SAP S/4HANA Transition: Kistler’s Seamless Conversion
- Automotive & Industry
- SAP Consulting
The Kistler Group is a global leader in dynamic measurement technology, specializing in pressure, force, torque, and acceleration with over 2,000 employees across more than 60 locations worldwide.
With its innovative approach to research and development, Kistler supports customers in advancing towards a future-proof world by focusing on megatrends like emissions reduction, quality control, mobility, and vehicle safety. Having evolved over six decades from a component manufacturer to a development partner for industry and science, the Swiss family-owned company was ready to take the next step in its digital transformation journey.
Kistler’s S/4HANA Objectives
Seamless Transition
Kistler’s primary objective was to convert its existing SAP ERP landscape to SAP S/4HANA in anticipation of the end of SAP’s customer maintenance support for ERP ECC in 2027. A preceding discovery phase highlighted mandatory adaptations and identified optimization potentials, including adopting new functionalities in S/4HANA, such as business partner management, international trade, and crucial FIORI apps in accounting. The main goal was a seamless system conversion to S/4HANA, setting the stage for future digital enhancements.
Kistler’s Pre-Project Phase
A Comprehensive Approach
Before initiating the project, a comprehensive pre-study and discovery phase was conducted in 2022 and 2023. Experienced Wavestone consultants worked closely with the Kistler team through a series of workshops, and came to several key conclusions:
- Strategic Planning: It became evident that strategic resource planning and alignment with other ongoing projects was critical.
- Timeliness: With SAP’s 2027 deadline looming and Kistler’s application landscape growing, delaying the start of the S/4HANA transformation would only increase the project’s complexity.
- Process Optimization: Potentials and opportunities were identified to update, optimize, or simplify processes with S/4HANA in the future across various business areas.
The project was carefully managed by a dedicated team, including project managers from both Kistler and Wavestone, alongside a PMO.
The project team of approximately 60 people maintained a consistent focus on configuration, testing, and bug fixing as well as on change management and user training throughout the 1.5-year project.
The on-site availability of the entire team, including Wavestone colleagues, fostered a collaborative environment that greatly benefited the project. Working together in person fostered better communication and teamwork, resulting in accelerated project delivery.
Go-Live
Brownfield Implementation
Kistler’s S/4HANA transformation followed a Brownfield approach, which is ideal for organizations already utilizing SAP ERP (ECC). This method allowed the company to preserve proven business processes while minimizing risks and reducing the likelihood of errors and downtime. The project, which began in April 2023 and culminated in a successful go-live in mid-June 2024, adhered to the SAP Activate methodology.
During the Realize Phase, our nearshore development team converted hundreds of existing custom code objects to S/4HANA-compliant code. Mandatory S/4HANA functionalities and FIORI apps were also implemented. The project’s success was further ensured by two large and intensive testing sessions—Integration Testing and User Acceptance Testing—involving 170 employees across 19 locations on three continents, with over 1,900 test cases. Extensive testing, troubleshooting, and four conversion dry runs ensured that all eventualities were accounted for, leading to a green light for the final conversion and cutover.
One major challenge was executing the final system conversion to go live within a single weekend, ensuring that downtime did not exceed 56 hours. This tight timeline was crucial to minimize disruptions across Kistler’s global manufacturing operations. Contingency plans were established to allow users to resume work by Monday morning, even in the event of a conversion failure, thus ensuring minimal impact on daily operations. However, the go-live conversion was successful and completed on time. On Monday, all users were pleased to start working on the new SAP S/4HANA system.
With Wavestone’s support, we managed a seamless conversion to S4/Hana, going live 3 months ahead of schedule. This significant milestone was accomplished without any business disruption, owing to effective management of challenges through transparent communication and a collaborative approach.
The Advantages of a Brownfield Approach
A Strategic Decision
The successful go-live on June 16, 2024, marked a significant milestone in Kistler’s digital journey. By converting to S/4HANA using a Brownfield approach, Kistler has:
- Minimized Risk: Retained proven business processes, reducing the likelihood of errors and downtime during the transition.
- Accelerated Implementation: Reused existing configurations and data, enabling a faster implementation compared to a Greenfield approach.
- Complete Historical Data: Essential historical data was preserved in the new system without the need for a complex data migration. Crucial for analysis, reporting, and compliance.
- Smoothed Transition: Maintaining the existing processes reduced the need for extensive training and adjustments, making the transition smoother for employees.
Mission accomplished
Overall, the Brownfield approach provided Kistler with a practical, low-risk, and cost-effective way to embrace the new capabilities and innovations of S/4HANA, while leveraging the strengths of their existing systems.
