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Vitra
Tiles
3 . Business Opportunity & Objectives
3.1 Background to Opportunity
Vitra had traditionally sold its products to retail outlets in Ireland
and through distributors and large multiples in the UK, France, Germany,
Belgium, Norway and Turkey. UK sales and marketing were handled through
a UK sister company, Vitra (UK) Ltd. However Vitra (UK) Ltd. is a sanitary
ware marketing company with no specific expertise in the ceramic tile
market. Consequently, the company decided to operate all its sales and
marketing functions from the Arklow office.
The challenge was how to create easy customer access to sales staff in
Arklow, information on product availability and price, technical information,
and the ability to raise orders directly with the factory. The eBusiness
project was designed to facilitate these customers by providing a channel
for low-cost access to the company’s database. Also, the field sales
force would be able to log on to Vitra’s network to query stock levels,
customer accounts, and check order progress.
The company had operated a sophisticated customer order management system,
using a software package called Protean. Under this system, each customer
is assigned to an internal sales agent who is responsible for order taking,
ensuring the order is placed in the production plan, and following it
through manufacture to delivery. During this process the sales agent keeps
the customer informed of progress and responds to any customer queries.
Protean facilitates this process by tracking order progress through manufacturing
to delivery. The eBusiness project was designed to enable the customer
to participate by logging on to the network and accessing the same information
directly from his/her PC. Technical information such as standards, recommended
usage and design information was also made available for download.
3.2 Objectives
The specific objectives were as follows:
- Create
customer lock-in by offering:
- A much
improved level of service
- Demonstration
of expertise in ceramic tiling applications
- Information
that could be automatically integrated into customer’s
own business processes
- Create
market recognition of the breadth of Vitra’s
product range
- Reduce
selling and advertising expenses by substantially
reducing the need for the production and distribution
of catalogues and freeing up sales and marketing
staff to focus on customer service
- Meet
market expectations around integrating production,
sales and customer service processes in manufacturing-based
industries
- Integrate
ERP systems (ERP - see sidebar) in Ireland and Turkey
to avoid repetition of data input and overall integration
of data
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