How Embraer's SAP S2P Overhaul Strengthens its Supply Chain

As an aerospace leader, Embraer designs and builds aircraft with precision in mind.

From its base in Brazil, the company connects with 2,100 suppliers and trading partners in more than 60 countries. Managing this vast network is critical – and increasingly complex – as supply chain disruptions from natural disasters or geopolitical shifts can ripple across production lines, causing delays, shortages and increased costs.

The company’s leadership sees supply chain resilience as a collective effort: "the work of one contributes to the success of the other." This philosophy sits at the core of the company’s strategy as demand grows and operational complexity increases.

To meet this challenge, Embraer has launched the ONEChain Program—its largest digital transformation project in two decades.

The programme's aim is to unite business lines, suppliers and partners under one framework to cut costs, boost efficiency, reduce inventory and improve collaboration.

It also means adopting robust source-to-pay practices and embracing the capabilities of what’s now known as “Supply Chain 4.0”, the next evolution of digital supply chains built around AI, automation and real-time insights.

Building the ONEChain foundation

At the heart of Embraer’s transformation is SAP software.

By implementing tools from SAP Business Network, SAP Ariba and SAP Supply Chain Management, the company has overhauled how it sources, procures and manages supplier relationships.

Valerie Blatt, Chief Revenue Officer at SAP Supply Chain Management, explained on LinkedIn: "In the aerospace industry, precision and resilience are everything.

"To navigate growing demand and increasing complexity, Embraer launched its boldest digital transformation to date: the visionary ONEChain Program. And by leveraging SAP Business Network, SAP Ariba and SAP Supply Chain Management solutions, Embraer has streamlined source-to-pay processes, strengthened supplier collaboration, and gained real-time visibility across its global operations.

"The impact? Significant reductions in working capital, faster and more transparent supplier management, and over 40,000 hours saved annually through automation and smarter sourcing. With integrated planning and AI-driven forecasting, this is Supply Chain 4.0 in action."

ONEChain is rolled out in seven phases. First, the company brought in SAP Ariba Strategic Sourcing Suite, automating everything from supplier onboarding and qualification to contract management and risk oversight.

Negotiations now happen on a central platform with guided sourcing capabilities, while SAP Ariba Contracts improves transparency in supplier agreements.

In phase two, SAP Ariba Buying streamlined procurement, allowing employees to make purchases through corporate catalogues and simplifying invoice processing. Phase three took collaboration further by connecting supplier operations to Embraer’s supply chain execution systems in real time, with the help of SAP Business Network Supply Chain Collaboration.

The next phase focused on the supplier experience, using SAP and Qualtrics solutions to gather real-time feedback and act on it quickly. Embraer then turned to SAP Integrated Business Planning (IBP) to align financial and operational planning, including forecasting and predictive modelling using AI.

Later phases introduced a financial portal to manage accounts payable and receivable, as well as new modelling tools to deal with supply variability, customer demands and economic uncertainty. Through multistage inventory optimisation, Embraer established inventory targets that balance service levels with working capital goals.

“SAP Business Network and SAP Ariba solutions have enabled a paradigm shift to the fourth industrial revolution in supply chain management," adds Roberto Chaves, Executive Vice President of Global Procurement and Supply Chain at Embraer. 

"We’ve integrated digital technologies including AI and cloud computing as well as advanced analytics to achieve best practices, automation, simplified internal processes, and value-added supplier collaboration.

“We are aware of the different challenges across different industries. We believe that more collaboration with suppliers will help us overcome these challenges and improve overall competitiveness. That is why we created ONEChain.”

The results

The numbers reflect the impact. Embraer has cut around 42,000 hours annually from procurement tasks. About 5% of full-time roles have been shifted to more strategic work. Automating contract creation alone saves 21,000 hours per year, while smarter sourcing adds another 19,000 hours in gains.

This is helping reduce working capital, increase traceability and create faster, clearer supplier management processes. Order updates, document exchanges and planning can now happen almost instantly.

The benefits extend to decision-making. Embraer’s business units can now use real-time supply chain insights to improve planning and align strategies more closely with company goals. Supplier relationships have improved too, thanks to a dedicated supplier portal that provides a centralised view of operations, tutorials and support materials.

With suppliers able to update their information directly and interact more efficiently with Embraer teams, the collaboration is no longer transactional—it’s strategic. Standardised processes and new business models also help suppliers with their own digital upgrades.

Staying connected and competitive

SAP Analytics Cloud now plays a key role in tracking performance across the supply chain.

Procurement teams can monitor supplier metrics, ensure compliance, align with company targets and act on new insights. These capabilities make it possible to adapt quickly and maintain supply chain stability across global operations.

The transformation at Embraer is not just about software. It’s about changing how the company and its partners work together, from source to pay, with visibility, automation and trust at the centre.