The Project

Founded in 1899 by William Morrison, the Morrisons company has gone from strength to strength becoming the UK’s fourth largest and most rapidly growing supermarket chain. With over 120,000 staff employed in their stores, factories and regional distribution centres, today’s Morrisons is a far cry from the original egg and butter stall of Bradford market.

Crimsonwing have worked with Morrisons for a number of years, having previously worked with Safeway. Crimsonwing is involved in the development and support of a number of systems within Morrisons' different business areas, using a range of legacy systems and leading-edge technologies.

One significant project that Crimsonwing has been involved in at Morrisons is the online collaborative information exchange application, known as Morrisons Supplier Database (MSD). The concept of an information exchange is well accepted within the UK supermarket sector – it allows retailers to share applications and information with their suppliers, enabling the latter to improve their service to the retailer.

Background to the MSD project

Since the take-over of the Safeway chain, Morrisons has - for most of their suppliers - represented a significantly greater proportion of each supplier’s total business than before. The introduction of the MSD has helped to reduce the uncertainty for Morrisons’ suppliers, enabling them to provide better service levels and respond to problems that might occur within the supply chain.

MSD is a collaborative supply chain solution that enables retailers and their suppliers to exchange information regarding the supply chain. The insight this provides about the operation of the supply chain beyond their own organizational boundaries enables them to improve their planning and respond more effectively to problems and consumer demands. Effective collaboration generates an increase in sales through improved service levels, a reduction of inventories and also a reduction in operational costs.

To read the full case study, please download the attachments below:

Morrisons Case Study (136.48 kB)