Kal Tire, Canada's largest independent tire retailer with operations in 17 nations, is now using several new computer technologies from FuseSource Corp to integrate more than 230 stores with its retreading facilities, warehouses and industrial sites.
“Our commitment to deliver true service to our customers defines Kal Tire and requires that we have easy, timely access to accurate information at all our locations,” says Chief Information Officer Clifford Smith.
“We wanted technology that enabled our locations to share inventory and other types of information efficiently and cost effectively with one another,” he explains. “Open source integration and messaging proved to be the right solution.”
The chain’s operational systems are distributed across its nationwide store and warehouse network. FuseSource was utilized to eliminate the hours-long, batch-based synchronization process previously required to exchange information between these locations – thus enabling sales and customer service representatives to see in real-time if a product is in stock and available, according to Smith.
Being deployed is the Fuse Mediation Router, a commercial version of the Apache Camel project that enables users to easily integrate services, applications and transport protocols using enterprise integration patterns. The ability to connect services by utilizing the Domain Specific Language and mediation components reduces development time and eliminates the need to write thousands of lines of code while integrating Kal’s locations and relevant applications, says Paul Harsha, FuseSource’s vice president of engineering.
The Fuse Services Framework was used to transform the ERP system into a service – essentially turning it into an end-point on any integration route.
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Kal’s infrastructure and the FuseSource distributions at its core now process more than 12 million messages each day on-average and more than 20 million messages at peak times. These include transactions from point-of-sale to inventory, according to Harsha.
“The world’s most successful retailers like Kal Tire show that technology can be cost-effective and at the same time meet and exceed the demand for nearly instantaneous access to information that companies face today,” he says.
“You can’t address the demand for fast access to information without integration and messaging, and you can’t put such platforms in place cost effectively without open source, Harsha continues. “Innovators like Kal Tire offer a glimpse at the enterprise infrastructure of tomorrow – systems that get the job done without breaking the bank.”
Founded by Tom Foord in 1953 and bearing the motto of “true service,” Kal took its moniker from Kalamalka Lake, the prominent “Lake of Many Colours” landmark in Vernon, British Columbia, site of the Foord’s first store. The operation now has more than 176 company-owned branches, 55 independent associate dealers, 35 mining locations in Canada, 12 retread facilities, two OTR plants and four warehouses. The mining tire division covers more than 16 nations.
For more information, visit www.kaltire.com and www.fusesource.com.
