Smoother sales process for Royal de Boer thanks to Configure Price Quote solution

Royal de Boer Stalinrichtingen B.V. from the Netherlands manufactures barn equipment for dairy farms. Since 2020 they have been supporting their sales process with Hive's Configure Price Quote solution. Head of Internal Sales Carline van der Hulst and Commercial Director Henri Geerts share their insights.

Everything you need for a comfortable barn

Henri Geerts explains, "Royal de Boer is a barn equipment expert for dairy farms all over the world. We take care of the complete furnishing of a cow barn: from bedding systems to feeding fences, climate control and systems for manure management. Good barn equipment contributes to cow well-being and the efficiency of the dairy farm. A cow that feels more comfortable in its barn is happier, healthier and produces more, which translates into higher returns for dairy farmers. On top of that, a healthy and stress-free cow has a longer lifespan: a win-win situation."

Royal de Boer’s definition of cow well-being manifests itself in an extensive product range. Carline explains, "Our main products are cubicles and bedding systems, including cow mattresses and waterbeds, feeding fences and water troughs. We also provide systems for cow handling and separation, such as alleys, holding areas or barriers to control cow traffic within the barn. Furthermore, we sell solutions for manure management and climate control and offer a product range for young stock housing."

Sales via dealer network

To sell this extensive range, Royal de Boer works with dealers and importers. Henri elaborates, "We now have more than 300 dealers who enjoy sales support from our specialists at Royal de Boer. Dealers often provide us with the latest market information. In this way, we can innovate in time and update our marketing, stock and product portfolio accordingly."

On the lookout for new quotation program

Until recently, for their sales process Royal de Boer used a custom-made quotation and ordering module connected to SAP. Carline: "Until 2021, we were part of a multinational company that used this module. But when we became independent again, we no longer had access to this custom SAP program. We needed an alternative fast, because we have a lot of ambition to grow, and our growth strategy required a new and modern system."

Despite the need for something new, there was no intention to replicate the previous program, says Carline. "Our dealers could not continue with the SAP module. To be self-reliant in the field, they need their own quotation and ordering program. So we started looking for a new system that was both modern and user-friendly, so that our dealers could configure stables themselves or place orders with Royal de Boer. For us, it had to be easy to make adjustments in the configurators and in the product store. This information is now largely managed through our ERP system."

Henri adds, "Furthermore, we had an increasing need for a system that could help us with recurring customer questions. These include questions about technical specifications, prices, package weight and shipping costs. Our sales and R&D departments lose a lot of time answering these recurring questions about the standard product range, so our new system also needed to be able to relay order and delivery information back to our dealers."

Hive CPQ as a user-friendly solution

In its search for a system that could display a complex range in a user-friendly way, Royal de Boer came across Hive CPQ. Henri explains, "In the past, I had seen Hive's system at Nergeco, a European manufacturer of high speed doors. In my current position at Royal de Boer, I contacted Hive again because I saw the benefits of the system for Royal de Boer and its dealer network."

Carline adds, "An important condition was that the platform could function independently of the existing ERP system. We needed to move quickly, so we looked for a partner who could build more than 12 configurators–one for each product line–on short notice, and in less than six months. Together with the fact that Hive is primarily a sales platform for manufacturers and their dealers, we were quickly convinced to team up with this partner.”

Smooth implementation thanks to project teams

Henri looks back on the implementation: "It was mainly about transferring a complex, custom-made SAP module to a standardized way of working on Hive. That is not so simple. Because we needed something new very quickly, several configurators were implemented simultaneously. In order to do so, project teams were set up at both companies. As a result, communication went very smoothly and the Hive CPQ solution was able to go live at lightning speed."

Carline adds, "At the time of implementation, physical meetings were not possible. Because of corona measures, everything had to be done digitally, which posed an additional challenge. Fortunately, we were able to collaborate fluently via online meetings. We managed to convert the data to Hive, in six months even! To this day, we still meet online, because it is simply a very efficient way of collaborating."

Smoother sales, less time wasted and faster international growth

Since commissioning Hive, the added value is clear, according to Henri. "In terms of sales, the SAP module already solved a lot of problems. But Hive took it to an even higher level: our dealers can now work with our product portfolio themselves. That way, we enjoy a smoother sales process and no longer lose time answering repetitive questions while everything remains linked to our ERP system."

"Thanks to the integration with SAP, orders come in fully automated and product configurations are validated by the system immediately. Master data and stock levels are maintained in the ERP software, Hive adapts immediately," says Carline. "In addition, Hive allows very complex configurations, which is necessary for us. Our dealers can put together a complete barn using Royal de Boer products. They immediately receive a price indication and a personalized quote with technical documentation and a visualization of the configuration.

Within Hive CPQ, we also make use of some advanced features: for example, Hive immediately calculates shipping costs based on the size of the package. This gives our customers a clearer picture of what to expect when they order from us."

As an additional advantage, Henri notices that the international market is becoming more accessible. "After separating from the multinational, we were keen to enter the international market. But we were still building up the sales team and did not have enough manpower. Now the international market is at our feet because we can approach it directly. Thanks to Hive, we can onboard new dealers in different countries very quickly and better support the sales network: the product portfolio is already available and adding a new language is very easy. This way, we facilitate direct distribution with many countries.”

Increasing number of orders as a result

The Hive Configure Price Quote solution went live at the end of 2020. Carline talks about the results. "We definitely notice the effect. Since the go-live, we have already received more than 8,000 orders through Hive. These figures, as well as general sales growth, continue to increase exponentially every month."

The dealers also experience Royal de Boer's new platform as an absolute improvement. "They had to get used to the new system for a while, but soon saw the benefits of it," says Henri. "Meanwhile, more than 300 dealers are active on the platform. Regular training sessions are a necessity, especially as we continue to develop and improve the system."

Platform further expanded with additional links

But the cooperation between Hive CPQ and Royal de Boer does not stop here, according to Carline: "Currently, the biggest challenge is to complete the integration to SAP. We have already built a fairly extensive link but are still looking to add some things. For example, we want to be able to add invoices to orders in Hive or provide shipping information. That data is already in our SAP system but needs to be linked to Hive. Luckily, we can always contact the Hive team for minor changes to the configurator or to our Hive environment.”

Henri: "We continue to work very closely together. We challenge each other and continue to optimize the sales platform. Hive has already implemented many improvements at our request. For example, we recently added a quality module to the platform: this allows us to improve the cooperation with our dealers from one central point."