Digital Experience Platform for Heraeus

A new scalable infrastructure and a consistent customer experience from corporate communication to product marketing and e-commerce - interactive tools supports the Heraeus Group in redesigning its digital system landscape and developing a digital experience platform.

About Heraeus

The Heraeus Group is a leading global technology and family-owned company based in Hanau, Germany. As a broadly diversified portfolio company, the Heraeus Group bundles diverse businesses in the business areas of metals & recycling, healthcare, semiconductors & electronics and industrial applications. With its unique combination of materials expertise and technology know-how, Heraeus now employs 17,200 people in 20 operating companies at 100 locations worldwide. Heraeus is one of the top 10 family-owned companies in Germany and can look back on almost 400 years of company history.

Services: Technological evaluation, conception, strategy, technical consulting, UX/UI design, design pattern library, brand experience, frontend & application development, internationalization

Technologies: Magnolia DXP, frontend, system integration such as MSDynamics and PIMCore

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The challenge: customer centricity and a new digital infrastructure

Heraeus' digital presence has to achieve many things: present the portfolio company in all its diversity and at the same time offer the individual business units the opportunity to be optimally present in their respective markets and to be able to act individually.

The digital platform should create a seamless customer experience - from corporate content to product marketing and e-commerce applications. In addition, the digital infrastructure should be designed to be more scalable and enable the seamless integration of third-party systems such as ERP, PIM or CRM.

Screenshot of the new Homepage — User needs are the focus of the new corporate website.

The solution: a modular, digital ecosystem

Based on the requirements of the head office, the operating companies and the needs of the various target groups, a customer-centric digital strategy was developed for the introduction of a digital experience platform (DXP) and rounded off with a CMS/technology evaluation.

The implementation of the Magnolia DXP introduces a central technology that orchestrates the Group's marketing content, product information and digital services and applications. At the same time, it gives each operating company the flexibility it needs to act individually in its respective business environment and market. The focus here is on lead generation as well as the digitalization and automation of business and e-commerce processes along a consistent, overarching brand communication.

The Heraeus brand is strengthening its presence by introducing a corporate website that focuses on content such as the company's tradition, innovation, expansion of business areas, start-ups and employer branding. At the same time, the websites of the operating companies, such as Heraeus Medical, provide information about specific products and services as well as the opportunity to quickly contact direct sales and service contacts. The sales and service processes of the 20 operating companies, such as customer portals and store systems, are being seamlessly integrated into the DXP step by step.

Screenshot of the Heraeus Medical Website — The websites of the Operating Companies adapt to the respective corporate identity through an individual color design.

Technically innovative thanks to a modular system architecture

The transition from a monolithic to a modular system architecture enables an agile and future-proof digital environment that meets the requirements of the Heraeus Group and the individual business units.

The technical setup focuses on two key components: the microservice architecture, which decouples and interlinks complex systems while allowing rapid adjustments to the market requirements of the individual business units. In addition, the headless CMS, based on API technologies such as REST and GraphQL, guarantees seamless omnichannel communication and ensures flexibility and future-proofing by decoupling the front end and back end. In addition to the centralization of content creation, the headless architecture allows the easy integration and connection of third-party tools such as SEO, tracking, analysis and personalization in a "best of breed" approach.

Flexible content management with Magnolia DXP

At the heart of the digital system landscape is Magnolia DXP, which is based on a headless/microservice architecture. With Magnolia DXP, content can be managed centrally in the cloud and published across different channels, while simultaneously capturing all document types in different language versions. With the help of the Magnolia DXP solution, digital experience platforms can be built that consistently meet the needs of customers. As a Magnolia Gold Partner, interactive tools implements extensive projects with Magnolia.

More about Magnolia

„Thanks to the new Heraeus web solution, we are now in a better position to offer our customers customized solutions in real time. This has not only made our company more competitive, but also strengthened our relationship with our customers.“Sina Schittenhelm, Head of Digital Corporate Communication at Heraeus Business Solutions

Design system and efficient development: uniform structure, individual design

The technical setup of the digital experience platform is rounded off by a design system that centralizes designs, code and guidelines and provides ready-to-use UI elements for all operating companies of the Heraeus Group.

By implementing an efficient theming solution, the individual business units are given the flexibility to access different design elements and design their online presence in a modular and target group-oriented way. This enables a consistent brand presentation across all companies and optimizes the user experience on the various websites and channels. Repetitive modules and uniform design guidelines help to increase efficiency in the creation and maintenance of content and ensure the overall coherence of the Heraeus Group's digital presence.

The Heraeus corporate website stands out with its layout, colors and exclusive modules, emphasizing the uniqueness of the umbrella brand. The pages of the operating companies share a common structure and modules, but are adapted to the respective corporate identity through an individual color scheme. In this way, the design of the divisions' digital presence remains consistent and flexible at the same time.

Die Corporate Website von Heraeus hebt sich durch Layout, Farben und exklusive Module hervor und betont die Einzigartigkeit der Dachmarke. Die Seiten der Operating Companies teilen sich eine gemeinsame Struktur und Module, werden jedoch durch eine individuelle Farbgestaltung an die jeweilige Corporate Identity angepasst. So bleibt das Design des digitalen Auftritts der Geschäftsbereiche konsistent und gleichzeitig flexibel.

The efficient design system combines uniform structure and individual design, enables flexible theming and optimizes the user experience across all operating companies.

Global presence

The new digital experience platform is also accessible in various languages via the Magnolia content management system and is available in all relevant markets, including China. Thanks to implemented interfaces, all texts can be easily maintained in different languages and displayed on the different country pages.

The multilingual functionality allows the Heraeus Group to strengthen its global presence and ensure that information and content is available in the local language wherever it is needed. This is an important step towards improving international accessibility and providing the best possible support for the needs of global customers.

Screenshot of the various language selection of the new website — Global reach made easy: The new website is available in various national languages.

What can we do for you?

Are you facing similar challenges to Heraeus? Are you planning a relaunch or would you like to reposition your brand? Talk to us. As a reliable partner, we offer interactive brand experiences and complete digital solutions from a single source.

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