Wegmans' New Metric: Master Data Completeness

MICHAEL GARRY

ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Wegmans Food Markets here has developed a new metric for the scorecard used to measure suppliers and itself: master data completeness, a measure of the completeness of the data associated with an item.

In assessing the completeness of the data in its master data catalog, Wegmans identified 35,000 items lacking necessary supply chain attributes such as dimensions and weights as well as optional attributes such as pallet Ti-Hi (the stacking configuration of cases on a pallet). All but 8,000 items have been updated as the "clean-up" process continues, with input from suppliers, said Kathy Welch, data sync/data accuracy coordinator for Wegmans, during a presentation earlier this month at U Connect 2010.

The products with the biggest data gaps are those not being synchronized via the Global Data Synchronization Network (GDSN), said Welch.

"GDSN is the most efficient way to provide complete and accurate data, along with understanding your retailer's needs for additional non-mandatory data."

Welch noted that it took some time for Wegmans to "get our syncing suppliers to start adding the non-mandatory attributes," but most are including all required attributes in their synchronization transmissions now.

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