Wilmink turns complex product data into a searchable buying experience.

Wilmink manages a large range of engine parts with many variants, specifications and dependencies.

In this type of catalogue, a product name alone is rarely enough.

Customers often need to know:

• whether a part fits a specific vehicle;
• whether it matches a particular engine type;
• which alternatives are compatible;
• which technical attributes determine the correct fit.

The challenge was therefore not simply to centralise product information.

Wilmink needed a product model capable of representing technical relationships and making them usable throughout the buying journey.

The implementation started with ConnectingTheDots PIM.

Product information was structured into a central product foundation for each item, using Product Information Management and a clear Data Model & Structure.

This provides a consistent basis for managing:

• technical specifications;
• product relationships;
• make and model information;
• classifications;
• relevant external data.

For engine parts, search quality depends heavily on technical context.

Wilmink uses data including TecDoc and vehicle registration information to support product relationships and compatibility.

This allows customers to search and refine results using criteria such as:

• make;
• model;
• type;
• engine code;
• vehicle registration.

The search experience therefore starts with the quality of the underlying data model.

If technical attributes and compatibility relationships are not structured correctly, the storefront cannot use them reliably.

The ecommerce experience uses structured product data to guide customers towards relevant parts.

Results can be refined using filters and sorting.

Search is therefore not an isolated front-end feature.

Its quality depends on how attributes, classifications and product relationships are modelled behind the scenes.

This is particularly important for technical catalogues, where choosing the wrong product can create a much bigger problem than simply a poor search experience.

Wilmink operates across multiple brands and markets.

Product information needs to work in different contexts without forcing teams to maintain a completely separate product structure for every variation.

A shared product data foundation supports:

• reuse of core product information;
• brand-specific presentation;
• multilingual content;
• the same technical product model across markets.

The B2B environment is integrated with Wilmink's ERP system through the available Integrations.

This allows the ecommerce experience to use customer-specific commercial information directly from the ERP environment.

That may include:

• customer-specific pricing;
• order information;
• order history;
• other account data used during ordering.

This is important in B2B commerce, where pricing often depends on the individual customer relationship.

The ecommerce platform therefore does not need to maintain a separate copy of that commercial logic.

Orders placed through the webshop are passed into the ERP process in real time.

This avoids treating ecommerce and back-office ordering as two disconnected processes.

PIM provides the product information.

ERP provides the commercial account data. Pricing and order information are sourced directly from the ERP system.

The storefront combines both within the buying experience.

Each system therefore has a clear role within the wider architecture.

The value of the solution comes from the relationship between its components.

A technical data model on its own is not enough.

Neither is a sophisticated search interface.

The experience becomes useful when product data, compatibility relationships, search logic and customer-specific commercial data work together.

For Wilmink, this means structured product information is used directly to help customers identify relevant parts and continue into the ordering process.

Wilmink now operates an integrated environment that connects product information, technical search and B2B ordering.

• central product foundation for complex technical product data;
• support for multiple brands and languages;
• TecDoc and vehicle registration data integrated into product relationships;
• search and filtering by make, model, type, engine code and registration;
• customer-specific pricing from ERP;
• real-time order processing into ERP;
• order history available within the customer account.

For Wilmink, a strong B2B buying experience starts with the structure behind the interface.

Connecting product data, technical relationships, search logic and ERP data creates an environment where customers can identify relevant parts and continue into ordering from the same digital journey.