Over two years of operation, the DOT Defence Procurement Agency has ensured the delivery of 1.35 million tonnes of food via the digital DOT-Chain Food system.
This is reported by Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence.
DOT-Chain Food is designed to facilitate interaction between military units of the Armed Forces and the State Special Transport Service, the DOT Defence Procurement Agency, and suppliers. The system covers the entire food supply cycle after contracts are signed following tenders on the Prozorro electronic platform.
DOT-Chain Food has moved most paperwork into an electronic format. Each week, more than 45,000 documents are generated in the system, and the overall supply cycle – from submitting a request to paying the supplier – has been cut by a factor of four.
Digital processes clearly move faster than paper ones. Document templates, automated claims, and other digital mechanisms provide greater access to data and control over processes. At the same time, the administrative burden on service personnel is reduced. In this way, we are gradually overcoming the “paper army”, noted Deputy Minister of Defence of Ukraine Mstyslav Banik.
According to Artem Romaniukov, acting director of the DOT Defence Procurement Agency, 1.9 million delivery notes confirming food deliveries have been issued over the entire period the system has been in operation.
Previously, a supplier created each delivery note on paper in three copies, and a service member spent up to two hours working with it. Now, preparing, reconciling and signing the document takes an average of 15 minutes.
Electronic document management also enables the Agency to receive up-to-date data on the volumes and dynamics of food deliveries in real time.
During the operation of DOT-Chain Food, the largest order volumes fell into the following product categories:
- vegetables — 335.8 thousand tonnes;
- meat and meat products — 227.3 thousand tonnes;
- bread, bakery products and flour — 139.8 thousand tonnes;
- fruit, berries and nuts — 76 thousand tonnes;
- groats — 74 thousand tonnes.
A catalogue containing more than 300 food items is available for ordering via DOT-Chain Food.
A representative of a military unit responsible for food provision compiles a weekly request for the required period, selecting products from the catalogue for which the Agency has previously signed contracts with suppliers.
Next, the Defence Procurement Agency’s logistics officer creates the order in the system based on the request. The supplier begins fulfilling it, and the military unit can submit a request to adjust the order if necessary.
Before dispatching the products, a delivery note is generated, enabling the military unit to plan receipt in advance. Based on delivery notes for a given period, certificates of completed work are created. They are signed by all participants in the process, after which payment is made to the supplier.
All documents are generated online using templates and drop-down lists, and information is exchanged directly within the system.
DOT-Chain Food also includes a mechanism for automated claims. It enables claims to be filed against suppliers in the event of breaches of contractual obligations regarding the completeness or timing of food deliveries.
The system automatically generates a report on identified violations and calculates the amount of penalties. The authorised person in the military unit then only needs to review the report, add comments if necessary, and sign the document.