Front end vs back end - Data infrastructure for modern e-business platforms
The company was founded in 1948 in Waldachtal, Baden-Württemberg. The family-run business, whose owner is Prof. Klaus Fischer, has production sites in seven countries and sells its products in over 100 countries. As of the end of last year, the company employed around 5,200 people worldwide and had a turnover of 864 million Euro.
Smart Commerce SE, with offices in Jena, Böblingen and Leipzig, plays a key role in supporting fisher's e-commerce business. The company aims to provide customers with long-term support in the area of e-commerce and thus contribute to their success. With its 50 employees, the company plans, develops, operates and optimises its customers' e-commerce platforms.
Smart Commerce designed fischer’s complete website and many apps. Along with search engine optimisation and support for cloud solutions, one of the most critical project milestones was the development of a search and catalogue back end that acts as a link between the PIM system and the front-end technology. The product data provided by the PIM system via the catalogue and search back end can be accessed by applications in the front end. One of the key success factors was to provide product data through a single access point, thus avoiding redundant data storage and distribution through multiple access points and ensuring that only up-to-date, accurate and consistent data is published. With this system, implemented by Smart Commerce, fischer can effectively pursue its corporate goal of offering customers the best possible online support.
But what must a front end actually be able to do? "Being able to offer a product selection targeted at specific groups was extremely important," explains Frank Schneider, member of the Smart Commerce SE Management Board. "fischer caters to professional craftsmen, retailers and industrial clients, but also do-it-yourselfers - all of whom must be approached with the right offers and provided with specific information. Planners and structural engineers, for example, require product information relevant to safety standards and regulatory compliance, while do-it-yourself enthusiasts need information on how to drill holes and fix shelves.”
To this end, product information is provided to the front end in varying levels of detail, depending on the target group. The professional craftsman can, for example, access the complete range of products and obtain all relevant information on the use, assembly and declaration of conformity of a product. Planners and structural engineers, on the other hand, may need additional information on load calculation, load capacity, etc. Retailers can download electronic catalogues according to various classification standards or relevant image data. Do-it-yourselfers can get assembly videos. In addition, depending on the target group, additional services such as CAD data downloads, software tools for load calculation and other services can be offered.
No wonder, then, that, with so many product categories and target groups, search engine optimisation is such a crucial requirement for the system. It optimises texts, synonyms, keywords and prevents duplication of content. This is a highly complex topic, which requires detailed search filters. Not only products but also documents are searched for and must be found. The PIM system must also provide this additional data - and in the end, it should also be displayed correctly and clearly on the app.
Requirements in terms of internationality and diversification
As is the case with many companies, fischer also has a wealth of different data sources, which must be maintained and processed differently depending on the specific requirements. International companies are faced with even more complex problems, since the data might be generated and/or has to be processed in different countries. Different markets and the respective national companies each have their own individual requirements. The goal is to consolidate all requirements and systems and to integrate them into a single system in order to be able to serve all applications from this system (the so-called "single source of truth"). But how to find a suitable system?
parsionate Health Check
fischer received help from the Stuttgart-based company parsionate, which initially carried out a PIM Health Check in order to assess the current state of their data. "parsionate actively supported and advised fischer in this strategic phase," explains Michael Fieg, Managing Director of parsionate. "We conducted a comprehensive market analysis taking into account internal and external aspects, specified medium- and long-term requirements and proposed alternative courses of action. In other words: We provided the management with the necessary information on which to base their decision." The goal: an optimal implementation of their digitisation strategies.
It quickly became apparent that this project was not just an IT issue; it needed to be looked at from different angles. We had to include in our analysis data, systems, processes and requirements from different departments. At the end of the process, we had a longlist and a shortlist. "We wanted to achieve high data quality, centralise all product-relevant data, enable the national companies worldwide to access product data and reduce time-to-market. We also wanted to know who would be responsible for what in the future," says Michael Fieg, summing up the complex consulting project. "It should also be possible for print catalogues to be developed centrally and consistently in order for them to be adapted and published later by the national companies to suit their respective product range with minimal effort."
Soon it became clear that the software provider Informatica offered the most appropriate solution for a flexible and reliable data architecture. The system could meet requirements such as cost reduction while simultaneously providing more and more consistent product data because it streamlines the data creation processes and is, therefore, more cost-efficient. In order to further support the growth and development of a company, specific groups should be targeted with tailored offerings, compliance requirements should be met, and data quality increased. "The most important factor for choosing Informatica, however, was that it was deemed future-proof,” concludes Frank Schneider. "We don't know what tomorrow will bring. It is not just a matter of implementing the current requirements. We want to invest in a solution that will provide us with the flexibility we need in the future to further strengthen fischer's leadership in innovation."
Do you want to learn more about the project? Talk to us and make the most of your data. With the PIM Health Check, you will not only be provided with a detailed and objective analysis of your systems, data quality, processes and employee qualifications, but you will also gain a clear picture of the current state of your infrastructure and get practical recommendations on how to optimise it.