Design and Implementation of Distribution Management System Based on the
Ceramics E-business Platform
Fu-bao He1 ,Yi-lai Zhang2 , Hua Huang3
1,2,3
School of Information & Engineering, Jingdezhen Ceramic Institute ,Jingdezhen, P.R.C
(26172324@qq.com, jdzzyl@163.com, jdz_hh@qq.com)
Abstract - This paper illustrates design ideas, functions
design and implementation of the distribution management
system based on the ceramics e-business platform. The
system can open up and broaden the network distribution
channel for the ceramics manufacturing enterprises, realize
management to the network distributors through controlling
price and authorizing products classification and other
methods, and realize the integration of the traditional and
network distribution channel. Meanwhile, the system can
provide zero inventory network distribution for the ceramics
marketing enterprises or individuals (distributors) under
supervision and management of the ceramics manufacturing
enterprises, which can avoid the overstocking problem and
the trouble of the heavy investment in the traditional
distribution channel. Finally, this paper gives an application
case of the system.
Keywords - E-business, Distribution Management System,
Ceramics Manufacturing Enterprises, Network Distribution
channel
I.
INTRODUCTION
With the rapid development of the Internet and the
application of the network technology, e-business has
developed rapidly worldwide. With the globalization, low
cost, high efficiency and interactivity，e-business makes
changes not only to the enterprises’ production and
operation activities, but also to impact on the distribution
channel. The competition among enterprises gradually
transformed into the competition of distribution channel,
those who mastered the efficient distribution channel will
be able to get an unassailable position in the modern
competitive society [1]. The distribution channel is a bridge
connecting enterprises, market, products and customers [2].
The products manufactured by the enterprises can flow
into the market to meet with the customers and flow into
the field of consumption through the bridge. There will be
no sales without the bridge [3]. The excellent enterprises
regard the establishment of distribution channel as the key
to expand and dominate the market [4]. To the traditional
enterprises of ceramic industry, they must carry out
innovation of distribution channel and changing in
supervision and management of the distribution channel to
adapt to the changing of market environment. This paper
researches the distribution management system based on
the ceramics e-business platform and tries to: open up and
broaden network distribution channel for the ceramics
manufacturing enterprises; realize supervision and
management of network and traditional distributors
____________________
Supported by the National High-Tech.R & D Program of China
(863Program) (No. 2009AA043507).
through controlling price and authorizing products
classification and other methods; realize integration of
traditional and network distribution channel; provide a new
zero inventory network distribution pattern for the
distributors under the ceramics manufacturing enterprise’s
management and supervision.
II. DESIGN IDEAS OF THE SYSTEM
With the economic globalization, continuous progress
of science and technology, the rapid development of
productivity, the emergence and development of ebusiness, the issue of network distribution channel has
never been attached importance to by the enterprises like
today [5]. At present, the ceramics manufacturing
enterprises are promoting sales through the traditional
distribution channel, the architectural ceramics enterprises
mainly sells through the traditional distribution channel of
franchised dealer and monopolization, and the domestic
ceramics enterprises mainly uses the way of wholesale and
retail to sell. However, with the enlargement of enterprises
in scale and the diversification of business activities, the
supervision and management of distribution channel have
become more complex. With the great changes in network
economy and market environment, the traditional ceramics
manufacturing enterprises must carry out innovation of
distribution channel and changing in supervision and
management of the distribution channel to adapt to the
changes. In the era of rapid development of e-business,
establishing the distribution management system to cover
the entire distribution channel, share information, support
analysis and decision, and make marketing keep pace with
the market, which has become a problem need to solve to
the ceramics manufacturing enterprises.
In order to supervise and manage the distribution
channel for the ceramics manufacturing enterprises better,
open up and broaden the network distribution channel for
the ceramics manufacturing enterprises, this paper tries to
develop the distribution management system based on the
ceramics e-business platform. After associating distributors
with the ceramics manufacturing enterprise, changing them
into the system’s suppliers and distributors, providing the
needed functions for them, the ceramics manufacturing
enterprises can realize network management of distributors
in the traditional distribution channel, open up and broaden
network distribution channel, and realize integration of the
traditional and network distribution channel; the
distributors can get zero inventory network distribution
pattern under management and supervision of the ceramics
manufacturing enterprises.
III.
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NETWORK DISTRIBUTION
CHANNEL
With the appearance and development of e-business, it
is leading a new distribution pattern with its fast, efficient
and low cost advantages, which bring enterprises
opportunities and impact on the traditional distribution
channel [6]. Distribution channel is a transferring route of
products from the manufacturers to consumers [7]. And
traditional distribution channel is the distribution system
with independent traditional distributors based on "big
distribution, big production", which can finish the transfer
of capital flow, logistics, and information flow in the
products’ transferring from the manufacturers to the
consumers [8]. More and more ceramics manufacturing
enterprises are opening up and broadening network
distribution channel quickly. The establishment of the
network distribution channel should have the right transfer
functions of capital flow, logistics, and information flow
like in the traditional distribution channel [9]. The
establishment of the network distribution channel is an
important part of the distribution management system
based on the ceramics e-business platform, which associate
distributors with the ceramics manufacturing enterprises
(suppliers), change them into the system’s suppliers and
distributors and provide the needed functions for them.
The Network distribution channel’s establishment is
shown in Figure 1.
Suppliers
Price setting
Audit and authorize
Prospectus
setting
Suppliers list
View
Products
Applications
View
Cooperate
Distributors
Apply
Download
suggestion sale price, the lowest and highest sale price of
the product; and modifying the distribution product’s
description.
2) Distributors’s management: Refuse or agree the
application of one distributor; after cooperation, reduce,
add or view the authorized products classification to the
distributor in cooperation; see the information of the
distributors in cooperation; apply to stop cooperation with
one distributor.
3) Prospectus setting: Begin or stop the prospectus;
setting the conditions of cooperation.
4) Supply-distribution orders: View the order is paid
or not from the right distributor; stop the order; deliver the
products according the order; view the statistics of the
orders.
B. The Functions Explainment of the Distributor
Module:
1) Suppliers management: View the products
information of one supplier in the suppliers list; view the
suppliers can join; choose one supplier and apply to begin
cooperation; view state of the applications; after
cooperation, see the information of the products
classification authorized by the right supplier in
cooperation; view the supplier’s information in
cooperation; apply to stop cooperation with one supplier.
2) Distribution products management: Download the
distribution products of one supplier according to the
authorized products classification; editing the sale price
between the lowest and highest sale price of the right
product; delete the distribution products; up selling or not.
3) Orders of distribution: View the order is paid or not
from the right buyer; stop the order; pay money to the right
supplier; inform the supplier to deliver the right products;
view the statistics of the orders.
Edit
Selling
Figure 1. The network distribution channel’s establishment
IV. FUNCTIONS DESIGN OF THE SYSTEM
The system this paper illustrated is based on the
existing ceramics e-business platform’s necessary
functions which mainly include: products display, products
searching, payment, products and orders management in
the background of the cyber shop. So, the functions design
of the distribution management system based on the
ceramics e-business platform focus on design of new
functions only. According to the design ideas, the
functions of the system can be divided into the supplier
module and the distributor module. The supplier’s
functions includes: products management, distributors’
management, setting prospectus and supply-distribution
orders; the distributor’s function includes: suppliers’
management, Distribution products management and
orders of distribution.
A. Functions Explainment of the Supplier Module:
1) Products management: Setting the products can be
distributed or not; editing the distribution price, the
V. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SYSTEM
This paper completes research and development of the
distribution management system based on the ceramics ebusiness platform, according to the functions design of the
distribution management system, inserting necessary
columns based on the existing cyber shop and products
table, and adding the authorized products classification
table and supply-distribution association tables etc, with
SQL Server 2000 and Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 [10].
A. Implementation of the Supplier Module
The
supplier’s functions includes: products
management, distributors management, setting prospectus
and supply-distribution orders. The sketch menu of
supplier is shown in Figure 2(a).
B. Implementation of the Distributor Module
The distributor’s function includes: supplier
management, distribution products management and
distribution orders. The sketch menu of distributor is
shown in Figure 2(b).
C. The buyer’s e-shopping Process
The buyer’s e-shopping process in the distributor’s
cyber shop: select the products and generate order; pay to
the right distributor’s Alipay binding with the cyber shop;
the distributor pay to the right supplier’s Alipay; then the
supplier deliver the products to the buyer according to the
order; the buyer confirmed receiving the products, the right
distributor can get the money really; after the distributor
confirmed receiving the payment from the buyer, and the
right supplier can get the money really.
distributors management
Distributors in
cooperation
Distributors in
applying
Setting of the
prospectus
products management
Suppliers in
cooperation
Apply to join
My application
products management
Price setting
Download the
products of the
suppliers
Products'
classification
Distribution
Products
My Products
Supply-distribution orders
My Supplydistribution orders
a)
Suppliers management
Supply-distribution orders
channel for the ceramics manufacturing enterprises,
realizes management and supervision of network
distribution channel through authorizing products
classification and controlling price and other methods,
realizes integration of the traditional and network
distribution channel through network management of
traditional distribution channel; it also provides zero
inventory network distribution pattern for the distributors.
The distribution management system based on the
ceramics e-business platform did not take into
consideration that the distributor sells the right products in
the cyber shop of the ceramics e-business platform directly
after the products are bought by the distributor and
delivered to the distributor from the supplier. And the
system did not take into consideration that the distributors
develops network distributors in the system too. We can
attempt to develop these functions based on the work we
have done if these functions are necessary after
requirement analysis and investigation.
purchasing orders of
distribution
b)
REFERENCES
[1]
Figure 2. The sketch menu of the supplier/distributor
VI. APPLICATION CASES
We completed the development and testing of the
system after finishing analysis and design of the
distribution management system based on the ceramics ebusiness platform. The system’s functions can be operated
correctly. In order to open up and broaden the network
distribution channel for ceramics manufacturing
enterprises, we choose more than a dozen ceramics
manufacturing enterprises of the registered users in the
existing ceramics e-business platform after strict selecting,
make students as the system’s distributors. It’s worth
mentioning that we applied the distribution management
system successfully to the college students’ e-business
entrepreneurship competition. Preparations for the next ebusiness entrepreneurship competition are in full swing.
In addition, there are some ceramics manufacturing
enterprises and the ceramics marketing enterprises or
individuals(distributors) of the registered users in the
ceramics e-business platform becomes supply-distribution
relationship after several months’ launching, and among of
the distributors, there are the ones who used to be the
distributors of the right suppliers’ in the traditional
distribution channel.
VII. CONCLUSION
This paper illustrates the design ideas, functions design
and implementation of the distribution management
system based on the ceramics e-business platform
(www.ccmall.cn). The system is formally launched after
developing and testing. The distribution management
system opens up and broaden the network distribution
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