Smarter, faster decisions: Bekaert drives agility with advanced scenario planning

September 25

Bekaert drives agility with advanced scenario planning

When launching a breakthrough technology, how do you maintain strategic control across mid- and longterm horizons? Bekaert, a global technology company supporting the energy transition, leveraged advanced S&OP and scenario planning to align teams, enhance decision-making, and build resilience into its supply chain for a critical technology in green hydrogen production.

“Unison Planning has helped us shift from reactive firefighting to proactive, value-driven conversations,” says Filip Lanckmans, Global Supply Chain Manager at Bekaert.

Breakthrough technology for green hydrogen production

Beyond their established presence as a supplier for automotive, construction, and consumer goods, Bekaert pioneers solutions for the energy transition. Their titanium fiber-based porous transport layers (PTL) enable industrial-scale electrochemical production of green hydrogen, a key driver in the net-zero transformation.

“Major players in the power industry are actively shaping their green hydrogen strategies,” explains Lanckmans. “This creates a complex planning environment and presents a clear opportunity for us to support their long-term ambitions with flexible, scalable solutions.”

About Bekaert

Bekaert is a global leader in material science of steel wire transformation and coating technologies, and a pioneer in innovative materials and services for emerging markets, including new mobility, sustainable construction and energy transition.

Committed to a net-zero future, Bekaert provides sustainable solutions across sectors — from hydrogen and offshore wind to solar and electric vehicles. Visit Bekaert.com for more info.

Built-in flexibility allows rapid scaling to meet changing demand

“All of our plants are now vertically integrated, giving us control over both upstream and downstream production. This lets us scale rapidly in response to shifting demand. We can run three shifts a day instead of two or outsource to subcontractors when needed. That built-in flexibility is essential because demand can shift rapidly.”

When spreadsheets become unreliable

Bekaert’s road map demanded dual-horizon planning excellence: ensuring demand fulfillment over a 6-18 month horizon while preparing for strategic capacity expansion 5-10 years ahead.

Initially, Lanckmans’ team built a homemade spreadsheet-based solution for monthly tactical cycles and strategic exercises. “It was a rather sophisticated tool,” he admits with pride. “We even found clever ways to integrate critical factors such as the amount of scrap produced.”

The breaking point came when data consistency became impossible across multiple cycles in different spreadsheets. “We constantly lost valuable time getting data right for demand and supply reviews. Meeting discussions centered on data reliability instead of business priorities and opportunities.”

Greater insight with reality-based scenario planning

OMP’s Unison Planning™ for Metals had already been successfully used by other Bekaert divisions for several years. Now, its S&OP functionality has been implemented in a lean, highly tailored manner for the titanium transport layers market — in just six months. This rapid adoption allows planners to create multiple demand and supply scenarios while factoring in real-world constraints, including:

In-house production capacity
Subcontractor reliance
Remaining backlog
Inventory policies and positions
Routing and network priority

“We now create two demand scenarios and two or three supply scenarios for the monthly S&OP meeting. Unison Planning shows us the demand backlog, production plan, inventory evolution, machine utilization, potential bottlenecks, customer service levels, and even the financial impact. It gives us full visibility and confidence to make faster, smarter decisions.”

Filip Lanckmans, Global Supply Chain Manager at Bekaert

Driving smarter and faster decisions through strategic transformation

“Unison Planning has been an absolute game-changer,” confirms Lanckmans. “The platform is grounded in the realities of the metals industry, allowing us to model our expanding production apparatus accurately. It has also strengthened collaboration between sales and supply.”

“With data consistency no longer an issue, our meetings now focus on what truly drives value. We evaluate demand forecasts, align supply options with customer priorities, discuss the impact of inventory policies, and assess financial implications. The bottom line is simple: we make better decisions faster.”

Smarter, faster decisions: Bekaert drives agility with advanced scenario planning

Looking ahead with 5-10 years strategic vision

Beyond the monthly tactical cycles, Bekaert conducts strategic footprint reviews several times a year to guide long-term planning.

Critical considerations include:

Expected long-term regional demand volumes
Global capacity requirements
Potential impact of tariffs
Decisions on developing new plants or expanding existing sites
Implications of product evolution

“Some production machines have a two-year supply lead time, and fiber-based layers continue to evolve. New generations might require fibers of different diameters. With Unison Planning, we can define scenarios to phase out older products while allocating increasing raw material percentages to new generations. The flexibility and comprehensive nature of the platform give us confidence for the future,” says Lanckmans.

Real results from rapid adoption

Unison Planning was first implemented across Bekaert globally three years ago, and several business units have since gone live with S&OP and supply planning. Among them, Energy Transition achieved the leanest implementation, reaching full adoption in just six months.

“Bekaert was able to jumpstart with OMP’s industry solution for metals, going live and delivering benefits within six months,” says Thomas Bergé, Senior Metals Program Manager at OMP. “The combined expertise of both teams, along with their collaboration and motivation, delivered real results quickly.”

Building on this success, Bekaert has recently begun rolling out demand planning within its Unison Planning platform, further strengthening tactical and strategic decision-making across its global operations.

About OMP

Hundreds of customers in a wide range of industries - consumer goods, life sciences, chemicals, metals, paper, plastics & packaging, tires & building products - benefit from using OMP’s unique Unison Planning™, an open, cloud-native, and AI-driven platform that embeds our deep industry expertise and offers real solutions for the challenges your industry faces.

A proven platform for all your supply chain planning needs, from demand to supply, from the strategic to the operational levels. A real solution that supports your journey toward autonomous, decision-centric planning.

Built on 40 years of expertise. Recognized by Gartner® for its leadership and vision, OMP helps you navigate supply chain challenges with data-driven insights, dynamic optimization, and sustainable decision-making, delivering real business value.

Smarter, faster decisions: Bekaert drives agility with advanced scenario planning

September 25

Breakthrough technology for green hydrogen production

About Bekaert

Read the case study

Case study

Case study

Built-in flexibility allows rapid scaling to meet changing demand

Case study

When spreadsheets become unreliable

Case study

Greater insight with reality-based scenario planning

Case study

Driving smarter and faster decisions through strategic transformation

Case study

Case study

Case study

Looking ahead with 5-10 years strategic vision

Real results from rapid adoption

Case study

About OMP