Magento eCommerce Integration with SAP Business One and Courier Systems
Polymax Ltd. is a leading designer, manufacturer and distributor of a diverse range of rubber products. To enable expansion, the company identified that it needed to improve its automated order processing workflow and customer service levels through Magento eCommerce integration with ERP. It decided to implement and integrate Magento and SAP Business One alongside its existing courier systems DPD and City Link in order to automate and streamline key business processes.
Primary Applications Used: SAP Business One, Magento, DPD
“By using Codeless Platforms’ BPA Platform, we have made significant time savings in the business, most notably in the warehouse where 5 hours per day have been saved.” Rishi Nijhawan, Managing Director, Polymax Ltd.
Magento eCommerce integration with SAP Business One and courier services
Company Details
Polymax Ltd. is part of an international group that has been at the forefront of the design, manufacture and distribution of a diverse range of rubber products for over 40 years. More than 20,000 product lines are delivered in the UK and overseas.
The Challenge
- Implement automated order processing
- Magento eCommerce integration with SAP Business One, DPD and City Link
- Improve customer experience
- Eradicate repetitive, time consuming and costly order processing data entry
The Solution
- Replace existing systems with SAP Business One and Magento
- Automate, integrate and improve efficiencies
- Automate Direct Debit checks
The Results
- 5 hours saved per day—1300 hours per annum
- 12 processes automated
- All areas of business functionality enhanced
Improve the order process workflow and customer service levels
As Polymax expanded and the volume of daily orders began to increase, the company quickly identified that the existing systems and processes weren’t coping very well. The large amount of manual administration required to process each order was becoming prohibitive. There was a danger that the high customer service levels already attained by Polymax could be affected.
The company places as much importance on low value orders as it does on high value orders. However, to ensure that processing low value orders remained viable, Polymax recognised that the order workflow needed to be more efficient.
“Our key objectives were to enhance our customer service levels, integrate the separate systems, improve the order process workflow and export abroad,” stated Rishi Nijhawan, Managing Director, Polymax Ltd.
“Our key objectives were to enhance our customer service levels, integrate the separate systems, improve the order process workflow and export abroad”
Rishi Nijhawan, Managing Director, Polymax Ltd.
Integrate separate systems
Like many businesses, Polymax had a number of separate systems that were not integrated. This resulted in lots of manual re-keying and the potential for data anomalies. Reducing the amount of administrative tasks required to keep these separate systems in sync was another key priority for Polymax.
Export products and services overseas
The company was keen to expand the business by exporting their products and services. However the existing systems and processes were making this difficult to achieve.
Replacing existing systems
The first step that Polymax took, with regards to solving the challenges that the company faced, was deciding to replace some of the existing systems. The company embarked on an extensive research project, initially looking at ERP/CRM solutions and eCommerce platforms.
It was during this review process that Polymax first became aware of the additional benefits that business process automation (BPA) tools could offer. Although SAP Business One and Magento platforms provided all the functionality that Polymax required, there were limitations when it came to tailoring the systems to meet the exact workflow capabilities. This is where the capabilities of Codeless Platforms’ BPA Platform came into play.
“Through our evaluation process, we realised that additionally deploying Codeless Platforms’ BPA Platform would dramatically improve the efficiency of our business processes.” Rishi Nijhawan, Managing Director.
Proven Magento integration solutions
The rich functionality and proven integration with all the systems on the shortlist, meant that Polymax Ltd were confident that Codeless Platforms’ BPA Platform was the right solution to choose.
Polymax Ltd ultimately decided to deploy a new eCommerce platform (Magento) and ERP/CRM (SAP Business One) solution alongside the courier systems already in place. The tools available with Codeless Platforms’ BPA Platform made it very straightforward to link all of these separate systems together and provide the automation that the business needed to improve their processes. The results were impressive.
“We realised that additionally deploying Codeless Platforms’ BPA Platform would dramatically improve the efficiency of our business processes”
Rishi Nijhawan, Managing Director, Polymax Ltd.
Magento Orders downloaded automatically
One of the key benefits of the implementation of the Data Integration and Synchronisation add-on is that the order information is automatically transferred from Magento to SAP Business One. Employees no longer have to manually re-enter any data. This has not only saved time and money but has also eliminated data errors.
Improved customer experience
Providing high levels of customer service is of paramount importance to Polymax. In addition to making sure that the order information in the ERP/CRM solution is 100% correct, Codeless Platforms’ BPA Platform has significantly improved other key areas of the order process workflow.
The Notifications and Alerts capability informs the customer automatically of the order status by emailing tracking and dispatch information, along with invoices, at the appropriate time. As a result, Polymax has dramatically reduced the number of phone calls taken from customers requesting this type of information. The associated time and cost savings mean that Polymax is still able to accept and process low value orders and therefore appeal to a wider range of customers.
“By using Codeless Platforms’ BPA Platform, we have made significant time savings in the business, most notably in the warehouse where five hours per day have been saved,” claimed Nijhawan.
Automating courier dispatch processes
The Data Integration and Synchronisation capability has also been used to great effect at the dispatch end of the order process for both courier companies used. The delivery details no longer have to be manually entered. The delivery labels are automatically generated and printed after the “pick and pack” process is complete. This has eliminated data errors and resulted in significant time savings.
“We have made significant time savings in the business, most notably in the warehouse where five hours per day have been saved.”
Rishi Nijhawan, Managing Director, Polymax Ltd.
Achieving the initial Magento eCommerce integration goals
Polymax puts the customer first and therefore the benefits of implementing BPA Platform with a new eCommerce platform and ERP/CRM solution were completely focused on improving the customer experience.
Making the business processes more efficient, increasing the customer service levels and being able to export abroad, has meant that the initial implementation goals have been achieved. But what about the future?
Polymax is confident that it now has the solid foundations in place to move the business forward. Although the focus up until this point has been on personal customers (B2C), the company now wants to turn its attention to business customers (B2B).
One area that has been highlighted is uploading information from ERP/CRM solution into the eCommerce platform. Polymax want to be able to provide stock and tiered pricing for its B2B customers and is looking to the BPA Platform to provide the appropriate link between the systems.
To summarise, Polymax has already seen numerous benefits as a result of implementing Codeless Platforms’ BPA Platform. The company is therefore keen to apply the functionality to other business areas.
“Now that we have seen how much the tools and add-ons can benefit our business, we are looking forward to applying the functionality to other areas,” concluded Nijhawan.
Codeless Platforms specialises in Magento ERP integration and provides cost-effective and market leading Magento integration services through its drag and drop business process automation and system integration solution, BPA Platform. For more information on how you can integrate Magento with your ERP system and other on-premises or cloud-based business applications, download the brochure below, or call us on +44 (0) 330 99 88 700.
