Description
The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) materials management systems and processes were manually intensive, and tracking the location of the 500,000 pieces of spares, equipment and other materials in real time was a near impossible task.
The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) materials management systems and
processes were manually intensive, and tracking the location of the
500,000 pieces of spares, equipment and other materials in real
time was a near impossible task. Hence, project IMMOLS
(Integrated Materials Management On Line System) was
conceptualized by the IAF with a view to achieve focused logistics
by e-enabling management processes, analyses and total asset
visibility.
TCS developed this gigantic enterprise-wide Resource Planning
Solution for the IAF, the ?rst of its kind in the Armed Forces. The
IMMOLS solution has not only obviated the concerns of the IAF on
stock outs, delays, dependencies on individuals and inaccurate
communications, but has also brought in a host of bene?ts like
e?ective materials management, assets visibility for better
utilisation of available resources ,reduction in inventory levels and
increased serviceability of weapons & equipment.
CLIENT EXPERIENCE
The Indian Air Force collaborates with TCS
to automate resource planning, gain asset
visibility and increase e?ciency in logistics
Customer
Indian Air Force
Industry
Government
O?ering
Defence and Security
Solutions
CLIENT EXPERIENCE
di?cult to keep and maintain records for inventory
management in real time. Tracking inventory and
communicating transparently with an individual/unit
running short of inventory were other problems for the
organization. In the actual event of an operation , it
would have been a nightmare scenario to not know, in
real time, how many and what type of spares or
ammunition were available, where they were needed
the most, and how quickly they could be forwarded.
The IAF therefore wished to develop an online
materials management system, which would lead to
timely supply of materials, reduction of stock outs and
minimize the cost of materials management. It was
hoped that an automated system would also reduce
paper work for inventory management, and provide
easy availability of material information ?ow across the
various departments. This would bring about an
improvement in the serviceability of weapon systems
operated by the IAF in the defence of the nation.
TCS’ Government Practice had a proven track record of
helping government organizations harness the power
of the latest Information and Communication
technologies to transform themselves and align their
services with the changing needs of citizens and
stakeholders. The IAF therefore turned to TCS for
assistance in building the IMMOLS (Integrated
Materials Management Online System) , the ?rst
enterprise-wide resource planning solution
implementation in the history of India’s defence forces.
TCS Solution
TCS developed the IMMOLS - a nation-wide enterprise
system integration project - that addressed the need
for computerising the IAF’s inventory control and
logistics management. The IMMOLS application could
be broadly divided into two components—a
The Indian Air Force (IAF), established
over 75 years ago is the air arm of the
Indian armed forces. Its primary
responsibility is to secure the Indian
airspace and to conduct aerial warfare
during a con?ict. The IAF also provides
close air support to the Indian Army troops
in the battle?eld and also provides
strategic and tactical airlift capabilities.
Along with the other branches of the
Indian Armed Forces, it also provide
assistance in disaster relief, such as during
natural calamities , by undertaking
evacuation or search-and-rescue (SAR)
operations and air dropping relief supplies
in a?ected areas.
Business Situation
Information superiority assumes great importance in
today's digitized battle?elds. It is therefore important
for the Armed Forces to use Information &
Communication Technology (ICT) to utilise
computerisation to re-de?ne the e?ciencies for
various defence applications. This would make the
Armed Forces better equipped, agile and robust to
e?ectively handle any contingencies, as well as bene?t
from better cost management and increased
e?ciencies.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) had a materials
management system that was plagued by the usual
problems that beset a large organization’s manual
materials system – cumbersome paper-based
processes, stock outs, delays, dependencies on
individuals and inaccurate communications. The vast
size and geographical spread of the IAF made it
CLIENT EXPERIENCE
?ghting potential without ?ring any weapon—only
by the use of knowledge as a super force multiplier.
Bene?ts
The engagement with TCS provided the IAF with the
following bene?ts:
•
E?cient materials management
• Asset visibility for better utilisation of available
resources
• Forward planning and procurement of materials
• Information triggers for mid-course corrections in
various materials management processes
• Reduction in inventory levels, leading to
signi?cant cost savings
• Improved aircraft ?eet serviceability
• Real-time availability of materials information
?ow
• Reduction in paper work
• Speedier processes of demand collection,
procurement and repair cycles
• E?cient spares accounting
“Tata Consultancy Services have developed an
Enterprise Material Management application for
automation in IAF which is a milestone
achievement. Integrated Materials Management
Online System software has been developed
with state of art technology. Its user friendly
features and high standard of training imparted
by TCS has ensured smooth implementation at
selected Pilot sites of IAF.”
— Air Vice-Marshal RK Mohan,
VSM
custom-designed application that catered to all facets
of materials management at various levels of hierarchy
in the IAF , and an IT infrastructure covering a
nationwide installation of computing platforms and
campus LANs. In addition, IMMOLS also implemented
some of the activities of maintenance management
and ?nance management of the IAF, such as Aircraft
on Ground ( AOG) management, rotable management,
job card, FLCR (Floor level Consumption Records) at
Base Repair Depots (BRDs) and various budgeting &
accounting activities.
The solution was built on client server architecture
with a distributed database and transactional
replication in a Star Network.
The TCS team initially carried out a pilot
implementation at selected IAF sites. After extensive
testing of the application, which included software
development, acceptance testing, training, analysis
and several other initiatives, the application was
successfully rolled out nationally across all, over 100 ,
sites of the IAF. All the units operate as independent
entities and have local servers (databases and
application) set up, allowing them to exchange data as
required, over the IAF network.
The IMMOLS solution developed by TCS is a good
example of streamlining of Indian defence logistics
activities and auditing thereof. It is complemented by
the Equipment Accounting On-Line System
(EQUOLS)and the Audit Online System ( AUDOLS)
which are embedded in the solution. The e-auditability
and e-vouchers features of the solution make it a
powerful and comprehensive logistics solution. This
project is thus considered as a signi?cant
development in India’s road to e-Governance in a
Defence organisation .and a good example of
public-private partnership. In this way, TCS’ solution
has truly increased the IAF’s asset availability and war
CLIENT EXPERIENCE
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About TCS’ Government Industry
Solutions Unit
TCS' Government Industry Solutions Unit
is primarily engaged in helping national
and state governments to align their
services with the changing needs of
citizens and stakeholders. With the rapid
pace of change in the IT industry, there
has been a shift in focus from the
traditional inputs of a production process
to the processes involved in the creation,
storage, dissemination and use of
information. An IT driven system of
Government works better, costs less, and
is capable of servicing citizens' needs as
never before. Analogous to e-commerce,
which allows businesses to transact with
each other more efficiently (B2B) and
brings customers closer to businesses
(B2C), TCS’ Government practice aims to
make the interaction between
government and citizens (G2C),
government and business enterprises
(G2B), and interagency relationships
(G2G) more friendly, convenient,
transparent and inexpensive. The
resulting benefits are a higher revenue
growth and reduced cost.
About Tata Consultancy Services
Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services,
consulting and business solutions organization
that delivers real results to global business,
ensuring a level of certainty no other ?rm can
match. TCS o?ers a consulting-led, integrated
portfolio of IT and IT-enabled infrastructure,
engineering and assurance services. This is
delivered through its unique Global Network
Delivery Model
TM
, recognized as the benchmark of
excellence in software development. A part of the
Tata Group, India’s largest industrial
conglomerate, TCS has a global footprint and is
listed on the National Stock Exchange and
Bombay Stock Exchange in India.
For more information, visit us at www.tcs.com
Contact
[email protected]
Subscribe to TCS Case Studies
TCS.com RSS:http://www.tcs.com/rss_feeds/Pages/feed.aspx?f=c
Feedburner:http://feeds2.feedburner.com/tcscasestudies
All content / information present here is the exclusive property of Tata
Consultancy Services Limited (TCS). The content / information contained
here is correct at the time of publishing. No material from here may be
copied, modi?ed, reproduced, republished, uploaded, transmitted, posted
or distributed in any form without prior written permission from TCS.
Unauthorized use of the content / information appearing here may violate
copyright, trademark and other applicable laws, and could result in criminal
or civil penalties.
Copyright © 2011 Tata Consultancy Services Limited
doc_372116311.pdf
The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) materials management systems and processes were manually intensive, and tracking the location of the 500,000 pieces of spares, equipment and other materials in real time was a near impossible task.
The Indian Air Force’s (IAF) materials management systems and
processes were manually intensive, and tracking the location of the
500,000 pieces of spares, equipment and other materials in real
time was a near impossible task. Hence, project IMMOLS
(Integrated Materials Management On Line System) was
conceptualized by the IAF with a view to achieve focused logistics
by e-enabling management processes, analyses and total asset
visibility.
TCS developed this gigantic enterprise-wide Resource Planning
Solution for the IAF, the ?rst of its kind in the Armed Forces. The
IMMOLS solution has not only obviated the concerns of the IAF on
stock outs, delays, dependencies on individuals and inaccurate
communications, but has also brought in a host of bene?ts like
e?ective materials management, assets visibility for better
utilisation of available resources ,reduction in inventory levels and
increased serviceability of weapons & equipment.
CLIENT EXPERIENCE
The Indian Air Force collaborates with TCS
to automate resource planning, gain asset
visibility and increase e?ciency in logistics
Customer
Indian Air Force
Industry
Government
O?ering
Defence and Security
Solutions
CLIENT EXPERIENCE
di?cult to keep and maintain records for inventory
management in real time. Tracking inventory and
communicating transparently with an individual/unit
running short of inventory were other problems for the
organization. In the actual event of an operation , it
would have been a nightmare scenario to not know, in
real time, how many and what type of spares or
ammunition were available, where they were needed
the most, and how quickly they could be forwarded.
The IAF therefore wished to develop an online
materials management system, which would lead to
timely supply of materials, reduction of stock outs and
minimize the cost of materials management. It was
hoped that an automated system would also reduce
paper work for inventory management, and provide
easy availability of material information ?ow across the
various departments. This would bring about an
improvement in the serviceability of weapon systems
operated by the IAF in the defence of the nation.
TCS’ Government Practice had a proven track record of
helping government organizations harness the power
of the latest Information and Communication
technologies to transform themselves and align their
services with the changing needs of citizens and
stakeholders. The IAF therefore turned to TCS for
assistance in building the IMMOLS (Integrated
Materials Management Online System) , the ?rst
enterprise-wide resource planning solution
implementation in the history of India’s defence forces.
TCS Solution
TCS developed the IMMOLS - a nation-wide enterprise
system integration project - that addressed the need
for computerising the IAF’s inventory control and
logistics management. The IMMOLS application could
be broadly divided into two components—a
The Indian Air Force (IAF), established
over 75 years ago is the air arm of the
Indian armed forces. Its primary
responsibility is to secure the Indian
airspace and to conduct aerial warfare
during a con?ict. The IAF also provides
close air support to the Indian Army troops
in the battle?eld and also provides
strategic and tactical airlift capabilities.
Along with the other branches of the
Indian Armed Forces, it also provide
assistance in disaster relief, such as during
natural calamities , by undertaking
evacuation or search-and-rescue (SAR)
operations and air dropping relief supplies
in a?ected areas.
Business Situation
Information superiority assumes great importance in
today's digitized battle?elds. It is therefore important
for the Armed Forces to use Information &
Communication Technology (ICT) to utilise
computerisation to re-de?ne the e?ciencies for
various defence applications. This would make the
Armed Forces better equipped, agile and robust to
e?ectively handle any contingencies, as well as bene?t
from better cost management and increased
e?ciencies.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) had a materials
management system that was plagued by the usual
problems that beset a large organization’s manual
materials system – cumbersome paper-based
processes, stock outs, delays, dependencies on
individuals and inaccurate communications. The vast
size and geographical spread of the IAF made it
CLIENT EXPERIENCE
?ghting potential without ?ring any weapon—only
by the use of knowledge as a super force multiplier.
Bene?ts
The engagement with TCS provided the IAF with the
following bene?ts:
•
E?cient materials management
• Asset visibility for better utilisation of available
resources
• Forward planning and procurement of materials
• Information triggers for mid-course corrections in
various materials management processes
• Reduction in inventory levels, leading to
signi?cant cost savings
• Improved aircraft ?eet serviceability
• Real-time availability of materials information
?ow
• Reduction in paper work
• Speedier processes of demand collection,
procurement and repair cycles
• E?cient spares accounting
“Tata Consultancy Services have developed an
Enterprise Material Management application for
automation in IAF which is a milestone
achievement. Integrated Materials Management
Online System software has been developed
with state of art technology. Its user friendly
features and high standard of training imparted
by TCS has ensured smooth implementation at
selected Pilot sites of IAF.”
— Air Vice-Marshal RK Mohan,
VSM
custom-designed application that catered to all facets
of materials management at various levels of hierarchy
in the IAF , and an IT infrastructure covering a
nationwide installation of computing platforms and
campus LANs. In addition, IMMOLS also implemented
some of the activities of maintenance management
and ?nance management of the IAF, such as Aircraft
on Ground ( AOG) management, rotable management,
job card, FLCR (Floor level Consumption Records) at
Base Repair Depots (BRDs) and various budgeting &
accounting activities.
The solution was built on client server architecture
with a distributed database and transactional
replication in a Star Network.
The TCS team initially carried out a pilot
implementation at selected IAF sites. After extensive
testing of the application, which included software
development, acceptance testing, training, analysis
and several other initiatives, the application was
successfully rolled out nationally across all, over 100 ,
sites of the IAF. All the units operate as independent
entities and have local servers (databases and
application) set up, allowing them to exchange data as
required, over the IAF network.
The IMMOLS solution developed by TCS is a good
example of streamlining of Indian defence logistics
activities and auditing thereof. It is complemented by
the Equipment Accounting On-Line System
(EQUOLS)and the Audit Online System ( AUDOLS)
which are embedded in the solution. The e-auditability
and e-vouchers features of the solution make it a
powerful and comprehensive logistics solution. This
project is thus considered as a signi?cant
development in India’s road to e-Governance in a
Defence organisation .and a good example of
public-private partnership. In this way, TCS’ solution
has truly increased the IAF’s asset availability and war
CLIENT EXPERIENCE
T
C
S
D
e
s
i
g
n
S
e
r
v
i
c
e
s
M
0
5
1
1
About TCS’ Government Industry
Solutions Unit
TCS' Government Industry Solutions Unit
is primarily engaged in helping national
and state governments to align their
services with the changing needs of
citizens and stakeholders. With the rapid
pace of change in the IT industry, there
has been a shift in focus from the
traditional inputs of a production process
to the processes involved in the creation,
storage, dissemination and use of
information. An IT driven system of
Government works better, costs less, and
is capable of servicing citizens' needs as
never before. Analogous to e-commerce,
which allows businesses to transact with
each other more efficiently (B2B) and
brings customers closer to businesses
(B2C), TCS’ Government practice aims to
make the interaction between
government and citizens (G2C),
government and business enterprises
(G2B), and interagency relationships
(G2G) more friendly, convenient,
transparent and inexpensive. The
resulting benefits are a higher revenue
growth and reduced cost.
About Tata Consultancy Services
Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services,
consulting and business solutions organization
that delivers real results to global business,
ensuring a level of certainty no other ?rm can
match. TCS o?ers a consulting-led, integrated
portfolio of IT and IT-enabled infrastructure,
engineering and assurance services. This is
delivered through its unique Global Network
Delivery Model
TM
, recognized as the benchmark of
excellence in software development. A part of the
Tata Group, India’s largest industrial
conglomerate, TCS has a global footprint and is
listed on the National Stock Exchange and
Bombay Stock Exchange in India.
For more information, visit us at www.tcs.com
Contact
[email protected]
Subscribe to TCS Case Studies
TCS.com RSS:http://www.tcs.com/rss_feeds/Pages/feed.aspx?f=c
Feedburner:http://feeds2.feedburner.com/tcscasestudies
All content / information present here is the exclusive property of Tata
Consultancy Services Limited (TCS). The content / information contained
here is correct at the time of publishing. No material from here may be
copied, modi?ed, reproduced, republished, uploaded, transmitted, posted
or distributed in any form without prior written permission from TCS.
Unauthorized use of the content / information appearing here may violate
copyright, trademark and other applicable laws, and could result in criminal
or civil penalties.
Copyright © 2011 Tata Consultancy Services Limited
doc_372116311.pdf