Marketplace Catalog Portal

Organisation

• Supplier self-registration

• Providing the data back to suppliers as well

• Information pages

• Notification of suppliers and internal product managers about processing status and problems

Imports and mappings

• Import based on the import formats from the PIM system

• Mappings of classifications and values

• Visualisation of the progress of imports by supplier/buyer/product manager

• Showing deltas and reports during import

• Integrated error management

Catalogue management

• Upload product data and images in the self-service area

• View changes between supplier catalogues and own catalogues

• View changes to newly imported products and make them available for editing

• Transfer updated data from supplier catalogues to own catalogues

• Product preview for the supplier

Data quality and validations

• Determine, display and save data and catalogue quality

• File checks (e.g. valid XML, size, key)

• Format checks (e.g. valid XML or XLS format including product ID)

• Definition of specific checks for suppliers

Automation and workflows

• Approve catalogues and prices

• Checking technical and content-related information via automation

• Workflows for supplier integration

Data model and exports

• Continuous price history at product level

• Versioning at product level

• Analysis and data provision in Excel (also for prices)

• Export of cleansed data to the supplier in various formats

Supplier catalogues can be easily uploaded in the Marketplace Catalog Portal. Suppliers can upload additional files (images, price lists, operating instructions, etc.) to supplement their catalogue and combine them with the original catalogue file to present a comprehensive source of product information. Product information is provided in a variety of formats. All common formats for importing and exporting catalogues are supported:

File formats

• BMEcat, CSV, MS Excel, XML, CUP, Oracle CUP, Fixed Width, MS Access, Pricat, Datanorm

Classifications

• Supplier-specific classifications, customer-specific classifications, standard classifications (e.g. Cl@ss, UNSPSC), industry classifications (e.g. proficl@ss)

Data upload and revision

• Documents can be uploaded as zip files for a quick manual import of catalogues and contracts

• Alternatively, the import can be done through a fully automated process that does not require manual interaction by the supplier

• The catalogue file delivered by the supplier is stored as a copy and is thus available for revision purposes

Mapping

• Classification mapping enables the assignment of standard classifications or the supplier's specific classifications to goods and material groups of the purchasing company

• Support of UOM mappings: Supplier unit systems (e.g. ANSI) can be mapped to the customer's unit system (e.g. ISO) for seamless communication with the customer's backend system

Correction of errors

• Suppliers receive a notification of any content-related errors after the import. Detailed protocols provide information about the type of error and the possibilities for fixing it.

Supplier dashboard

• Suppliers have access to their own clear dashboard, which can be customised with the help of various widgets

Buyers and product managers receive a notification by e-mail to check and approve the supplier catalogue. In the first step, the content is approved. In the second step, the buyer or product manager checks the prices. Afterwards, the supplier catalogues are automatically transferred to the catalogue search. Product data is automatically checked and suppliers receive feedback as quickly as possible.

Release

• Procurement managers release the catalogues and contracts manually. Optionally, an automatic release of catalogues and contracts is possible, if the data of the supplier lies within previously defined tolerance ranges.

Validation of the catalogue data

• The purchasing organisation has the option of defining various validation rules for the supplier. The validation results are exported and sent by email to both the purchasing managers (content manager, material group manager, etc.) and the supplier.

• Possible validation rules:
  

  • Specify field lengths, mandatory fields, field types, etc.

  • Checking of classification references, UoM validation, etc.

  • Deposit of permissible commodity groups

  • Further validation rules can be created according to individual specifications of the purchasing department.

Cleansing during the catalogue integration

• The cleansing of the data already takes place before the import, resulting in homogeneous data with high quality. It can be defined whether the cleansing rules should apply to the entire catalogue, a single supplier or only to certain product groups.

• Cleansing rules: Checking of preview images, text cleansing, individually defined cleansing rules.

Enrichment of catalogue data

• Customer-specific product numbers, such as material numbers from the ERP system

• Indicators for products, for example as capital goods for the corresponding valuation in the ERP system

• G/L account assignment for items that have been newly added to the catalogue

• Depending on the customer's needs, the data enrichment can be extended as required

Trusted Source

• Trusted Source offers the possibility of automatic data enrichment. The catalogue data is independently enriched with information with the help of a defined source (= Trusted Source). In this way, missing information can be reliably added. Furthermore, data from different sources can be synchronised to an internal target catalogue by means of Trusted Source.

• Possible application examples: Supplementation of manufacturer part numbers, automatic construction of kits and bundles, addition of certain indicators (e.g. for dangerous goods or core assortment).

Contract Manager

• The Contract Manager enables an automatic comparison of newly imported catalogues with previously negotiated conditions. For example, discounts and price agreements from the stored contracts are compared with the new data.

Delta Reports

• Delta reports compare the data of the current catalogue version, which is used productively in the catalogue search, with the data of the newly imported catalogue.

• Delta reports show deleted, added and changed products and prices

• Differences are protocolled and displayed both graphically and in tabular form

Quality analyses based on standardised KPIs

• Standardised quality indicators (KPIs) are available for supplier evaluation and supplier development. They can be used to compare the catalogues of a supplier or the catalogues of different suppliers. With these standardised parameters, statements can be made about the development of a supplier over time.

KPIs include

• Percentage of articles with long description

• Long description does not correspond to the short description

• Beginning of long description differs from short description

• Unique article number

• Percentage of articles with EAN number

• Percentage of articles with manufacturer name

• Percentage of articles with manufacturer's product number

• Percentage of articles with keywords

• Percentage of products with classification assignment "eCl@ss

• Percentage of products with product relations

• Percentage of products with accessories

• Percentage of products with images

• Percentage of products with sales orders

• Keywords do not correspond to the short description