Web-based Product Catalogue

Company Profile

Founded in 1963, the Tatra Plastics Group specialises in injection moulding, profile and tube extrusion, structural foam, expanded EVA, elastomeric foams, UPVC and a wide range of engineering plastics.

Business Requirements

Tatra Plastics Group had a requirement to implement a web-based product catalogue on their Internet portal to allow customers to browse and search through the Tatra product database on-line. Beacon were asked to design and develop a search engine for the catalogue to enable potential clients to enter part numbers to search for with the results presented as a subsection of the catalogue. In addition, a drill down feature was required to present a series of questions to the user, e.g. "would you like a castor or wheel?", "what would be the load bearing of the wheel?". The answers to these questions would then be used as parameters to a search query. Tatra Plastics also required advice on other search methods using a text-based form and browsing techniques. A system log was also required to log particular events in a database.

Our Solution

Beacon worked with Tatra Plastics to provide a full service comprising consultancy, software design, development & deployment. We developed the Drill Down search method which asked the user a series of questions and gathered information concerning the user's search requirements. After answering the questions, Beacon provided the user with a search result page displaying a list of products matching the specified criteria. The Part Number search was implemented in a similar way to the Drill Down search, asking for the part number or a section of the part number. Both search methods used a common format to present results to the user displaying each product next to an email link to Tatra Plastics with a request for samples. Beacon also developed a System Log which logged events such as User Search Request (recording the values entered by the user and the number of results returned), and Order Request (logging details when a user requests a sample or places an order). A web page was also developed to enable the results of the system log to be viewed on-line with facilities to clear and filter the log. During the project, additional facilities were added for exact matches, ranges for numeric fields, multiple selection of materials, and a quantity page for order numbers.

Technology used

· · · · Microsoft Access database ASP JavaScript HTML