Innovation spotlight: How Gulf Marine reinvented its operations with GROW with SAP

As a global supplier of marine lubricants serving more than 1,000 ports across 80 countries, Gulf Marine needed to modernize its core business processes for operational excellence. And a key company-wide digital transformation initiative is to implement GROW with SAP: a cloud-based ERP offering that empowers digital transformation through a standardized framework, tools, and guidance.

Through GROW with SAP, Gulf Marine aims to replace legacy systems and build a more resilient and scalable foundation for the future.

“For a company navigating international operations with complex supply chains and evolving customer expectations, this migration wasn’t just about replacing aging infrastructure, but about advancing our digital transformation and staying ahead in an ever-changing digital landscape,” said Frank Olsen, CEO, Gulf Marine. “We needed real-time visibility, automation, and a platform that could support innovation without compromising stability. With SAP’s cloud platform, we now have the digital foundation to scale, adapt, and continue delivering reliably for our customers in a fast-changing world.”

Laying a secure and scalable core for the future

Gulf Marine’s decision to adopt SAP’s public cloud ERP at the end of 2023 was driven by a blend of practical requirements and strategic ambitions. Gulf Marine required a cloud-native platform that could support group-wide standardization while staying current with evolving technology and security needs.

SAP’s public cloud solution offered built-in advantages. Security was a significant plus point; despite SAP not being a security vendor, Gulf Marine appreciated the ability of the cloud to benefit from automated upgrades, continuous monitoring, and proactive threat management, compared to its previous on-premise solution.

“One of the key benefits of moving to SAP on a public cloud is that security is built in. We no longer have to chase it ourselves,” said Joey Chua, Director of Digital and IT Transformation, Gulf Marine. “We’ve seen SAP proactively notify us about potential issues and guide us through upgrades before they become risks.”

By adopting a clean core architecture and leveraging standardized frameworks, Gulf Marine ensured the system’s long-term maintainability, making it easier to absorb new features and scale efficiently. SAP Business Technology Platform (SAP BTP) plays a central role here, acting as an extension layer that enables innovation without compromising system stability.

“We’re no longer locked into a static system,” Chua said. “BTP gives us the flexibility to build and adapt while keeping the core stable. It’s how we’re future-proofing our business.”

Real results, realignment, and what comes next

Since deploying GROW with SAP, Gulf Marine has achieved significant operational and financial improvements. The company reports up to 30 percent better on-time delivery by integrating fast, predictive MRP with resource scheduling and capacity planning to optimize material flow. Customer satisfaction has improved by 15 percent, thanks to reliable order-to-promise dates based on real-time inventory and consistent, accurate pricing across channels.

Gulf Marine also reduced finance costs by up to five percent through streamlined, automated processes and holistic financial visibility. Additionally, profitability visibility has increased operating income by 10 to 15 percent, supported by a single source of truth for unit costing and profitability analysis across segments.

In addition to enhanced internal visibility and efficiency, Gulf Marine has seen stronger customer confidence. Clients have responded positively to the company’s investment in updating its digital capabilities, signalling a robust, future-ready partner committed to operational excellence.

On the operational front, Gulf Marine is also aligning its systems with sustainability goals, particularly in supply chain management. By leveraging improved transport visibility and planning, the company is reducing unnecessary freight movements and emissions.

“GROW with SAP offers a standardized framework, tools, and guidance, enabling companies like Gulf Marine to continuously evolve as they grow—deploying new digital capabilities and simplifying global operations,” said Eileen Chua, Managing Director, SAP Singapore. “By standardizing core processes across headquarters and subsidiaries, they gain real-time visibility, automate manual tasks, and steer the business with greater speed and decision-making confidence.”

As the next phase of transformation unfolds, Gulf Marine is exploring broader use of SAP’s Business AI capabilities and considering expansion of the platform across additional business entities.

For more details on Gulf Marine’s transformation, read their story here.