Southern African retailer achieves single-weekend SAP refreshes

Eliminating slow, disruptive, and manual SAP system refreshes

Our client struggled with slow, resource-intensive, and disruptive SAP system refreshes across its landscape. Traditional full-system copies consistently overwrote critical client-independent configurations, particularly complex Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA) settings. This forced project teams into costly, manual rebuilds following every refresh; which then resulted in stalling testing cycles, creating operational friction, and delaying critical project delivery timelines.

The retailer required a modern, automated refresh strategy capable of delivering high-quality, right-sized data across five major SAP systems without overwriting customised non-production settings or causing extended business outages.

Data Sync Manager (DSM) for precision time-sliced refreshes

To modernise this process, our client partnered with EPI-USE Labs and K5 Business to implement a Refresh-as-a-Service model powered by Client Sync™, part of the EPI-USE Labs’ Data Sync Manager (DSM) Suite. The solution focused on precision data copying, storage optimisation, and configuration protection.

By applying time-slice refreshes containing only the last 12 months of transactional data, the team significantly reduced database storage capacity needs and runtimes. Client-only refreshes and targeted table exclusions preserved critical client-independent configurations such as SOA settings. K5 Business managed technical execution and preparation, while EPI-USE Labs provided the engine and overall project management.

Rapid weekend execution; optimised non-production storage

The project progressed from initiation to full execution in just one month. All five major SAP systems – S/4HANA, CAR, MDG, EWM, and F&R – were refreshed successfully within a single weekend outage, replacing what previously required weeks of co-ordinated effort.

Time-slicing transactional data optimised non-production storage, dramatically saving database space across the landscape. Preserving client-independent configurations eliminated post-refresh rebuild work, freeing functional teams from tedious rework.

Our client now possesses a predictable, repeatable, and on-demand refresh capability that ensures high-quality testing environments whenever needed.

About our client

Our client is an established multinational retail and wholesale group with an expansive supply chain footprint across Africa and select international markets. Operating at high volume across both store-front and fulfillment environments, the organisation relies on an integrated enterprise architecture – including SAP S/4HANA, CAR (Customer Activity Repository), MDG (Master Data Governance), EWM (Extended Warehouse Management), and F&R (Forecast & Replenishment) – to manage core master data, real-time transaction processing, advanced warehouse operations, and demand forecasting. Maintaining stability, accuracy, and performance across these core platforms is central to their daily commercial and logistics operations.