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What is Automation?
© 2015 Ariba, Inc. All rights reserved.2
machine-to-machine
PunchOut
cXML
EDI
server-to-server
B2B integration
back-end
integration

Integrating to Ariba: What Are
Your Options?
Cloud-based integration
Mapping/middleware in
the cloud
No integration
Manual download
and PO-Flip
cXML or EDI
Mapping/middleware
behind the firewall

Today’s Presenters
• Debbie Kuch
 Director, Digital Integration
• Rick Harper
 Program Director, Industry
Account Strategy
• Christine Halvorson
 eCommerce Integration Lead

A Lot of Work Just to
Get What You Need…

Streamlined/Automation
Source/
contract
Requisition/
order
Interact
and Receive
Invoice &
Payment
Spend
Analytics
Spend
Management

About Airgas
Corporate
• History of acquisitions
• Decentralized
• Over $5 billion in revenue
• Serves many market
segments
0
Product
• Varying product lines, calling for
disparate procurement solutions
 Packaged gases
 Bulk, refrigerant, volume-based gases
 Welding/Hardgoods/Safety Supplies
(pick/pack/ship)
IT infrastructure
• Multiple ERPs until recently
 Recent standardization
of ERP
 Still have ERP “outliers”

Airgas Approach to
eCommerce/Integration
Engaged in an upgrade
of our digital programs
• Become a leader in
our core products
• Take advantage of
economy of scale for
automation
• Cost-saving efforts
• Drive organic growth
• Reduce cost to serve
Not 100% eCommerce
company – making strides
• True industrial supplier with
“Best of Both”
• Brick & mortar presence
 Services core products
(Industrial/packaged gas)
 Retail branch also sell
welding/HG/safety
products
 Distribution Centers
• Robust Platform Solutions
Integration Leader in our
Industry
• Dedicated PM team
• Dedicated eSupport team
• 10+ years of experience
• Full integrated solutions
• Grew integration by 40%
• Order-to-cash solutions
• Integrations “all day
everyday”

Our eCommerce Timeline
• SAP implementation
complete
• Recognized importance
of embracing more
automated protocols
• Launched development
of more robust
eCommerce program
Started
implementation of
SAP as ERP
First
launch of
Airgas.com
20042003 2009 20122001
Realized a need for
“platform” solutions
• Included a need for
creation of e-catalogs
• Started working
with Ariba
Developed eCommerce
program inclusive of
• Airgas.com
• eMarkets
(Airgas term for
platform solutions)

Capabilities
document
• Sometimes includes
a call/sometimes not
• Explains catalog, PO,
confirmation
& invoicing
Best Practices for Automation
Standardization vs.
special programming
• Capabilities document
explains “standard”
• Additional special
programming is
available based on
the customer’s needs,
commitment and
relationship with
Airgas
“Mandate” Airgas sales
personnel remain involved
• Airgas sales ‘own’ the
customer relationship
• Digital Integration team
‘owns’ SME for enablement
• Digital Integration is
support function for
Airgas sales

• Internal form
• External form
• Customer call to
verify project scope
Discovery
Process
Active Project
Includes
User-Acceptance
Testing
Best Practices for Automation
• Ship to code mapping
• UOM/UNSPSC
mapping
• CPN mapping –
if applicable
• Hand off to our
eSupport team
• Setup weekly or
bi-weekly calls to
stay on track
• Schedule go-live
• Monitor
(short-term)

Additional Best Practice “Check Points”
• Identify ROI
• Project Prioritization
• Resource Allocation
• UOM/UNSPSC mapping effort,
if applicable
Discovery process ALSO HELPS:
• Potential special programming effort
 Prioritization & Coordination with other teams
 Web Methods
 SAP Order Management
 Re-evaluation of resource
allocation
 Re-evaluation of ROI

• Debbie Kuch
• Rick Harper
Account Strategy

Company Overview
From the perspective of integration, IBM is a large, complex company
IBM generates about $100B in revenue
Spanning almost every country in the world
Delivering a combination of physical and virtual goods, as well as a wide
variety of contract and labor-based services
Requiring multiple types of catalogs and fulfillment systems

IBM (as a Supplier) and Ariba
• Started in 2000 when our first clients approached us
• Initially focused on non-catalog and invoice,
then catalog and order response came later
 Began true integration in 2005 with PCs and Intel Servers
 However, now we don’t have as many physical products,
so we’re re-engineering our approach
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
0
1,000
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14
PO $M Clients Docs (K)
Supporting more than 150 unique clients
Processing more than 40,000 documents
Almost $4B per year of spend

IBM Strives to Achieve Integration
for Both Boarding and Transactions
• Transaction integration is driven by automated catalogs and
back-end system integration
 Feed catalogs, so that purchase orders look like invoices which look like
purchase orders
 ‘Quote catalogs’ can help bridge the gaps
 Especially true for electronic invoicing where country mandates are proliferating
• Boarding automation is driven by standardized process and tools
 Enable Trading Partner self-service capability
• Ultimately, we want our trading partners to be able to self-serve
request catalog and transaction enablement and integration across
all our product lines
Transaction
cycle
CatalogInvoice
PO

Entitled Product Lists and Pricing
Custom Quotes
Infrastructure View
Internal Boarding and
Enablement Systems
IBM
®
Sterling B2B
Collaboration Network
IBM
®
MRM
Engagement Hub
Trading Partners
Partner Registration
Activity Creation
Activity Execution
Activity Monitoring
Ongoing Collaboration
IBM
®
WebSphere
Catalog
Communication Gateway
Data Transformation/Mapping
Analytics

Integration Best Practices and Lessons Learned
• Communicate your capabilities early
 Create “Core Capability”
documentation so TPs know
what they can expect
 Publish standard data templates
to make gap analysis easy
• Streamline your boarding process
• Strive to eliminate inefficiency
• Standard templates can lead to
TP self-boarding
• Automated catalogs are key to
transaction integration
• Flexibility is good, up to a point
• Have a plan and process in
place to address
customized work
• Integration and automation
are a journey for both buyers
and suppliers

• Debbie Kuch
• Rick Harper
Account Strategy

Fastenal Company Overview
• North America’s largest fastener
distributor & full-spectrum source
for OEM, MRO and construction
supplies
• 2,700+ local Fastenal stores (we
are where you are)
• Tailored local inventory
• Fastenal branch delivery
• Fastenal managed
inventory solutions
including vending
programs

Fastenal Company Overview
• 14 regional distribution centers
• 10 manufacturing facilities
• 1000s of delivery vehicles
• Decentralized environment
• A flexible approach to supporting local customers
• Sourcing products, making emergency deliveries,
managing a lean flow of inventory

Fastenal’s eCommerce Team
eCommerce
Sales
Specialists
Business
Analysts
eCommerce
Support
Development
Team
• Dedicated BoB
• Consult internal & external
clients to pre-qualify project
• Responsible for use of
existing integrations
• Project manager for
integration project
• Ensure quality
control
• Deployment
• Supports all
eCommerce
Integrations
• Development done
in-house
• Responsible for
programming needs
and mapping

Our 9-Step Integrated Process
1 2 3 4 5
Customer
Target / Project
Prequalification
Most important
for success
Initial
Project Scope
In-depth technical
discussion
Internal
Expectation
Delegation of
responsibilities
BA Analysis,
Specification
& Design
Prepare for
development
Development
Develop the
documents
6 7 8 9
Testing
Internal &
external
Preparation
of Go-Live
Get everyone on
same page
Go Live Train &
Monitor
• Fastenal & customer training
• Monitor usage
• eCommerce ‘Scorecard'
Turn the
Integration “on”

Results
eCommerce Scorecard
24 © 2015 Ariba, Inc. All rights reserved.
• Utilization of the integration
 Inactive integrations
 Inactive sites within integration
 % of overall business using integrated channel
• Lining up eCommerce strategies with Field
• Routine review meetings
 Review what’s working
 Continuous training
36%
39%
23%
growth in new partner
integrations
reduction in inactive
sites
improvement in the
number of sites
generating >20% of
total revenue through
this channel

Fastenal’s Approach to Ariba
TCO & cost savings
expectations
Over 15 Years in the eCommerce Arena
Original Business Plan
Was Simply Response to
Customer Requests
Business Environment
Has Dictated Direction
Full Integration
Preferred
• PunchOut, PO, POA,
ASN & Invoice
• PO Flip by local
store only
Time
BusinessPriority

• Electronic invoices only if
Purchase Orders are received
• Understand business
relationship and expectations
BEFORE integration
 What kind of orders will be
included?
 Go live date & rollout schedule
• Catalog required
 PunchOut catalog preferred
© 2015 Ariba, Inc. All rights reserved.
Integration Best Practices and Lessons Learned
• Stay away from one-off
integrations
 Support nightmare
• Ensure system settings match
 Client’s Ariba configurations vs.
back-end system
• Robust test cases
• Project status calls

What’s Next –
Fastenal’s Roadmap
Focus on a continuous
improvement strategy
• Look to new
technologies
• Re-evaluate integration
process
• Work with key 3rd party
Partners to ensure
best-in-class strategies
2015 focus points
• New customer
integrations
• Leverage existing
integrations and
convert inactive sites
Stay closer to our field
representatives

Thank you!

Automating Transactions on Ariba Network

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