Field Operations ERP System
Major Oil & Gas Operator
Custom ERP system covering logistics, inventory, and field workforce management across 120 depots nationwide — delivering ₦210 million in annual operational savings.
The Challenge
A leading downstream oil and gas company operating 120 fuel depots across Nigeria was running its field operations on a combination of SAP modules (partially implemented, poorly configured) and a parallel shadow system of Excel files maintained by depot managers. Inventory reconciliation was done monthly, creating blind spots that enabled significant shrinkage losses. Field workforce scheduling was managed entirely through WhatsApp groups.
The business case for a custom ERP was straightforward: inventory shrinkage was estimated at 2.3% of total throughput — at the volumes this company moved, that was ₦380 million annually. Even a 50% reduction in shrinkage would fund the entire project.
Our Approach
Rather than implement a standard ERP package and force the business to adapt, we conducted a 6-week process discovery phase — visiting 12 depots, shadowing operations managers, and documenting the actual (not assumed) workflows. This revealed several critical requirements that no standard ERP would have met without significant customisation:
The system needed to function offline for up to 72 hours — some depots have extremely limited connectivity. All transactions had to queue locally and sync when connectivity was restored, with conflict resolution logic for inventory discrepancies. We built the field application as a Progressive Web App with IndexedDB-based local storage.
Biometric attendance integration was a firm requirement — the client had experienced significant time theft through buddy punching. We integrated fingerprint readers at each depot with a central identity management system.
The real-time inventory system used IoT-connected flow meters at each depot, with readings fed directly into the ERP via a custom MQTT bridge. Discrepancies above a configurable threshold triggered automatic alerts to depot managers and the regional operations director.
Technology Stack
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