Leading cloud commodities trade and risk management solution provider Aspect announced that Swiss trading client Orka NRG AG has upgraded its AspectCTRM oil and biodiesel trade and risk support to now include the trading of base metals.
The seamless upgrade reflects Orka’s increasing focus on growing world markets for aluminum, zinc and other base metals as lightweight, high-strength alternatives to steel that offer potentially better performance and fuel efficiency, particularly in the aviation and automobile sectors.
According to Orka's metals trader Gustaf Dyrssen, "I've used a number of systems through the years, and Aspect's is impressive thanks in particular to its reporting capabilities, which allow us to view and manage our positions in real-time, and easily drill down into the data.”
The Aspect solution at Orka - implemented initially for its oils business only - replaces a previous spreadsheet-based system. Spreadsheets were seen as prone to errors and no longer acceptable to many banks and counterparties as an effective way of managing risk. Aspect’s ETRM/CTRM solution provides real-time visibility of deals and exposure throughout the entire trading lifecycle, covering physical tonnage and associated LME hedges.
Aspect’s Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) architecture led to a very rapid deployment while its simple and intuitive web interface meant traders were using the solution within just one week. With a declared aim to grow steadily by concentrating on high margin, volatile niche markets, Orka regards its AspectCTRM deployment as being a key contributor to its success.
“The Aspect solution for metals was implemented very, very quickly and after only one week of training I was using the system routinely for our day-to-day business,” says Orka director Loris Francioli. “After a few more weeks use I am seeing real improvements in efficiency.”
Further to Aspect's refined metals functionality for clients, its most recent CTRM Cloud Release features several metals concentrates trading enhancements including full support for management of physical and hedging activity. Users can manage moisture; treatment charges linked to forward curves; refining charges per metal; penalties; detailed P&L individually by contract and against the total P&L, all with powerful and flexible reporting options.
All of Aspect’s applications are delivered in the cloud. Their inherent scalability and the speed with which they can be deployed contrasts dramatically with traditional CTRM software systems which typically take a year or more to implement and which fail to effectively scale downwards to support smaller trading operations. The company, now 15 years in business, has just celebrated a record financial year, winning more CTRM business than any other vendor in 2014.
