Convotherm, a Welbilt brand based in Germany, is renowned for its industry-leading combi steamers used in professional kitchens across the globe. With more than 35 models in circulation and customers in over 100 countries, Convotherm plays a key role in the commercial foodservice market.

Despite the company’s success, Convotherm faced increasing pressure to streamline its supplier management processes amid rising supply chain volatility, growing regulatory demands and the need for greater efficiency. Manual sourcing processes and fragmented data made it difficult to engage a wide supplier base, mitigate compliance risk and respond quickly to disruptions.

To address these challenges, Convotherm turned to QAD Supplier Relationship Management (SRM), successfully digitizing its procurement operations and realizing a 3.2x return on investment in the first year alone.

Eliminating Manual Processes and Gaining Supplier Visibility

Convotherm’s sourcing activities were previously managed using spreadsheets and ad-hoc communication. As a result, RFQs were time-consuming to issue, supplier responses were difficult to compare and vendor selection was limited to just a handful of familiar partners.

According to Stefan Sadler, Sourcing Leader at Convotherm, “Because this is so much work, you only send inquiries to a small number of your suppliers. There’s also a big risk of human error — you may forget to ask something or don’t get all of the answers. The big impact is that you don’t know your supplier.”

These inefficiencies presented several challenges:

• Manual RFQs required an hour or more to complete and limited supplier outreach
• Supplier qualification lacked consistency and relied heavily on internal effort
• Data was siloed, making it hard to track compliance or assess supplier risk
• Global disruptions and new regulations, like the German Supply Chain Act, added urgency to improve supplier transparency and resilience

A Strategic Shift with QAD SRM

Convotherm selected QAD SRM to digitize supplier onboarding, centralize sourcing activities and improve supplier collaboration. The decision was influenced by the company’s existing success with QAD ERP, along with the platform’s flexibility and strong local support.

“What really convinced us was how well QAD SRM could adapt to our specific processes and needs,” said Steven Greiner, Sourcing Buyer at Convotherm.

Implementation followed a phased, process-by-process approach to avoid overwhelming suppliers. The immediate focus was on:

• Supplier Data Management – Standardizing onboarding and qualification processes
• Sourcing – Automating RFQs and expanding supplier participation
• Collaboration – Centralizing all communications and documentation in a single platform

“We wanted to have a pool where we could gather all of our supplier information and find it in a very quick time period. That’s the reason we chose QAD SRM,” added Greiner.

Tangible Results: Efficiency, Savings and Compliance

The impact of QAD SRM was immediate and measurable.

• 90% Reduction in RFQ Time: What once took an hour now takes just five minutes. Buyers can issue RFQs to dozens of suppliers simultaneously and review responses in a single interface.
• 3.2x ROI in Year One: Faster processes and broader supplier engagement drove significant cost savings. Requests that previously went to five suppliers now reach up to 50.
• Improved Compliance: Centralized supplier data ensures traceability, audit readiness and support for ISO and supply chain regulations.

“The biggest improvement is the fact that there is a central place for everything,” said Greiner. “It can be found there: agreements, requests, communication.”

A Scalable Platform for Future Growth

Encouraged by early success, Convotherm is now extending QAD SRM across more departments. The scheduling team is using the platform for delivery reminders, and the quality team is preparing to manage complaints and supplier evaluations within the system.

“We’re gradually incorporating more processes into SRM,” said Sadler. “We’re building it up department by department.”

The QAD Customer Success team continues to support Convotherm’s evolution with proactive updates and responsive collaboration. “We present an issue, talk through it, and by the next meeting, we usually have a solution implemented,” said Greiner.

Key Benefits of QAD SRM at Convotherm

With QAD SRM in place, Convotherm has not only improved sourcing efficiency but also laid the groundwork for better supplier relationships and long-term process improvement. Highlights include:

• 90% reduction in RFQ processing time
• 3.2x return on investment in the first year
• Centralized supplier data for better compliance and transparency
• Scalable adoption across sourcing, scheduling and quality teams
• Stronger supplier engagement through streamlined collaboration

Convotherm’s journey with QAD SRM demonstrates how digitizing supplier management can deliver both immediate and long-term value. By simplifying complex sourcing activities and improving visibility, the company has enhanced procurement efficiency, reduced risk and built a scalable framework for future compliance and growth.

“Definitely implement QAD SRM,” advised Greiner. “The savings from RFQs and the process improvements bring you one, if not two or three, steps forward.”

Read the full Convotherm customer success story to learn more, and check out their customer success video below.