Shoe-D-Vision get in step with IBM iSeries server
Overview
The Challenge: Growing business created a need to better manage stock and order control and respond more quickly to business opportunities
The Solution: Domino applications running on an IBM e iSeries Model 270 Dedicated Server for Domino (DSD)
The Benefit: The extranet running on iSeries has delivered significant increases in the speed and quality of service Shoe-D-Vision offers to its shops.
The Story
Scandinavian company Shoe-D-Vision takes a giant leap forward with an IBM e- iSeries extranet solution, delivering massive improvements in internal and external communications.
Shoe-D-Vision is a wholesaler of shoes, supplying a total of 180 shops in Norway and Denmark. The company is owned by a consortium of shoe manufacturers and handles annual sales and distribution worth € 67 million from its office in Denmark.
An extranet running on iSeries has delivered significant increases in the speed and quality of service Shoe-D-Vision offers to its shops. The solution is revolutionising the communication between its staff and those working in the shops, allowing them to better manage their stock and order control and respond more quickly to business opportunities.
Says Asger Simonsen, Information Technology Manager, "We have directly improved the shops' ability to sell the products we distribute on behalf of manufacturers. The iSeries extranet has boosted our productivity, improved the flow of information both internally and externally and will cut our long-term costs, as well as increasing sales."
Fast-paced benefits
Prior to the iSeries solution, if Shoe-D-Vision had the opportunity to distribute a large consignment of shoes at a discounted price, there was no way of quickly finding out which shops would be interested. Its only point of contact with them was by telephone, so it was impossible for the company to react quickly enough to move all the stock.
When the system has been rolled out across all 180 shops, there will be a total of 800 log-in users covering some 1,500 employees. The system will automatically present each user with a portal specifically tailored to his or her needs, revolutionising the communication between Shoe-D-Vision and its network of shops.
Asger Simonsen comments, "With the extranet, we can make time-sensitive offers and information available instantly to the right people. The solution is currently used by five shops and is being implemented in the remainder."
He adds, "We will use it for transferring orders, sales and stock information in both directions, for more interactive business processes. Ultimately, the iSeries extranet solution will transform our business performance and boost efficiency."
Share the wealth
Previously, all ordering and communication was done over the telephone, which was both time-consuming and costly. The new solution, a suite ofDomino applications running on an iSeries Model 270 DSD, automates and increases the efficiency of business-critical information sharing. Clients in the shops access the Domino extranet via standard Web browsers, so the solution is highly cost-effective.
Lotus* iNotes* delivers powerful Domino messaging, collaboration, and e-business capabilities to Web browser users, giving them full Lotus Notes* functionality with centralised management and deployment.
Says Asger Simonsen, "iNotes lets us share information quickly and easily and we also use Lotus QuickPlace, which has enabled us to set up a secure workspace on the Web. It's far easier to manage our relationships with the stores and our business processes now extend to include them."
Productivity has been further increased by Lotus Sametime, an instant messaging and online meeting tool that allows fast, efficient communication between team members, whether internal or external.
Running smoothly
The extranet allows shops to access all the latest information at any time of the day, which enables them to manage their stock and order control with great flexibility, ease and speed. According to Asger Simonsen, "The solution will become more efficient as more shops use it. Eventually, we will no longer need snail mail or phones, because all communications will be instantaneous via the extranet."
Shoe-D-Vision selected the iSeries to run its extranet solution on the strength of its existing iSeries enterprise resource planning solution. "We have been running successfully on iSeries for a long time," says Asger Simonsen, "and we are convinced that it is the most secure and stable platform available. It delivers the security we need to transform our business processes."
