Webinar recording: Away from Excel as the main purchasing tool: How the FIXIT Group standardizes and automates its supplier management
published on
12.2.2025
Growing challenges due to complex supply chains and regulatory requirements such as the Supply Chain Due Diligence Act (LkSG) require a digital transformation in purchasing. Watch the webinar to find out how the FIXIT Group uses Tacto as a central supplier portal to reduce manual processes, create transparency and optimize purchasing decisions.
Efficient purchasing processes are essential for companies in order to reduce costs, minimize risks and remain competitive in the long term. However, especially in companies with complex structures, multiple locations and historically grown system landscapes, the consolidation of purchasing and supplier data poses a major challenge. The FIXIT Group, a leading building materials manufacturer with 69 locations in 18 countries, has risen to this challenge and is focusing on the consistent standardization and automation of supplier processes. Horst Straub (Head of Purchasing at the FIXIT Group) and Karoline Rückerl (Head of Customer Development at Tacto) explain how they approached this in our webinar"Moving away from Excel as the main purchasing tool: How the FIXIT Group is standardizing and automating its supplier management"
The FIXIT Group has grown over the years through acquisitions and has developed a diversified purchasing model as a result. Different ERP systems, inconsistent data structures and regional purchasing practices make central control and standardization difficult. The main problems were
One example of this is the purchase of bulk materials such as sand or cement, which have to be procured locally, while chemical additives are purchased via international contracts. At the same time, dealer structures in some markets make it difficult to trace sources of supply.
In particular, the German Supply Chain Sustainability Act (LkSG) has increased the pressure on the purchasing department to create a transparent and reliable database. While the FIXIT Group initially used Tacto to comply with the legal requirements, it quickly became clear that there was much greater potential for the entire purchasing organization. The LkSG thus served as a catalyst for the comprehensive digitalization and standardization of supplier management.
To meet these challenges, the FIXIT Group would like to introduce Tacto, a digital supplier portal that serves as a central platform for all relevant information. The aim is to make all purchasing processes more efficient, increase transparency and minimize manual activities.
The supplier portal is intended to achieve the following improvements:
1. standardization of supplier data independent of the ERP system
2. automated document management that simplifies the tracking of certificates and contracts
3. standardized supplier onboarding processes that enable structured qualification of new suppliers
4. uniform supplier evaluation for better decision-making and risk minimization
5. automated queries for supplier information to avoid duplicate entries and redundant communication
The introduction of Tacto as a central supplier portal will lead to a noticeable increase in efficiency. The reduction in administrative effort is particularly noteworthy:
The FIXIT Group has reached an important milestone with the introduction of a central supplier portal and the gradual automation of its purchasing processes. Standardized data, transparent supplier evaluations and automated workflows enable more efficient management and a reduction in operational costs.
The Supply Chain Due Diligence Act has proven to be a valuable opportunity to critically scrutinize existing purchasing processes and consistently drive forward digitalization. FIXIT has not only created an LkSG-compliant solution, but also a basis for long-term sustainable and economically optimized supplier relationships.
In the future, it will not only be about centralizing data, but also using it more intelligently. The next steps include the increased use of artificial intelligence for supplier evaluation and management as well as the integration of further automated processes to make procurement even more resilient and efficient. Companies that adopt digital solutions at an early stage will remain more flexible and competitive in the long term.
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