Technical Capability

E-Sales Center

E-sales center has all of us at Niagara Plumbing Supply extremely excited. This product is a full suite of web-based tools that is fully integrated with our ERP system. E-sales will fully extend our computer system to the web giving customers the ability to

source, price, procure, expedite, and track product from within our website.

Not only will customers be able to do all of the things mentioned above but also they will be able to quickly find product that they have purchased in the past and quick purchase previously purchased products or entire orders. The E-sales center is designed using the latest XML (extensible markup language) technology so that when customer's requirements change the software can adapt.

Niagara Plumbing Supply Company Ltd has just completed an implementation of a new ERP (enterprise resource management) computer system. We will, in the very near future be offering both EDI and web based e-sales systems.

The EDI solution consists of:

Maps: (4010 EDI Pro Standard defined by the NAED Association)

Transaction                    # Name                                                        Direction

810                                  Invoice                                                      Outbound to Customer

850                                  Purchase Order                                            Inbound from Customer

855                                  Purchase Order Acknowledgment                   Outbound to Customer

856                                  Ship Notice/Manifest                                   Outbound to Customer

The web based solution will contain:

-               Online management of orders and quotes.

-               Real time product availability lookups and bookings

-               Delivery online of the standard transaction documents (same as EDI)

-               E-mail notification services

VMI (Vendor Managed Inventory)

Vendor Managed Inventory model: The distributor receives electronic data (usually EDI or via the Internet) that tells him the customer's sales and stock levels. The distributor can view every item that the customer requires as well as true point of sale data. The distributor is responsible for creating and maintaining the inventory plan. Under VMI, the distributor generates the order, not

the customer. Personalized VMI is much the same as the above scenario but with the added physical management of a sales rep counting, maintaining and evaluating customer stock levels on-site.

Conclusions

Niagara Plumbing Supply has made a considerable investment in information technology management because the important thing is the information; information is what allows both sides of the supplier/customer relationship to be accurate, efficient and profitable.

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