From manual catalog production to a fully automated content supply chain — how BACHMANN Group doubled its efficiency

The challenges were significant

• Catalogue production completely manually in InDesign
• Fragmented product data across various sources
• Manual coordination of translations
• Long time-to-market for new catalogs
• No reuse of data for other channels
• High error rate due to manual processes
• No scalability for new markets or languages

The trigger: Why now?

Three factors made automation necessary:

1. Efficiency requirement: Catalogue production was too complex and too prone to errors
2. Scaling requirement: With 30 sales and partner companies worldwide, BACHMANN needed flexible catalogs
3. data quality: Requirements for product data quality have increased continuously

The approach: Systematic development of an automated content supply chain

Phase 1: Data construction and analysis (weeks 1—6)

First, the entire database was built up:

• Data source analysis: All product data sources were analyzed
• classification: Complete product classification transferred to the system
• BMEcat import: Imported and revised data from various sources
• Workshop phase: Intensive workshops on data structuring

upshot: Clean, structured product database in advastamedia

Phase 2: Process development and translation (weeks 7—14)

The systems were brought together:

• data modeling: Structured data model for catalog production
• Translation workflows: Processes for multilingual catalogues introduced
• Assortment strategies: Country-specific product ranges defined
• validation rules: Data quality rules stored

upshot: Standardised processes for consistent catalogs

Phase 3: Automation and go-live (weeks 15—20)

The outputs were automated:

• advastamedia Print Framework: Automated catalog output
• Reporting module: Automatic quality check in the layout
• data validation: Rule-based review of all catalog content
• Go-Live: First catalogs produced automatically (March 2021)

upshot: Fully automated catalog production

The results: Dramatic efficiency gains

Automated catalog production

• Catalogs are now generated automatically from advastamedia
• No more manual InDesign work
• Error rate significantly reduced

Data quality improves automatically

• Automation makes data quality issues immediately visible
• Validation rules enforce consistency
• Reporting module checks all content based on rules

Flexible editions and printing intervals

• Catalogs can be reproduced at any time
• Short runs are economical
• Quick response to market changes is possible

Scalability for new markets

• New languages and product ranges can be added quickly
• Translation workflows are standardized
• Country-specific catalogs are easy to produce

Data can be used for other channels

• Product data is used for web editions
• Dealer data can be provided automatically
• Media-neutral content enables flexible spending

What made that possible? Proof Points

Service & methodology:

• Comprehensive data development and structuring advice
• Experience with complex product classifications
• Agile approach with regular milestones

Technical integration:

• advastamedia PIM for product data management
• advastamedia print framework for catalog automation
• Reporting module for quality testing
• Integrated translation workflows

Sustainable solution:

• Building for future expansions
• Clear processes and documentation
• Scalable for new markets and languages

The message for you

If you're also struggling with manual catalog production — if your catalogs take a long time, if errors are frequent, if you can't react flexibly to market changes — then it's time for automation.

The good thing: With a structured approach (data structure → process construction → automation), you can fully automate your catalog production in 20 weeks and immediately achieve efficiency gains.