PiLog - MDRM
The PiLog ® MDRM – Product Catalogue Manager is the ideal solution for the management and maintenance of a buyer catalogue residing in the material master of an ERP system, e-commerce buying solutions or for suppliers to manage their catalogues for e-commerce trading. It is designed to ensure consistency in the cataloguing process and to deliver well structured descriptions in accordance with international standards.
The software is Java based and is flexible, modular, scalable and suitable as a standalone system for small companies with basic cataloguing needs. It can also be deployed over the internet to fulfill the sophisticated catalogue management needs of a large global corporate company with distributed business units and a variety of ERP solutions.
The following are some of the standard features of the PiLog ® MDRM - Product Catalogue Management module:
- Utilize any of the major global cataloguing standards, USC, eOTD, MESC, UNSPSC, etc.
- Standardized templates used to guide the cataloguer.
- Use available data - clarify and identify missing data elements.
- Powerful and accurate search and item identification engine.
- Create structured and standardized practical short descriptions, including SAP 40 character short descriptions.
- Create clear, concise and complete purchasing descriptions to uniquely describe each item.
- Identify potential duplicates using part numbers or attribute values.
- Simple to use, no specialized codification skills required.
- Enhanced bulk data entry, standardization and description generation features.
- Potential duplicate resolution processes to de-duplicate the item master.
- Manage common items across warehouses and business units.
- Manage a corporate catalogue across multiple business units with multiple ERP’s.
The application facilitates the linking and viewing of any amount of images and documents from a single item number. All images are stored in their native format and viewed with the native application.
ERP Integration
The PiLog ® MDRM - Product Catalogue system can be implemented as a standalone module or can be fully integrated into any ERP material master module with standard interface software such as SAP, IFS, MIMS, Maximo, etc.
Reporting
The PiLog ® MDRM - Product Catalogue Management module, as with all of the other PiLog ® modules, allows for powerful data browsing, data mining and on-the-fly report creation features. Reports are available in tabular, graphical and hierarchical formats. Data can also be exported into Microsoft Office.
Comprehensive Audit Trails
Audit trails are embedded throughout the system so that all additions and changes can be monitored.
Security
Powerful security features were incorporated during the system design allowing various levels of control at multi-tiered, as well as, across functional levels. Security can be deployed per user or role thereby not only limiting access, but also ensuring that data integrity is maintained.
Benefits
- Improved procurement practices at lower costs.
- Accurate, comprehensive and standardized descriptions lead to end users finding items in the material masters.
- Improved spend analysis for single business units, as well as, incorporate with multiple business units.
- Improved contract management, as well as, contract based buying.
- Enhanced collaborative centralized buying and contracting across business units.
- Reduced inventory due to the identification of duplicates (single warehouse) and common items (across warehouses and business units).
PiLog ® MDRM – Structured Text Generator (STG)
A very large percent of all procurement is often done by means of direct purchases (also referred to as free text purchases or maverick spend), thereby avoiding the more formal processes of procurement resulting in uncontrollable spend that cannot be analyzed for purposes of stock establishment decisions.
The PiLog ® MDRM - Structured Text Generator is a comprehensive solution consisting of a structured data pack and sophisticated embedded algorithms. This minimizes the possibility of end users procuring by means of free text descriptions items and services that could be contained within a contract or in an established company warehouse. In addition, all items that are procured directly are allocated a spend category and a structured description is generated.
Solution Features
- Guides end users to create structured descriptions of goods and services they want to procure.
- Designed for ease of use by unskilled and advanced end users.
- Powerful, feature-rich search engine searching multiple databases.
- Simple internet type searches and advanced complex type searches.
- Multiple personalize shopping baskets per end user.
- Automatically allocates purchased items and services to spend categories
Benefits
- Reduce maverick spend.
- Reduce the costs associated with procurement transactions.
- Empower end users to initiate the correct procurement process.
- Identify materials and services that should be added to the Material and Services catalogues/masters.
- Improve the utilization of contracts, materials master and service master.
- Improve spend data for spend analysis.
- Facilitate data analysis for improved contracting.
ERP Integration
The PiLog MDRM - STG is implemented fully integrated to any ERP with standard interface software, such as SAP, IFS, MIMS, Maximo, etc. The ERP is setup for end users to punch-out to the PiLog MDRM - STG to create the required item or service description, linked to the relevant associated spend category information, after which the procurement process is completed in the ERP.
Standards
The accompanying data pack is based on international standards of the clients choice. This could be the eOTD, USC, SMD, e-Class, EAN, ISO, etc.
Feature Rich Search Engine
- A variety of search options ranging from simple to advanced are available to meet the needs of all types of end users:
- Quick Searches - Google
- Tree Search
- Alphabetical Search
- Structured Search
- Detail Search
- Utilizes the embedded data pack that is based on international standards of the client’s choice.
- Search across multiple databases.
- View images to improve the identification of items.
- Multiple search criteria options with search ranges.
Each end user can have multiple shopping baskets for repetitive buying. Shopping baskets can be edited and renamed. This provides consistent buying and improves spend analysis and control.
Optional Modules
- PiLog MDRM - Structured Text Analyzer (STA)
- PiLog MDRM - Product Catalogue Manager (PCM)
- PiLog MDRM - Service Catalogue Manager (SCM)
- PiLog MDRM - Vendor Master Manager (VMM)
- PiLog MDAM - Master Data Acquisition Manager
- PiLog MDOM - Master Data Ontology Manager
A very large percent of all procurement is often done by means of direct purchases (also called free text purchases or maverick spend), thereby avoiding the more formal process of procurement resulting in non-analyzable spend that is not from negotiated contracts or from the material master.
The PiLog Structured Text Analyzer is a comprehensive solution consisting of a specialized report and graphical chart, including components that assist with the identification of cyclical and non-cyclical spending trends and procurement patterns of end-users; plant and business units in the organization. The PiLog ® MDRM - STA is integrated with the structured text generator and its historical spend data to assist the organization to drive down free text spend and will recommend structured text items to contract or to be included in the inventory.
Solution Features
- History of spend are available per user, plant or business unit.
- Spend can be analyzed per material categories, i.e. material groups.
- Spend can be analyzed per dictionary or group of dictionary elements. Different dictionaries are catered for the eOTD, USC, OSD, eClass, SMD, etc.
- Rules can be determined to flag free text items purchased regularly for possible inclusion in a contract to be made part of the inventory.
- Designed to easily be used by unsophisticated and advanced end users, easy charts and dials included.
Benefits
- Reduce maverick spend.
- Reduce the costs associated with procurement transactions.
- Empower corporate cataloguer or buyer to analyze the baskets and entries in baskets/favorites.
- Identify materials and services that should be added to the Material and Services catalogues/masters.
- Improve the utilization of contracts, material and service master.
- Facilitate decision making for improved contracting.
The PiLog ® MDRM - STG/STA is implemented and fully integrated to any ERP system with standard interface software, such as SAP, IFS, MIMS, Maximo, etc.
The ERP is set-up to force end users to do a round trip through the PiLog ® MDRM - STG to create the required item or service description, linked to the relevant associated spend category information, after which the procurement process is completed in the ERP.
Standards
The accompanying data pack is based on international standards of the clients choice. This could be the eOTD, USC, SMD, e-Class, EAN, ISO, etc.
Multiple Chart Types and Feature Rich Charting/Reporting
- A variety of chart options ranging from simple to advanced is available to meet the needs of managerial and technical end users. The following chart options are available:
- Bar Chart
- Pie Chart
- Line Chart
- Combination Charts
- Dials/Cockpits
- Crosstab or pivot tables that can be created on the fly by the end-user.
- History tables to allow the creation of time based charts and reports to identify cyclical trends
Multiple Chart Types
Each end user has the choice to do the analysis in different charting formats or different reports.
