CASE STUDY
The Future of Steel
ROLE
Sr. Product Designer
Sr. Product Designer
TEAM
Principal Product Manager
Director of Product
VP of Engineering
Principal Product Manager
Director of Product
VP of Engineering
ABOUT THE PRODUCT
When an issue arises at Tesla, it's a concern that extends to everyone. The current process of procuring steel largely involves email and phone communications. Buyers typically initiate the process by sending out Requests for Quotes (RFQ) to steel suppliers for raw materials. Managing the diverse responses in various formats becomes a cumbersome task, making it challenging for buyers to efficiently track and analyze opportunities. Time constraints often lead to missed opportunities for the best deals.
To address these challenges, the Felux Buyer Procurement Platform (BPP) was developed. This platform organizes and automatically analyzes all quotes received, consolidating them in one accessible location. I designed and implemented this solution specifically for Tesla's procurement team and other Felux customers requiring precise, pre-processed materials within tight timeframes.
In addition to the procurement platform, I undertook the task of revamping the user interface (UI) and design system. The screens presented here are a snapshot of the ongoing progress in this endeavor.
THE PROJECT
We were presented with an opportunity to collaborate with Tesla in addressing a significant challenges they faced in procuring steel through our cutting-edge Steel Marketplace Software as a Service (SaaS) platform. Our SaaS solution revolutionizes the steel procurement process, offering a seamless and efficient experience for buyers. Specifically customized to address Tesla's intricate steel purchasing requirements, this platform optimized the sourcing and acquisition of steel materials, ensuring precision, promptness, and unparalleled convenience in their procurement journey. The steel procurement process typically involves steel buyers managing quotes from suppliers in various formats, spread across numerous email threads and phone calls. This complexity poses challenges in swiftly normalizing the data for effective comparison:
• Inconsistent quote formats: Suppliers use various formats, making it hard to quickly located relevant information.
• Diverse pricing structures: Quotes may use different units, requiring conversion to a common format.
• Communication barriers: Language, naming, and currency differences can cause misunderstanding or misinterpretations.
• Steel grade variations: Different grades or specifications need checking for compliance with require standards.
• Additional costs: Quotes may exclude extra costs, like taxes or shipping.
• Time-sensitive quotes: Prices can change daily. Buyers must work quickly to compare quotes before they expire.
• Human error potential: Manual normalization and short time frames increase the risk of mistakes affecting decision-making.
• Automation difficulty: Varied formats make creating accurate, efficient tools for data extraction and normalization challenging
• Diverse pricing structures: Quotes may use different units, requiring conversion to a common format.
• Communication barriers: Language, naming, and currency differences can cause misunderstanding or misinterpretations.
• Steel grade variations: Different grades or specifications need checking for compliance with require standards.
• Additional costs: Quotes may exclude extra costs, like taxes or shipping.
• Time-sensitive quotes: Prices can change daily. Buyers must work quickly to compare quotes before they expire.
• Human error potential: Manual normalization and short time frames increase the risk of mistakes affecting decision-making.
• Automation difficulty: Varied formats make creating accurate, efficient tools for data extraction and normalization challenging
IDEATION
My approach to this design centered around scalability. Beyond merely accommodating extensive content, I considered the successive and preceding logical steps in potential workflows, along with complementary features that can fortify any design. I conceptualize all the major features and platforms within a company as a cohesive suite, recognizing that not every customer may utilize all of them. Equally imperative is my focus on leveraging existing components and patterns wherever feasible. This strategy not only builds upon familiar and validated designs but also minimizes development efforts.
SOLUTION
We conducted numerous rounds of testing on our initial concepts to gather clear insights into the essential requirements. It became evident that a single view or relying solely on filters wouldn't suffice. Attempting to cram everything into a single page would result in a complex and user-unfriendly interface. Recognizing a few fundamental universal needs, I drew inspiration from pivot tables, aiming to present data effortlessly from various perspectives. While I designed several of these views, our initial focus was on constructing a single one. This allowed us to gather feedback, iterate, and inform the development of other views before their implementation. The key principle was to avoid designing and building everything simultaneously, opting instead to start small, test, iterate, and then repeat.
The three primary views we developed are as follows:
The three primary views we developed are as follows:
RFQ – By Supplier Collapsed
RFQ – By Item Collapsed
RFQ – By Scenario Collapsed
RFQ – By Supplier Expanded
RFQ – By Item Expanded
RFQ – By Scenario Expanded
OUTCOME
Tesla harnessed the capabilities of our BPP platform, successfully reducing their customary quotation time frame from 2-3 weeks to just 1 week, achieving an impressive 10-15% overall cost savings on raw materials. This notable enhancement is particularly noteworthy, given the urgency and specificity of Tesla's procurement requirements.
Similarly, Playpower, as an early adopter, realized significant savings of over $6500 in their inaugural month of comprehensive BPP platform utilization. The efficiencies gained allowed them to fully leverage the diversity of their existing supplier relationships, enabling thorough evaluation of multiple quotes. This success indicates the potential for additional gains through the expansion of their supplier base, a feat that would not have been possible without the BPP platform.
