Case Studies

COATINGS RESEARCH GROUP, INC. www.coatingsresearch.com Profile: Coatings Research Group, Inc. (CRGI) is an international association of paint and coatings manufacturers that share research and development. The CRGI laboratory in Cleveland, Ohio conducts cooperative coatings R&D for members and operates a private web site with an interactive member problem solving page, current technical updates, and member news. Challenge: CRGI came to Intersoft on two separate occasions. The first time they were looking for a total site revamp for both their main web site and their private, members only web site. They were looking for more color & visual appeal along with dynamic capabilities that would allow their personnel to maintain the web site content without any programming knowledge. The second time, CRGI presented Intersoft with a problem they were facing. Their members needed to access thousands of research documents in a searchable format. Their present solution, Alchemy, did not allow for web based access without going through a very large expense. In addition, they needed a solution that could be scalable to future needs. Solution: Intersoft delivered successful solutions on both occasions. Coatings Research received a clean and professional web site that was easily navigated and reflected its corporate image. Both the corporate and private web sites were tied together in the design, which was important to CRGI to maintain a feeling of familiarity and security among their members. Using ASP, Intersoft also developed a sophisticated, updateable Membership Component that allowed for the managing of CRGI's member base which was classified into two groups. The Membership Component provided a password protected area that displayed content particular to the group. Intersoft also provided an interactive Problem & Resolutions Forum that allowed members to submit problems & solutions either by email or through the web site. The posts get emailed to all members and responses are displayed on the site. Posts are kept in a database which allowed CRGI to update or delete certain submissions. In addition, Intersoft provided other dynamic features including a Calendar of Events with event registration, Industry News, Monthly Summary Reports and much more. As for their thousands of research documents, Intersoft created a Searchable Archive Component that allowed members to view & print HTML and Microsoft Word documents from anywhere over the Internet. CRGI personnel are able to manage document profiles and organize them into categories. The members had options to Move to Next/Previous Document, View a Documents Profile and Toggle between different views. Developed with straight forwardness and ease of use in mind, Intersoft succeeded in delivering a solution that received high marks from CRGI as well as their members.