Supplier Engagement Platform for Construction Designers
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Solution Overview
Problem
Building designers face challenges in accessing current, accurate, and detailed information about building materials and product suppliers, particularly in unfamiliar geographical locations, leading to missed innovations, higher costs, and issues with product availability.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented supplier engagement system that enables architects and design professionals to efficiently search for and connect with building product suppliers or manufacturers, providing localized product availability, regional contact information, and anonymous communication options to protect personal and project information.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If designers use general search queries of online building product sources, then they can access building product information, but the process produces too much information, consumes too much time, and does not yield optimal results
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces an intermediary system (the platform) that mediates between designers and building product suppliers. The platform processes design project information and automatically matches it with relevant supplier contacts, eliminating the need for designers to conduct manual search queries and review excessive information manually.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-processing and organizing building product and supplier information before designers need it. The platform proactively identifies relevant suppliers based on project location, type, and requirements, presenting pre-filtered results to designers rather than requiring them to search through unfiltered databases.
2Reliability
If designers consult with suppliers from previous projects, then they can obtain product information, but they miss new innovations in building materials or fail to take advantage of lower cost supplier options
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically updates its database of supplier information, product availability, and pricing based on real-time data from multiple sources. This allows the platform to provide designers with current information about new innovations and cost-effective suppliers, rather than relying on static contact lists from previous projects.
Solution Approach 2:
The platform serves multiple functions: it provides product information, identifies suppliers, checks availability, compares pricing, and connects designers with relevant contacts. This multi-functional approach ensures designers receive comprehensive, up-to-date information about both established and new suppliers, improving both reliability and adaptability.
3Ease of operation
If designers conduct manual searches for building product information, then they can find supplier contacts, but the process exposes the designer to undesirable sales pitches from building product and material vendors
Solution Approach 1:
The platform acts as a neutral intermediary that filters and presents only relevant supplier information to designers. By processing information through a structured system that prioritizes design needs over sales objectives, the platform eliminates unwanted sales pitches while maintaining ease of access to supplier contacts.
Solution Approach 2:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms that allow designers to indicate what information is most relevant to their projects. This feedback loop enables the platform to refine its information delivery, presenting only pertinent supplier details while filtering out promotional content and sales pitches that do not add value to the design process.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for connecting architects and design professionals with product suppliers or manufacturers in the construction industry is disclosed. An example embodiment is configured to: establish a data connection with at least one design professional (DP) platform and at least one product expert (PE) platform; match a DP at the DP platform with a PE at the PE platform based on a correlation between the project geographical location, the project type, and the project section as related to specific product genres and geographical locations in which the PE has represented possession of product expertise; and enable communication between the DP and the matched PE, the communication including an option of either an open or veiled chat session, the veiled chat session preventing the PE from viewing private information of the DP and/or their project.