Ovenca - eProcurement Plattform for Digital Procurement

Catalog management software: maintain and approve supplier catalogs centrally

In Catalog Management, procurement imports supplier catalogs, reviews them and approves them for the Catalog Shop. Punchout catalogs, SmartForms, units of measure and classifications are configured here.

The module is procurement's workspace in the Ovenca eProcurement software. Only what has been approved here can be ordered.

Procurement's workspace for catalogs

In Catalog Management, procurement decides which suppliers, catalogs and items can be ordered in the company. Catalogs enter the system as a file, through the Vendor Portal or as a punchout connection. They pass validation and approval before requesters see them in the Catalog Shop.

Users
Catalog managers and operational buyers
Objects
Vendors, catalogs, products, bundle items, categories and SmartForms
Import formats
CSV, Excel and BMEcat
Catalog size
Catalogs with more than 5 million items in total
Result
Approved catalogs that can be searched and ordered in the Catalog Shop

From supplier catalog to orderable assortment

Every catalog has a status. The catalog list shows where a catalog stands in the process.

  1. Import

    Procurement loads the catalog file as CSV, Excel or BMEcat, or the supplier submits it through the Vendor Portal.

  2. Validation

    Catalog data is checked during import. Failed imports are marked as such in the list.

  3. Approval

    The catalog passes the approval levels, in the example Controlling and Procurement. Approvers can request changes or reject.

  4. Provision

    Approved catalogs are indexed and are then available in the Catalog Shop.

Catalog list in Catalog Management with the columns catalog status, index status and config approval as well as vendor and catalog name

The screenshots on this page show a demo environment with sample data.

  1. Catalog statusNew, data import pending, approval pending, changes requested, approved or rejected.
  2. Index statusShows whether a catalog is being indexed or is ready for search.
  3. Config approvalPunchout catalogs have a separate approval of their configuration, in the example with technical and non-technical levels.
  4. Vendor and catalogEvery catalog belongs to a vendor. The list can be filtered by status, vendor and catalog name.
  5. ExportThe catalog list can be exported.

AI and automation in catalog management

Ovenca has an AI assistant and an MCP server. Both know every function of the application, including those of Catalog Management. Whatever happens with every catalog runs automatically anyway.

AI assistant and MCP server

In the AI assistant, buyers describe what they need in their own words. The assistant uses the same functions as the user interface: find catalogs, check status, handle approvals, maintain items and mappings.

Through the MCP server (Model Context Protocol), other AI applications that support MCP can use these functions too. External systems are excluded, such as the supplier shops behind a punchout catalog.

Example requests

  • Which catalogs are waiting for my approval?
  • Show me the items with errors in the last import.
  • Map the supplier unit “pcs” to the SAP unit of measure “PC”.
  • Which catalogs from this supplier are approved?

What runs automatically

Validation on import
Catalog data is validated on import. Failed imports are flagged in the catalog list.
Corrections by the supplier
Suppliers get a list of issues per item and correct them in the Vendor Portal themselves. Procurement receives validated catalogs for approval.
Units and classification
Mappings to SAP units of measure and to the UNSPSC classification are maintained once instead of adjusting every catalog by hand.
Approval routing
Catalogs pass through the approval stages; routing can follow the commodity group.
Provisioning
Approved catalogs are indexed and then available for search in the Catalog Shop.

Configuring punchout catalogs

Supplier shops are set up as punchout catalogs. The connection is maintained per catalog in Catalog Management and approved before use. With punchout level 2, the supplier's items are additionally imported like catalog items; the file only carries a few extra columns for this. The items appear in search, and the jump leads straight to the product page in the supplier's shop instead of its start page.

Punchout configuration of a catalog with catalog ID, protocol OCI, punchout level, catalog URL, category, calling method and encoding
  1. Protocol and levelSelection of the protocol, OCI in the example, and display of the punchout level
  2. ConnectionCatalog URL, calling method and character encoding
  3. ParametersSeparate tab for the connection parameters
  4. MappingSeparate tab for the field mappings
  5. TestThe configuration can be tested from within the screen
  6. HistorySeparate history tabs for the catalog and for the punchout configuration

What is a PunchOut catalog? Process and cXML vs. OCI compared

SmartForms for items that need additional details

Some items need more than quantity and price. The example is a business card with name, position, department and contact details. Procurement builds forms for such items and assigns them to products.

SmartForm editor with the list of field types on the left, the form fields in the middle and the properties of the selected field on the right
  1. Field typesHeadline, description, text field, text area, radio button, checkbox, dropdown, date, e-mail field and number field.
  2. WorkspaceDrag fields into the workspace, reorder, duplicate and remove them.
  3. PropertiesPer field: required flag, message text, placeholder, maximum length and price.
  4. Preview and productsSeparate tabs for the form preview and the assigned products.

Mapping units of measure and classification

Suppliers deliver units and classifications in their own logic. The configuration area holds the mappings that make catalog data and carts fit your ERP.

Configuration menu in Catalog Management with the entries UOMs, Currencies, SAP UOMs, OCI Cart Mapping, UNSPSC Mapping and SmartForm Fonts
Units of measure
Maintenance of the units of measure used in catalogs
SAP units of measure
Mapping to the units of measure in SAP
Currencies
Maintenance of the currencies in use
OCI Cart Mapping
Mapping of the cart fields for the handover via OCI
UNSPSC Mapping
Mapping of the UNSPSC classification

Control over assortment and data quality

Catalog Management is where procurement takes responsibility for the assortment.

  • Approval before visibility

    A catalog can only be ordered from after approval. Approvals have several levels, and routing can follow the material group.

  • Permissions down to the relation

    Roles govern read, create, update and delete per object and per relation between objects.

  • Assignment to the organisation

    Catalogs are linked to legal entities, plants and procurement managers.

  • Queries to suppliers

    Approvers comment on the item. The supplier corrects it in the Vendor Portal and submits the catalog again.

  • History

    Every catalog has a history in which transactions remain traceable.

Roles and approvals in the Admin AreaeProcurement savings calculator

Interfaces of Catalog Management

Catalog data comes from files, from suppliers and from supplier shops. Master data comes from the ERP.

Integration and architecture in detail

File import
CSV, Excel and BMEcat
Suppliers
Submission and maintenance through the Vendor Portal
Punchout
Connection of supplier shops via OCI or cXML
ERP
Contracts, material numbers and master data from SAP, Microsoft Dynamics, Oracle, Infor, Sage, DATEV or proprietary systems
Catalog Shop
Approved catalogs are available to authorised users in the shop

Catalog Management capabilities

The table summarises the functions for catalog managers.

Catalog Management functions by area
AreaFunctionScope
ImportFile formatsCSV, Excel, BMEcat
ImportSubmission by suppliersThrough the Vendor Portal
ReviewValidationCheck of the catalog data during import
ReviewApprovalMulti-level, with change request and rejection
ProvisionIndexingIndex status per catalog
PunchoutConfigurationProtocol, level, URL, calling method, encoding, parameters, mapping, test
PunchoutPunchout level 2Items via catalog import with extra columns, findable in search, jump to the product page in the supplier shop
PunchoutConfig approvalSeparate approval levels for punchout catalogs
SmartFormsForm editorField types, required fields, preview, assignment to products
Master dataUnits and currenciesUnits of measure, SAP units of measure, currencies
Master dataClassificationCategories, UNSPSC Mapping
ControlHistoryPer catalog and per punchout configuration
AIAI assistantAll application functions in your own words, excluding external systems such as punchout shops
AIMCP serverAccess for AI applications that support the Model Context Protocol

Frequently asked questions about catalog management

Catalog management is the central maintenance of electronic supplier catalogs in procurement. Catalogs are imported, checked, approved and made available for ordering. In Ovenca, the Catalog Management module handles this task: procurement decides there which suppliers, catalogs and items can be ordered in the company.

eProcurement and catalog systems do this: requesters pick items from approved supplier catalogs, and the shopping cart becomes a purchase requisition (PR) that is routed to the responsible approvers automatically. After approval it is handed over to the ERP. Ovenca is such a system: procurement maintains the catalogs in Catalog Management, requesters order in the Catalog Shop. Approvals follow value, cost center or commodity group, and the handover to SAP and other ERP systems uses OCI, cXML or an API.What is a purchase requisition (PR)?

Yes. Ovenca has an AI assistant and an MCP server that know every function of the application, including those of Catalog Management. Buyers ask, for example, which catalogs are waiting for approval, or have units of measure mapped. External systems such as the shops behind a punchout catalog are excluded. Validation on import, issue lists for suppliers and provisioning in the Catalog Shop run automatically.

Catalog management is procurement's workspace. Catalogs are imported, checked and approved there. The catalog shop is the ordering interface for requesters: they search the approved catalogs there and add items to the cart. In Ovenca, these are the modules Catalog Management and Catalog Shop.

Procurement imports supplier catalogs as CSV, Excel or BMEcat. Supplier shops are connected as punchout catalogs via OCI or cXML. Suppliers can also submit their catalogs themselves through the Vendor Portal.

Both are possible. Procurement can import catalog files itself. Suppliers can submit their catalogs in the Vendor Portal and correct them themselves using a problem list per item. In both cases, approval lies with procurement.

A supplier's shop is set up as a punchout catalog in Catalog Management and connected via OCI or cXML. With punchout level 2, the supplier's items are additionally imported like catalog items. They then appear in search, and the jump leads straight to the product page in the supplier's shop.

The reference customer LANXESS AG has more than 5 million items in the system. Onveda does not state a fixed upper limit per catalog.

Catalog files from the previous system are imported as CSV, Excel or BMEcat. Punchout catalogs are connected again via OCI or cXML. Contracts, material numbers and master data come from the ERP. The page “Replace your catalog system” describes the process.

Only after checking and approval. Catalog data is checked during import, and failed imports are marked in the catalog list. The catalog then passes a multi-stage approval and afterwards appears in the Catalog Shop.

Through a catalog update by the supplier: the supplier submits a new version of the catalog in the Vendor Portal. It is checked like any catalog and approved by purchasing, and only then does the new price apply in the Catalog Shop. If desired, purchasing can also change prices directly in Catalog Management.

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