BP Retail, which operates shops in BP service stations, is installing an enterprise resource planning (ERP) system at 285 UK sites to improve its sales processes.

The software is being piloted in six service stations in and around London, and will be rolled out to the remaining locations before the end of the year.

The organisation has integrated a head-office system from vendor SAP with back-office software from Retalix.

Ed Alford, chief information manager at BP Retail, says the system is speeding up service by reducing to three per cent (from 17 per cent) the number of invalid items containing missing or wrong data being scanned at the till.

‘Invalids are the result of things not being synchronised between head office and the store,’ said Alford. ‘Previously information on new products from head office was not making its way down to the store fast enough. Now this happens much quicker.’

When an invalid item is scanned, the cashier has to manually type in a code, increasing transaction time by 25 per cent.

The faster service time is particularly crucial in new shops that have partnerships with high-street retailer Marks & Spencer.

‘Eighty of the stores will have a Marks & Spencer food section,’ said Alford. ‘Now, instead of buying petrol and a paper, in these stores people are going in and buying eight items. You need speed and efficiency at the point-of-sale to avoid long queues.’

The system also ensures that ordering and replenishment is more effective, by more accurately recording the items sold, and by helping BP Retail identify promotional opportunities.

‘We will be able to gather information from all 285 stores and see what else people buy when they buy fuel or a coffee, and offer this as a cross-promotion,’ said Alford.

BP Retail can then tailor prices to the optimum level.

The system has already been rolled out in Australia, and will be implemented globally across all BP Retail service stations over the next three years.