Scaling product information management at Corning Optical Communications
Corning partnered with Convergence Data to modernize product information management, reduce manual processes and build a scalable, governed foundation for global digital commerce with Convergence PIM.
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Company Overview
A global manufacturer with a complex product catalog
As ecommerce requirements grew, the complexity of product hierarchies, multi-region distribution and multi-language content began to outpace the systems and processes originally built for content management, not product information management.
A CMS was doing the job of a PIM
Corning's product teams were stretching SAP Hybris beyond its intended role, with knock-on effects on speed, quality and governance.
SAP Hybris used as a CMS
Content system stretched into the role of a dedicated PIM.
Heavy IT dependence
Product managers had to route routine data changes through IT.
Thousands of unused attributes
Legacy attributes bloated categories without adding value.
Duplicate product attributes
Overlapping fields created ambiguity across product lines.
Poor governance
No central owner for taxonomy, attributes, or data quality.
Multi-language complexity
Localised content was hard to manage and keep in sync.
Family inheritance gaps
Parent-child product relationships weren't structured for reuse.
Slow time-to-market
Manual processes delayed launches and category updates.
The downstream cost of poor product data
Every gap in product data upstream compounds into real business impact downstream.
Convergence PIM: a governed foundation for global product data
Convergence Data implemented Convergence PIM with a structured taxonomy, attribute management, product governance and native integration with SAP Hybris — putting product managers back in control.
Structured taxonomy and classification
A clean, governed taxonomy replaced ad-hoc categorisation, giving every product a defined place in the hierarchy and eliminating attribute bloat.
- Consistent classification
- Reduced duplicate attributes
- Scalable category model
Attribute and governance model
Central ownership of attributes and workflows brought discipline to how product data is created, reviewed and published — with clear data ownership.
- Attribute standards
- Governed workflows
- Data ownership by business teams
Parent-child product relationships
Product family and SKU inheritance let teams manage variants efficiently, so shared attributes flow from parents to children without duplication.
- Family inheritance
- Efficient variant management
- Fewer manual edits
SAP Hybris integration & multi-language support
Convergence PIM syndicates governed product data into Hybris and downstream channels, with multi-language content managed from a single source of truth.
- Native Hybris integration
- Multi-language ready
- Business user empowerment
From legacy data to customer experience
Convergence PIM sits at the center of a governed pipeline that flows from raw legacy data all the way through to the customer.
What structured product data unlocks
Product Taxonomy
Structured classifications give every product a consistent home, so categories scale without becoming noisy.
Product Listing Pages
Standardized attributes power reliable filtering and search, helping customers narrow options quickly.
Product Detail Pages
Rich, governed specifications build purchasing confidence and reduce back-and-forth with sales teams.
Measurable impact at global scale
More than 100 product managers now work inside Convergence PIM, with over 25,000 SKUs activated at go-live and a central governance team owning taxonomy and data quality. The catalog doubled within a year while website navigation and search improved for customers around the world.
A future-ready product data foundation
Improved governance
A central team owns taxonomy, attributes, and data quality.
Faster product launches
Business users publish and update products without IT bottlenecks.
Better search
Structured attributes drive precise, relevant on-site results.
Improved navigation
Consistent hierarchy makes categories easier to browse.
Scalable multilingual content
One governed source of product truth across regions.
Reduced IT dependency
Product managers own their data end to end.
Better customer experience
Cleaner PLPs and PDPs shorten the path to purchase.
Future-ready product data
A foundation ready for new channels and AI-driven use cases.
"Successful PIM isn't simply about implementing software. It's about building the governance, taxonomy and data structure that allows product information to scale."
— Convergence Data
Hear the full Corning story
Listen to the complete discussion covering Corning's transformation, the challenges, implementation strategy and lessons manufacturers can apply to their own product data initiatives.
Ready to Modernize Your Product Data?
Manufacturers with complex, global catalogs can move faster and operate at lower cost with a governed PIM foundation. Let's evaluate your current product information strategy together.