A Vision for Data Transformation
Mitsubishi Electric Trane HVAC US (METUS) is a leading provider of heat pumps and Variable Refrigerant Flow (VRF) HVAC systems in the United States and Latin America. Established in 2018 through a partnership between Trane Technologies and Mitsubishi Electric US, Inc., METUS delivers premium electric-based HVAC systems for various applications, from residential homes to large commercial buildings. “When it comes to quality and overall value, METUS continues to lead the market” Nick Smith, VP of Data and Analytics, METUS shared.
Since its inception, METUS has been committed to quality innovation, responsive customer service, and building long-term relationships. However, a significant obstacle in achieving these goals was the company's lack of comprehensive data insights. The reliance METUS had on outdated reporting systems delivering static tabular reports created a substantial barrier to operational efficiency.
When Nick Smith was brought on as the new VP of Data and Analytics at METUS the need for a comprehensive data transformation became apparent. His primary goal was to gain back user confidence in the quality of information while providing insights when people needed it to make tactical and strategic decisions. The absence of timely insights hindered the ability to match warehouse inventory with open orders, leading to late and missed shipments. “My charter was to develop and implement a data and analytics strategy for the company. The clear underlying gap was the lack of a data governance framework. My aim was to implement that along with a scalable technology stack to deliver more value for our partners and internal stakeholders,” explained Smith.
The BlueCloud Solution: A Collaborative Partnership
The team collaborated to identify the most effective approach for overhauling METUS's data infrastructure focusing on optimization and efficiency. The core strategy adopted was "data as a service," emphasizing real-time data availability, reliability, and quality data as the definitive source of truth for self-serve analysis. This strategic shift began with a data governance initiative, setting the foundation for subsequent infrastructure and process development.
Implementation of Cloud Technologies: A Foundation for Success
Leveraging well-established partnerships, BlueCloud introduced a holistic approach to supporting this transformation with four cloud technologies at the center of the initiative, focused on creating a simplified, scalable and future-proof architecture. This ensured real-time inventory visibility and laid the foundation for future integrations and analysis. Among these technologies, Snowflake, running on Amazon Web Services (AWS), was selected as the ideal foundation for their initiative, enabling numerous current and future workloads and use cases to drive business value, such as data sharing with distributors, customers and partners. To actualize this transition, BlueCloud enlisted Fivetran, a leader in enterprise data integration for data extraction from SAP. Next, BlueCloud employed dbt Cloud to transform the data, preparing it for self-service analytics and interactive data visualizations in ThoughtSpot.
BlueCloud's technology implementation provided METUS with crucial visibility into warehouse and distribution data, enabling actionable insights across the entire value stream. The shift from daily to hourly data helped to drive additional insights as well as a tangible productivity gain of 26,000 man-hours and $1.5 million in analyst time savings. This improved data accessibility allowed the inventory management team to streamline open order matching with current inventory, creating more nimble and responsive customer support and leading to more on-time shipments, furthering the overall return on investment to METUS. This played a crucial role in enhancing the customer experience and nurturing more valuable customer relationships.
The Path Forward
The future for METUS and BlueCloud is promising, with the implemented cloud technologies enabling continued innovation.
METUS is poised to enter a managed service period with BlueCloud, focused on supporting additional value-stream efficiencies and overall business value using Snowflake, including data sharing with METUS customers, distributors, and partners. The partnership between METUS and BlueCloud exemplifies the foundation of a successful data transformation journey. BlueCloud has empowered METUS by addressing challenges, establishing a collaborative approach, and implementing cutting-edge technologies within the Modern Data Cloud. This not only allowed METUS to deliver immediate productivity gains and cost savings, but also overcome obstacles to set the stage for continued growth, innovation, and enhanced customer experiences.