"We believe that DocBanq is the most appropriate solution on the market to meet our needs of ease of access, high levels of security, flexibility and simplicity of implementation."
Patrick Paffard, Marketing Consultant
 

Summary

For over 40 years, Hitachi Australia Limited has provided Australian industry and consumers with products and services in the areas of:

• Air conditioning systems for home and business
• Automotive components
• Consumer Electronics
• Technology and services for energy generation, construction, mining and transport
• Multi-media and computer technology
• Semiconductors and devices for manufacturers of electronic products

Hitachi provides employment to more than 500 Australians across the country with Head Office being located in Sydney.

Hitachi 's Air Conditioning Systems Division supplies and supports a large range of domestic and commercial air conditioning systems through a network of sales personnel, agents, distributors and dealers. Keeping this network supplied with up-to-date sales and technical documentation is a significant challenge.

Hitachi selected DocBanq to make all the relevant documentation available anywhere in Australia.  The solution is now in full operation with more than 250 users from around the country viewing, modifying and creating documents depending upon their level of access.

The Challenge

Hitachi supplies air conditioning equipment via a network of sales personnel, agents, distributors and dealers.  The marketing and support of air conditioners requires a large amount of documentation including brochures, selection guides, installation procedures and maintenance manuals, which must be available to the sales network quickly and at the latest revision.

For many years, this documentation was distributed by mailing the physical material and any subsequent revisions, and more recently, by using CDROMs and e-mail.  However these distribution methods, combined with the high number of individuals involved and the regular updates required, created a situation where information management activities were becoming increasingly inefficient.

It was clear that some sort of web-based solution that allowed the sales network to securely access the material directly from the Internet would provide a better outcome for everyone involved.  The use of a conventional web site was considered, however given previous experience, it was considered that the maintenance overhead and access management would make it impractical.

The Solution

The first stage of the implementation consisted of a pilot.  "Piloting DocBanq allowed us to work closely with Hitachi to design the best possible solution while ensuring that the needs of all users were met." said Patrick Paffard Marketing Consultant, "A key goal was to ensure that stakeholders from around Australia could use the system with minimal training."

To facilitate access, DocBanq was fully integrated into Hitachi Australia's web site, allowing users from the whole distribution network to log in directly.  Integrating DocBanq into the web site proved to be crucial for the acceptance of the solution by giving users a familiar point of entry.

The Results

With more than 250 users accessing the system, DocBanq now allows Hitachi to centrally manage a large volume of documentation while users around Australia always have access to the latest information.  "We consider the implementation of DocBanq to be a strategic move that will eventually allow us to lift our levels of customer service beyond those of our competitors," said Mr Paffard.

DocBanq's unique technology allows geographically dispersed organisations like Hitachi Australia to easily deploy a solution and train a large number of people, irrespective of their bandwidth capability.  Mr Paffard concluded, "We believe that DocBanq is the most appropriate solution on the market to meet our needs of ease of access, high levels of security, flexibility and simplicity of implementation."

Web:  www.hitachi.com.au