TechConnect Ventures

Sprint Challenge Brief:

Optimization and Utilization Of CPG Data

Respond Now    Deadline: May 14, 2024

ABSTRACT

A large, multinational Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) corporation wants to optimize the quality of their vast repository of product packaging data in order to better utilize it for business needs and goals. They seek to engage firms that specialize in data optimization or analytics to provide insights, structure, and recommendations to achieve these goals.

BACKGROUND

Picture a single package of cookies. Besides being a tasty treat, that package is also the physical embodiment of an enormous array of disparate data points: the materials, spatial dimensions and thickness of the tray and its overwrap, the number and type of cookies held inside, production dates, lot numbers, and many more. Each data point can provide valuable insight, when properly utilized. With dozens of brands, each with their own varieties in flavor/size/shape/quantity, the amount of data retained by the client increases rapidly.

The client uses SAP for its data repository for all packaging information globally. This immense storehouse of historical and current packaging data contains tens of thousands of details for each of its many brands. Through this project, the client seeks to identify individuals and organizations that can provide guidance and solutions to enrich, optimize and structure their data in order to generate actionable insights. Specifically, our client is interested in:

  • Data management firms to provide consultative guidance on
    • Ingestion
    • Optimization
    • Enrichment
    • Structure
    • Utilization
  • Software platforms with the ability to:
    • Engage with the existing data repository in SAP
    • Establish relational connections between data sets
    • Enrich existing data sets by identifying missing/incorrect data
    • Provide recommendations for enrichment of missing data
    • Facilitate the ingestion of new and accurate data from internal and external sources

Approaches will ideally be able to provide concrete recommendations for improving, processing, and utilizing data. Responses offering both consultative guidance and software are highly desirable. All consultative organizations and software platforms are strongly encouraged to consider collaborating with this global leader in FMCG, especially ones that can deploy AI/ML functionality for data optimization.

With the large amount of packaging data at its disposal, the client intends to process a significant percentage of it by EOY 2025. Other sectors, beyond packaging, may also receive similar optimization in the future.

Approaches that propose replacing SAP are not of interest at this time.

The goal of this sprint is to facilitate contact and interactions between our client and commercial entities (including startups), technology developers, or research organization/university in this space.


Requirements

Solvers submitting an entry are encouraged to highlight capabilities in their submission that meet criteria including:

  • Proposed approach:
    • Consultation
    • Software
    • Consultation and Software
  • Familiarity with:
    • SAP systems and performance
    • Large data sets especially packaging data
    • Enriching data sets
    • Identification of missing/incorrect data points
  • Ability to interact with data housed within SAP
  • Previous data optimization experience with either
    • Packaging data or
    • Comparable large, complex data sets
  • Adaptability for use cases beyond packaging data
  • Ability to conduct a pilot-scale test
  • Description of potential implementation plans
  • Commercialization timeline
  • Technical maturity

Business Opportunity for Solvers

All complete and eligible entries will be included in an exclusive Innovation Opportunity Report that will be presented to our client. Solvers with well-matched capabilities may be contacted directly by either TechConnect or the client to discuss potential partnership opportunities, including – but not limited to – demonstrations, consulting, contract research, licensing, and more. Top-rated entries may also be invited to register or participate in an upcoming TechConnect event or pitch program.


Participation Rules & Guidelines

Solvers are encouraged to review the Rules and Guidelines provided on the Sprint page for details about participation, including submission criteria, eligibility information, and more.


Respond Now    Download Challenge Brief

QUESTIONS? Contact challenge@techconnectventures.com