Synopsis
In the business of construction, there is no room for error and no tolerance for delay. That is why a leading supplier of construction material turned to Coforge. We created a bi-lingual mobile application that delivered more value to the client's sales teams—with instant access to critical information and the ability to create opportunities at their fingertips, enabling greater productivity and profitability on-the-go.
About the Client
The client is one of the world’s major suppliers of cement and aggregates (gravel and sand), concrete, and construction-related services.
Business Challenge
The client was grappling with delays in processing sales orders through ERP, ad-hoc delivery commitments to clients, and limited account information to negotiate payments. To overcome these challenges, they wanted to build a mobile application that could empower their teams with various sales-related functionalities—anytime, anywhere.
Our Solution
We developed a custom mobile application —mSALES, which is a mobile extension of SAP’s Sales and Distribution module. Using mSALES, the client team exercised a variety of functionalities using a GPRS-enabled mobile phone. They could create sales orders, check customer account summary for outstanding payments, and view sales and delivery reports on their mobile devices.
Some of the key technical features of the mobile application included:
Compatibility across multiple platforms (Java ME, iOS, Blackberry OS, Symbian) and various devices (Blackberry, Nokia, iPhone, and iPad) to provide a wide range of choices to end users Integration with SAP via a middleware server and establishing a mobile interface with SAP backend server and access SAP data. This integration was essential as the client has implemented SAP solutions in all its facilities across the globe. Interaction with the enterprise mobility middleware server (EMMS) using HTTP over mobile Internet. EMMS, in turn, talks to SAP over enterprise LAN using SAP’s BusinessApplication Programming Interface (BAPI) / Remote Function Call (RFC) programs and SAP Java Connector (JCO).
Delivering More Value
The core business benefits reaped by the client as a result of deploying Coforge mSALES were:
More Reach: We increased their reach by offering an alternative channel and eliminated the need for desktop devices.
More Flexibility: mSALES has no dependency on Internet connectivity—a huge boost for users as it enables them to use their mobile phones with simple GPRS connectivity. The application also provides bilingual support.
More Agility: mSALES enables real-time updates in SAP and helps manage crucial customer data in real-time.
More Effectiveness: The application improved sales and service representative productivity, resulting in higher-quality customer interactions and improved customer service.
