• Arvato Systems has developed two e-catalogs for GF Machining Solutions and its subsidiary System 3R
• Thanks to the faceted search, users can – in addition to technical data such as maximum size and weight – also search for criteria such as machine groups and types, technologies, or functions and thus find the desired products much more quickly

Arvato Systems has won the Swiss Georg Fischer AG as a new customer. The IT service provider has developed, technically implemented, and integrated two e-catalogs: for the GF Machining Solutions division, a leading global provider of complete solutions for manufacturers of precision parts and tools and mold making, and its System 3R subsidiary. The functional highlight of the catalog solutions is the faceted search: Users can search – in addition to technical data such as maximum size and weight – for criteria such as machine groups and types, technologies, or functions. This makes it much easier and faster for them to find the products they seek. After they select the e-catalog, the sales department automatically receives an inquiry. The sales staff can then directly create the digital offer – which increases the efficiency of the sales process enormously.

During the project’s first phase, Arvato Systems replaced GF Machining Solutions’ previous product information management system with the product information management (PIM) solution integrated into SAP Commerce Cloud and consolidated, sorted, and structured around 5,000 items. In the course of this, it was necessary to improve the quality of the product images on the part of GF Machining Solutions. The e-catalog went live after only four and a half months. For System 3R, Arvato Systems created new and structured product-specific data, such as high-quality product images and descriptions, including around 20 features per product. This data flows into the company’s e-catalog for System 3R and that of GF Machining Solutions. The first project phase with both live processes took only six months.

One backend, two frontends

The SAP Composable Frontend creates the technological basis for headless commerce: product-specific data and information can be prepared for different user interfaces and efficiently played out in various channels as a single-page application on different operating devices. Thanks to this architecture, it is possible to output the data stored in the central PIM system in the e-catalogs and other frontends, such as the company’s websites. In this way, the product teams not only save themselves duplicate maintenance efforts but also reduce the operating costs for the SAP-hosted SaaS solution SAP Commerce Cloud[SN1].

Projects implemented on time and within budget

"The fact that both e-catalogs were online after six months exceeds our expectations," says a delighted Antonio Faccio, Head of Customer Services at GF Machining Solutions. "We are very pleased with how smoothly this lighthouse project, which is important for us, went over." In the project’s second phase, different product groups must be migrated to the GF Machining Solutions e-catalog. Arvato Systems is currently working on the concept. "We maintain long-standing relationships with many of our customers and add many new functions and enhancements to the existing solutions," says Christian Schäfer, Product Business Owner E-Commerce at Arvato Systems. "Not so with GF Machining Solutions. Here, a new strategic e-commerce architecture was selected and implemented." Arvato Systems accompanied the e-catalog projects from the beginning: from consulting and conception to software selection and technical implementation to data integration and migration.

The result can be viewed at https://ecatalog.gfms.com and https://ecatalog.system3r.com.