With months remaining before the UK sugar tax implementation, the client found itself in a difficult position. It had no working solution to administer the new sugar tax charges. Their initial plan to adapt the system used by their French subsidiary had hit a wall. The UK sugar tax operated differently from its French equivalent. Their existing solution was unsuitable for the UK.
Adding to their difficulties, no tailor-made SAP module existed for UK sugar tax. The clients’ usual support partner had declined to take on the project. The complexity and tight deadlines likely deterred them. The client needed a new approach, and fast.
Pivot drew deep on their extensive experience in the drinks industry. Pivot’s consultants identified the SAP excise duty solution as the ideal foundation for the new accounting work. It was a reporting tool and would need significant enhancement, yet it provided the platform needed to meet the ambitious 12-week deadline.
The challenge lay in the complexity of sugar tax liability. It occurred at the point of supply. But the drinks industry’s supply chains are intricate. They involve subcontract packers, fillers, manufacturers, export arrangements, and various non-taxable transactions. This created complications the system had to handle.
Pivot designed new functionality to capture all daily material movements. Pivot categorized each by material type and movement type on a ‘duty table’. This granular approach ensured the detailed information required for HMRC submissions would be easily available.
The system automatically generated accounting postings and calculated quarterly submissions for HMRC’s portal. Using an iterative build-and-playback approach with business users, Pivot delivered the complete solution in 12 weeks.
The solution went live in good time for the sugar tax introduction. It passed HMRC inspection with flying colours. Officials described it as “exemplary.”
For the client, it represented a successful implementation, and a blueprint for how complex regulatory projects should be managed when time is of the essence.
