In the webinar "The BME Award Winner – How VEMAG Decodes Procurement Signals with AI," Steen Bösche (Project Manager for Digitalization, VEMAG) and Melinda Behncke (Business Development, Tacto) show how VEMAG not only realized savings potentials with an AI-supported procurement strategy but also won the BME Procurement Excellence Award. This success is based on the ability to strengthen negotiations, increase transparency in the procurement process, and efficiently identify cost potentials.

Starting Point – Improving Negotiation Foundations and Increasing Efficiency

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At VEMAG, procurement was initially characterized by scattered information and manual processes. Price changes, market movements, and supplier data were stored in various systems, making fast and precise analysis difficult. Negotiations were often based on individual assessments and experiential knowledge, without a systematic data foundation.

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The challenge was to bring more transparency and clarity into procurement processes and put the negotiation process on a more well-founded, data-supported basis. The goal was to use AI-supported solutions to automatically decode procurement signals, enabling faster and better decisions.

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AI as a Lever – How Intelligent Systems Make Procurement Signals Visible

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With the introduction of Tacto, VEMAG implemented an AI-powered approach that enables automatic detection of procurement signals and early visibility of savings potentials. Through seamless ERP integration, all relevant data – such as orders, invoices, and supplier information – is directly evaluated without media breaks.

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Key functions of the solution at VEMAG:

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• Automatic analysis: AI agents continuously scan procurement data for savings potentials and forward relevant insights directly to buyers.
• Proactive recommendations: The system automatically detects when volume adjustments, alternative suppliers, or market changes offer savings potentials and provides corresponding action recommendations.
• Learning optimization: Through buyer feedback, the analysis processes are continuously refined, reducing false alarms and increasing precision.

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Implementation – Technical Deployment and Successful Enablement

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The implementation of the AI solution was not only a technical challenge but also a cultural change. VEMAG relied on strong change management and engaged all relevant team members early on. The procurement team was not only familiarized with the technology but also empowered to actively apply the gained insights in negotiations.

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The VEMAG team intensively engaged with the AI-generated insights, reviewed them, and made well-founded decisions based on the data. This created transparency across the entire supplier base and all order volumes, and the procurement team can now act faster and more precisely.

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Results – Savings, Transparency, and Further Implementations

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The AI-supported solution delivered measurable results for VEMAG:

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• Six-figure savings through targeted negotiations based on precise procurement signals.
• More than 1,500 avoided deliveries per year through optimized order quantities and consolidated shipments.
• Reduced process costs through more efficient handling of ordering and delivery processes.
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Thanks to this successful implementation, VEMAG received the BME Procurement Excellence Award, underscoring the impact and success of the project. VEMAG plans to further expand the use of AI to become even more efficient in other areas such as volume contracts and process optimization.

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Conclusion – Successful AI Transformation in Procurement

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The VEMAG example impressively demonstrates how AI and automated analyses can make procurement more efficient and transparent. VEMAG not only identified cost potentials and realized savings but also decisively strengthened procurement's negotiating power through fact-based arguments. The BME Procurement Excellence Award confirms the success of the AI-supported procurement solution.

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In the webinar, Steen Bösche (VEMAG) and Melinda Behncke (Tacto) report on how the AI-supported solution at VEMAG not only revolutionized daily procurement work but was also recognized with the BME Procurement Excellence Award. They also outline the next steps to continue making the procurement organization more efficient.