JDA adds weather and pushes further into China

   This week JDA Software Group has made two big additions to its offering, adding in an integrated weather intelligence platform and expanding its coverage of Chinese markets for both global and domestic operations.
   JDA has integrated Planalytics’ Business Weather Intelligence and weather-driven demand (WDD) information into its JDA Demand offering, allowing companies to include weather intelligence in their demand planning and both monitor and manage the impact weather has on their business.
   Planalytics’ WDD measures how much the climate influences demand across specific time periods and geographies, showing favorable or unfavorable trends compared to the corresponding period the year before.
   This WDD is accessible through the JDA Demand workbench view, integrating with existing sales forecasts and exception graphs. The companies said the integration is done directly within JDA source data so there is no need for field-level integration.
   “Integrated weather-driven demand management provides tremendous value to retailers and suppliers of consumer goods,” said Planalytics president Scott Bernhardt. “Our joint customers can now more easily incorporate visibility to upcoming weather impacts into their demand planning processes within JDA and take actions that drive additional sales and optimize inventory.”
   “Integrating the effects of weather into the demand management processes will undoubtedly provide value to those categories of products that are highly seasonal or weather dependent,” said David Johnston, senior vice president of supply chain at JDA.
   JDA said it is responding to increased supply chain software demands by pushing further into China for both domestic and global efforts.
   JDA first launched Chinese operations in 2006, but in 2008, it announced the first major expansion in overall China operations and has since increased to serving more than 50 companies. JDA said it will reinforce both its systems and its commitment to China throughout 2012.
   “China’s role in the global business arena offers a tremendous opportunity for us to continue introducing the JDA brand to this important region, “said Stephen McNulty, regional vice president of Asia Pacific at JDA. “To that end, we are seeing more and more organizations in China wanting to accelerate their business innovation and growth in areas such as forecasting and replenishment, demand management, supply chain planning, sales and operations management, and factory planning. Chinese businesses understand more than ever that they are not only competing with their domestic competitors, but also with the growing number of American companies moving into the region.”