Setlog adapts software for Supply Chain Act

The software house Setlog has always seen the area of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and Supplier Relationship Management (SRM) as part of the entire end-to-end supply chain. The Bochum-based company therefore developed the SCM software OSCA years ago for these areas.

Structurally, the tool has now been adapted to the new market situation as well as to the Supply Chain Act passed by the German parliament on 11th June. The goal is to enable companies to find more precisely fitting digital solutions for their processes, to connect their third-party systems to OSCA more easily and to bring even deeper transparency into the chain. OSCA stands for “Online Supply Chain Accelerator” and is used by more than 150 brands worldwide.

Setlog replaced the previous OSCA SCM and VCM software with five solutions: Procurement, SRM, Global Logistics, Quality Control and CSR. “Globally active companies cannot avoid setting themselves up digitally in their supply chain management. Those who have done their homework also do not have to fear additional costs or increased bureaucracy due to the introduction of the Supply Chain Act,” emphasises Ralf Duester, member of the board at Setlog.

He also points out that users of digital SCM tools need not worry about failing due to the complexity of environmental and human rights compliance regulations. “Users of OSCA already have very good tools at hand to manage the complexity both in the area of CSR, and also in the topics of purchasing, supplier management, logistics and quality control,” Duester explains.

For the further development of their software, Setlog’s experts have been in contact with relevant industry associations and many customers, including KiK Textilien und Non-Food, Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof, Adler and Woom. Numerous companies have been using OSCA for CSR issues for years to ensure compliance with social standards and to manage their suppliers and supply chain partners.

Duester advises companies to use the time until the German Supply Chain Act comes into action, at the beginning of January 2023, to digitize their supply chains: “Every importer should put the topic on its agenda – sooner rather than later.”

Duester does not see the new supply chain law as a cost driver for the domestic economy. For one thing, the European Union is working on a draft law which includes that due diligence obligations in the future will apply to all importers and companies that sell their products on the European market. A digital solution would create the transparency in supply chains that companies need, so that the requirements do not necessarily lead to higher prices. “For many companies, however, it is certainly necessary to set themselves up in a modern way,” says the SCM expert.

The goal of the Supply Chain Act is to give millions of families, especially in developing countries, better working conditions and opportunities for the future. The new regulations are initially to apply only to companies with more than 3,000 employees from 2023 – and to companies with more than 1,000 employees from 2024.

In this context, Duester emphasises that medium-sized companies that supply large corporations should also look into the Supply Chain Act now. “Corporations will secure in new contracts that not only large, but all suppliers comply with the law and that their supply chains are transparent,” he explains.