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Alert Innovation® is a thought leader in grocery automation, driving innovation that improves lives by transforming how retailers operate and people shop.
100% Data accuracy 100% of the time. Propel mitigated technical, schedule, and product quality risks during change management.
Propel provided fast and nimble business processes while in startup mode, and the scalability to support Alert Innovation’s 100% growth over a three-year period.
Propel’s single product record ensures that the integration of software engineering into the Propel PLM framework is quick and efficient, fostering swift interdepartmental collaboration.
“Continuous improvement is the backbone of our ethos at Alert Innovation. Propel, as our chosen PLM technology solution, offers invaluable support for the scalability of our operations by delivering consistent new features that align with our business strategies. We’re always excited to witness the newest technology advancements Propel is pioneering.”
Alert Innovation: Transforming Grocery Automation Fulfillment
Alert Innovation® is a thought leader in grocery automation, driving innovation that improves lives by transforming how retailers operate and people shop. An industry leader in robotic e-grocery fulfillment, Alert Innovation developed the Alphabot® system, a unique automated fulfillment solution that utilizes patented omnidirectional robots in a temperature-controlled system for fresh, efficient, and high-quality grocery fulfillment. In addition, the company designed Novastore™, a store concept utilizing the Alphabot system, delivering a dynamic and efficient shopping experience.
Scalable Technology: A Must to Support Billion-Dollar Operations Post-Acquisition
Acquired by one of the largest worldwide retailers in 2022, Alert Innovation evolved from a bustling tech startup to an integral player in a $600 billion company with two million employees. This rapid growth required a scalable technology solution compatible with the processes of a large organization with numerous teams and a wide array of products deployed throughout North America.
Alert Innovation therefore needed to build a dependable technology solution capable of transforming data into actionable business insights for effective decision-making, with a focus on achieving 100% accuracy, every time.
Propel: Delivering 100% Data Accuracy 100% of the Time
Fast evolution, data accuracy, and robust reporting for real-time decision making is the goal of Alert Innovation’s technology stack. Alert needed an IT footprint that supported the business as it evolved from a startup to an important organization within one of the world’s largest retailers, without adding numerous providers or middleware for connectivity and efficiency as the company scaled.
To accelerate innovative product concepts from ideation to realization, Alert Innovation required a product lifecycle management (PLM) system that mitigated technical, schedule, and product quality risks during change management. Propel Software was selected as it offered an expandable architecture, enabling Alert Innovation to extend its processes on a single platform. Propel provided fast and nimble business processes while in startup mode, and the scalability to support Alert Innovation’s 100% growth over a three-year period.
Long-Term Business Impact Through a Scalable Solution
Building a strong partnership between IT and business begins and ends with selecting applications that solve problems and establish contextual collaboration throughout the organization. To do this, Alert Innovation’s IT team has a detailed view of how the business runs, where information goes, how processes flow, and which workflows are needed to maximize efficiency.
“As owner of the PLM solution at Alert Innovation, one of the areas we prioritize as we scale is making product change management robust. That requires a great partnership with the head of software and the head of hardware because it’s the engineering change order (ECO) process that’s going to be the last workflow, the last gate, between good and bad change in the field,” said Heather Multhaupt, Alert Innovation’s VP of Team Services.
A key element to a successful ECO process is having software engineering adopt the PLM framework. Alert Innovation’s configuration control teams actively support the software development organization, software quality, and DevOps, to ensure that every release goes to a change review board and is governed through Propel PLM on an ECO, like any other part. Propel’s single product record ensures that the integration of software engineering into the Propel PLM framework is quick and efficient, fostering swift interdepartmental collaboration.
The process is similar when working with the hardware teams, where quality closely collaborates with the design for everything (DFX) community. To ensure that hardware upgrades across various sites are deployed efficiently, Propel governs the system, verifies the accuracy of change order details, and confirms that everyone is informed of the changes.
Over the past three years Alert Innovation has relied heavily on Propel to ensure quick adoption of processes as it continues to scale the business to support retail requirements. By prioritizing scalability from the outset, Alert Innovation can address needs today and in the future, maintaining its focus on growing the business instead of its technology stack. Propel's start anywhere, go anywhere, solution has been a key element supporting Alert Innovation’s hyper growth business model addressing today’s ongoing needs, while strategizing to solve tomorrow’s next challenge.
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