Success Story – How OLI Modernised Operations with IFS and Timestamp

OLI: How OLI Modernised Operations with IFS and Timestamp

Industry has a problem few admit: digital transformation reached industry years ago. Companies invested in systems, consultants, and training. And yet, most operations directors sitting at the table are still managing the business based on outdated data. But the market has already changed.

Volatile supply chains, pressure on margins, shortage of skilled labour, and increasingly demanding customers: the industrial environment has structurally changed. The question is no longer how to modernise. It is how to do it without stopping the business.

OLI’s story with Timestamp is a good starting point for those looking for a concrete answer.

Who is OLI

OLI is a leader in the sanitary industry in Southern Europe, specialising in bathroom solutions, particularly flushing systems and mechanisms. With strategic pillars based on innovation, sustainability, and design, the company operates 7 companies across 5 countries, with ambitions for continuous expansion.

Its partnership with IFS ERP dates back to 2000 (more than 25 years and 5 system versions) — a relationship that goes far beyond a technological contract.

The challenge: scaling without disruption

As OLI grew in operational complexity and geographical presence, a familiar challenge emerged for many industrial companies: how can systems evolve at the pace of the business without introducing instability?

Technology upgrades are no longer technical exercises. They have become strategic moments, opportunities to align systems, processes, and business objectives. With IFS integrating internal processes and connecting to more than 30 third-party solutions, the margin for error was minimal.

Timestamp entered the picture in 2021 with a clear objective: to ensure every step of this journey was smooth, efficient, and results-driven, not technology for technology’s sake.

The solution: a connected, real-time ecosystem

The joint work between OLI and Timestamp went beyond a simple system upgrade. The focus was on building an integrated digital ecosystem where information flows in real time, from factory to customer.

Among the most relevant developments:

• Real-time operational dashboard: developed in-house and directly integrated into IFS, monitoring incoming purchase orders, machine status, and Work Centres — displayed on screens in the inbound warehouse.

• Third-party integration: implementation of native flows between IFS, customers, and suppliers, turning the OLI ecosystem into a continuous digital flow, without information silos.

• Digital invoice signature: preparation for legal compliance with electronic issuance and sending of invoices — an increasing requirement in OLI’s markets.

• Adoption of IFS Cloud and AI: the decision to migrate to IFS Cloud opens the door to artificial intelligence integration — moving from reactive reporting to decision anticipation.

Timestamp’s methodology was based on IFS implementation best practices, with a strong focus on user adoption. Because technology that people don’t use transforms nothing.

The results: numbers the business understands

The impact of the transformation is measurable — and this is precisely where OLI’s story stands out:

• < 24h: order confirmations (previously well beyond this threshold)

• −25%: reduction in order confirmation lead time

• 10 to 50%: cash flow released through improved inventory management and customer credit control

These are not IT KPIs. They are business KPIs: greater customer trust, faster responsiveness, and more capital available to invest.

What operational speed unlocked was something deeper: predictability. Customers with faster and more reliable commitments become repeat customers. And a supply chain with integrated data stops being a black box for finance.

What comes next: intelligent manufacturing

With the foundations in place, OLI is now entering a new phase: intelligent manufacturing, powered by IFS.AI.

This means moving beyond historical reporting towards anticipation: more accurate demand sensing, earlier signals, and automated decisions that today still depend on accumulated human experience.

The premise is clear: this is not about replacing people. It is about equipping decision-makers with better information, earlier. The companies that lead will not be defined by the amount of data they have, but by how fast they turn that data into decisions.

Conclusion

The OLI project with Timestamp is an example of how industrial modernisation can be done strategically, without disruption, with measurable results, and with a clear vision for what comes next.

If you are managing an industrial company and recognise your own challenge in this story, it is worth having the conversation.