Daikin Europe is a leading provider of heating, cooling, ventilation, air purification, and refrigeration technology for residential, commercial, and industrial applications. With a wide range of products and solutions, Daikin is committed to creating a healthier and more sustainable living environment.

To take their product information management to the next level, Daikin Europe partnered with Yellowground and implemented Stibo Systems STEP as their new Master Data Management (MDM) platform.

THE CHALLENGE

For over ten years, Daikin Europe had been using SAP MDM to manage their product information. This system was integrated with various online and offline content platforms. However, due to increasing demand for product diversity and innovative, eco-friendly solutions, the product portfolio expanded significantly. While this created new sales opportunities, it also brought challenges in managing, enriching, and distributing product and marketing data.

Additionally, several technical and organizational challenges arose, including:

• More complex data models: The need to group and segment product data for various business applications.
• Multi-level data governance: SAP MDM lacked a relationship-based model, leading to inefficient data management processes.
• Streamlined data input: A structured workflow was required to efficiently and accurately enter and approve data.
• User-friendly interface: An intuitive web interface was essential for the daily operations of marketing and product teams.
• Version control: The old system lacked version management, making product updates cumbersome.
• Compliance and regulations: The new system needed to comply with industry standards such as ETIM, 2BA, and Fab-Dis.
• Scalability and performance: The new MDM solution had to be future-proof and ready for expansion into new markets.

OUR APPROACH

Yellowground worked closely with Daikin Europe’s team to implement a robust and flexible MDM solution that meets their business needs.

Key steps we took:

1. Designing a flexible data model: Stibo Systems STEP utilizes a layered product structure, enabling efficient data management and inheritance across different levels.
2. Data governance and workflows: By assigning clear responsibilities at each product level, efficiency was increased, and the risk of errors was minimized.
3. User-friendly interface: We created an intuitive web environment with dashboards, widgets, and search functions to streamline daily tasks.
4. Version control: The built-in version management feature of Stibo Systems STEP allows users to track and revert changes when needed.
5. Compliance and regulations: Integration with standards like ETIM and 2BA ensures consistent and accurate product data exchange.
6. Scalability and multilingual support: Thanks to its flexible architecture and support for 35 languages, Daikin can easily expand into new markets and regions.
7. Integration with local affiliates: Local teams can now manage and customize their product data without compromising central governance.

RESULTS

The transition to Stibo Systems STEP has enabled Daikin Europe to manage product information more efficiently and significantly improve data quality. The layered product structure and workflows make it easier to maintain consistency and keep product information up to date, while the intuitive web interface streamlines the daily work of product and marketing teams. Additionally, integration with industry standards such as ETIM, 2BA, and Fab-Dis ensures standardized and accurate data exchange.

The future-proof and scalable architecture of the system allows for further expansion and digitalization, ensuring Daikin is well-positioned to optimize its product information management even further. In the next phase of our collaboration, more local affiliates will be integrated, and further system optimizations and expansions will be implemented.

Looking for an MDM system for your organization? Get in touch with us! We’d be happy to explore a solution that perfectly aligns with your needs and ambitions.