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Lobster data management

Interfaces that survive your next update

Point-to-point connections, CSV imports, and custom scripts break when your ERP, CRM, or PIM changes. On the Lobster Data Platform, we decouple these data flows, and the platform checks the data before it reaches your core systems. You buy the license directly from Lobster, and we take on mapping and operations.

In a 30-minute call, Jonas Krüttli goes through your interfaces, data models, and data location with you.

W4 and Lobster connect ERP, EDI, cloud, SQL databases, and e-commerce through the Lobster Data Platform

Connect, check, then make it available

Your ERP, CRM, PIM, and files stay where they are. We connect them on the Lobster Data Platform and let only checked data into the target systems.

01 Connect the sources

We work out which data comes from your ERP, CRM, PIM, files, and APIs, and connect these sources to the platform.

02 Check data before it reaches the target system

Quality rules and the golden record decide which value applies. Errors and duplicates are cleaned up directly on the platform.

03 Hand over operations

Your IT keeps the business logic. We take on mapping and operations to the extent you need.

Illustration of a connected system landscape

What your IT gets

Your IT spends less time maintaining interfaces and keeps working with the same core systems. Operations, reporting, and AI use one checked data set.

Core systems stay untouched

ERP, CRM, and PIM keep running as before. The platform works with the interfaces you already have, so you do not have to rebuild your source systems.

Checks when data arrives

Quality gates check incoming data and clean up errors and duplicates as soon as they reach the platform.

Your IT stays focused on the business logic

We configure connectors, mappings, and quality rules and take care of operations and monitoring within the agreed scope.

Lobster, new or already in place

You buy the license directly from Lobster. If you already run Lobster, we add data management to your existing installation.

Changes move as events

Data flows start as soon as data changes in a source system, so you no longer have to maintain scheduled cron jobs and one-off scripts. Other applications access the checked data set through open APIs.

The standards your partners require

We check product data against the standards your channels and trading partners set, and we enrich it accordingly. These include GS1, ETIM, ECLASS, IDM, BMEcat, and UNSPSC.

Reporting outside the ERP

Analytics and AI applications use the checked data set. The ERP stays the leading system and remains fully available for operations.

What we connect and what we check against

We connect your systems and partners through protocols and formats. Standards define how channels and trading partners understand a product record.

Protocols and formats

We connect systems and partners through HTTP / REST, SFTP, AS2, EDIFACT, VDA, IDoc, XML, JSON, flat files, Kafka, and MQTT.

Models and standards

We check and enrich product data against GS1, ETIM, ECLASS, IDM, BMEcat, and UNSPSC when your channels and trading partners require it.

Who is responsible for what

This is how Lobster, W4, and your IT share the work.

Lobster

Lobster provides the platform and the license. You buy the software directly from Lobster, whether as a new installation or as an extension of an existing one.

W4

We implement the architecture, connectors, mappings, and quality rules. We take on operations and monitoring within the scope we agree with you.

Your IT

Your IT keeps the data models, the business logic, and access to the source systems.

Start with one use case

You begin with one concrete use case and add further ones later on the same installation.

Prepare supplier data automatically

Incoming supplier data is validated and standardized, so nobody has to rework CSV files by hand.

Consolidate master data into one version

Customer, product, and supplier data from several sources is merged into one checked data set.

Feed channels from the same data set

Shop, marketplace, and internal systems read the same product and customer information.

Decouple reporting from the ERP

Analytics and AI applications read their data from the checked data set, so queries do not load your ERP during daily operations.

Provide compliance data

Data for the Digital Product Passport, e-invoicing, and reports is collected, checked, and made available.

One version for all reports

Your reports read one shared, checked data set, so every department works with the same figures.

How we work

We start with one concrete use case, whether your Lobster license is already in place or still to come. First we define sources, protocols, and target systems. Then we set the quality rules and take on operations within the agreed scope.

Certified Lobster Integration Partner and Value Added Reseller
License directly with Lobster, new or already in place
Data location in Switzerland or Germany, under the GDPR and the Swiss nDSG
Architecture, mapping, and operations by W4
Swiss family business since 1994

30 minutes on your interfaces

In the architecture check, you and Jonas Krüttli look at how your data flows today, which data models you use, and where the data should sit.

Jonas Krüttli
Jonas Krüttli
Digital Transformation Manager

Frequently asked questions

What is intelligent data management on the Lobster Data Platform?

It is a decoupled layer between your systems. It connects sources, checks the data, and provides a data set you can trust. Your core systems keep running unchanged.

Do we have to replace our ERP, CRM, or PIM?

No. Your applications stay, and the platform works with the interfaces you already have. You do not need to refactor the source systems.

Can we just build the interfaces ourselves with Python and APIs?

You can, and a custom build usually works well at the start. When people leave, formats change, or a system is upgraded, the work on the code stays with your IT. On the platform, connectors, monitoring, and quality gates sit in one layer. You keep the data models, and we take on the recurring maintenance.

Does this add another tool we have to administer?

No. We handle deployment, mapping, and operations within the agreed scope, so you do not need your own Lobster specialists in-house. Your IT gets a running interface, and we take care of its maintenance.

How does this fit our cloud and security setup?

The platform works with your APIs, files, and the protocols you already use. The data sits in Switzerland or Germany, and processing follows the GDPR and the Swiss nDSG.

We already use Lobster. Can we start here directly?

Yes. If the license is in place, we build data management on your existing Lobster installation.

How does the license work?

The license sits directly with Lobster. We support the rollout or the expansion and handle the implementation.

What is a golden record, and how is it created here?

A golden record is the checked data set for a customer, a product, or a supplier. It is created by connecting the sources, matching the data, and defining for each field which value applies.

How is this different from Middleware as a Service?

Middleware as a Service connects systems and orchestrates data flows, especially ahead of an ERP migration. Data management is about data quality, harmonization, and a data set you can trust. You can read more on the Middleware as a Service page.

How is this different from EDI as a Service?

EDI as a Service runs high-availability, transactional EDI and logistics flows. Data management provides the data quality and the checked data set those flows can build on. You can read more on the EDI as a Service page.

Which models and standards do you check against?

We work with the standards your channels and trading partners require, such as GS1, ETIM, ECLASS, IDM, BMEcat, and UNSPSC. We check and enrich product data against these standards.

How does this support analytics and AI?

The checked data set sits outside the ERP. AI applications and reports read it through open interfaces.

Which domains can we cover?

We cover customer, product, and supplier data, plus any further domain you define.

Where does the data sit?

The data sits on infrastructure in Switzerland or Germany. Processing follows the GDPR and the Swiss nDSG.

How do we start?

You start with a 30-minute architecture check with Jonas Krüttli. In this check, we go through your interfaces, data models, and data location. We start the same way if you already run Lobster.

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