The Challenge

A pharmaceutical distributor operating a Shopware storefront faced critical business challenges in managing a massive inventory of 300,000+ pharmaceutical SKUs, each requiring individual batch tracking, expiry date management, and strict regulatory compliance.

Critical Pain Points

  • Managing 300K+ SKUs with individual batch numbers and expiry dates
  • Legacy ERP system as source of truth requiring synchronization
  • Complex pharmaceutical data with batch numbers and expiry tracking
  • Manual inventory management causing fulfillment errors
  • Risk of selling expired products due to lack of automated expiry tracking

Manual inventory management was introducing errors that directly impacted fulfillment and customer safety. The business needed automated synchronization with their ERP system and predictive alerts.

The Solution

I architected a sophisticated bidirectional ERP integration system that treats the legacy ERP as the authoritative inventory source while maintaining synchronization with Shopware, ensuring accurate pharmaceutical tracking and zero-error fulfillment.

Technical Implementation

Bidirectional ERP Sync

Implemented two-way synchronization where ERP updates propagate to Shopware through scheduled imports, and Shopware orders sync back to ERP for fulfillment, ensuring both systems remain aligned.

Batch & Expiry Management

Automated batch number tracking and expiry date management with intelligent visibility controls that automatically hide products approaching expiration, preventing sale of expired pharmaceuticals.

Job Queue Processing

Implemented asynchronous job queue architecture to handle high-volume inventory updates without impacting storefront performance, ensuring smooth customer experience during peak synchronization periods.

Predictive Inventory Alerts

Built intelligent alerting system that flags reorder points before stockouts occur, monitors expiry dates with advance warnings, and provides actionable notifications to procurement team for proactive inventory management.

Results & Business Impact

Zero Fulfillment Errors

Automated synchronization eliminated all inventory discrepancies, achieving zero fulfillment errors due to stock mismatches, outdated pricing, or incorrect product information.

Accurate Pharmaceutical Tracking

Comprehensive batch and expiry tracking with automated visibility controls ensuring accurate pharmaceutical inventory management and preventing sale of expired products.

Automated Expiry Protection

Customers never see expired products thanks to intelligent visibility controls and predictive alerts, eliminating safety risks.

Scalable Performance

Job queue architecture handles 300K+ SKUs with continuous updates without impacting storefront performance, maintaining sub-second page loads during peak synchronization.

Technologies Used

Shopware 6 PHP 8 Symfony MySQL ERP API Job Queues Batch Tracking Expiry Management

Project Details

Industry
Pharmaceutical Distribution
Location
Germany
Project Type
ERP Integration
Duration
14 weeks

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