Metals and mining, Manufacturing
SAP Commerce B2B Portal and Digital Auction Platform for a Global Metals and Mining Group
SaM Solutions helped a major metals and mining group modernize its B2B sales operations with an SAP Commerce (formerly SAP Hybris Commerce) solution combining customer self-service, enterprise integrations, and digital auctions for surplus assets. The platform automated previously manual workflows, reduced back-office effort, and created a transparent digital sales channel for complex goods and equipment.
The Client wanted to improve the purchasing experience for its business customers while reducing the amount of manual coordination required from sales and back-office teams.
It needed a self-service environment where customers could complete purchasing activities online, supported by automated internal approval processes.
The company also needed a digital auction solution for selling marketable steel products, including bars and rolled metal, through transparent ascending-price bidding.
The Client selected SAP Commerce as the foundation for its new digital sales environment. SaM Solutions participated in the technical implementation as part of a joint project team.
The joint team delivered two connected solutions: a B2B ecommerce portal for selling goods and a custom Auction Module for competitive online bidding.
B2B customer self-service portal
The SAP Commerce-based portal provides business customers with a centralized environment for purchasing products and managing order-related activities.
Customers can:
- Search extensive product catalogs using advanced search functionality.
- Check product availability online.
- Place and manage orders through a self-service interface.
- Monitor order execution and fulfillment.
- Complete online payments.
- Submit and track quality-related requests and claims.
- Access relevant functionality across different sales channels.
The solution also automates hierarchical approval workflows. Orders requiring internal authorization can move through the appropriate approval levels without relying on repeated manual coordination between buyers, sales representatives, and administrative teams.
Auction Module
SaM Solutions developed a custom auction module for selling marketable steel products such as bars and rolled metal. Dutch auctions, in which the price decreases over time, were not part of this Client’s implementation. This auction format was added later to SaM Solutions’ current Auction Module for SAP Commerce Cloud.
The implemented module provides:
- Fast publication of products and auction lots
- Configuration of complex products and auction lots
- Access to an international audience
- Transparent and compliant auction procedures
- Automated sales documentation
- Advanced administration capabilities
- Automated participant notifications
- Omnichannel functionality
- Multilingual support
- Multicurrency support
Enterprise integrations
The SAP Commerce solution was integrated with the Client’s existing enterprise and production systems:
- SAP ERP
- SAP Advanced Planning and Optimization
- SAP Transportation Management
- Manufacturing execution systems
The integration layer used Data Hub, REST APIs, and SOAP services based on Apache Axis2.
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