Since its formation in 1953, Rensa has grown from a regional wholesaler in oil and coal stoves to one of the larger Dutch suppliers of heating and ventilation products. Since 2019, Rensa has been part of the Rensa Family. In the Netherlands, Rensa Family Company provides logistics services for a number of wholesalers in the Rensa Family, namely Rensa, Gafco and GévierDales. To optimize internal processes, a Yellowstar data integration solution was recently put into use. This technology allows Rensa Family Company to continue to innovate and improve its services.

Time for change

Previously, Rensa Family Company worked exclusively with paper transport orders and schedules. This led to various problems such as delays, delivery errors and unnecessary telephone calls. To change this, the company decided to install the Transics vehicle tracking system in its trucks.  

For the implemenation, Rensa Family Company was looking for a solution to access the relevant information between the Transics on-board computer technology and its internal systems. Because of Yellowstar’s unique extensive logistics knowledge and years of experience in making comparable data integrations, Yellowstar was chosen to offer the best solution.

Insight and control

The systems that Rensa Family Company uses for its operational activities include PTV Route Optimiser ST for trip planning, a packaging module from LP Online and TX-SKY on-board computers from Transics, a WABCO company. In order to make data exchange between the systems and on-board computers possible, Yellowstar’s ESB Star Connect module was chosen. Star Connect is a connector block for easy and secure connection of existing systems.

Yellowstar started with a proof of concept (POC) in which the Transics on-board computers of a number of vehicles were linked to the various systems of Rensa Family Company. The POC consisted of 2 different phases:

  1. PTV Route Optimiser ST integration with on-board computers to make trip planning transparent
  2. LP Online integration with on-board computers to view packaging registrations

After a successful POC, the system was rolled out within Rensa Family Company and now all 40 vehicles have the integrated TX-SKY on-board computer. The successful integrations of the systems provide various benefits:

  • Customer access to information is faster and easier
  • Planners at distribution centres have more control over trip planning and transport orders
  • Less telephone traffic between distribution centres and drivers
  • Better monitoring of data leads to a quicker response in the event of malfunctions

Future view: sharing more information with customers

Star Connect can do more than connecting the internal systems of Rensa Family Company. "The Star Connect ESB module provides more insight into our internal processes, but it also enables us to share our delivery information with our customers in the future," said Sjoerd Hamers, Logistics Project Manager at Rensa Family Company. By extending Star Connect with Star Flow Supply Chain, Rensa Family Company can provide each participant in the chain with real-time insight through its own control tower and offer the possibility to make continuous adjustments at the right time. This has the advantage that customers can coordinate their own planning better with ETA information.

Now that Star Connect has realized data integration, Rensa Family Company has the IT infrastructure to continue to innovate. By making more and more relevant data available to customers, the service undergoes continuous improvement and the group of installation specialists will achieve optimum chain cooperation step by step.