Algorithmic demand forecasting
The use of advanced analytics is now common practice in many industries. It is not only the tech giants such as Google, Amazon and Facebook that apply algorithms to make smarter, faster and unbiased decisions. Players in industries such as natural resources, materials processing and building materials have also started to apply advanced analytics to improve their business performance. A recent publication by the Boston Consulting Group1 (BCG) makes the case that cement producers need to embrace the principles of Industry 4.0 to gain and maintain a strong competitive advantage over their peers. By Romain de Laubier, BCG, Japan, and Lucian Morariu, Martin Feth and Marius Wunder, BCG, Germany, and Iman Karimi, BCG, UK.
Figure 1: algorithms have proven to significantly improve forecasting. View high-quality image here
The application of advanced analytics, in Boston Consulting Group’s (BCG) experience, has been seen to create significant value in terms of both EBITDA uplift and inventory reduction. Most of its clients in the building materials space have already bought into the concept of leveraging advanced analytics and ask themselves the same critical question: How do we best get started? Or, put differently: What use case should we tackle first?
