Case Study: Advanced Drainage Systems

Founded in 1966, Advanced Drainage Systems, also known as ADS, has built a reputation as a leading manufacturer of highperformance thermoplastic pipe and ancillary products, providing a comprehensive suite of water management products and superior drainage solutions for use in the construction and infrastructure marketplace. They operate a global network of 60 manufacturing plants and over 30 distribution centers.

The company’s products are primarily sold through a network of thousands of distributors who sell to construction companies and contractors. ADS products must conform to precise measurements, pressure specifications, and other technical details in order to ensure products are right for the important jobs involving water management and drainage. This makes high-quality product data a must-have for ADS, its distributors, and purchasing customers.

After more than five decades in business, managing product information in the digital age was a crucial but challenging task for ADS. As the company looked to embrace the next stage of growth during its proud history, it knew it needed a better system for managing information for its distributors. Additionally, a portion of its business comes from home improvement retailers, who demand more rich and complete product data in order to sell directly to residential customers.

Historically, the company had managed product data manually, without a centralized repository to store, enrich, and govern completed product data. As a result, it was a tedious and time-consuming effort that made it difficult to provide the necessary product information to their distributors. In some cases, incomplete product information meant that ADS products did not appear in distributors’ catalogs when sales associates searched for relevant products. These manual product information management processes and resulting inconsistencies and errors in product information eroded buyer trust and prevented distributors and end customers from confidently knowing which ADS products would fit their needs.

So, in an effort to modernize its product data management processes, offer high-quality product information to its customers, reduce returns, and boost sales, the company turned to a dedicated tool for managing product data — a PIM, or Product Information Management, solution.