The Vendor Catalogue Issue
Imagine this: you're a procurement manager who needs to handle (= work with, forward, and, most importantly, import)
product information from several partners or suppliers. Some send you Excel sheets, others PDFs, and occasionally someone might even give you a printed brochure. Surprisingly, such suppliers still exist.
As a result, your team may spend weeks, sometimes even months,
manually inputting and transcribing the data into your system (ERP, CMS, e-commerce solution — you name it). This is not only a very time-consuming task (and, quite frankly, boring) but leaves plenty of room for human error. Think missed updates, mistyped numbers, or even forgotten entries — not exactly the modern way of running a company.
When
international standards, such as ETIM or GS1 enter the scene, the situation gets even more complicated — product info has to be updated regularly, and once in a couple of years, the standards change. That means even more manual work if you want to keep your data compliant with the standards. Which is essential in many lines of business.
Quick Note: What Are ETIM and GS1 Standards?
ETIM (European Technical Information Model) and GS1 standards are frameworks used to classify products and ensure their data is consistent across international borders. The goal of these is to make sure the consumer gets products of the same quality when purchasing electro-technical products (the ETIM standard) such as electrical wires, cords, sockets, and other products (that would be various retail items — practically any goods that are sold with a barcode on them are covered by GS1). |
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ETIM Standards
Electrical: Used extensively for classifying electrical products.
HVAC: Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning sectors rely on ETIM for product data.
Plumbing: Ensures clear specifications for plumbing products.
Building and Construction: Helps in the classification of building materials and components. |
GS1 Standards:
Retail: Facilitates product identification and supply chain management.
Healthcare: Used for tracking medical devices and pharmaceuticals.
Manufacturing: Ensures efficient data exchange in production processes.
Automotive: Helps in the identification and tracking of automotive parts. |
PIM System: Your Data Management Lifesaver
The situation described in the previous section is not far-fetched at all. It’s still a reality in more traditional industries. Both
ETIM and GS1 standards are widely used across various industries to ensure efficient and accurate data exchange. These standards help streamline operations, reduce errors, and improve overall efficiency in these industries.
So, how to escape the vicious cycle of entering and updating product data manually? The answer is: get yourself a PIM system. A system that takes over product data management, streamlines and automates as much as it can. Having their data sitting well-organised and neat in a clever system that does most of the work for you is a great help for companies that:
- manage a large number of products (think hundreds or thousands),
- need to comply with industry standards,
- deal with various data sources in various formats.
Take our system for product data management — PIMICS as an example. Provided your supplier produces at least a
digital sheet (like Excel or CSV), PIMICS simplifies the process of importing supplier data immensely.
Creating a Template for Supplies Sheets
The first step is “teaching” PIMICS to read a digital sheet from your supplier. We call it
mapping — during which the system basically creates a blueprint for reading your supplier's data sheet. We need to define which columns correspond to specific data, such as price, material, etc. While this process isn’t fully automated (yet), it’s a small learning curve that pays off in spades. Plus, the first mapping process is something we always help our clients with.
Once you’ve got a sheet mapped out, the next time you receive a sheet from the same supplier,
PIMICS processes the data automatically. No more manual entry. No more data out of date.
In fact, what used to take months — especially if you're dealing with thousands of products — takes just a couple of days with PIMICS. This not only
saves you time and money but also
makes your business stand out among competition. For companies that need to fit in a traditional supply chain and meet demanding requirements on delivered product data from their clients, having a PIM system could be the fastest route to
compliance!
Benefits of Automated Product Information Management
Let’s put this into perspective with a couple of examples of two types of companies that would surely benefit from implementing a PIM system:
- A Global Retailer: A retailer sourcing products from 30 different suppliers across three continents implements PIMICS. After mapping their vendor sheets, they go from managing product data manually for over two months to automating the process in under a week. This saves them not only time but also improves data accuracy — helping them stay compliant with ETIM standards.
- A Manufacturer: A manufacturing company juggling multiple product lines needs to update product specs frequently. With PIMICS, they cut down on the manual data input, making their product launches smoother, reducing their time-to-market and shrinking down the risk of errors by 90%.
Why PIMICS Should Be Your Next Move
In a nutshell, PIMICS can be compared to giving your product information management process a much-needed upgrade. It doesn’t just speed things up — it ensures accuracy, compliance, and consistency.
✅ No more manual data entry headaches.
✅ No more chasing after suppliers for corrections.
✅ PIMICS lets you focus on what matters the most: growing your business.
So, if you’re tired of battling messy vendor catalogues and endless spreadsheets, it might be time to explore what PIMICS can do for you. Reach out to us today to learn more or to discuss how we can streamline your product management process.
PIMICS: Revolutionising product information management, one spreadsheet at a time.