Lösungen: B2B E‑Commerce Branchen: Digitale Transformation in der Bauindustrie

[EN] Dedicated B2B E-commerce Platform

Omnichannel commerce
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Individual customer price lists
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Scalability and integration ensured
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Die Herausforderung

SIG operates specialises in the distribution of building materials The company is part of an international corporation SIG plc, based in the United Kingdom, which has been operating since 1956 and is listed on the London Stock Exchange. SIG Group is present in 9 European countries, creating an extensive network of commercial branches, including the UK, Germany, Benelux, France and Ireland. Their products are supplied to both individual and institutional customers. In Poland, SIG has 50 branches in a distribution network that covers the whole country.

For SIG Sp. z o.o., the Polish branch of the international construction materials distributor, we implemented a dedicated B2B e-commerce platform based on PHP technology.

  • The solution is an important element of the business model, providing robust support in servicing contractors, and its primary aim was to fill a niche and respond to previously unmet needs of business customers.
  • The main objectives of the project were: to build an e-commerce platform for B2B customers, making it possible to expand the offer, and to provide the company with a market advantage.
  • It was equally important to provide salespeople with an easy-to-use sales support tool in the field.
  • The B2B e-commerce platform is also the next step in the implementation of the company’s omnichannel commerce strategy, aimed at greater consistency in customer service processes.
  • The platform needed to be integrated with the ERP system using the Mule ESB Data Bus, as well as with an extensive network of trade and discount agreements. This translates into the price logic in the system.

Die Lösung

  • We selected PHP technology to build a dedicated B2B platform meeting the full range of the customer’s expectations. Our extensive experience in developing such solutions allowed us to implement the necessary functionalities and adapt the platform to the requirements of a specific target group.
  • We integrated the sales platform with the customer’s existing ERP system using the ESB Data Bus – an open source solution enabling the flexible and scalable linking of applications together with real-time flow of data between them. This is particularly important when presenting individual price lists, exchanging information on products and orders, and on-time updating of stock levels.
  • A hierarchical structure of contractors enables the management of an advanced system of access rights at the individual employee level.
  • Individual price lists allow the presentation of defined prices, discounts and commercial terms for individual customers, analogous to the traditional channel. It is also possible to present more than one price for the needs of a particular industry, depending on the place of delivery.
  • Advanced filters make it easier for contractors to search the product database and choose the best solutions.
  • Product recommendations enable the presentation of complementary goods, substitutes and accessories – in turn supporting up-selling and cross-selling.
  • System calculators are functionality dedicated to the building supply market. For example, the user can enter the surface area of a given wall type and the system automatically prompts all the necessary products including quantities for each of them. It also allows one-click purchase of products from the calculator.
  • An extended CMS facilitates central management of all information and functions.
  • Shopping lists enable contractors to plan their purchases without taking products from inventory.
  • An offer module facilitates the creation, editing and forwarding of a bid to a client by a client (e.g. to an investor by a contractor).
  • The project was executed pursuant to Agile PM management methodology, which facilitated flexible decision making and brought quick results.

Das Ergebnis

Implementing an omnichannel commerce strategy
A successive stage in the implementation of the Omnichannel Commerce Strategy and a new, effective channel for customer service.
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>1,000
Increasing number of users
Over 1,000 registered users in the system.
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Individual price lists
Possibility of presenting individual price lists to each customer.
<individual.prices>
Scalability and integrations ensured
Readiness for expansion and scalability as well as integration with existing internal systems.
<functionality.expanded>
A well chosen user context
The possibility to order goods giving the address of the construction site or for pickup at a SIG branch, along with synchronization with the inventory.
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