IBM Informix reliability supports leading auto dealerships in Brazil

Since 1996, Dia System has provided comprehensive data management systems to support business operations for automotive dealerships and assembly plants in Brazil. Headquartered in Jaboticabal, a municipality in the state of São Paulo, Dia System resides in a high-technology region in close proximity to Brazil’s financial center.

Dia System was established by a core group of professionals with broad experience in the automotive sector. In its early years, the company submitted to several rigorous approval processes, competing with other companies to earn the privilege of working with industry leading automotive clients, such as Toyota, Peugeot, Mercedes, Honda, Volkswagen and General Motors. In Brazil today, Dia System is one of the main suppliers of enterprise resource planning (ERP) and customer relationship management (CRM) applications for automotive dealerships and assembly plants, dominating this business sector.

Developing robust software solutions
Dia System founders wanted to develop reliable applications to support the automotive dealership industry and chose IBM® Informix® right from the beginning.

“From our start in 1996, we chose Informix 4GL to develop our software applications and quickly realized that Informix offers a robust database, with superior performance and better stability than Oracle or SQL Server,” says Clodoaldo Baitz, Director of Technology and Implementation, Dia System, which today is an IBM Business Partner.

To speed the deployment of its software solutions, Dia System selected GeneXus, another IBM Business Partner. The GeneXus software is a powerful tool for developing applications, regardless of the platform. Using GeneXus software and Informix, Dia System was able to develop the web-based Toyota Sales System that has been implemented at every Toyota distributor throughout Brazil.

Informix supports industry leading solutions
Today, Dia System offers several software solutions that are based on Informix. These applications run on Red Hat Enterprise Linux®. The company’s leading ERP system, SISDIA, operates in the web environment that provides integrity, security, and stability along with data integration to support automotive dealership and assembly plant operations.

The company’s SIADE solution integrates with SISDIA and provides real-time decision support for business operations and planning. Automotive business users have access to valuable reporting information to track financial performance, as well as the activities of branch offices, individual departments, sales, automotive parts and maintenance, and different categories of automotive dealership services.

Dia System’s VIP1 CRM system integrates with SISDIA and provides a comprehensive view of the customer, with valuable insight that goes beyond controlling workflow. Some of the information managed in the VIP1 CRM system includes customer contact data, customer preferences and satisfaction, sales transactions, contracts, finance and insurance, showroom flow, accessories services and parts. The system is also used to manage lost sales and create marketing campaigns. VIP1 also provides an efficient way to track customers who purchase from the dealership but do not use the dealer’s service center and helps analyze ways to optimize dealer floor space to manage more vehicles.

To support compliance requirements with the Brazilian Government’s Nota Fiscal Eletronica (NF-e) legislation, Dia System offers a comprehensive NF-e solution. Since September of 2009, this law requires companies to use electronic bills of lading. Dia System’s NF-e solution integrates with the SISDIA system and allows for processing, securing, and storing mandatory NF-e information.

Lastly, SISDIA Mobile provides access to SISDIA through handheld computers (PDAs). Through these devices, it is possible to open a service request, evaluate used vehicles and receive automobiles into the showroom.

“After we implement our applications on Informix, we continue to receive positive feedback from our customers because they are pleased with the superior system performance,” says Clodoaldo Baitz.

Informix delivers reliability and stability
Over the years, development activities at Dia System have kept pace with each new Informix release. Informix helps manage information that supports its core dealership ERP and CRM applications, while helping to optimize infrastructure resources, improve performance and lower costs, for both Dia System and its customers.

With more than 800 customer dealerships, ranging in size from one to over 100 showrooms, Dia System customizes its solutions to satisfy dealership requirements.

“Informix offers the reliability and scalability needed to best support our customer’s business requirements,” says Rafael De Sena Gouvea, Product Manager at Dia System. “Our customers compare the performance and reliability of our products developed on Informix with other competitive products and databases, and they choose our solutions.”

Because Informix is reliable and easy to maintain, Dia System spends less time on support calls and requires fewer DBAs to manage application databases. These factors translate into lower operating costs and more satisfied customers.

Plans for continued business growth
Dia System continues to enhance its software solutions to provide its customers with new web-based capabilities. “We will continue to use Informix and GeneXus software to expand our system capabilities,” says Clodoaldo Baitz. “Informix helps ensure reliability and GeneXus helps us respond quickly to market trends and deliver new enhancements to our customers in much less time.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact your IBM sales representative or IBM Business Partner. Visit us at:
ibm.com/software/data/informix

To increase the business value of Information Management software, participate in independently run Information Management User Groups around the world. Learn about opportunities near you at ibm.com/software/data/management/community.html

For more information on GeneXus, visit: www.genexususa.com

For more information on Dia System, visit: www.diasystem.com.br

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