Case Study - Sourcing and the Design of Furniture (Glass Tables) to support Visual Product Range
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The Challenge
Our customer is a leading distributor of IT & Technology products in Ireland. The company wished to source and collaboratively design products which would complement their visual product range. Our task was to source top of the range glass table furniture which could be sold in tandem with large LCD and/or Plasma TV screens. With safety, appearance, utility and cost as our key criteria, our challenge was to identify sources and designs which would attract customer interest and ultimately, a large attach rate to LCD / TV sales.
SerCom's Solution
This project benefited from the collaboration of SerCom's locally based China sourcing team working closely with our Dublin HQ based SQEs and Materials Management resources. Within four weeks of customer engagement, two major suppliers were selected and the shipment of samples was sent to the customer for final approval.
SerCom implemented a number of design changes prior to launch including an extension of the top surface (fixing section) to allow more coverage for larger screens. The product launch has been a resounding success and demand for these products has been high. The SerCom team now supports ongoing requirements through PO placement, continuous QA and factory visits, freight management and through the planning of product updates. Weekly meetings and conference calls are held with the customer to provide updates on existing orders and to agree new launch dates for product changes and/or additional products.
Particular emphasis had to be placed on packaging and freight management to ensure full protection for the glass as well as complying with weight restrictions which are imposed by all freight carriers. Freight costs also have to be closely managed and the customer was able to fully avail of SerCom's global freight rates. For obvious reasons, it was agreed with all parties to ship product as a flat pack.
SerCom has worked with both our client and supplier to ensure the end-customer experience is highly positive. As the product is in flat pack format, special care was taken with the assembly instructions to ensure quick assembly, the elimination any possible areas for confusion and ultimately maximum customer satisfaction. These initiatives resulted in the end customer assembly time being reduced by 50% to 20 minutes. A kit containing spare assembly items such as screws has been provided to each retailer to ensure that regardless of damage, loss or shortage, the customer will have immediate access to replacement items.
A number of delivery options are available including direct shipments to customers (retailers) as well as nearby hubbing facilities enabling weekly/daily call-offs. A suite of reports has been developed and automatically generated for the customer covering all aspects of business requirements
SerCom Solutions' web development team also designed a web-based database portal which enables the customer to gain access to the most updated product specifications including assembly instructions, artwork, product listings (pictorial and by part number), and to place orders which are immediately reflected as Customer Orders onto our SAP system.
The Results
- Customer experienced a successful product launch which was fully enabled and supported by SerCom
- A highly satisfactory end customer experience has been enabled by thorough testing of end customer product assembly scenarios and provision of spare parts at retailers
- Our client has a cost effective and highly reliable supply chain for these products enabling them grow their business
- SerCom provides proactive design input and has proven ability to alter designs as well as ship multiple designs per order
- Significant cost reductions have been delivered to the client as a result of design innovation
- SerCom effectively manages customer orders, inventory management, planning and P.O. placement
Performance metrics are maintained and frequent reviews are held with customers, freight forwarders and suppliers re business levels and cost reduction programme.