The Improvement of Pitaya with Online Booking System

The Improvement of Pitaya with
Online Booking System
Cheng-Gang Li
Department of Industry Engineering and Engineering Management, National Tsing
Hua University, 101, Sec. 2 Kuang Fu Road, Hsinchu, 30013, Taiwan
Abstract
Online booking is already used to support shopping everywhere in internet. This
case researches the shopping and ordering process about pitaya which was planted
and sold by the peasants. The IT methods were applied to promote and improve the
selling pitaya. According to survey, it provided and collected the information and data
about selling pitaya. By the IT tools, the INCOME4 was applied to build the behavior
process model which included both AS-IS process model and TO-BE process model[1].
The AS-IS process model was analyzed and rebuilt the improved model, TO-BE
process model. The research tried to find the drawback of the process. The drawback,
also called “bottleneck of process”, was needed to overcome for providing a more
efficient and economy process operated. At the same time, the case redesigned and
rebuilt the shopping and ordering website by Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2[5] and
Microsoft Visual Studio 2010[6]. The new website was referenced by surveying the
benchmark. It attempted to provide consumers to surf fitter and more convenient and
the seller to manage easier and more practical. It will be also included into shoping
process and assisted to improve the process. The result of the research explained
whether the pitaya with online booking system was improved and promoted.
Keywords: Pitaya, Online Booking System, Processing Improvement, INCOME4,
Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2, Microsoft Visual Studio 2010
1. Introduction
1.1. Background & Motivation
Online booking is already used to support shopping everywhere in the world. It has
many good characteristics like convenience, rapidity, economy and so on. Due to the
development of both Information technology and computer, Building a shopping
website is not difficult by oneself. For the above reasons, a real case, peasants who
plant and sell organic fruit, pitaya, are in Yunlin County. They do not sell it by
retailers. They establish website, but it's too simple and no business value. For
promoting organic fruit and their produce, Pitaya, from their farm, Sun Fruit farm(晨
盈農場), Wanting the information of the selling website is to be used more efficiency.
The case can be taken to try and help to sell pitaya by a more practical and convenient
shopping website. At the same time, attempt finds shopping process shortcoming of
three kind of method presently.
1.2 Purpose
Through the real case research, checking the selling process finds whether existing
the drawbacks of the selling process is worthy of the improvement. Finding to make
wasting key points is to be improved in process. At the same time, building the more
business and using value website assists peasants to sell their produce and collect
customer's data for commercial use. Let consumers think that shopping Pitaya process
is economic and convenient and the seller thinks that it will be convenient to manage
selling orders.
2.
Literature Review
IT is enabling fundamental changes in the way work is done. IT is causing shifts in
the competitive climate in many industries. IT presents new strategic opportunities for
organizations that reassess their missions and operations. The transition to harmony
shifts the locus of value from individual products to integrated customization
service.[1] From above reasons, IT in the world now provides a more competitive
method that is integrating selling process and already becomes the trend. Even that
will be depended on basic requirement in the near future.
Many IT methods can be used to analyze, promote or improve the shopping and
ordering process like Enterprise Process Modeling and Analysis Tool – INCOME4.
Building website software can be used to assist to sell product like ASP.NET, SQL
Server.
In order to build a corresponding and actual situation, the shopping website can be
applied in the real world. It is need to Survey the benchmark website about selling
fruit website. That will provide good references to build the website and online
booking system of the case. Surveying in the internet selected 水果三六五頂級水果
專賣店[2] and 阿洲水果行[3]. Both are taken to represent benchmark of the selling
fruit website. Because their model and design corresponds to the elements that
consumers often surf and prefer to shop online shopping websites with like PChome
online shopping website[4]. And shopping process is smooth and friendly. The design
of website style is modern and clear. Operation interface is not difficult. The
benchmark websites are illustrated in Figure 1. About 水果三六五頂級水果專賣店[2]
and Figure 2. about 阿洲水果行[3].
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
Figure 1. 水 果 三 六 五 頂 級 水 果 專 賣 店 。 Website– (a) Login page, (b) Register page, (c)
Membership page, (d) Cart page, (e) Order page.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
Figure 2. 阿洲水果行。Website– (a) Login page, (b) Register page, (c) Membership page, (d)
Shopping
page, (e) Cart page. (f) Order page one, (g) Order page two.
3.
Methodology
There are many methods and tools which are taken to research and improve the
process about shopping and ordering. INCOME4 which is enterprise process
modeling and analysis tool is selected to research and analyze this case process. There
are also many building website softwares which can be taken building the shopping
website of this case. Microsoft SQL Server2008 R2 and Microsoft Visual Studio 2010
which are free and universal are selected to build the improving and promoting
website of this case.
3.1 INCOME4
Income4 can be used to be a modeling and analytic tool for enterprise process.
There are three kind of models in it, Behavior molding, Organization molding, Object
(Information) molding. Behavior mold defines process and business rules like
sequence, procondition for an activity, branching, and refine. Organization model
identifies resource and personnel roles. Object model defines information or data
structure[1]. Income process designer can be applied in BPR, knowledge management,
application software development, workflow management, simulation studies, process
benchmarking, and so on[1]. There are two main basic elements of behavior modeling.
They are illustrated in Table 1[1].
name
Activity
Object store
Icon
function
Object are consumed, Object store can store
generated, transported, or objects, visualise objects,
modified by activity.
or acquire states.
Table 1. Main basic elements of behavior modeling.
3.2 Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2
Microsoft SQL Server is a relational database management system developed
by Microsoft. As a database, it is a software product whose primary function is to
store and retrieve data as requested by other software applications, be it those on the
same computer or those running on another computer across a network (including the
Internet). There are at least a dozen different editions of Microsoft SQL Server aimed
at different audiences and for workloads ranging from small single-machine
applications to large Internet-facing applications with many concurrent users. Its
primary query languages are T-SQL and ANSI SQL[5].
3.3 Microsoft Visual Studio 2010
Microsoft Visual Studio is an integrated development environment (IDE)
from Microsoft. It is used to develop computer programs for Microsoft Windows, as
well as web sites, web applications and web services. Visual Studio uses Microsoft
software development platforms such as Windows API, Windows Forms, Windows
Presentation Foundation, Windows Storeand Microsoft Silverlight. It can produce
both native code and managed code.Visual Studio includes a code editor supporting
IntelliSense as well as code refactoring. The integrated debugger works both as a
source-level debugger and a machine-level debugger. Other built-in tools include a
forms designer for building GUI applications, web designer, class designer,
and database schema designer. It accepts plug-ins that enhance the functionality at
almost every level—including adding support for source-control systems
(like Subversion) and adding new toolsets like editors and visual designers
for domain-specific languages or toolsets for other aspects of the software
development lifecycle[6].
4.
Reserch Framework & experiment
The first, the research surveryed the shopping website of the Sun Fruit farm. The
second, the research collected the information and data which would be important and
needed for subquent processing. The third, the information and data are used to build
the shopping processing model of the case, and the online booking system about
selling fruit was surveyed by domain benchmark at the same time. The fourth, the
model was analyzed whether the shopping and ordering process would be found the
drawback and improving chance, and the original online booking system referenced
the benchmark to redesign ordering website at the same time. The fifth, according to
the improving chance of the origial model, the shopping model was redesigned by
improving drawback, and it combined the rebuilding online booking website, too.The
sixth, the redesigned shopping process and rebuilding online booking website were
discussed and analyzed the improving result with present circumstance and prcoess.
Above-mentioned steps were illustrated in Figure 3.
Case survey
Collect information and data
Build original shopping model and survey benchmark
Analyze model
Redesign online booking system
by the benchmark
Redesign shopping model
Analytics, discussion, and result.
Figure 3. The research framework and process flow chart.
According to the purpose promoting selling pitaya and improving ordering process,
the research first sureyed the ordering process from the Sun Fruit farm and what kind
of ordering methods are given consumers to choose. The Sun Fruit farm website is
selected to survery initially. The website would provide useful information and
ordering methods presently.Then the information can be organized to form a shopping
model. The model was built by INCOME4, process simulating software. It is also
called AS-IS process model. The next step, the research tried to find the shortcoming
and processing improvement chance by AS-IS process model. At the same time, the
online booking website could not be known whether it fitted and correspond the needs
of the website users. For this reason, the research surveyed the benchmark about the
shopping website of selling fruit domain. If the benchmark of shopping website of the
domain gave the nice designing style or idea which consumers could be attracted by,
the ordering website of the farm would accept and reference it, and redesign the
website by the elements which were surveyed by the benchmark. The website rebuilt
with Microsoft SQL Server2008 R2 and Microsoft Visual Studio 2010.
Through the AS-IS process model was analyzed, it would be tried to find the waste
of the process. The waste indicated the processing improvement chance. Next step
focused the improvement chance on the AS-IS process model to redesign and rebuild
the shopping model. It was also called the TO-BE process model. Both AS-IS process
model and TO-BE process model were called behavior model which represents
process in using INCOME4 software. And new model includes the aforementioned
improving website which was redesigned and rebuilt by benchmark shopping
website.Finally, the research and experiment considered actual application to explain
and justify whether the improvement could advantage both the seller and consumers
or not.
5.
Experiment result
Through the case surveyed by internet, there were a lot of information which
indicated that the shopping process of the farm was not corresponded to mainstream
model presently, especially large number of consumers who have habit or consider
convenience to shop by internet. So the case surveryed and surfed the benchmark of
the domain in internet. The original ordering website, also called by AS-IS shopping
and ordering website page, which is displayed in the figure 4[7]. was compared to the
benchmark of the domain. To base on the foregoing reasons selected 水果三六五頂
級水果專賣店[2] and 阿洲水果行[3] to be the benchmark and rebuild the reference of
online booking system. The new modeling website, called by TO-BE shopping and
ordering website page, was built via Microsoft SQL Server2008 R2 and Microsoft
Visual Studio 2010, the tools of building website. The result was showed in figur
5[3][4][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16].
(a)
(b)
Figure 4. AS-IS shopping and ordering website page. (a) On half a page, (b) Under half a page.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
Figure 5. TO-BE shopping and ordering website page. (a) Login page, (b) Register page, (c)
Membership page, (d) Shopping page, (e) Cart page. (f) Comfirm page, (g) Order page.
The case also built orders management into the shopping website for the seller who
can easily manage the orders of the customers. They are showed in figure
6[3][4][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16].
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
Figure 5. TO-BE shopping and ordering website page. (a) Order Data page, (b) Order Item page, (c)
Order Customer page, (d) Product Information page, (e) Order Receipt page.
The case used INCOME4 to build behavior process model. The research found the
activities and object stores of the shopping process of the Sun fruit farm presently.
From customers who visit the original shopping website to them who end the
consume and leave it, the process was modeled by AS-IS process model which was
illustrated by INCOME4 in figure 6 (a). By the AS-IS process model, the shopping
process could know to exist three kind of ordering methods, by online booking, phone,
and e-mail. According to the find in process, three kind of ordering methods could
make the seller manage hard and difficult. Because orders came from online booking,
the order would be directly stored in computer. The meaning was easy record and
management. If orders came from phone, the seller might need to operate it indirectly.
The meaning was the orders which needed to record first and then noted to the orders
managing system. The orders came from e-mail had the same problem with phone.
the shopping and ordering process was not efficient and economy for the order
manager. So the research attempted to find the better solution about the ordering
process for above reason. The process changed to receive the methods of the orders,
online booking was major and e-mail was minor. Because the orders from e-mail must
be operated by computer, it could type and enter to the order system soon. Both were
operated by the same computer at the same time. Besides, the ordering process would
be planned to contact customers and be the after-sales service by the methods, phone
and e-mail. The shopping and ordering process was improved and redesigned by the
aforementioned concept. The orders came from e-mail. The information of the
customers would be directly typed and brought in the database which was built by
Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2. That would be managed easily. The improving
process was modeled by TO-BE process model which was illustrated by INCOME4
in figure 6 (b)(c)(d).
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
Figure 6. Behavior process model. (a) AS-IS process model, (b) TO-BE process model, (c) TO-BE
Online bookin drill down, (d) TO-BE Login drill down.
The object model was also built by INCOME4. The models would not be changed
by improvement before and after. But the information of customers will be directly
stored in the database, which was built by Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2, in the
improving system. The model was showed in figuer 7.
Figure 7. Object model.
6.
Discussion
The theory of constraints, TOC, is the philosophy, kaizen or continual improvement.
It focuses on identifing and controling constraints of the process or orgnization. The
constraints on product line are called “bottleneck”. If it is not solved, the output of the
system are not incremental[17]. According to experiment result and TOC, the
bottleneck was expected to find out from the original shopping system. When the
customers come into the system, they will have three kind of methods to deciede their
orders. First, if the customers give the orders by online booking system, the follow-up
process will be operated by computer. If they give the orders through e-mail, the seller
will spend additional time to operate it.But the seller read the e-mail and operate it by
the same computer in person at the same time. If the customers order the product by
phone, the seller will answer the phone and note the detail of the orders.Then the
sellers store the orders to the computer when they have free time and come to use the
computer. It causes the waste to operate the order.Because the orders are finished by
this process, it will take much waiting time to complete it and easily forget it. If this
situtation happens, it will cause the loss of both the seller and customers. So this is the
bottleneck of the system. That was illustrated in figure 8. The research found that the
customers ordered by e-mail were minor. The cause might be that the customers
would prefer to surf the shopping website and use the interface of the online booking
at the same time rather than writing e-mail or calling additionally. So they order the
product by phone are less. The research followed above reasons. The methods,
ordering by phone and e-mail, adjusted to play a role who was resposnsible for
contact the customers and after-sales service. That will improve the process efficiency
and convenience. And the process combines the TO-BE shopping and ordering
website. The website can see the figure 6(b)(c)(d). It will make the customers satisfy
and content.
Three kind of methods for ordering Pitaya
Bottleneck!
(Waste time and forget easily.)
Figure 8. The bottleneck of the original process
Finally, the research tries to campare the TO-BE shopping and ordering website with
two benchmark. It was listed in table 2.The camparison can let researcher understand
their difference.
Name of
水果三六五頂級水果專
website
賣店
阿洲水果行
TO-BE website of sun
fruit farm
retailer
retailer
Farmer
expensive
expensive
cheap
A little complexity
A little complexity
Uncomplexity
High
High
unknown
Data safty
unknown
unknown
low
Ordering
easy
easy
easier
Specialist treatment or
Specialist treatment or
The seller, no know-how
subcontract
subcontract
about IT. Maintenance is
Builder
cost
register
practicabilty
process
Website
maintenance
not easy.
Table 2. TO-BE shopping and ordering website compares with the two benchmark
7.
Conclusion and Suggestion
Through the experiment result and discussion, the case researches. It draws the four
poit conclusions. (1) from simulating ordering process with Income4 , Improving
the shopping process by website becomes more convenient. (2) Seller will be easy to
manage their orders and ship their Pitaya to customer on time by the website. (3)
Phone and E-mail will play roles of contact and after-sales service. But IN REAL
WORLD both play operating orders is still requested by customers. So there are still
keeping the two kind of ordering methods. (4) Save both seller and buyers' time and
cost, and producer earns money, consumers gain satisfying merchandise. It will create
win-win situation.
The TO-BE website of the research was not built by the specicalist of IT domain.
So there are still fuction design which is not complete, like ordering management
pages which can record membership orders but can not provide the service to the
non-membership. Maybe the case which has this function will help to promote the
sale because the benchmark has provide this service. The TO-BE shopping and
ordering website still have many improving places. Besides, the improving website
does not apply in the real internet and world. This provides a advanced research
chance. And it will justify the TO-BE process model and TO-BE website whether can
be practiced.
8.
Acknowledgement
The final project can be completed. Professor Amy Trapppey guided the direction
at twice term project presentation. Professor assisted student to constitude the frame
of the final project clearer. My teammate, Rachel Liau, supported me to pass the eEI
curriculum almost all semester. The teaching assistants, Acer and Ruby, replied my
questions very patient almost anytime. Thank you. I rejoice and thank myself because
I almost quitted this curriulum.
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[1]Amy Trappey, E-Enterprise Integration curriculum handout of IEEM of NTHU,
2014.
[2]水果三六五頂級水果專賣店(http://www.fruit365.com.tw/)
[3]阿洲水果行(http://www.365fruit.com/)
[4]PChome 線上購物(http://shopping.pchome.com.tw/)
[5]Microsoft
SQL
Server,
WIKIPEDIA
The
Free
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_SQL_Server.
[6]Microsoft
Visual
Studio,
WIKIPEDIA
The
Free
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_Visual_Studio.
[7]晨盈農場(http://sunfruit.tw/)
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彰 化 紅 龍 果 品 牌 行 銷 設
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南
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