New international website with B2B shop for Bürkert
During the project with silver.solutions we always felt that we received very competent and honest advice. Competent contact persons meant that questions and problems were solved promptly and constructively. We particularly appreciate their flexibility and their ability to keep a cool head even during critical project phases, which helped us find efficient solutions.
Mirko Hufnagel, Content & Integration Management Team, Bürkert Werke GmbH
Overview
Bürkert has commissioned silver.solutions with the implementation of a website based on the content module of Ibexa DXP. The aim was to create an international website for 29 countries in 16 language versions. In addition to the website, a second project, a comprehensive B2B shop with a number of additional functions and connection to SAP and to a PIM and MAM system, was to be implemented using the commerce module Ibexa Commerce.
The solution in detail
The new Bürkert website is based on a user-centred approach and has a fresh, contemporary design. The design was implemented using cutting-edge web technologies, which allow the content to be also made available to tablets and smartphones (responsive design). Fork Unstable Media is responsible for the front-end concept, design and front-end implementation.
The technical basis of the website is the high-performance CMS Ibexa Content of the Ibexa DXP. Its multi-language capability and flexible content engine means that the content module is ideally suited for the implementation of international websites. Bürkert's website is currently available in 16 languages. The CMS's extensive system of roles and rights perfectly maps the company structure made up of national branches and regional representations. Editors from 27 countries are currently working on their specific content.
The CMS provides the editors with many different flexible design options. It alows the dynamic creation of various overview pages and list views. The editors can use boxes and other elements to design and modify their pages. A form generator allows employees to create online forms, and integrate and publish them. A hotspot editor can be used to create images with clickable areas (hotspots), which can act as tooltips or links. The web analysis tool provides customer and sales analyses, which visualises the customer journey and identifies weak points and optimisation potential this way.
The new Bürkert website now offers business customers the option of ordering products online. The integrated B2B shop was implemented based on the e-commerce solution Ibexa Commerce and enables real-time access to SAP (via ESB). The product catalogue, which is available online, contains more than 5000 products. In addition, more than 300,000 products are available through the quick-order function. The visibility of the products can be controlled for each country individually through SAP. The online shop merges product data from various sources and presents these centrally and clearly. This is done using flexible interfaces to the product information management system (PIM) and to the media asset management system (MAM). Tools such as the fluidics calculator and the 3D view (Cadenas system) provide users with significant additional benefits.
Customers who are logged in have access to the order function of the web shop and to the customer service area. The customer service area forms the core of the return function (RMA). For the return management a complex, multi-stage process was implemented, which uses Ajax to request all RMA-relevant data from the SAP at runtime.
The online shop has an extensive search and filtering function for the complex Bürkert products. The search engine, which is integrated into the CMS, is used for this. The search and filtering function scans several hundreds of product features and provides customers with a filtered list of results. The shop will initially be launched in four European countries: Germany, the UK, Spain and the Netherlands. More countries will be added gradually.
To ensure the performance of the platform, the provider uses clustering and load balancing. In addition, the service provider Akamai delivers media files (images, documents).
The result
Through its new website and B2B shop Bürkert is now able to offers its customers the best possible advice online. The website and the shop can be used around the clock on all devices. The Ibexa DXP is the ideal platform for international websites. The powerful B2B shop system Ibexa Commerce can be used to present the extensive product catalogue in the best possible way. Flexible interfaces ensure seamless connection to the company's existing systems.
After the successful completion of the first phase of the project, silver.solutions and Bürkert will work on the next phase, which includes a product comparison feature and a recommendation engine, among other things.
