMPACT Support growth plan Service in new therapy areas and business segments Accounting and Financial report Compliance: Enhanced contract accounting and collections Automated allocations and balancing by multiple dimensions Ability to operate a HR shared service center New general ledger for consolidated financial statements Better management of internal controls of 8 manufacturing units across the globe Contract Accounting with almost 10 contractors Advanced financial supply chain management Universal work lists for global operations Time management HR administrator Ensure quality compliance in products Ability to import rules regulations from third party providers Support for OSHA Monitoring dangerous material Increased support to: Occupational health Waste management Industrial hygiene Hazardous material management These factors are of utmost importance for a pharmaceutical company Sustain position of Global market leader in several drugs like cardiovascular anti-tuberculosis Better planning Better forecasting tools Investment tracking Superior product costing module Enables express Planning Business consolidations Product design cost estimate Important from global operations point of view Improve operational efficiencies in core business processes while bringing down interim costs Sales Order Management Better order-entry process Support to internet sales Price configurations Travel Expense management Speedy expense reporting Better travel planning Order quotation management Automated credit card feeds Integrated mileage calculation Mobile travel expense Integration with travel agency The implementation was done by a multi disciplinary core team from Lupin in partnership with Bristlecone, a company which specializes in SAP supply chain ERP implementation. Increasing end user productivity New application interfaces Updated role-based access Greater use of adobe interactive forms Self-serviced employees, managers Employee interaction center Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) from LabWare Need Patent of new drugs is a very integral part of pharmaceutical companies. Also at Lupin, documentation for intellectual property management was not organized and the IP registration rules were becoming more and more stringent. Another problem faced at Lupin was that research labs were treated as a separate part of the business. As the pharmaceutical industry has gradually progressed, it has been seen that research laboratories have become an integral part if the company want sustainable growth. The key problem here was that it was difficult to communicate RD with other business systems like MRP and Process Control System. WHY LabWare LIMS Can be integrated with SAP ERP The core code is separated from the configuration and thus allows LIMS systems to be implemented with ease. Easy Upgradation Scalable architecture for centralized operations at Lupin Multi lingual support which allows application across Lupins operation globally High level of security required by research laboratories in the pharmaceutical sector Compatible with any browser including Mozilla FireFox operated in Lupin LIMS Implementation Support for LUPIN Templates were designed in accordance with the requirements of Lupin as decided by the core team. Some of the important templates designed were stability testing, environment monitoring and QA/QC manufacturing. The following chart gives an indication of the various modules of LIMS used by LUPIN Main Business System(s) Electronic Document Management Systems (EDMS) Project Management (PM) Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Testing/Stability/Shelf-Life Please refer appendix 1 for snapshots of stability and shelf life testing using LIMS Please refer appendix 2 for snapshot of a summary report of sample testing prepared by LIMS Impact: The benefit seen after the implementation of LIMS was that today when Lupin develops a new product, LIMS is used to; Test the new prototype product. Scale up manufacturing of the product Release to the market Testing defective samples after production. Environment monitoring Storage of historical research data Full sample tracking User certification Instrument and calibration management Standards reagents management Full auditing Report and sample scheduling Bar coding Please refer appendix 3 to get detailed understanding of how modules work, and information flow within the system using LIMS Quality Management System Enterprise version from Novatek International Need: Risk Reduction Integration to Key Systems Reporting: Documentation Flexibility Industry Best Practices Document Management Application Modules: SOPs, policies, work instructions Batch records Certificates of Analysis (COAs) Regulatory submissions Regulatory correspondence CAPA objective evidence Documentation related to change control Validation documentation Manuals, instructions Employee training and qualification records Project documentation Investigation documents, photographs, etc. Contractor batch records, quality records Audit reports and follow-ups Impact: Allows compliance with industry standards like 21 CFR Part 11, 21 CFR Part 210, 211, and ISO Consistent with FDA Compatible with ERP Maintenance of quality across different plants Reduce re-works scrap cost Reduce cycle time and process down time By implementing this software, Lupin has been able to manage audits like GMP/GLP/GCP, Clinical support audits, internal quality audits, site audits, pre-clinical studies etc. Language Independent Proof Reader Enterprise version from Novatek International This software is basically related to Automatic packaging. It has an Analyzer which proof reads insets, cartons and other printed material. It is language indifferent and hence most suitable for Lupin packaging as Lupin is a supplier of drugs across the globe. This software allows to spot and correct not only discrepancies between characters but also changes in color and pictures. This is very important for any drug packaging as it has life threatening outcomes. SOLUTIONS FOR THE FUTURE Lupin plans to implement more applications like the Human resources, to control attrition rates and developing the internal organizational structure. ERP 6.0 has been successful in bringing together core business components. Lupin now plans to upgrade to SAP Netweaver 7.0 and also Business Intelligence for a more extensive and specific approach to pharmaceutical operations. Personally, I believe the company should aim at integrating their system with the customers i.e. contract manufacturers to enhance their supply chain further. Bandwidth and infrastructure are the two biggest setbacks that Lupin is currently facing and needs to improve upon. APPENDIX Appendix 1 LIMS from LabWare Module: Testing Stability of a product (Various graphs for pH testing have been produced) Appendix 2 Snapshot of LIMS showing a summary report of a sample produced Appendix 3 Modules used in LIMS along with their information flow throughout the system

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Aphorism Essay Essay

â€Å"That being alone is not the same as being lonely? That being alone is a neutral state† (198) Denny finds himself lonely frequently in The Art of Racing in the Rain. His wife Eve died suddenly of brain cancer, Denny was accused of rape, lost custody of his daughter, and was rarely able to see his dog. Despite his loneliness and grief, he fought on: in his mind, in the courtroom, and at work. Denny knew that as long as there was hope of seeing Zoe, he was not truly alone. And that even if Enzo cannot really speak back, he would never feel alone in Enzo’s presence. Enzo comes to understand this while he is with Zoe at her grandparent’s home. He sees the twins as evil, spiteful creatures who, with no small amount of help, wrongfully took custody of Zoe. He sees how little they truly care about Zoe, commenting that they did not question why she did not eat all of her dinner, or the banana slices that she specifically asked for. He understands why Denny cannot give up. If he gives up, he will feel alone. If he feels alone he will think that all hope is lost and give up on regaining custody of Zoe, and if he gives up on getting Zoe back; Denny will finally break due to the loss of one of the last things he truly cares for, which would have unimaginable results on Zoe’s development as a child. As the old saying goes, Hindsight is 20/20. There are many times in my life now where I can look back and see that I never truly have been alone. Many times I have been lonely, longing for more, or better friendships with my peers. But being alone would suggest that there is a time in which I did not have a friend of any sort, which simply isn’t true. Even in my darkest hours, I have always been able seek solace in my dog, who is most often a better friend than any I have. I can spill any dark secret or desire to him and not be judged, loathe myself, my failures, and grieve even the thought of ever leaving Chicago, and only be loved and cared for. I think the reason that The Art of Racing in the Rain resonates so well with me is because I want to believe that there is someone as clever and caring as Enzo inside my dog’s mind. And more recently I have been able to dissect his motives and actions, seeing that he does care for me as much as I care for him. I know  that when I’m gone at school, he sleeps away his day, lounging about and occasionally needing to go out. But every day when I arrive home at 4:45, his ecstatic behavior never fails to put a smile on my face, because I know that as long as he lives, I am never truly alone. As for being alone as a state of neutrality, in the physical, being alone doesn’t have to be a bad thing. We think of being alone as a greater phenomenon than one’s mood, but there are some days that we feel the need to isolate ourselves, collect our thoughts and just be with oneself. There are times when being alone is inherently beneficial, and there are also times when being alone is a sign of something with perhaps what we consider to be a more profound, if less jovial, meaning. Being alone is neither inherently good nor bad, and is thusly a neutral state. Being lonely, or alone, is something that is hard to find at a macro level. You cannot apply this idea to a country, you cannot apply it to a state or government, or even a group of people. However, what you can find are the actions of individuals motivated by their loneliness, or idea of being alone, with global implications. I think the best, even if also quite harsh, example of this is the shockingly high suicide rate in China. Objectively speaking, suicide is a physical act that occurs when the amount of physical and or emotional pain one feels outweighs the mechanisms that person has to cope with his or her pain. What we find in China, is that the concept of the individual is often destroyed, and there is only your value to the state. This leads to near slave like working conditions in factories, leading workers to believe that it is â€Å"every man (woman and child) for himself (or herself)†. These workers come to understand that there is no room for improvement in their lives, and they feel completely alone in an environment that requires great relationships to even survive. Their pain is their loneliness, which is created by governmental doctrines, which does not allow them to hope for better, causing them to end their lives out of spite, rather than live their miserable lives. Being dead is truly the most neutral of states, as there are times when many people would rather be dead than alive, and see death as a good thing, and usually most people see dying as a bad thing. But because there is nothing after death, no feeling, no emotion, it is truly the most neutral state of all, as everything that you once were  becomes a blank canvas sitting inside of a body, now limp like a ragdoll. This is true of both natural death and violent death, life is colorful and opinionated, and death is true neutrality.

Saturday, January 11, 2020

A Beach

Wisps of warm tropical air brushed gently against my face as the soft white sand caressed my feet. A warm sheet of humidity enveloped me as my eyes gazed along the long beach that reminded me of a long carpet. Occasional tourists dotted the tranquil beach enjoying the magical sunset while sipping a tropical cocktail. A low rumble followed by a sharp crackle was heard as a Jet Ski raced along the pellucid water like a shark chasing its prey. Smoke trailed from its outboard motor as it continued its rapid advancement along the beach towards the Jetty that stuck out of he shore.I slowly turned back up the road and nonchalantly headed towards the teeming town. Nestled in a quiet street near the heart of the town I decided to try a small cafe that had misty white walls and affable staff. Slowly the day was breaking too close as the sun began to retreat behind the clouds far off in the distance where the sparkling ocean met an empty white abyss. The hustle and bustle of night activity beca me evident as dusk set. Vendors pushed their rattling trolleys along the long walkways that were cramped with tourists setting if on their dally stroll exploring the large network of alleyways. Enjoyed the intricate architecture that so delicately defined the rich culture. The architects here do not design buildings; they merely interpret the traditional rules. As I wandered the town my eyes were drawn to the baroque detail that was infused into the traditional buildings that dotted the streets. I noticed the countless statues of gods that lined the streets, I wondered why this was unheard of from where I came from. The people here played out their peaceful lives, innocent of the litany of excess and lenience that plagued the world around It.However, I was soon to find out that this wasn't going to last for long. Slamming on my hotel room door woke me up hastily the next morning. I peered out of the small hole and was alarmed to see a petrified looking hotel staff. Immediately, I op ened my door and that was when he spilled the dreadful news to me. A tsunami was In bound and was estimated to hit the imperiled coast in less than an hour. A sense of panic inhibited me as I turned around and threw my bag on the bed and began to shove all my clothes In It.For the first time, I was fearful as I knew that the calm waves had stirred from its deep sleep and was coming to shatter the peace and halcyon that seemed to be intertwined into this serene island. Without further distractions I managed to turn on the television and flicked to the first news channel there was. I stared at the screen silently as my body was consumed in shock. The tsunami was going to hit the shore at 300 kilometers an hour in 5 minutes. I fought the panic that had engulfed me and picked up my day pack with all my essentials before running towards the hotel exit.A lonely tear trickled down my red cheeks as I continued running out onto a crowded street. Consternation had seized the whole population as people hastened towards the mall road that led out of town. 1 OFF the top floors and praying for the best. As I looked at my watch I realized that it had been 5 minutes already. A wicked trepidation had paralyses me as I began to picture myself dying. I heard a low rumble similar to that of a Jet ski. However, this was a rumble that brought fear into the eyes of the brave and made the whole island fall silent.I peered out to sea as I dad my way back to the hotel. I stopped walking. My body was glued to the floor. It was an overflowing perpetual of water. A monster. The waves came crashing on to the shore about a mile from where I stood. By the time it had struck I was safely on the sixth floor and was watching its dark blue opaque claws tear up everything in its path. It annihilated the low lying buildings that have stood majestically for years. I was enveloped in a dark blanket that dampened my sense and left me in a bubble.I heard screams for help as the waves surged through th e island demolishing everything like a bulldozer. It was an army that could not be defeated powered by the temperamental mother nature. Silence fell as the waves retreated back to the shore. It dragged with it the roofs of the ancient pagodas and the tangled metal frames of motor vehicles. I stared solemnly as I saw the occasional body floating; lifeless. Cessation hung in the air. This beautiful island had met its watery grave. There were no screams. There was no time. The nebulous ocean had spoken. There was an overhanging silence. A lapse in time.

Friday, January 3, 2020

The Trial Period Before Marriage - 1670 Words

The Trial Period before Marriage PART A For many decades, cohabitation has been a common trend and is steadily on the rise, especially in the United States. It has been labeled â€Å"the norm† for couples to live together before marriage. Cohabitation has taken research into a new level and new research is evolving day by day with factors related to cohabitation first and marriage next. The types of research that is currently present in today’s society is information on cohabitation and economic factors, cohabitation and distress, cohabitation and divorce, adolescents’ expectations to cohabit and marry, and so much more. While most of the younger generation population would view cohabitation then marriage as normal, much of the research literature that is available today showcases that cohabitation hinders marriage negatively. This topic is of interest because within my generation of people, majority of family and friends cohabitate before getting married and so far about 75% of those marriages ha ve ended in divorce. Some of the marriages lasted up to five years and one as short lived as six months. I wanted to research in more detail what the major pros and cons were of cohabitation then marriage, since it’s something I see happening far too often and ending in a divorce. As research has shown, many couples have their own definition of what cohabitation means to them, which can surely alter future relationship goals and plans between the couple. In most articles,Show MoreRelatedCohabitation: A Trial Period Before Marraige? Essay883 Words   |  4 PagesCohabitation: A Trial Period before Marriage? Marriage can be a frightening thing for anyone. The act of marriage can bring fear such as commitment, as well as fears associated with living together and sharing everything. 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