Abstract:
The present invention discloses a system and method for improving the organization and dissemination of information in a management information system (MIS). Improved security, organization and delivery of data is achieved in an MIS through the creation of a number of novel databases and an associated method of utilization whereby outside suppliers are provided with timely and secure access to drawing information stored at the MIS. In accordance with the novel data organization and dissemination methods of the invention, the MIS is assured that vendors will have a capability to only view drawings and related information which pertain to the particular vendor thereby preventing the vendor from viewing and/or accessing other vendor&#39;s information.

Description:
REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]    This application claims priority from Provisional Application Serial No. 60/434,578, filed Dec. 19, 2002. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. Field of the Invention  
           [0003]    The invention generally relates to management information systems (MIS) and more particularly to a system and method for providing improved data security, organization and delivery in an MIS.  
           [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art  
           [0005]    Management information systems (MIS), such as the well known and widely deployed SAP management information system from SAP AG T  of Walldorf, Germany, are structured on the concept of workgroups. Broadly defined, in a workgroup, files and data are shared by means of a network. Accordingly, the workgroup principle provides numerous advantages for exchanging and facilitating the flow of information amongst users. However, there are associated drawbacks. As one example, the concept of workgroups extends to outside suppliers. This is undesirable in that the management entity controlling the operations of the MIS do not wish for the material supplier to have access to the workgroup data without restriction. Ideally, the outside supplier should only be provided with access to drawings (i.e., component and/or material drawings) and related information for which the outside supplier has been approved and be otherwise restricted from viewing drawings pertaining to the whole product (i.e., finished product drawings, intermediate assembly drawings).  
           [0006]    Therefore, a need exists for supplying outside suppliers with timely information for only drawings and related information for which the supplier has been approved.  
         SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
         [0007]    The present invention is directed to a system and method for improving the organization and dissemination of information in a management information system (MIS).  
           [0008]    According to an aspect of the invention, a method for improving the organization and dissemination of information in a management information system (MIS) includes the steps of: identifying at the MIS at least one outside vendor who supplies at least one material included in a notification of drawing change issued from the MIS; (b) issuing said notification of drawing change from the MIS to the at least one outside vendor identified at the identifying step; accessing an MIS website by the at least one outside vendor responsive to the issued notification; submitting a database search query by the at least one outside vendor at said MIS website including search criteria for viewing drawings prepared by and stored at the MIS; retrieving a list of drawings at the MIS satisfying said submitted database search query; filtering said retrieved list of drawings at said MIS to exclude drawings unrelated to the at least one outside vendor; and displaying the filtered drawing list to the at least one outside vendor.  
           [0009]    According to another aspect of the invention, a system for improving the organization and dissemination of information in a management information system (MIS), the system comprising: means for identifying at the MIS at least one outside vendor who supplies at least one material included in a notification of drawing change issued from the MIS; means for issuing the notification of drawing change from the MIS to the at least one outside vendor identified at the step (a); means for accessing an MIS website by the at least one outside vendor responsive to the issued notification; means for submitting a database search query by the at least one outside vendor at the MIS website including search criteria for viewing drawings prepared by and stored at the MIS; means for retrieving a list of drawings at the MIS satisfying the submitted database search query; means for filtering the retrieved list of drawings at the MIS to exclude drawings unrelated to the at least one outside vendor; and means for displaying the filtered drawing list to the at least one outside vendor.  
           [0010]    Advantageously, the system and method of the invention provides conveniences to the outside suppliers by first being informed in a timely manner of engineering drawing changes and also for being provided with an access mechanism for responding to drawing change notifications by conveniently accessing the MIS website over an electronic network to view the pertinent drawings and associated information. The MIS system is provided with enhanced security by allowing suppliers access to only those drawings and associated drawing information which are associated with the supplier.  
           [0011]    The foregoing features of the present invention will become more readily apparent and may be understood by referring to the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment of the present invention, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, where:  
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0012]    [0012]FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the arrangement of one embodiment of an SAP management information system according to the present invention;  
         [0013]    [0013]FIG. 2 is a figure illustrating the novel databases of the invention;  
         [0014]    [0014]FIG. 3 is a flowchart which explains, at a top level, the processes involved in organizing and disseminating information in the SAP management information system;  
         [0015]    [0015]FIG. 4 is a flowchart which explains the steps performed by the data population process step of FIG. 2;  
         [0016]    [0016]FIG. 4 is a flowchart which explains the steps performed by the drawing change notification process step of FIG. 2;  
         [0017]    [0017]FIG. 5 is a flowchart which explains the steps performed by the access to drawing change process step of FIG. 2;  
         [0018]    [0018]FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary engineering drawing change (ECO) emailed from the SAP MIS  10  to a qualified primary vendor;  
         [0019]    [0019]FIG. 7 is a flowchart which explains the steps performed by the access to drawing change process, described at step  3500  of the flowchart of FIG. 3;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 8 is a screen view illustrating an example of a ‘home’ Web page received by the end-user&#39;s browser upon typing in the URL associated with the SAP website;  
         [0021]    [0021]FIG. 9 is a screen view illustrating a Web page returned to the end-user&#39;s Web browser upon selection of the “Online Transactions” hyperlink of web page of FIG. 8;  
         [0022]    [0022]FIG. 10 is a screen view illustrating the Web page displayed by the end-user&#39;s Web browser to the vendor upon selection of the “Engineering Drawings” hyperlink from the Web page of FIG. 9;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIG. 11 is a screen view illustrating a Web page returned to the end-user&#39;s Web browser upon selection of the “Engineering Drawings” hyperlink from the Web page of FIG. 10;  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 12 is a flowchart which explains step  715  of the flowchart of FIG. 7;  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 13 is an exemplary unfiltered drawing list returned in response to a query submitted to the SAP DMS portion of the MIS;  
         [0026]    [0026]FIG. 14 is the drawing list of FIG. 13 filtered to exclude all drawings which do not pertain to the vendor/manufacturer making the query;  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 15 is a screen view illustrating a web page returned to the end-user&#39;s web browser upon the selection of the QML (Qualified Manufacturer&#39;s List) Report hyperlink in FIG. 9;  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 16 is a screen view illustrating a web page returned to the end-user&#39;s web browser of the data returned for a QML query;  
         [0029]    [0029]FIG. 17 is a screen view of a text entry screen for entering search criteria to inquire about changes which have occurred to a material supplied by an outside vendor; and  
         [0030]    [0030]FIG. 18 is a screen view illustrating a Web page returned to the vendor&#39;s Web browser in response to the formulated search query provided at FIG. 17. 
     
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       [0031]    In the following description, for purposes of explanation rather than limitation, specific details are set forth such as the particular architecture, interfaces, techniques, etc., in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. For purposes of simplicity and clarity, detailed descriptions of well-known devices, circuits, and methods are omitted so as not to obscure the description of the present invention with unnecessary detail.  
         [0032]    [0032]FIG. 1 shows a block diagram of a network environment  100 , in which the features of the invention may be implemented. In particular, system  100  includes an SAP management information system (MIS)  10  comprised of a QM sub-system  20  in communication with a document management sub-system (DMS)  40 . The SAP MIS  10  performs innumerable functions related to the organization and dissemination of management and engineering related information. One of the many functions performed by the SAP MIS  10  is the development and maintenance of engineering drawings. To satisfy this function, the SAP MIS  10  must perform at least the following sub-functions: (1) manually locate and qualify manufacturers and suppliers (vendors) of materials used in the engineering drawings, (2) update drawings whenever it is required, (3) store drawing and drawing change information in a manner that permits it to be selectively disseminated to those qualified outside suppliers/manufacturers on a need to know basis, and (4) inform those qualified outside suppliers/manufacturers of those drawing updates that may impact them as suppliers/manufacturers. The present invention is directed primarily but not exclusively to steps (3) and (4) above.  
         [0033]    The QML sub-system  20  of the SAP MIS  10  is shown to include four databases created in accordance with the principles of the invention which allow the MIS to make engineering drawings and related information selectively available to suppliers/manufacturers strictly on a need to know basis. The databases contain data specific to those manufacturers and vendors who have been qualified to supply material to Advance T , a managing entity of the SAP MIS  10 . The four databases shown include a qualified manufacturer&#39;s (QM) database  21 , a vendor-to-manufacturer&#39;s (VTM) database  23 , a manufacturer&#39;s-to-vendors (MTV) database  25  and a block-email (BEM) database  27 .  
         [0034]    With continued reference to FIG. 1, network  140  connects the SAP MIS  10  and client nodes  150  (e.g., vendors and manufacturers), via the SAP website  50 , which may be local or remote from the SAP MIS  10 . The SAP website  50  includes a website database  53  and processor  55  for controlling communication functions between the SAP MIS  10  and the client nodes  150 . Network  140  may include one or more communication networks, including the Internet or any other similar network that supports Web-based processing. Client nodes  150  may connect to network  140  through any suitable wired or wireless supported connection.  
         [0035]    Client nodes  150  may include a desktop computer, workstation, laptop, personal digital assistant or any other similar client side system known in the art. Client nodes  150  are equipped with browser software such as Netscape Navigator, Microsoft Internet Explorer, or any other known browser software. A client-side data store  160  may also be provided for storing downloaded engineering drawings, ECO notifications, and other information.  
         [0036]    [0036]FIG. 2 is a diagram that defines the fields which make up the respective databases shown in FIG. 1. Referring first to the QM database  21  which stores information pertaining to qualified manufacturers and includes at least a qualified manufacturer field, a material (part no.) field, an ordering code field, a manufacturer part number field, a packaging type field, a type or grade of material field, a lead/pitch field and a free flowing text field. The purpose and use of the QM database  21  will be described below.  
         [0037]    Referring next to the VTM database  23  which includes at least a first field which defines a short-hand notation for each qualified manufacturer from the QM database  21  and a second field which is a full-text description of the manufacturer. The VTM database  23  is used as a safeguard to prevent the occurrence of a user entering the same manufacturer name into the QM database  21  multiple times under slightly different spellings. In operation, when a user types in a manufacturer name to retrieve data from the QM database  21 , the name is first checked against the entry in the VTM database  23  to insure that the user is typing in a valid manufacturer name. For example, assume that Panasonic Corporation of North America has been qualified for the first time. A short-hand notation is generated for the name “Panasonic Corporation of North America”, such as “PAN-NA” and entered into the VTM database  23 . Thereafter, whenever a user attempts to access the QM database  21  for the Panasonic Corporation, the typed in name will be checked against the “PAN-NA” label entered in the VTM database  23 .  
         [0038]    Referring next to the MTV database  25  which stores information defining which vendors supply material(s) for a qualified manufacturer. The MTV database  25  includes at least a first field which is a short hand notation for a qualified manufacturer (e.g., PAN-NA), and a second field which is a unique SAP vendor number assigned by the SAP MIS  10  to the vendor. It is noted that oftentimes a manufacturer can be its own supplier (vendor) in which case the second field will be the SAP number for the manufacturer acting in the capacity of a vendor.  
         [0039]    Referring now to the BEM database  27  of FIG. 2 which stores information regarding which vendors will and will not receive email notifications of engineering drawing changes generated by the SAP MIS  10  in the event the drawing change includes a change of material supplied by a vendor. The BEM database  27  includes at least a first field which is the vendor&#39;s unique SAP number assigned by the SAP MIS  10  and a second field which is essentially a binary field (i.e., on/off) defining whether the vendor should or should not receive email notifications of engineering drawing changes (ECO&#39;s).  
         [0040]    [0040]FIG. 2 also shows the drawing database  12  and material master database  14  included as elements of the SAP DMS  40  sub-system. As engineering drawings are created in the SAP MIS  10  they are stored in the drawing database. Whenever a material required to be purchased from an outside vendor is included in a newly created engineering drawing, the material master databases  14  are updated accordingly and associated bill of materials are created.  
         [0041]    Also shown in FIG. 2 is the SAP website database  53  for storing email addresses for vendors who should receive ECO notifications via email from Advance T , as will be described further below.  
         [0042]    [0042]FIG. 3 is a top-level flowchart of the method embodiment of the manufacturer and vendor information system of the present invention. FIG. 3 includes four general processes performed in accordance with the method of the invention. A first process, “Data Population”  3300 , is related to how the databases created in accordance with the principles of the invention are initially populated with data, as will be described below with respect to the flowchart of FIG. 4. The second process, “Drawing Change Notification”  3400 , is related to how vendors and/or manufacturers are notified in the event of an engineering drawing change affecting one or more purchased materials, as will be described below with respect to the flowchart of FIG. 5. The third process, “Access To Drawing Changes”  3500  is related to how a vendor and/or manufacturer may access the SAP MIS  10  upon being notified of a material change in an engineering drawing being supplied by the vendor. The fourth process, “Access TO QML Related Data”  3600  is related to vendor specifications as interpreted by the SAP MIS. It is a conventional practice of the Advance Transformer (ATC) to receive specifications from the various vendors and interpret those specifications for internal purposes. The ATC interpreted specifications are stored as part of the SAP database. In the event a dispute arises between ATC and an outside vendor concerning a supplied material, both the vendor&#39;s specification and ATC&#39;s interpreted vendor specification are consulted to resolve the dispute. Further, the SAP interpreted vendor specifications are also used by SAP quality control inspectors when materials are received from vendors.  
         [0043]    Data Population Process  
         [0044]    Referring now to FIG. 4, which is a more detailed flowchart of the “data population” process described at step  3300  of FIG. 3.  
         [0045]    At step  420 , engineering drawings are created in the SAP MIS  10  and stored in an engineering drawing database  12  as part of the DMS system  40 . Whenever a material required to be purchased from an outside vendor is included in a newly created engineering drawing, the material master databases  14  are updated accordingly and associated bill of materials are created.  
         [0046]    At step  440 , a component engineering (CE) group affiliated with Advance T , the management entity controlling the SAP MIS  10 , qualifies a manufacturer for those outside purchased materials identified in the newly created drawings. The step of qualifying a manufacturer involves finding a manufacturer who is able to supply a material(s) that substantially meets an internally generated CE specification for that material. Once a manufacturer is qualified, the manufacturer and material specifications are entered into the QM database  21 . It is noted that if a qualified manufacturer is new to the SAP MIS  10 , (i.e., not previously listed in the QM database  21 ) the manufacturer must first be added to the Valid Manufacturers (VTM) database  23 .  
         [0047]    At step  460 , It is the responsibility of CE to notify the purchasing department of newly qualified manufacturers. Upon being notified, purchasing then proceeds to qualify one or more vendors capable of supplying the material made by the newly qualified manufacturer. Once a vendor is found, an SAP vendor number is then assigned to the newly qualified vendor to be entered into the manufacturer-to-vendor (MTV) database  25 .  
         [0048]    At step  480 , certain outside vendors are excluded from receiving engineering change orders (ECO&#39;s) via email from the SAP MIS  10 . Periodically, the Advance T  purchasing group reviews its qualified vendors and determines which vendors should not receive engineering change order (ECO) notifications. Typically, it is decided that only one or two vendors for a given material are qualified to receive the ECO&#39;s as representing reliable supply sources, referred to herein as ‘primary’ vendors. Those other qualified “non-primary” vendors which have been excluded from receiving email notifications are only called upon as a material supply source in the event of an unexpected increase in demand. The distinction between “primary” vendors and “non-primary” vendors is recorded in the BEM database  27  in a binary field having allowable values “receive” and “block”, where a “block” status indicates that that the vendor should not receive email notifications of ECO&#39;s from the SAP MIS  10 .  
         [0049]    At step  490 , a newly qualified vendor registers for access to the SAP website  50 . To register, the vendor supplies his business name. In response, the SAP MIS  10  looks up the business name supplied by the vendor to look up a previously assigned vendor SAP number. Once found, the website  50  supplies the vendor with a sign-on user name, password and a six-digit SAP vendor number which is initially assigned when a vendor is first approved by the purchasing department for future access to the SAP website  50 . The vender logs onto the website using his username and password. The SAP MIS uses the vendor number to identify the user in the SAP that system. The SAP vendor number is invisible to the user.  
         [0050]    Drawing Change Notification Process  
         [0051]    Referring next to FIG. 5, which is a more detailed flowchart of the “drawing change notification” process at step  3400  of FIG. 3.  
         [0052]    At step  510 , whenever a change to an engineering drawing is completed, at some point the engineering change order (ECO) is given a “released” status.  
         [0053]    At step  530 , an SAP routine within the SAP MIS  10  reviews the released ECO and determines whether the ECO affects at least one drawing, if so, the SAP routine then looks to determine if the at least one drawing is linked to a purchased material. Otherwise, the process terminates at step  535 .  
         [0054]    At step  550 , the purchased material identified at step  530  is used as an index into the QM database  21  to lookup the manufacturer of the identified material. In the event the SAP routine does not find a manufacturer in the QM database  21 , a notification is generated by the SAP routine and sent to the Advance T  CE group to enter the manufacturer&#39; name to the QM database  21 . This situation may occur through inadvertence where a manufacturer has been previously qualified by Advance T  but the step of entering the manufacturer into the QM database  21  was overlooked.  
         [0055]    At step  570 , the manufacturer identified at step  550  is now used as an index into the MTV database  23  to lookup the vendors which are associated with the manufacturer identified at step  550 . A vendor list is created from the lookup procedure. If no vendors are identified from the MTV database  23 , a workflow notification is issued by the SAP routine to the Advance T  purchasing department to create such a relationship in the MTV database  23 . This situation may occur through inadvertence whenever purchasing fails to make the proper database entries in the MTV database  23  at the point in time where a vendor is first qualified by Advance T .  
         [0056]    At step  590 , prior to sending notifications to the vendors identified at step  570 , a check is made in the BEM database  27  to determine if any of the identifiers vendors should not receive ECO notifications. As discussed above, those vendors having their ECO notification status set to “block” should not receive email notifications of ECO&#39;s.  
         [0057]    At step  593 , those vendors who were identified at step  590  as having their ECO notification status set to “block” in the BEM database  27  are then filtered (deleted) from the vendor list constructed at step  570 .  
         [0058]    At step  595 , the filtered vendor list, now including only vendors having an ECO notification status of “receive”, is then transmitted to the SAP website processor  55  to perform a lookup to determine the email addresses for each qualified primary vendor in the filtered list. The vendor email addresses are stored in a website database  53  associated with the website processor  55 .  
         [0059]    At step  597 , an email is issued from the SAP MIS  10  to all of the “primary” vendors in the filtered list so as to notify those vendors that a material affecting that vendor is being changed or modified in accordance with a released ECO.  
         [0060]    [0060]FIG. 6 illustrates an exemplary notification of drawing change  600  (here in the form of an ECO) emailed from the SAP MIS  10  to a qualified primary vendor. The ECO includes a change number  601 , the effectivity date  603  for determining when the ECO becomes effective and three engineering changes  605  shown for engineering drawing RW1115550, i.e.,  605   a ,  605   b  and  605   c.    
         [0061]    Access to Drawing Change Process  
         [0062]    Referring next to FIG. 7, there is shown is a flowchart of the steps performed by the access to drawing change process, described at step  3500  of FIG. 3.  
         [0063]    It should be noted that an end-user (e.g., vendor, manufacturer) can access the SAP website  50  at any time, however, it is more typically the case that an end-user will access the SAP website  50  in response to receiving an ECO notification via email.  
         [0064]    At step  701 , a vendor accesses the SAP website  50  in response to receiving an email, including an ECO notification informing the vendor that a material or component supplied by the vendor has been changed in some manner and requires the vendor&#39;s review.  
         [0065]    [0065]FIG. 8 is a screen view illustrating an example of a ‘home’ Web page  800  received by the vendor&#39;s browser upon typing in the URL associated with the SAP website  50 . As illustrated, the ‘home’ Web page  800  contains a hyperlink list of options that are available to the vendor upon selection. A first option available to the vendor is “Online Transactions”. This link should be selected by the vendor for learning additional details about the ECO notification received via email from the SAP MIS  10 .  
         [0066]    [0066]FIG. 9 is a screen view illustrating a Web page  900  returned to the vendor&#39;s Web browser upon selection of the “Online Transactions” hyperlink. As illustrated, the Web page  900  includes three hyperlinks, “Engineering Drawings”, “Vendor Review” and “Drawings for Quotes”. For purposes of the instant application, only the “Engineering Drawings” hyperlink is germane to the instant application and will be discussed further.  
         [0067]    At step  703 , the vendor “clicks-on” the “Engineering drawing” hyperlink from Web page  900 .  
         [0068]    [0068]FIG. 10 is a screen view illustrating the Web page  1000  displayed by the end-user&#39;s Web browser to the vendor upon selection of the “Engineering Drawings” hyperlink from Web page  900 . Web Page  1000  includes five hyperlinks including an “Engineering drawing” hyperlink, a “Label drawing” hyperlink, a “Specification” hyperlink, a “QML Report” hyperlink and a “QML History Report” hyperlink. At this point, the vendor has the option of selecting any one of the five displayed hyperlinks. The “label drawing” hyperlink is related to labeling artwork that is required for placement on the parts and materials which comprise the products built by the SAP MIS  10 .  
         [0069]    At step  705 , the vendor “clicks-on” the “Engineering drawing” hyperlink from Web page  1000  to learn additional details concerning the ECO notification received via email.  
         [0070]    [0070]FIG. 11 is a screen view illustrating a Web page  1100  returned to the end-user&#39;s Web browser upon selection of the “Engineering Drawings” hyperlink from Web page  1000 . Web page  1100  includes a number of text entry boxes  1101 , 1103 , 1105 , 1107  and  1109  for entering search criteria for locating drawings of interest to the vendor (manufacturer may be suitably interchanged). The vendor is provided with the option of not filling in any of the displayed entry boxes, in which case, the vendor will be shown all drawings for which there is at least one identified material assigned to the vendor. The SAP MIS  10  will, by default, return all drawings effective thirty days prior to the current date and into the future. This is to allow the vendor to see what he or she was supplying in the recent past as a means for comparing what the vendor is currently supplying. Entry boxes  1101  through  1109  are intended as an aid to the vendor to filter the request so as to return only those drawings of interest to the vendor.  
         [0071]    At step  707 , a SAP website processor  55  adds the six-digit vendor number obtained from the registered user table maintained at the website, the effectivity date, and a drawing status of “released” to any information which may have been provided by the vendor at Web page  1100  and forwards all of the information to an SAP routine within the SAP MIS  10 . The vendor may, for example, elect to enter search criteria such as the part no.  1101 , Document no.  1103  or Change No.  1105 .  
         [0072]    At step  709 , an SAP routine forms an SAP search query from the combination of default data supplied by SAP website  10  and any search criteria that may have been provided by the vendor at Web page  1100  to formulate the SAP search query for locating the requested engineering drawings.  
         [0073]    At step  711 , using the SAP query formed at step  709 , the SAP MIS  10  queries the DMS database system  16  which typically returns a large number of drawings, both vendor related and non-vendor related drawings (referred to herein as the unfiltered drawing list). The unfiltered drawing list satisfies the vendor supplied search criteria at Web page  1100 . It is noted that the vendor supplied criteria can be narrow or broad (i.e., vendor leaves all search fields blank). In the case of a broad search criteria, the unfiltered drawing list returned to the vendor will typically include many drawings having no relation to the vendor.  
         [0074]    At step  713 , the unfiltered drawing list is returned from the DMS database  16  in response to the SAP query at step  711 .  
         [0075]    [0075]FIG. 12 is an illustration of an exemplary unfiltered drawing list  1200  returned by the SAP DMS  40  in response to the SAP query for a document of interest to the vendor, e.g., document “RW 1114060” which is classified as a family drawing including a large quantity of materials some of which the vendor is approved for and others for which the vendor is not approved. As an aid to the illustrative example of FIG. 12, Table I is provided to describe which materials from the unfiltered drawing list  1200  of FIG. 12, the vendor is approved/not approved for.  
                             TABLE I                           Drawing RW1114060                    Approved/           Material   Not Approved                       RW1113060   Not approved           RW1114060   Approved           RW1114560   Approved           RW1115060   Not Approved           RW1116060   Approved           RW1117560   Approved                      
 
         [0076]    At step  715 , an SAP software routine filters the unfiltered drawing list as illustrated in FIG. 12 to exclude those drawings which do not include at least one vendor supplied material.  
         [0077]    [0077]FIG. 13 is a detailed flowchart  1300  of step  715  describing the process for filtering the unfiltered drawing list to exclude those drawings which do not include at least one material associated with the vendor making the query. In the instant example, those non-related vendor drawings include drawings RW1113060 and RW1115060 (see Table I).  
         [0078]    At step  1301 , the step of filtering the unfiltered drawing list starts with the SAP software routine accessing the VTM database  23  using the vendor&#39;s SAP vendor number as an index to determine (look-up) which manufacturers are linked to the vendor making the query.  
         [0079]    At step  1303 , the manufacturer&#39;s identified at step  1301  are then used as an index into the QM database  21  to determine (look-up) the materials that the manufacturer has been approved for. A list of materials is returned by the SAP software routine.  
         [0080]    At step  1305 , the material list generated at step  1303  is used to filter the unfiltered drawing list to exclude those drawings which do not include at least one vendor approved material identified at step  1303 .  
         [0081]    At step  1307 , the filtered list is returned to the vendor&#39;s Web browser.  
         [0082]    At step  1309 , the SAP routine terminates the filtering process.  
         [0083]    [0083]FIG. 14 is a screen view illustrating a Web page  1400  returned to the vendor&#39;s Web browser in response to the formulated search query. FIG. 14 illustrates a split-screen mode which allows the vendor to view the vendor supplied search criteria in an upper window  1401  while viewing a corresponding textual representation (referred to as “List View”) of the results of the search in a lower window  1402  (i.e., the “filtered list”). Each line of text displayed in the List View window  1302  refers to a single engineering drawing, and includes various information about the drawing. In one embodiment, each line item includes:  
         [0084]    the document (doc) number  1403  (i.e., engineering drawing identifier);  
         [0085]    a type indicator  1404  (i.e., DRW=drawing type);  
         [0086]    a material identifier  1405 ;  
         [0087]    a year of creation  1406 ;  
         [0088]    the effectivity date indicating the date the drawing becomes effective  1407 ;  
         [0089]    a revision number  1408 ;  
         [0090]    a text description  1409 ;  
         [0091]    original  1   1410 ;  
         [0092]    original  2   1411 ;  
         [0093]    a status indication  1412 ;  
         [0094]    an engineering change order (ECO) number  1413 .  
         [0095]    A data range is provided as a default value for the “effectivity date”. “original  1 ” is considered the “master” engineering drawing. “original  2 ” is a backup mechanism for those vendors who do not possess the appropriate software to view engineering documents in their native language (e.g., Corel, AutoCAD, etc.). Original  2  is the same drawing as original  1  viewable in Acrobat.  
         [0096]    B. THE QML REPORT  
         [0097]    QML stands for qualified manufacturer&#39;s list which comprises all of the components or materials a vendor has been qualified to supply to Advance  T . The list contains data for each material that is vendor specific. The list is compiled from a plurality of tables in the SAP MIS  10 . A user can create queries using different parameters to create-variations on the report. Because the data contained in the QML report is also used to determine the drawings that a vendor can view, the user is assured that there are no discrepancies between the two data sources.  
         [0098]    The QML report represents a further option for a user when accessing the SAP MIS website  50 . The QML report differs from the “Engineering Drawing” link in that in the former there are no links to documents.  
         [0099]    Referring again to FIG. 10, if the vendor selects the “QML Report” hyperlink instead of the “Engineering Drawing” hyperlink as described above, the vendor is shown FIG. 15 which illustrates Web page  1500  which is a text entry screen including a number of text entry boxes  1501  through  1505  for entering search criteria for returning a list of all of the materials the vendor has been qualified to supply to the SAP MIS  10 .  
         [0100]    [0100]FIG. 16 is a screen view illustrating a Web page  1600  returned to the vendor&#39;s Web browser in response to the formulated search query provided at Web page  1500 . The materials supplied by the vendor such as material number  1601 , description  1602 , drawing  1603 , type/grade  1604 , ordering code  1605 , lead/pitch  1606 , packaging  1607 , package code  1608  and long text  1609 .  
         [0101]    The data shown in the “QML Report” of FIG. 16 was previously included as part of the engineering drawings. In accordance with the principles of the invention, the data is now removed from the engineering drawings and made part of the QML report to prevent vendors from viewing drawings containing other vendors proprietary data. In this manner, any vendor accessing the SAP website  50  is only afforded an opportunity to view his own proprietary data, either via drawings and/or the QML report.  
         [0102]    C. THE QML HISTORY REPORT  
         [0103]    The QML report history report represents another option for a user when accessing the SAP MIS website  50 . The QML history report, differs from the “Engineering Drawing” link in that in the former there are no links to documents. Typically, an outside supplier (vendor) will receive a phone call from Advance indicating that there is a problem with a material being shipped. Advance may determine that the material is a wrong material for any number of reasons including coding errors when entering the material specifications in the SAP MIS  10  system. In response to being so informed, the vendor has a capability to will access the SAP website  50  to view the detailed history of changes for the material in question to resolve the problem.  
         [0104]    Upon accessing the SAP website  50 , Referring again to FIG. 10, if the vendor would select the “QML History Report” hyperlink in this instance. Upon clicking the “QML History Report” hyperlink, the vendor is shown a screen view (see FIG. 17) illustrating Web page  1700  which is a text entry screen including a number of text entry boxes ( 1701  through  1706 ) for entering search criteria to inquire about changes which have occurred to a material supplied by an outside vendor. The Web page  1700  includes a first text entry box  1701 , which is an optional entry box, for supplying a manufacturer&#39;s ID. This is only required in the case where a vendor making the query represents more than one manufacturer and wishes to distinguish between them. The next text entry box identifies the material number  1702  of the material in question. The next text entry box is an ordering code  1703  for the material. It is noted that the vendor may supply the material number  1702  or ordering code  1703 , depending on which is more convenient or known at the time of making the query. The start date  1704  and end date  1705  specify a date range for the history report. Any changes which may have occurred between these two specified dates will be included in the report.  
         [0105]    [0105]FIG. 18 is a screen view illustrating a Web page  1800  returned to the vendor&#39;s Web browser in response to the formulated search query provided at Web page  1700 . Each row in the report  1800  refers to a change which has occurred to a material supplied by the vendor making the query. In the instant example, a query was made at Web page  1700  by the vendor for the vendor supplied material number “443521501331”. In response to the query, the QML history report returns six line items in response to the query, as shown at Web page  1800 , where each line item indicates a change which has occurred to the material in question over the time interval specified in the query (e.g., start date, end date). Each line item in the report  1800  includes various information about the material change. In the illustrative example shown, each line item includes:  
         [0106]    Material number  1800   
         [0107]    Manufacturer  1802   
         [0108]    Type/Grade  1804   
         [0109]    Ordering Code  1806   
         [0110]    Lead/Pitch  1808   
         [0111]    Packaging  1810   
         [0112]    Package code  1812   
         [0113]    Del. Flag  1814   
         [0114]    Date  1816   
         [0115]    Time  1818   
         [0116]    User Name  1820   
         [0117]    Action  1822 .  
         [0118]    The interested parties (Advance and the vendor supplying the material) can simultaneously view the QML history report  1800  to see the precise time  1818  and date  1816  of each change as well as other information to resolve any potential problems.  
         [0119]    The foregoing is to be constructed as only being an illustrative embodiment of this invention. Persons skilled in the art can easily conceive of alternative arrangements providing a functionality similar to this embodiment without any deviation from the fundamental principles or the scope of this invention.