Aiming to modernise its operations on a par with other beverage corporations in the country, the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation Limited (Tasmac), which recorded revenue of about ₹30,000 crore last fiscal, has issued a tender to implement a end-to-end computerisation of its operations.
The project is aimed at employing QR code in every bottle and carton to track their movements.
‘Limited use of tech’
According to the tender document issued by Tasmac, the administration of the alcoholic beverage industry in Tamil Nadu “is a herculean task with limited adoption of technology”, and hence the project. Some of the other leading beverage corporations in the country have computerised critical operations.
To manage the day-to-day operations, an integrated enterprise-wide system was essential and this system would cover the computerisation of core and corporate functions of Tasmac by having system components, including but not limited to Integrated Supply Chain Management System, an ERP system and an Integrated Track & Trace System.
“The objective of implementing such a system is to build a seamless liquor and beer distribution ecosystem within Tamil Nadu” with the benefits of transparency, simple and error-free business processes and enabling automated ordering among others.
“Every single bottle procured by Tasmac will have a unique excise number encoded in the QR/2D barcode. For this purpose, the excise label will have a unique and secured QR/2D barcode encoding the same series number in the label for the purpose of tracking. There will be two identical QR coded affixed on both the ends of excise label,” it said. The aim of the track & trace system was to enable seamless tracking at every point in the supply chain right from the supplier till the point of sale to end customer.
Tracking and accounting sales at retail vending shops and depots, near real-time visibility and transparency of stocks at each depot and retail vending shop at any point of time, generation of indent based on stock availability at these shops are among the other features aimed at through the project.
About 20 State-based suppliers and about 50 other liquor suppliers in other States are supplying for Tasmac. There are 3,500 licensees operating bars attached to FL1 retail vending shops and about 1,200 FL2/FL3 (Hotels/Bars) licensees procure stock from Tasmac depots.