CHALLENGE

Gretsch-Unitas is an approved exporter. This means: increased obligations to provide proof, a documented organizational instruction to the main customs office in Stuttgart, and the obligation to be able to fully document every classification decision. A product portfolio of over 30,000 items, delivered to 35+ countries, plus customs responsibility for several companies in the GU Group. The pressure on the classification team is high.

The previous tool had been running stably for years, embedded directly in SAP ERP. Its weakness was well known: no AI support. With incomplete product descriptions and missing technical drawings, this regularly meant time-consuming manual work. When Gretsch-Unitas decided to migrate to SAP S/4HANA for October 2025, the verdict was clear: the legacy system was not S4-compatible. A new solution was needed.

“The previous software was good in terms of the automation process, but just lacked AI. With the diverse types of items we have, AI support is simply helpful.” Claudia Schlag, Customs Officer, Gretsch-Unitas GmbH Baubeschläge

SOLUTION

The team looked closely at the market: specialist presentations, the familiar legacy system under new auspices, and other providers in comparison. The first contact with traide AI came about rather by chance. An initial discussion was followed by an extensive practical test: real items from the GU Group, comparison with existing core data, no sample data. The initial skepticism regarding AI in the customs sector quickly vanished.

The SAP integration via partner ProData was indispensable. Product data from SAP is transferred directly to traideCompliance, and results are automatically sent back to the core data. Without this bidirectional connection, traideCompliance would have been out of the question.

“The connection to SAP was an absolute prerequisite. Without it, traide AI would have been ruled out.” Hartmut Ländl, Organization & IT Project Support, Gretsch-Unitas GmbH Baubeschläge

On October 20, 2025, the day of the SAP S/4HANA go-live, traideCompliance was live. Smoothly.

RESULTS

The classification team classifies externally procured items in minutes instead of hours. If product documentation is missing, a URL is sufficient: the AI extracts product features directly from the web and provides a fully justified result. A method that did not exist before.

As an approved exporter, Gretsch-Unitas bears special responsibility. Today, traideCompliance is explicitly anchored by name in the official organizational instruction to the main customs office in Stuttgart. Every classification is documented, retrievable at any time, and explainable live.

“I submitted the PDF with the detailed reasoning and never heard from the customs officer again. He simply accepted it. That was also a very important reason for me: this ability to understand how a result is achieved.” Claudia Schlag, Customs Officer, Gretsch-Unitas GmbH Baubeschläge

▸ Productive go-live parallel to SAP S/4HANA migration, October 2025
▸ Bidirectional SAP integration via ProData
▸ Classification results in seconds, with full AI justification and source references
▸ Audit-proof: anchored in the official organizational instruction to the main customs office in Stuttgart
▸ Customs responsibility for multiple GU companies managed from a single platform

WHY TRAIDE AI?

Gretsch-Unitas knew the alternatives. The decision was made based on a clear criterion: AI capability. No other provider could deliver in the practical test what traideCompliance delivered. What was decisive was not just the result, but the complete, traceable justification behind it.

Furthermore: traide AI continuously develops the product and communicates this actively. The integration partner ProData responds immediately to change requests.

“We regularly receive notifications from traide AI about what has been improved again. And ProData reacts immediately when you need something. I have rarely experienced anything like that until now.” Hartmut Ländl, Organization & IT Project Support, Gretsch-Unitas GmbH Baubeschläge

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT AI-POWERED CUSTOMS CLASSIFICATION

For which companies is traideCompliance suitable?
For companies using SAP, with high product variety and a need to document classifications across multiple companies in an audit-proof manner. Especially where a wide range of items regularly brings new and difficult-to-classify products.

Are AI-generated classifications audit-proof?
Yes. traideCompliance provides a complete AI justification with source references for every classification, downloadable as a PDF. At Gretsch-Unitas, this use is officially anchored in the organizational instruction to the main customs office in Stuttgart.

What if product information is incomplete?
The AI can extract product features from technical drawings, free-text inputs, and URLs. Even a product image from the internet is sufficient as a basis for a reliable classification.

How long does the implementation take?
Getting started begins with a structured Proof of Concept. At Gretsch-Unitas, the test phase started in early 2025 and led to the productive go-live on October 20, 2025, parallel to the SAP S/4HANA migration.