Ecosystem of products and services for the TEK-Torg electronic trading platform

Task

There are currently 7 trading sections on ETP. Sections are provided for corporate groups where companies can centrally manage purchases. The sale of property is carried out through a separate segment, as are purchases of small volumes. Public procurement and procurement for companies with state participation are also allocated in separate sections taking into account their specifics.

Each section has its own rules of operation and processes in both the open and closed parts of the ETP.

According to the Expert RA rating agency, the site is among the top 5 best electronic trading platforms for corporate clients. It meets modern requirements for security and stable operation.

Since 2022, our team has been helping the company to develop by updating the platform and adding new services and products.

Decision

ETP is an ecosystem of services that simplifies procurement processes and creates a convenient environment for interaction between customers and suppliers.

ETP has three key spaces. In the open part, accessible without registration, users view current tenders and conditions for participation in specific procedures, as well as familiarize themselves with ETP services and facilities.

The closed part is intended for accredited participants. This is where the main work takes place: the submission of bids, financial and document management, and the conclusion of contracts.

ETP offers a number of auxiliary services that complement the main functions of the platform.

They include:
— support service,
— concierge service,
— training center,
— EDS and frequent flyer miles registration services,
— a block of financial instruments.

Our role

In restarting the ecosystem, we were responsible for design, frontend development, part of the analytics and backend.

We created a design system made up of UI kits with different functionality, and developed a website for the open part that complies with international standards of security and fault tolerance. We updated the financial services platform and are redesigning the closed part. We continue to support each of these microservices.

We work together as a unified product team: we dive deep into the processes, synchronize quickly and take into account the common context. At the same time, each party retains its own area of responsibility. A dedicated team and a common workflow help us develop the platform quickly.

Open part of the TEK-Torg ecosystem

The open part of the ETP is an entry point into the FEC-Trade ecosystem, a showcase of the platform’s capabilities and a tool aimed at engaging new participants. It performs two key functions: firstly, it provides users with access to current procedures, encouraging them to participate in bidding. Secondly, it demonstrates all non-bidding offers of the platform.

The open part forms the first impression of the platform and motivates to pass accreditation to the closed part.

In 2022, TEK-Torg approached us with the task of updating the open part of the ETP. The platform was actively developing, expanding the range of offerings, and the existing solutions no longer met the new business goals.

It was necessary to revise the structure and interface, providing convenient access to information about bids and services, as well as simplifying the user’s path to registration and participation in procedures. In addition, the ETP needed a reliable and scalable infrastructure capable of functioning effectively under high load conditions.

TEK-Torg operates in an area where delays are unacceptable: participants expect fast processing of requests and prompt changes. Therefore, it was important to make the platform flexible, with the ability to easily update content, connect new services and adapt to changing requirements.

Architecture of the open part

Created a technologically mature architecture that withstands high loads and synchronizes complex server processes with an intuitive interface.

— Defense. We have built into the system architecture protection mechanisms against common threats: SQL injection, XSS (cross-site scripting) and DDoS attacks
— SSR (Server-Side Rendering). Accelerated page loading and improved indexing in search engines
— Sentry. Integrated Sentry for monitoring and fast bug fixes

Service integrations

We connected the register of trade procedures — an internal service of TEK-Torg with a separate large-scale database. The final project is built using Next.js on Laravel.

Updated the financial services platform

ETP includes several non-trading services, one of which is FinTEK. This service is a multi-step process for issuing a bank guarantee: registration, submission of the documents and company data required for issuing the guarantee, and receiving feedback on them.

FinTEK is important for those participants for whom trading is a professional activity. The online service offers financial tools for participants in procurement under 44-FZ, 223-FZ, 185-FZ (615-PP) and commercial procurement: independent (bank) guarantees, factoring, leasing, loans and insurance.

In 2023, it was used to issue guarantees worth over RUB 4 billion. More than 50,000 organizations use TEK-Torg’s financial services on a regular basis. TEK-Torg’s partners in financial products are leading Russian banks, including Alfa Bank, Sovcombank, Metallinvestbank, Absolut Bank and Ingosstrakh Bank.

We faced the task of making the process of issuing bank guarantees simple and predictable for all categories of users, regardless of their experience with financial instruments. We needed to reduce the probability of errors, eliminate unnecessary steps and create a clear logic of interaction.

The process had to be automated through integration with the bank to reduce manual data processing and speed up the approval of applications.

When creating the financial services platform, we focused on the principles of transparency and resistance to user errors. We adopted the experience of banking UI.

CJM

We implemented user CJM from different entry points and different levels of awareness of the service, including the website, the site’s personal cabinet and other TEK-Torg services, to attract users to register. The goal was to simplify and speed up the process by making it intuitive.

The key point of the project was integration with the bank to automate the receipt of bank guarantees. We implemented an application processing scheme that shows the entire path of an application and optimized the editing of the questionnaire.

Development

The new frontend was developed in Next.js, synchronizing it with TEK-Torg’s backend, performing integrations based on the existing Swagger API.

Design system

We have created a unified design system that covers part of TEK-Torg’s products. It is a full-fledged structured frontend library in the form of interconnected UI-kits with a set of 3D icons.

Since 2022, the design system has evolved, adapting to the specifics of the products in which it is used. Today, the open source part of the platform and financial services are already fully working on its basis.

An important milestone in the evolution of the design system is its adaptation to the services of the closed part. During the redesign, we focused on simplifying the work with its complex and multi-level structure. One of the key tasks was to ensure a smooth and logical transition from the open part, so that users could easily navigate in the interface, which is saturated with functionalities and a large amount of information.

In the open part, the design system performs a communication and branding function, ensuring visual integrity and ease of information perception.

Over time, the system scaled up, acquiring service attributes that formed the basis for the interfaces of the closed part.

— 110 blocks: we made a designer of typical pages from ready-made components
— 150 screens: rendered, including states of various elements and service forms

Design system of the closed part

The closed part has been updated. The closed part of the electronic trading platform is a space where participants place and participate in procurement procedures, formulate plans, conduct document flow and manage finances.

We updated the screens and implemented solutions based on the new UI-kit. The work included visual changes, reworking the logic of interfaces and adapting the structure to real-life usage scenarios.

Result

As part of the project, we moved the platform from a corporate format to a product-service model. Work on each element of the ecosystem covered all stages — from analytics and design to design, development, testing, launch and maintenance.

The redesigned logic, flexible design system, updated services and optimized architecture simplified interaction with the platform for all participants in the trading process. Work on the development of the ecosystem continues: the system is being adapted to new market requirements, processes are being improved, and uniform design and interaction principles are gradually being extended to all products.

Thanks to the project, the TEK-Torg ecosystem has significantly updated and simplified interaction with clients — both customers and suppliers. This is the company’s mission — to make procurement the way it should be...