Peak Foods streamlines planning and operations with Optimity

Peak Foods, the leading US frozen whipped topping manufacturer, is working with Optimity to streamline its supply chain. We talked to Jeff White, VP of Operations, about business challenges, aspirations, and using supply chain planning software to drive business transformation.

Preparing for growth

Peak Foods LLC was formed as a joint venture in 2000 when Interstate Food Processing Corporation of Boise, ID, joined forces with Wisconsin-based Lakeside Foods to produce frozen whipped topping products for the retail, food service, and industrial sectors.

The Ohio-based company has since established itself as a leader in the US private label market. It has also introduced its own brands, including the popular all-natural truwhip range. Despite the success, management is showing no signs of taking its foot off the gas. We asked Jeff what the company is doing to prepare for the next phase.

“We’re still a relatively small company. We’ve built our success on close relationships and always being there for our customers. However, as we continue to grow, we need more scalable processes and systems, not least for supply chain planning.”

Jeff continues, “We’re in the process of transforming the company from a just-in-time operation into an agile make-to-stock business. To do this, we need to integrate all aspects of planning – forecasting, production, inventory, and procurement planning. At the same time, we have to remain flexible and accommodating to our customers. We can’t make this transition if we continue to rely on disconnected Excel spreadsheets for planning,” says Jeff.

Jeff and his team evaluated several software vendors, and Optimity came out on top. “The planning speed and functionality we’re getting with Optimity is exactly what we need. It’s a complete planning solution that complements our MS Dynamics ERP system and allows us to phase out all our planning spreadsheets.”

“The planning speed and functionality we’re getting with Optimity is exactly what we need. It’s a complete planning solution that allows us to phase out all our planning spreadsheets.”
Jeff White, VP of Operations

Managing seasonal demand

A primary goal for Peak Foods is to improve forecast accuracy for the company’s 270 SKUs.

“Demand for whipped topping products is very seasonal, with the bulk of sales in the 4th quarter of the calendar year. We start building inventory in July, so a reliable forecast is critical,” says Jeff.

Peak Foods has already implemented Optimity’s Demand Forecaster, and the system provides a baseline statistical forecast that the demand planning team can adjust if needed.

“Most of our products have relatively stable demand, albeit seasonal. Optimity does an excellent job of automating the forecasting process and delivering accurate projections. Anticipating demand for new customers and products will always be tricky, but the sales team does a great job keeping our demand planners informed about customer projections and activities.”

Optimizing inventory build

The seasonal nature of the business is one of Peak Foods’ main challenges. The recently added 80,000 sqft of frozen and dry storage will provide more flexibility. Going forward, the company will also use Optimity to optimize the inventory build phase to smooth the staff workload.

Jeff says, “We aim to run a 24×5 week as far as possible, keeping overtime and weekend work to a minimum. Optimity’s Supply Chain Optimizer considers the entire supply chain and allows us to strike the right balance between customer service, inventory levels, and resource utilization.”

“Optimity’s Supply Chain Optimizer considers the entire supply chain and allows us to strike the right balance between customer service, inventory levels, and resource utilization.”
Jeff White, VP of Operations

Managing scheduling complexity

As a private-label manufacturer, the production schedulers have a lot of different packaging, labels, and product mixes to manage. Numerous run rules, such as allergen sequences, further complicate the scheduling task.

“Scheduling complexity is part and parcel of private-label manufacturing,” says Jeff as he explains how Optimity’s Production Scheduler will help automate the process, removing the need for Excel.

“We’re currently setting up the scheduler with all our production rules, costs, and constraints. Optimity already gets us 85-90% there, so all we’re doing now is tweaking the schedule. It saves a lot of time compared to doing everything in Excel. We’re so much more agile now, and we can keep the plant working to the most time- and cost-effective schedule.”

Working with Optimity

Peak Foods is live with Optimity’s forecasting module, while production and procurement planning are in the testing phase. “We’re currently running Optimity in parallel with our Excel sheets to validate the system-generated production and purchase orders. So far, everything is looking very good.”

Jeff explains how Optimity has triggered a cultural change at Peak Foods. He points out that it’s not just about getting people up and running on a new system, but also about changing old habits and established ways of working.

“Moving from Excel to Optimity is a paradigm shift. It’s vital that everyone’s on board with what we’re doing and able to see the value. We’re all used to having our own spreadsheets, and people tend to gravitate toward what they know. Making the shift takes time and effort, but it’s well worth it.”

About Peak Foods

Peak Foods LLC is a joint venture between Interstate Food Processing Corporation and Lakeside Foods. Based in Troy, Ohio, the company produces private-label whipped topping products for the retail, food service, and industrial sectors.

To find out more about the Peak Foods project, contact Mark Walker.