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E-Commerce / APIs
E-commerce should be a 24/7 self-service center where customers can request quotes, access order history, check pricing and availability, review order status, display receivables, print invoices, and shop for surpluses and specials, as well as place everyday sales orders, among numerous other capabilities.
Web services open up a world where businesses are able to share and request information with those they want with ease and speed like they never have before. Web Services lend themselves to the automation of inter-company transactions and solve back-end integration problems. Using standard protocols such as XML, Web services provide a way to discreetly package business applications by using API's (application programming interfaces) and make them accessible via the Internet to external databases and other applications.
Distribution and Manufacturing organizations alike will dramatically improve their customer and supplier activities by deploying real-time and automated Web services. Distributors that maintain dealer networks, such as manufacturing-distribution enterprises and key industrial distribution companies, should lead this adoption because they already have the well defined business relationships and procedures in place.
Source-integrated Web services facilitate the automation of a multitude of ongoing business activities between manufacturers, distributor, dealers, and customers, (the ecosystem). In this e-connected relationship, the “source integrator” will assume the responsibility for transaction processing and data storage, as well as providing and deploying secure Web services throughout the ecosystem. Users simply point a browser at the Web server application API to access these intuitive Web services, and conduct on demand, automated, real time, self service, transactions.
At first glance, Web Services produce two distinctly different ROI’s. Naturally, real time automation directly translates to efficiency and increased margins, but of more interest in today’s economy is competitive advantage and market share. NDS System already has a track record of delivering affordable Web Services and Real Time Enterprise operations to small and mid sized organizations.
With NDS Systems electronic commerce tools you can:
- deliver integrated CRM services that permits customers to start a transaction on the telephone and conclude it through Internet E-Commerce or vice versa.
- provide the customer's buyer with multiple shopping carts, perhaps one for each open job quoted to the customer's customer. Some customers may want to have a monthly budget for each of their buyers or plant managers, with exception reporting and predefined approval processes if budgets are exceeded.
- use NDS as a promotional tool. The customer may review purchasing history and replicate previous orders, request current quotes on items previously purchased, or review lists of favorite items, promotions and clearance products. Structured searches using product configurators, help customers locate the desired product. Customers can also access pictures, manufacturer specifications, schematics and other graphical information about products.
- be configured to provide the distributor with a unique Website. The look and feel, color, layout and every graphical element within every view is configurable according to the distributor's preferences. In addition, the individual user can tailor the interactive experience to satisfy personal preferences.
- become the gateway to your trading community, where Vendors can acknowledge purchase orders and provide product and pricing information.
Here are some of the ways our customers are reaching out to expand their business through NDS ecommerce solutions:
Customer Self-Service-Increase customer loyalty while reducing support costs. Customers can log in anytime to view their order histories, track shipments, request refunds or view quotes. Customers can also submit trouble tickets while reviewing responses to their previous inquiries, or read through a published knowledge base.
Integrated Inventory-With NDS’s integrated inventory management capabilities, changes are automatically reflected in your web store.
Order Management – Since NDS is seamless, orders are sent directly to your warehouse for fulfillment. Real-Time shipping rates, print shipping labels, assign tracking numbers to sales orders and provide shipment information to your customers 24/7.
Real-Time Dashboard Visibility-Dashboards provide managers with a customized view of business intelligence through the business, giving instant knowledge on how the business is working.
Credit Card Processing-Real-Time credit card processing, allowing you to instantly process credit card payments.
Password Protected Shopping-Enables you to create a dynamic, personalized shopping experience for your customers. Customers can view special pricing offers and product availability.
Website Deployment Tool-Use our website tool to customize/maintain pages such as Catalog or Shopping cart features.
Coupons and Promotions-Increase web traffic by attaching discounts to promotion codes.
Cross-Selling & Upselling-You can recommend other products to your customer’s based off their store selections, helping to increase your revenue. Store order history, allowing you to market based on their purchase history.
To read more on how NDS e-commerce software is helping customers, see our Solutions For Success.
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Behind the Screens Technology OR How We Do It
The majority of mainframe, minicomputer and client/server based enterprise applications currently in use today were not designed to inter-operate with internet based systems or browser based end-user clients. Web integration of these systems is difficult at best and often impossible. NDS Systems Oracle based rich and scaleable suite of financial and business operations applications are already internet and browser based systems.
As Internet projects become more complex and involve mission critical systems, demand for integration services and readily integratable applications will continue to increase. Integration can be accomplished on a point to point basis utilizing Xephr or Application Program Interfaces.
The Xephr product is a robust data integration, collaboration and presentation toolset designed to extend the investment in legacy systems to today’s technology. Xephr enables organizations to gather information confined in one or more disparate data sources and make that data usable from a single point of entry. For instance, data entry, reporting, chart and graph evaluation, account administration, sales and order processing and much more can all be developed and published using Xephr technology.
Industries involved with manufacturing, distribution and order processing benefit from the ability of the Xephr system to integrate into the ERP system and provide their customers with a single sign on web portal to allow direct order entry, tracking and inquiries using E-Commerce technology.
Solutions designed with Xephr also address many other business functions required to compete in today’s economy. Some of these functions including sales process and order tracking, wireless warehouse order fulfillment, supply tracking with barcode integration, data integration between multiple companies, web enabling ERP systems, extended XML web service design and publication, data mining solutions and much more. To find out how a Xephr solution can help your organization reduce costs and increase profits, contact an executive sales representative.
NDS also using the advantages of its technology platform to provide a series of Application Program Interfaces (APIs) which are reliable, fast and simple to deploy. These APIs enable access to the entire application; not just a few isolated points. They allow master file records of all kinds to be created and modified, all transactions relating to sales orders, purchase orders, inventory, financials, manufacturing, etc. to be recorded. All data within the application database can be retrieved into a browser through an API call using a simple URL.
The APIs have been created as database stored procedures for maximum flexibility in deployment. All APIs are fully documented with complete descriptions of the required and optional data needed by each call.
The APIs can be called in three ways:
- Through the API URL (http call). HTML pages can use the standard submit call, or Java script to processes to request database updates and inserts. Table data can be retrieved in its entirety, or selectively, or documents such as purchase orders, sales orders, invoices, etc. can be requested by key value. All data returned to the user is in the form of XML documents.
- Directly from other Oracle based applications: the API procedures can be called directly by any Oracle user which has the correct access permissions.
- By inserting rows in special interface tables: each API call has an associated table and records may be inserted into these tables. Database stored triggers then fire the appropriate API. This method is most often used by ODBC compliant applications which need to provide the NDS application with updates. This facility is also the core of the NDS bar code and EDI interfaces.
In the same way, NDS has embedded Internet available services within its functionality, such as shipment tracking, weather alerts, etc.
Customer specific applications can embed API calls to extend their own functionality, such as inquiry features within a shopping cart application.
NDS Systems web application engine and tools are built primarily with Java and XML technology. Xephr can be used as a stand-alone web application development and presentation tool. Xephr can also be used to generate custom ultra-thin web applications utilizing all or any of the NDS Systems functionality. This exciting product will produce open and integratable web-top solutions from its vast application library, in addition to providing a foundation tool for end-to-end business solutions.
Xephr provides for live generation of applications from database-stored specifications at runtime. The segregation of business logic from presentation logic within the multi-tier architecture makes it possible to customize application presentations at every level without requiring modifications in the extensive core application code base. This makes it possible to easily and efficiently create an infinite variety of industry vertical and user-specific web application solutions.
Technology Features
- XML Transport Protocol
- Xephr Engine
- Multi-Tier Architecture
- RAD page builder
- RAD PDF/HTML/XML Report builder
- Inter-operable with NDSi Oracle IDK Enterprise product
- Wireless compatible (minimum 14K)
- 100% API Business Logic
- 100% Database resident application technology
- Pocket Xephr for Pocket PC’s
Product Features
- Development tool for new web applications
- Generator tool for tailored web applications based on existing NDSi - ERP functionality
- Integration tool for discrete applications
- Extensible tool for existing web applications
- Seamless viewing tool from varied data sources (legacy systems, etc.)
- Create and deploy web services
- Provide database services to existing web applications
- Integrate web services into existing web applications
Database Technology
- Oracle 9i and 10g tested & certified
- Layered Procedures
- Record Triggers
- Updateable Views
- Record Versioning
Xephr Reporter
Xephr, also a reporting engine that is capable of generating reports and delivering them via the web in HTML, XML, or PDF form. Reports may be defined having fairly complex properties, including headers, footers, and page numbers with one or more detail areas.
Because it is implemented using J2EE standards and is deployed as such, it is not restricted to use only by Xephr. For example, a web-based query tool could use Xephr to deliver the results of a user's database query in HTML, XML, or PDF form.
