GLOBAL MACHINERY SOLUTIONS

Project Scope

Global Machinery Solutions Ltd approached Rade to design and develop a new corporate website. Offering a wide and diverse range of forestry, construction and recycling machinery throughout the UK and Europe, a great web presence is essential to make sure Global Machinery get the online visibility needed in a competitive marketplace.

Rade was required to assist with planning and scoping, design and development.

Solution

Global Machinery operates across a diverse range of industry sectors, including construction, forestry, recycling and aggregates. Allied to this is a wide selection of different machinery types from several different manufacturers.

The challenge was enabling users to find equipment of interest to them as well as showcasing the ranges on offer and at the same time, making the site easy to update as ranges change over time. This required significant care in scoping and defining the site architecture as well as planning the content management tools needed.

The process started with the creation of a full site map followed by wireframing key pages. Once the overall structure was agreed, the admin tools could be defined and an engaging design created.

The site structure allows users to browse the site either 'by sector', by 'machinery type' or by 'brand' with the site design reflecting this structure using colour-coding to help users as they browse the site. Users can also search by keyword.

The site was developed using the Umbraco open-source content management system which provides the perfect mix of out of the box features and customisation to allow for the range of functionality needed to create the site. Included in this was functionality that streamlined the structure of the machinery ranges meaning a single product page can be accessed using any of the three visitor journeys.

Each product page was carefully designed to include the key product information near the top of the page, with options for the visitor to download a brochure (if available) or make an enquiry if interested. Demonstrations and/or hire are available for certain products so web forms for each are provided to allow users to request either. Imagery forms an incredibly important part of the website. Images were given prominence in the product page, with the option for multiple images to be shown in a carousel. A video heads up each brand page adding animation and interest.

Profile

Global Machinery Solutions Ltd is one of the largest and most trusted machinery dealers and suppliers in the UK and Europe, offering a range of machinery across the Forestry, Waste and Recycling, Aggregates, Construction and Confi-Shred industries