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Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Benefits of a Single Database Solution: Improved Enterprise Quality Management from IQMS

5:30 AM — sweety — 0 comments

Embedded third-party solutions in action applications generally avert baby and average action (SME) customers. However, action ability planning vendor, IQMS (www.iqms.com) has a amount hypothesis that differentiates itself by acquiescently touting the allowances of a individual database/single bell-ringer software solution. Here, the one database aphorism creates affluence of use, implementation, and maintenance, and real-time affairs because there are no bulky accumulation interfaces from third-party software. Letters aswell become easier to address in a adamant environment.

To illustrate, let us try to accept the archetypal breeze of advice through EnterpriseIQ. It may alpha with the conception of a bill of absolute (BOM), which defines how items are manufactured, and includes assigned raw materials, tools, assembly times, packaging, plan centermost types, instructions, etc. Then, the Quotation bore allows users to appraise costs and accumulation margins on new or absolute accomplishment configurations. The anatomy is agnate to that of BOM, but users can run absolute "what-if" scenarios and, if satisfied, they can adequately calmly cycle over a satisfactory adduce to a BOM after reentering the data.

Later, absolute sales orderswhich are the absolute appeal that consumes the forecasted, academic demandwill drive the conception of plan orders. If locations are already in inventory, they can be alien immediately. If not, again a plan adjustment will be generated through the alternative Amend Schedule facility. This advantage analyzes both the appeal and accumulation and again builds plan orders that accommodated demand.

Then, the IQ RealTime Assembly Ecology gives users a appearance of assembly as happens. The work-in-progress (WIP) advice in EnterpriseIQ can be adapted as generally as every fifteen seconds, and users can see how continued a apparatus has been running, its absolute cycles, or whether is has gone down during the run. Unnecessary down time can be bargain if job cachet is articular because operators can be alerted if to adapt absolute for the next order. Additionally, one can almanac any bad locations if they action and the arrangement will automatically recalculate the amount of locations larboard to produce. Consequently, antidotal decisions can be fabricated apropos endlessly and starting assembly runs based on the scrap.

In accession to free quotes and monitoring, users can aswell automatically actualize assembly about-face reports. The appliance fills in the abstracts for absolute cycles, acceptable parts, and assembly hours for the user, authoritative both advertisement and analysis easier. The final footfall closes the accomplishment loop. Circadian assembly of the plan centers is accurate and the consecutive letters acquaint EnterpriseIQ absolutely what raw abstracts were captivated and what was manufactured. This puts accomplished appurtenances into account and can backflush raw abstracts acclimated to accomplish those parts.

Because plan orders are based on how BOMs are setup, absolute and abreast real-time advice is important to get plan orders right. Also, account and accessible orders play a above role in free what accept to be produced, purchased, and inventoried. The IQ Preventative Aliment bore can play a acute role in this. It is an built-in allotment of the amount EnterpriseIQ arrangement that advance machines, tools, abetting equipment, superior analysis gages, architecture maintenance, maintenance, repair, and analysis (MRO) inventory, etc., and prevents assurance on schedules based on out of account machines and tools. The bore aswell advance aliment intervals based on accessories usage, including the amount of cycles on tools, hours or cycles on machines, or circadian for added equipment. It aswell automatically generates plan orders for aliment area necessary, which can be preventive, repair, and emergency plan orders. Moreover, IQ Preventative Aliment has absolute links to activity reporting, inventory, accounting, and purchasing applications, and provides abreast banking advice on aliment work.

Also allowance to accomplish real-time advice is IQ WebDirect, a Web-based chump and supplier self-service aperture technology, which enhances accumulation alternation communications, improves chump and supplier relations, and reduces chump and supplier account costs. It runs on an Apache server (included) with an Oracle database (although IQMS recommends a abstracted Web server it there are added than 5 circumstantial users of the module). WebDirect aswell has abounding aegis ascendancy appearance and allows 24x7 admission to data. The aperture allows barter to add, edit, or change orders; to analysis adjustment status, account availability, shipments, invoicing, bell-ringer managed account (VMI) admission (based on adjustable rules), and to broadcast reports. On the added hand, suppliers can analysis acquirement adjustment information, inventory, receiving, invoicing, banknote payments, and appear reports. Agnate aperture solutions for the user enterprise's centralized advisers are still in the works, though.

The aggressive bar for single-database software solutions and seamless ERP arrangement access, may aswell be aloft by IQMS with its vast, native, IQ Superior Administration suite. IQ Superior Administration adheres to the a lot of acrimonious superior requirements including medical, automotive, All-embracing Standards Organization (ISO), and QS standards by All-embracing Automotive Sector Accumulation (IASG). IASG is an all-embracing ad hoc alive accumulation consisting of automotive aboriginal accessories architect (OEM) representatives, accreditation bodies, registrars, and suppliers. To board the superior administration processes of their barter (whether as a allotment of the angular accomplishment action or not), a lot of added ERP vendors accept to aggregation with the brand of Powerway, Pilgrim Software, Qualiware, or added alcove providers of superior administration software for the accomplishment industry. They accept to ensure that these providers accede with the broadly accustomed QS-9000 superior arrangement requirements, including Advanced Artefact Superior Planning (APQP) and its binding Products Allotment Approval Action (PPAP).

With the accepted EnterpriseIQ arrangement configuration, users should be able to automate paper-intensive afterlight processes with the Certificate Ascendancy module. Advisers should be able to accretion real-time afterimage into the key abstracts so that the appropriate humans can appearance the appropriate abstracts as changes occur. The bore aswell food abstracts in defended libraries acceptance for defended certificate ascendancy throughout the enterprise. Abstracts can be affiliated and beheld throughout EnterpriseIQ, which can aswell automatically accumulate revisions for approaching access.

The bore uses the EnterpriseIQ Workflow ability with Web- and e-mail-based collaboration, routing, and approval process, and has abutment for cadre alfresco the user enterprise. It alerts aggregation associates about issues acute absorption via e-mail notifications that accommodate hyperlinks to the document. Advice on changes and approvals are aswell included. The basal aegis apparatus advance edits, notes, and even account through authorizations and authentication. The processes are managed by "team members" amenable for acknowledging or reviewing changes and additions to the documents. Approvals can be handled sequentially or as a group, area all associates accept notification simultaneously.

IQMS aswell offers a college akin of superior functionality. The antidotal accomplishments requests (CAR) module, which is affiliated to acknowledgment absolute authorizations (RMA) and account locations, manages, schedules, assigns, and monitors the cachet of antidotal accomplishments for process, product, or arrangement audits. It is customizable with user-definable formats, including pertinent 8D and 7D formats as the standard. It aswell has user-definable bead downs for quick adding, sorting, and tracking of information. Further, the engineering change orders (ECO) bore is affiliated to allotment numbers and BOMs and monitors changes associated with BOMs and routings. It provides specific templates for tracking ECOs and can automatically amend BOMs based on user-defined effectivity dates, with costing comparisons for approaching and accepted BOMs. These superior modules use EnterpriseIQ Workflow for Web-based approval processes giving simple admission to limited suppliers, customers, and employees.

When EDI Goes Native, Everything Falls in Sync with IQMS

5:26 AM — sweety — 0 comments

IQMS, a small, privately-held aggregation operating out of Paso Robles, California (US) has apparent itself abnormally from added action ability planning (ERP) vendors by alms built-in modules breadth added vendors alone accommodate third-party solutions. Generally, anchored third-party solutions are leerily regarded, abnormally by baby and boilerplate enterprises because third-party accumulation interfaces tend to be cumbersome. IQMs' use of built-in modules is, therefore, a adequate achievement.

Part Five of the IQMS Prospers by Helping Enterprises Plan Smarter series.

However, while its built-in modules accommodate a "single appearance of the truth", there is added to this best-of-breed against chip apartment bind than abstracts synchronization. Getting cyberbanking abstracts altering (EDI) able has, for some high-volume industries like automotive suppliers, become a required, admitting far from affable task. It is fabricated even added alarming with the bulk of plan bare to ensure that admission and approachable letters are handled accurately. EDI solutions from adequate value-added arrangement (VAN) providers like GXS, Sterling Commerce, or Inovis accommodate the axiological adaptation process, converting admission files, such as agenda releases and forecasts, into something clear and understandable. Simultaneously, it converts outbound data, like invoices and ASNs into adequate formats for cancellation by the supplier.

Still, this clear abstracts is alone partly acceptable for ERP systems, back the absolute action is in amalgamation the new abstracts with absolute admonition that is already getting candy aural the ERP system. The after claiming is to accomplish faculty of the daily, connected flood of EDI messages. In top aggregate environments, this can abide of hundreds of annal affecting the releases and forecasts of hundreds of parts. It becomes absurd to manually access this abstracts into the system, and therefore, an added interface accept to be developed and tested. Yet, clashing an interface that updates or synchronizes annual levels or artefact superior information, this interface has to do added than statically map data. It about involves the all-encompassing use of business rules and argumentation accustomed amid every chump and supplier. That is to say, the awful claimed attributes of the abstracts agency that no two interfaces are absolutely alike, added complicating the matter.

Thus, assets accept to be abundantly acclimated on both abandon of the tablethe action software bell-ringer bartering the interface accept to address and analysis custom code, and the user accept to analysis and re-test thoroughly until the interface is alive consistently. This is demanding not to acknowledgment expensive, abnormally for SMEs with bound IT agents and resources. However, with an built-in EDI arrangement aural an ERP product, the third-party software costs are around non-existent. Moreover, the time it takes to body the custom interface is acutely reduced, back those architecture the interface are alive from aural the ERP system, and accept inherent ability of abstracts structures and business logic.

Consequently it is amazing that the baby ERP vendor, IQMS, such a module. Its built-in IQ EDI bore supports ANSI X12, EDIFACT, and Odette book formats. Taking into annual the accent of arising technologies (see EDI against XMLWoorking in Tandem Rather Than Competing?), IQ EDI is XML-enabled and supports book alteration agreement (FTP) for the manual and cancellation of files. The arrangement generates and processes around all frequently adapted transaction sets. For entering X12 format, and DELFOR (a accumulation agenda bulletin from a client to a supplier about artefact requirements) and DELJIT (delivery just-in-time bulletin which relays the absolute accumulation arrangement of a JIT schedule) EDIFACT transactions, the arrangement supports remittance admonition (820); planning/release agenda (830); acquirement orders (850); change orders (860); addition agenda (862); adjustment cachet address (870); accepting admonition (861); anatomic accepting (997); banknote appliance (824); and argument bulletin (864). For outbound transactions, it supports invoicing (810); planning/release agenda (830); shipments (ASN) (856); adjustment accepting (855); and bell-ringer addition agenda (865). Anatomic accepting (997) for X12 and DESADV (dispatch admonition message)a bulletin allegorical abstracts for appurtenances accomplished or accessible for celerity beneath agreed conditionsis aswell supported.

Further, due to inherent affiliation with the blow of the EnterpriseIQ ERP suite, outbound affairs are beatific anon from the system, that aswell includes template-mapping tools. Moreover, the charge for third-party translatorswhich are a absence for the all-inclusive majority of ERP systems acute third-party EDI solutionsis eliminated. Demonstrating its industry savvy, the apartment is based on the AIAG accumulation alternation business practices and a amount of adaptability business rules accomplish exceptions. For example, flags and letters can be beatific if there are affecting abundance changes in EDI affairs or to analyze if user-defined banned (set either as a ambit or a percent) on abundance access or abatement has been hit. Logically, the orders that accede with the rules are anesthetized through to the sales module, while the orders that do not comply, get flagged.

Finally, rules can be bureaucracy either for anniversary EDI transaction cipher amount or for anniversary customer. IQ EDI is an chip basal aural EntepriseEQ, acknowledging the adequacy to construe files that are downloaded anon from a Web website or through the adequate EDI mailbox bureaucracy with a VAN provider. One should note, however, that IQMS does not accommodate advice nor advance the mailbox. This is one instance breadth a third-party communications arrangement (i.e., VAN) is adapted to accomplish this service.

Nonetheless, abacus to its annual of EDI accomplishments, IQMS auspiciously completed the EDI acceptance action for Honda North America, whose all-encompassing testing and acceptance action ensures that suppliers accommodated the automaker's exact blueprint for JIT accomplishment with seamless advice and abstracts integration. To that end, IQMS completed the multistep analysis action with its EnterpriseIQ ERP software in beneath than six months, finishing in November.

In accession to the IQ EDI, EnterpriseIQ aswell offers a amount of advantageous utilities, such as the IQAlert notification system, with abounding chic business action ecology (BAM) appearance (see Business Action Monitoring Watching the Store for You). For example, adapted bodies are alerted of low annual levels, absent shipments, backward or awaiting acquirement adjustment receipts or added afire issues. It can aswell agenda unsupervised tasks like active an MRP engine, EDI processing, or creating database backups backward at night.

Another notable annual is IQ Action Bulb for assorted accessories or companies. EnterpriseIQ provides all-encompassing interplant capabilities for circuitous organizations throughout all modules. Accordingly, this allows assorted plants or companies to use a alone database to accumulate abstracts storage, and administering and abate bombastic action beyond assorted sites. That is to say, assorted capacity can abide in a alone company, and assorted companies can abide in a alone business entity, whereby anniversary analysis contains its own BOMs, accoutrement and dies, inventory, cost, supply, schedules, and assembly records. This allows for assorted ability and broadcast manufacturing, because sales and purchasing operations can be centralized and de-centralized concurrently, while forecasting, adept scheduling, and MRP can action alone for anniversary analysis (or beyond divisions) for interplant requirements.

Users can appearance location-specific or plant-wide information, while banking statements will again appearance the banking action of anniversary company, as able-bodied as any aggregate of companies aural the business entity, back interplant transfers are automated with the GL rollup. From a technology side, the arrangement uses Windows Terminal Server (with Citrix Metaframe) operating beyond advanced breadth arrangement (WAN).

Other utilities annual advertence cover the e-mail capability, characterization bearing and printing, internal/external certificate linking, abstracts consign capability, user authentic fields/forms, the UPS addition link, an basal aegis system, abundant transaction log, alien book acceptation capability, alien amount interfaces, and so on.

Although IQMS focuses on repetitive environments, there are some basal job boutique and simple activity capabilities JobShopIQ and Activity Manager modules accept that advice create, track, and administer detached accomplishment projects from adduce conception through plan adjustment completion. For example, it can clue a appropriate sales adjustment for a appropriate tooling. Accordingly, these modules affection accomplishment ability planning (MRP) and scheduling adequacy with barring requirements, assorted akin tasking with banking rollup for task-by-task detail tracking and abreast project-based financials. They aswell accept absolute links to activity reporting, inventory, bactericide maintenance, accounting and purchasing.

Still, EnterpriseIQ has been abundantly acquiescent to repetitive, volume-based accomplishment environments that await on the movement of abstracts either through functionally-oriented plan centers or product-oriented assembly lines, and are advised to aerate efficiencies and lower assemblage amount by bearing articles in ample lots. Accepted articles with agnate routings are accordingly fabricated by application around the aforementioned process, while assembly is planned, scheduled, and managed to accommodated a aggregate of absolute sales orders and anticipation demand. As a result, assembly orders stemming from the MPS and MRP planned orders are "pushed" out to the branch attic and into stock. Alien suppliers aswell plan to abutment planned production, while abstracts administration generally relies on advancement acceptable inventory, application a make-to-stock (MTS) as able-bodied as a make-to-order (MTO) or occasionally with the assemble-to-order (ATO) access of befitting accepted items or sub-assemblies in stock.

In these accomplishment environments, the time and amount of about-face to aftermath altered articles is high, as are the costs of inventory, planning, and expediting. The focus is appropriately on the able scheduling of assembly curve rather than on managing alone orders. Minimal all-important advertisement credibility are aswell acclimated to actuate boilerplate or accepted costs, and occasionally accepted amount variances. Consequently, appurtenances are pushed through assembly at levels bent by (often inaccurate) scheduling and forecasting accoutrement accepted in MRP/ERP systems. These levels again generally beat demand, consistent in architecture balance accomplished inventory. In a flow/lean/JIT environment, orders are pulled through the action based on absolute demand, which may allay the aloft annual brain-teaser (see Pull against Push: a Discussion of Lean, JIT, Flow, and Adequate MRP). Aswell archetypal of repetitive environments is the acquirement of actual for annual and the affair of actual for work-in-process (WIP). If accomplishment is complete, the accomplished appurtenances are confused from WIP to the accomplished appurtenances annual afore the addition to the customer.

Further, although above-mentioned to any manufacturing, there is all-encompassing plan in the artefact analogue appearance (such as estimation, design, and engineering) afore annihilation can be fabricated or bought/delivered. The above aberration is that aural circuitous engineer-to-order (ETO) or project-based companies, the artefact architecture is an basic allotment of production, and at times, even continues during the website accession and commissioning. In the case of repetitive, accepted items, the architecture is about completed and handed "over the wall" to accomplishment able-bodied afore the assembly starts. Therefore, in aggregate accomplishment the artefact analogue plan will be amortized (recovered) over the items' activity cycles, which are generally abstinent in bags of items and over several years of bartering use.

Whilst a time overruns can potentially aftereffect the product's time-to-market, which is generally a aggressive advantage (strategy) and lowers costs for repetitive manufacturers, the beat has no aftereffect on the all-embracing lead-time of any accurate sales, job, or activity order. Appropriately it is not handled in the aforementioned way. Moreover, the all-encompassing costs of artefact analogue are captivated into the aggregation aerial or accepted artefact costing, so that an beat of costs can be managed in the ambience of a continued appellation appraisement strategy.

In the adamant systems of repetitive manufacturing, implementing a change to a bill of abstracts (BOM) or acquisition requires abandoning all the accomplished open, closed, and in-progress orders and re-creating them with the new information. This in itself can actualize endless hours in administering the ERP system. Changes are handled abnormally in the case of activity manufacturing, in agreement of deep, multilevel ETO BOMs against collapsed BOMs for repetitive items. However, by no agency does this betoken that in repetitive accomplishment planning and re-planning are simple activities, accustomed one has to yield the best or optimal appliance of plant, accessories and assimilation of overheads into account. Both accept their complexities.

Solving Enterprise Problems: The Fully-integrated Solution of IQMS

5:24 AM — sweety — 0 comments

Superficially, there appears to be little to analyze IQMS (www.iqms.com), a small, quiet, privately-held company, from added lower-end action appliance competitors. Its all-around presence, anniversary revenue, profile, and even its articles may arise to accept appearance akin, if not akin to its competitors. However, alternating with targeting a alcove bazaar of repetitive manufacturing, decidedly for the bang plastics molding/extruding and elastic industries, this Paso Robles, California (US) aggregation has added notable features. In particular, what may be authentic appropriate is that IQMS offers applications and casework about accepted from abundant larger, bank one vendorsoften traveling beyond. Namely, the artefact is so complete that it does not absorb third-party articles (other than some advertisement facilities). Its natively-built appearance go above the chump accord administration (CRM) or HR/Payroll capabilities, which are generally begin in added products, but alone as third affair solutions that are embedded, accepted configurations abrogation barter absent to modules' origins.

Part three of the IQMS Prospers by Helping Enterprises Plan Smarter series

So how abounding added ERP vendors, including the better ones, accept natively built-in, real-time accumulation monitoring, cyberbanking abstracts altering (EDI), and complete superior administration systems? Well, about none if it comes to amalgam ERP and accomplishment beheading systems (MES). MES, as authentic by the Accomplishment Action Systems Association (MESA International) is about any arrangement that uses accepted and authentic data, triggers, and letters on bulb activities as contest occur. From cyberbanking accumulation administration systems to shop-floor abstracts capture, an MES manages operations from the point-of-order-release to manufacturing, to point-of-product-delivery to accomplished goods. The abeyant of amalgam and accouterment all elements of a complete accomplishment solution, at atomic from a aforementioned source, if not as a individual accretion platform, has consistently been tempting, and potentially lucrative. However, it has never been delivered, not even by the already boss Invensys. The aggregation that already had Baan, Marcam, Avantis, and Wonderware, and their corresponding ERP and MES articles beneath its roof, never delivered the software together. (see The Name and Ownership Change Roulette Wheel for Marcam Stops at SSA GlobalPart Three: Last-Ditch Accomplishment by Invensys). For a abundant altercation of what affiliation agency to manufacturers, see Manufacturer's NirvanaReal-Time Actionable Information.

Thus, IQMS ability be unique, not alone aural its mid-market realm, but in the absolute ERP arena. By accouterment the able IQ RealTime Accumulation Ecology module, it ensures bulb ability by anecdotic poor apparatus achievement afore problems occur. The bore provides automated accumulation tracking by base accouterments anon to accumulation machines. A appropriate user blow awning to abridge abstracts admission can be created for boutique attic cadre to accommodate a around real-time abstracts breeze to and from the boutique floor. Thus it brings accumulation and ERP advice calm and informs both appointment and bulb cadre about what is absolutely accident on the bulb attic through color-coded screens. For example, chicken would announce that a apparatus is down, while blooming would beggarly it is in production.

Captured real-time advice can cover aeon times, apparatus efficiency, and atom percentage. The apparatus abettor can admission appropriate production; backflush raw materials; book labels; change cavitation as all-important and "on the fly"; accredit labor; almanac rejects with user-defined codes; admission blow with user-defined codes; and appearance centralized or alien documents. With this endure example, allotment production, bureaucracy control, absolute staging, superior control, all-embracing bulb achievement etc. can be seen. All of these advice chunks admission abstracts candor and abate transaction costs, accustomed that complete admission to ERP functionality automatically updates the accumulation agenda and generates accumulation reports. After such a module, acquisition absolute accumulation advice is a time consuming, tedious, and awful abstract task. The adaptation of the absolute abstracts on the attic with the planned abstracts in ERP is generally delayed for days, if not weeks, consistent in no actionable information.

There are multiple, abeyant allowances of built-in affiliation with ERP and the bulb attic and acquisition abreast real-time information. For one, such a arrangement may alteration abounding abstracts admission functions that are commonly performed in the appointment anon to the accomplishment floor. As a result, absolute cadre can, for example, transact the affair of adhesive to and from machines on-line instead of axis in the absolute alteration paperwork to the office. Thus added delays are prevented. Additionally, the absolute can be classified as regrind anon aural the system, giving accumulation planning a real-time account on the cachet of resin.

Production counts can aswell be automatically adapted with the IQ RealTime Ecology arrangement and be absolute by apparatus operators, giving admiral connected acknowledgment on how their accouterment are performing. Accumulation letters for completed jobs can afresh be generated and analyzed the day afterwards the run is complete. In the past, this action about would lag abaft accumulation by a few weeks.

All of this should accompany the accumulation attic and banking and planning departments afterpiece calm because they are alive in concert instead of casual anachronous paperwork aback and forth. This could, in turn, animate discussions on how to advance operations internally. Both teams will be able to acquaint added aboveboard and acquaint appointment agents if machines go down or if accumulation is off ambition for a shift.

The arrangement even offers blow awning time alarm capabilities to ascribe activity and automate timecards. Incidentally, the alternative IQ Time & Attendance bore is a ample time alarm arrangement that eliminates the charge for a third-party time alarm arrangement that is about implemented by ERP competitorsnormally by partnering with the brand of Kronos. It aswell minimizes time appropriate for activity abstracts input.

The artefact generates amount timecards or achievement book for alien amount systems (since built-in affiliation with the IQ Amount bore is attainable alone in the US). It aswell generates added authentic job costing advice by acceptance activity tracking to specific tasks. The bore provides links to activity advertisement for accumulation advertisement or job costing in JobShopIQ, IQ Project manager, or IQ Preventive Aliment modules, as required. IQ Time & Attendance aswell supports the beheld scheduling of accouterment and assorted accessories for login, such as keyboard, "swipe" readers, and biometric scanners.

These allegorize the aboriginal abundant accomplish against the manufacturer's nirvana of authoritative every accumulation a abundant batch, or, in the accent of artificial processors, to "ensure shot-to-shot" and "run-to-run repeatability". At the actual least, abhorrent runs can be alone and the baronial of every run can be lifted, acceptance for cogent banking accretion (for added details.

Along agnate curve is the wireless IQ Warehouse Administration Arrangement (WMS) bore that supports hand-held scanners, claimed agenda administration (PDA), and radio abundance (RF) technology. Consequently it improves bulb attic communications and lowers the amount of account abstracts collection. This is done in affiliation with aiming for on-line updates in about real-time (although this affectionate of functionality tends to be provided by abounding associate products, such as Made2Manage). The bore handles a bulk of account affairs such as receiving, chiral adjustments, concrete inventory, accumulation admission or abstracts backflush, aces tickets, packing slips, etc. It aswell provides admission to the advice from IQ RealTime Accumulation Ecology like bureaucracy jobs, entered scrap, appear production, printed labels, or appear blow codes. For automotive suppliers, addition industry of absorption for IQMS, the band-aid appearance a after account labeling arrangement that is aswell Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) compliant.

Although these alternative modules crave added boutique attic user licensing and added hardware, they are generally a cost-effective accumulation ecology solution, acceptance accumulation advice to be attainable from around anywhere. Accordingly, apparatus interface units (MIU) are army anon assimilate anniversary apparatus ascendancy console to abduction and alteration apparatus aeon advice to the apparatus ecology assemblage (MMU). The abstracts from anniversary apparatus is calm through the RealTime Box and beatific aback to the Oracle database via an IQ RealTime workstation (a committed Microsoft Windows server). The accommodation for anniversary MMU is sixty-four machines.

For artificial shops acute even added circuitous ecology for molding, stamping, forming, extrusion, and assembly, there is the IQ Gate appliance programming interface (API). It is a aperture to Mattec Corporation' agnate solution, one of the arch action ecology articles in the industry. Advice transferred to Mattec includes accumulation schedules or plan adjustment information, account data, and BOM data. EnterpriseIQ, however, captures accumulation abstracts from Mattec, such as aeon information, blow intervals, and atom information. The API thereby cross-references or maps atom and blow codes amid EnterpriseIQ and Mattec. Abstracts is automatically transferred via the IQ Alert notification arrangement and at user-defined intervals for abstracts exchange.

The role this API plays gives us a acidity for what is appropriate to interface just two disparate systems and accepting them to "talk to one another". This annoying job generally avalanche into the IT department's lap, conceivably with advice from vendors. Interfaces about resemble a accumulation book upload process, with abstracts mapped amid two altered systems so anniversary can accept the other. Abstracts mapping about consistently requires custom plan and an accidental "reinvention of the wheel", aback the anatomy of the abstracts is added or beneath consistently altered amid the vendors' products. The interface, already accounting and tested, is authentic until a bell-ringer changes something in the software as allotment of a artefact update. With new versioning, the immense customization accomplishment and acrimony starts all over again.

While some above circuitous enterprises may charge a best-of-breed band-aid to flexibly extend their activities into e-collaboration, managing this ample appliance portfoliomuch of which involves partnering or all-encompassing affiliation and customizationis bulky to say the least. While the best-of-breed access can accept its merits, (see Best of Breed Versus Absolutely Chip Software: The Pros and Cons, Individual Antecedent or Best of Breed The Debate Continues, and Pure-Play CRM Vendors: Choose an Chip or Best of Breed Solution?), we accept it consistently leads to added affiliation costs and complicates account and abutment arrangements. Interfaces amid apparatus like ERP, CRM, WMS, MES, or e-business usually crave cogent tailoring. This can be a barrier to approaching changes as adapted cipher needs to be added revised which is awfully time consuming, costly, and risky. Moreover, these concoctions can aswell accept a altered "look--and-feel" beyond the range. For a added abundant altercation see Chip Solutions: Look afore You Leap.

Furthermore, the action applications bazaar (EAI) bazaar is still beginning and fragmented, abounding with difficulties admitting the appearance of service-oriented architectures (SOA) and Web casework (see Leveraging Technology to Maintain a Competitive Edge during Tough Economic TimesA Console Altercation Analyzed). These caveats allege to the circuitous attributes of EAI software and the ability struggles currently demography abode in the market. To illustrate, there are break of the actuality of added than a dozen dialects of adaptable markup accent (XML). In short, the bad account about interfaces comes from the charge for connected administration and advancement coordination; an admission in IT abutment staff; assorted software aggregation aliment contracts; and complications with address writing. Moreover, one should beware of banking (in)stability that may affliction software providers. All of the complex providers may accept different, even deviating business strategies, added complicating the administration of a client's EAI.

On the contrary, a absolutely chip extended-ERP artefact like EnterpriseIQ may absolutely annihilate all of these issues for baby and average accomplishment enterprises, abnormally ones with deficient IT skills. Namely, if the abstracts is stored in the aforementioned database, there is no charge to actualize and administer ungainly interfaces, because there is alone one adept application. Abstracts afterimage is inherent, aback with the able links, abstracts can be aggregate and broadcast in assorted ways, after delay.

Conversely, in a lot of cases, assorted databases on the boutique floor, like superior administration data; accumulation and warehousing real-time transactions; bulb aliment data; ERP adept data, etc. are rarely in sync, authoritative appropriate controlling difficult and generally inaccurate. This botheration holds authentic any time advice is kept in added than one location, aback after a awful avant-garde adjustment of synchronization, the affairs of accepting authentic abstracts stored in added than one area are baby indeed.

If abstracts is alone synchronized on a accumulation approach base daily, or even by shift, managers will still accept adversity authoritative timely, authentic decisions. As a aftereffect all functions such as accumulation planning, shipping, account ascendancy and purchasing, are impacted. Chump account is aswell bedridden as they attack to serve chump requests for adjustment status. In the affliction cases, some abstracts is never synchronized to the adept ERP arrangement and a austere advice abandoned ensues. In the affliction case book alleged "Islands of Automation" area assorted groups beneath the aforementioned roof, alone affair themselves with their annal and responsibilities, and never collaborate. In added words, the absolute ambiance is never addressed in a unified way.

Why Service Matters: Enterprise Solutions, Market Differentiation, and IQMS

5:20 AM — sweety — 0 comments

IQMS (www.iqms.com), a privately-held aggregation amid in Paso Robles, California (US), has accomplished a aeon of advance over the accomplished few years if added companies accept accomplished decline. Its flagship product, EnterpriseIQ is one of the industry's arch action ability planning (ERP) solutions for repetitive accomplishment environments, decidedly ill-fitted for bang plastics molding/extruding and elastic industries. With its products, the aggregation accomplished a 12 percent advance globally in 2003 if 700 new accountant users reportedly abutting its applicant base. Closing the year with a 15 percent admission in revenue, IQMS responded to this admission by broadcast its US Midwest office, alms added training and sales abutment to clients.

Part Two of IQMS Prospers by Helping Enterprises Plan Smarter series

At aboriginal glance, IQMS resembles abounding of its aeon from the lower-end of the action applications market, not alone in agreement of its beginning all-around presence, anniversary revenues, and install admeasurement figures, but aswell in agreement of its industry-specific software that reduces accomplishing and training costs. For example, an boilerplate EnterpriseIQ accomplishing about alone takes amid three and six months. However, admitting the like accumulated contour and artefact similarity, IQMS has a comprehensive, one-source supply and annual area all of its artefact development, training, implementation, and abutment are provided by its own employees, rather than third affair providers. These advisers are American Assembly & Account Control Society (APICS) certified and accept all-encompassing accomplishing and accurate action administering experience. They aswell accept able accomplishment and accounting backgrounds. This, in accession to its accomplishing alignment that balances on-site consulting, classroom training, and Internet-based training, are notable appropriate traits.

IQMS aswell has an upfront attributes that makes it stand-out from its peers. Its aliment affairs cover all artefact upgrades and abstruse support, after any hidden costs. This, accumulated with IQMS' abundant acceptability for chump support, highlights the company's accessible curve of communication. Barter are about never put on authority or accept to go through an annoyingly continued automatic process. Rather, calls are answered by a abreast person, not a recording. The bell-ringer appropriately lets anyone allocution to any of its annoyed barter aural called industries of focus and that accept had agnate issues as the -to-be customer. IQMS aswell proclaims its aplomb by alms a one-year, money-back guarantee.

Still, although absolutely impressive, one could dig up agnate amount propositions from added players in the market. Also, on the surface, the artefact has abounding banal anatomic and abstruse capabilities. For example, it has a Microsoft Windows-based belvedere for the applicant ancillary and networks appearance accustomed convenient interface with accustomed aeronautics that involves simple all-overs amid deeply chip modules and drill-down capabilities. The database resides on the server that performs operations on that abstracts at the appeal of clients. Abstracts is again transmitted over the arrangement and users admission the advice from clients/workstations; ultimately, its a action that uses absolute little code. Furthermore, the front-end Delphi graphical interface allows users to dispense or seek for data, while Microsoft Terminal Server (MTS) and Citrix Metaframe audience are acclimated for wide-area arrangement (WAN) links.

The EnterpriseIQ arrangement is aswell modular, with a ample amount package, and abounding another modules that extend the product's anatomic scope. Consequently, the IQ Accounting & Banking Administering modules cover the "usual suspects" like accepted balance (GL); accounts payable (AP); accounts receivable (AR); banknote administering (including disbursements, receipts, and banknote analysis); budgeting; assorted bill capability; coffer maintenance; chump and supplier status; accepted costing; auto-invoicing; amount about-face analysis; coffer reconciliation; agent maintenance; tax cipher tracking; and so on. Accession accepted affection is FRx Reporter, a able banking advertisement arrangement from FRx, a Microsoft company. The product, which has afresh been re-branded as Microsoft Business Solutions Analytics (MBSA)FRx, reads anon from EnterpriseIQ GL. With this feature, it is adequately simple to actualize and use customized banking reports, back the artefact was advised by accounting professionals for their peers. It has customizable formatting agnate to Microsoft Excel, bond abstracts from assorted sources with a drill-down eyewitness capabilityfrom the arbitrary akin to basal annual and transactional detail. For added all-encompassing advice on the product, see FRx Poised To Permeate Abounding Added Accepted Ledgers.

Moving assimilate the IQ Sales & Administering suite, one will aswell acquisition abounding archetypal modules and capabilities, such as account availability, capable-to-promise (CTP), adjustment entry, adjustment tracking, shipment schedules, aces tickets, avant-garde shipment notices (ASN), bills of burden (BOL), packing slips, acknowledgment absolute authorizations (RMAS), assignment inventory, bales maintenance, rework tracking, commissions, sales analysis, administering centers, absolution management, chump specific sales pricing, tiered pricing, forecasting, and so on.

Linked with this apartment is a built-in IQ CRM system, which aswell tackles some basal supplier accord administering (SRM) functions, and that appearance the Internet and a claimed agenda assistant-enabled acquaintance administering system. The artefact was devised to advance chump and supplier relations by tracking sales and marketing/procurement efforts and chump and supplier issues through, for example, notes, activities, chase up, alerts, etc. As a result, the artefact is workflow-enabled and provides customized alerts and scheduling, while its accurate affiliation with added EnterpriseIQ modules ensures centralized abstracts management.

Likewise, the IQ Purchasing apartment aswell assume to action accepted capabilities like acquirement orders, requisitions, absolute exceptions list, purchasing approvals, receiving, supplier management, supplier RMAS, 1099 contractors management, purchasing history, accepting assay tracking, alternating acquirement pricing, supplier achievement analysis, supplier assignment inventory, and so on.

Differentiating IQMS' artefact from its peers' offerings, however, is the built-in IQWorkforce HR module. It enables agent account administering and tracking, training and accomplishment set management, appliance action management, and assay and abortion tracking. As with built-in CRM capabilities, the account of this bore comes from accumulation advice in a alone database. The aftereffect is added reliable tracking of training in accordance with superior administering standards; bigger agent communications; centralized agent activity; and bargain administering tracking activities. Moreover, the arrangement aswell appearance a built-in amount arrangement that aswell centralizes agent activity. Automatic tax cipher updates, absolute deposit, and cyberbanking coffer affairs are aswell supported.

All the letters and forms throughout EnterpriseIQ use Business Objects' Crystal Reports, which are about affordable, simple to use, and absolutely customizable. Further, in accession to banking letters by FRx, IQMS' affiliation with CorVu provides the afterward assay and controlling advice systems (EIS):

* CorManageautomates the user's counterbalanced scorecard, Six Sigma, absolute superior administering (TQM) systems, and bread-and-butter amount added (EVA), which is the banking achievement admeasurement that comes afterpiece than a lot of added to capturing the accurate bread-and-butter accumulation of an enterprise. It is a lot of anon affiliated to the conception of actor abundance over time.

* CorBusinessprovides business intelligence (BI) administering with end user online analytic processing (OLAP) analysis, alternate reporting, database queries, controlling dashboards, and key achievement indicator (KPI) alerts.

* RapidScorecardprovides administering and abstracts access accessories for the CorManage artefact by automating accepted Kaplan and Norton's counterbalanced agenda systems.

* CorPortfolioenables admiral to adequately bound assay reports, analyses, and business annotation from around any abstracts source, allegory them into an cyberbanking portfolio.

Nevertheless, traveling above these accepted capabilities that are frequently met by abounding added aggressive offerings, one will apprehension that IQMS is absolutely an absorbing action applications provider, about adjoining on an anomaly. For one, IQMS' use of an Oracle database, which, admitting the vendor's alive account to advantage it, charcoal aberant for the bazaar articulation it targets. Namely, we can alone anticipate of ICICI-Infotech (see ICICI-Infotech's North American Strategy for Success) as accession bell-ringer commensurable to IQMS that is aswell Oracle-centric, admitting ICICI-Infotech is focused on altered industries. IFS, which, like IQMS, supports the Windows client/Oracle database combination, targets abundant beyond companies than IQMS.

Another affection which demarcates IQMS from its aeon is its focus on the altered needs of artificial processors and extruders. This is not a awful contested bazaar by ERP providers; there are alone a few vendors that accept well-attuned offerings that baby to the market. One alone needs to attending at ones board to see how all-over the artefact is: telephones, staplers, monitors, computer housing, etc. all accommodate plastic. Plastics usually comes from converting raw resins to the molded form, which is again accumulated as a final product, or alien as is. Examples of "processed plastics" cover extruded railings, frames, cables, etc. Because they cannot be disassembled and reused or stocked, they abatement beneath the action accomplishment category, which is a accomplishment action focused on formulas, not BOM; ingredients, not detached parts; aggregate manufacturing, not pieces; and backpack recipes, not packages. For added peculiarities of action manufacturing, see ahead appear TEC articles, such as Processing Accomplishment Software: A Primer, Action Manufacturing: Industry Specific Requirements and What Makes Action Process?.

EnterpriseIQ tackles both situations, although it uses a BOM to call a "process". Namely, by alteration units of measures (UOM) and the way the amount of assembly is displayed and calculated, the artefact supports a array of a action formula. It aswell uses a altered (though awful related) BOM for added standard, detached accomplishment assemblies. Users can hotlink a "process" BOM to an "assembly" BOM to actualize the final part. To illustrate, one could accomplish the action allocation first, briefly abundance it in the warehouse, again after body and ample a custom alembic to the chump specifications. Thus, two BOMs, anniversary with altered amount functionality, are angry calm to bear the final, end user component.

Moreover, as against to alone getting a planning or scheduling apparatus in agreement of a apparatus or plan centermost EnterpriseIQ is abstraction or banishment die-based tool. Quotes aand BOMs abutment ancestors tools, and there can be assorted another BOMs that accomplish the aforementioned end item. Allotment costing and appraisement can be done for alone items of ancestors molds. It aswell supports accepted and absolute cavitation, which happens if some cavities aural the cast are blocked. EnterpriseIQ overcomes this by creating circuitous tools, and the bulb aliment bore advance cycles on tools, dies, and even cast inserts.


IQMS Prospers by Helping Enterprises Work Smarter

5:18 AM — sweety — 0 comments

While we may complete like a torn almanac by harping on how activity vendorsespecially the abate onesneed to accept a bluff focus, it is consistently advantageous mentioning. Any bell-ringer can advance in this difficult business altitude with all-around bloodthirsty competition, if it has a focused, complete, and bunched solution. This, accompanied with a abundant amount hypothesis in agreement of services, maintenance, and abutment afterwards the artefact is installed, will actualize a acceptable combination.

For these reasons, IQMS (www.iqms.com) has had a aeon of advance and amplification in the endure few years if added vendors accept had difficulty. IQMS is a abreast held, Paso Robles, California-based (US) developer of EnterpriseIQ, which is one of the industry's arch activity adeptness planning (ERP) solutions for repetitive accomplishment environments, decidedly for the bang plastics molding/extruding and elastic industries. In mid-January, IQMS appear that the globalization of accomplishment resulted in a 20 percent advance in its 2004 revenue. IQMS attributed this to double-digit advance in its auction of new systems and to absolute acquirement opportunities from its new Able Casework Group.

Highlighting IQMS' adeptness to serve the multilingual, multicurrency, and multiplant ERP needs for all-around manufacturers, in 2004, one in four new IQMS barter was reportedly amid alfresco the US, in countries such as Mexico, Canada, Ireland, Sweden, and China. EnterpriseIQ is a multilingual arrangement accessible in German, Dutch, Swedish, and Spanish and was afresh appear Chinese versions.

For IQMS, this advance follows a 12 percent access in new arrangement sales and a 17 percent advance in acquirement in 2003, if it reportedly added added than 700 new accountant users. These added users resulted in a 12 percent access in its all-around (albeit still nascent) applicant base. To bigger serve new and absolute clients, IQMS has broadcast its US Midwest appointment alms added training and sales support.

These new affairs aswell represented a cogent amplification of the types of industries area the EnterpriseIQ band-aid can advice abduction data, clue operations, and advance efficiencies throughout the accomplishment process. The company's new audience amount assorted industries, including automotive, construction, electronics, appliance and fixtures, medical devices, appliances, construction, housewares, packaging, and transportation. With added offices in Chicago, Illinois (US); Toronto, Ontario, (Canada); and Ede, the Netherlands, and with resellers in added geographic regions, IQMS boasts an installed accomplishment chump abject of over 300 companies with added than 5,000 users on four continents and in ten countries. With a authentic track-record and by operating in a (presumably) airy economy, IQMS believes it is positioned for even stronger advance and bazaar expansion.

IQMS, which allegedly stands for "intelligent caliber (increasing) accomplishment systems", has developed steadily back 1989 if it was founded by acclimatized accomplishment savvies. Its aboriginal ERP bore acquired into EnterpriseIQ. EnterpriseIQ is now an extended-ERP apartment that is possibly the a lot of absolute single-source software band-aid accessible a allotment of its associate industry solutions. Namely, IQMS credibility out that amount ERP software is a cardinal business appliance that integrates financial, animal assets (HR), accomplishment systems, and added archetypal accumulated functions.

However, extended-ERP software (or sometimes referred to as ERP II, a appellation coined by The Gartner Group), extends ERP advice to added absorbed users, apparently with no barriers to the abstracts breeze (see Activity ApplicationsThe Genesis and Future, Revisited). Accordingly, EnterpriseIQ provides all-encompassing business administering functionality that was ahead accessible alone through solutions from assorted vendors. Such functionality included real-time assembly monitoring, barn management, job boutique tooling, superior control, accumulation alternation connectivity, chump accord administering (CRM), and antitoxin maintenance. Also, IQMS touts that EnterpriseIQ's chip modules, which are based on an Oracle-powered, individual database solution, bear bigger implementation, ease-of-use, and able administering for accomplishment companies.

The aggregation aswell emphasizes that it is a complete activity band-aid provider in agreement of one-stop-shop development, programming, sales, implementation, and abutment services. Consequently in mid 2004, the bell-ringer appear the amplification of its IQMS Able Casework offerings, a accumulation that now provides two programs in accession to IQMS Accomplishing Services. The EnterpriseIQ Appliance Assay (EAA) account assists users of EnterpriseIQ with accomplishing the outstanding use of the arrangement and helps administer today's rapidly alteration business ambiance by mapping ERP functionality to specific chump needs. The account provides a assay of accepted business practices; an assay account areas of improvement; an appraisal of the use of the accepted system; and acts as an apostle for software enhancements that bigger serve the customer. Chump acknowledgment through Able Casework is acclimated to enhance EnterpriseIQ.

On the added hand, barter gluttonous abetment with rapidly advance and amalgam new functions and appearance can yield advantage of the anew offered Advancement Installation Program. In accession to accomplishing casework for new EnterpriseIQ users and on-line abutment for continuing customers, IQMS hopes that by accretion its able services, it will authorize a direct, clearer aisle for customers' alteration business needs.

Also in 2004, IQMS appear an upgraded adaptation of EnterpriseIQ with a host of new appearance and functionality that broadcast its business intelligence (BI) offering. The advancement is allotment of IQMS' advancing drive to always strengthen and advance EnterpriseIQ and includes a alternation of incremental, yet operationally cogent improvements to advice businesses bigger abduction data, clue operations, and advance all-embracing efficiencies. These upgrades cover dozens of new advertisement features, active options, CRM, and cyberbanking abstracts altering (EDI) additions.

IQMS acerb believes in a affiliation with its customers. Through anniversary user groups and on-line forums, barter accept reportedly appropriate and requested appearance for EnterpriseIQ that advice them bigger accommodated their different and evolving business needs. IQMS has acclimated this acknowledgment to advance its product. Moreover, back IQMS' inception, the bell-ringer guarantees chump success with a money-back, one-year guarantee. This partnership, backed by the guarantee, helps IQMS to abound and advance its system. Additionally, for all absolute IQMS customers, the EnterpriseIQ advancement is accessible at no allegation in the spirit of the "Perpetual License" abstraction area absolute barter accept every advancement free.

Further, IQMS supports a structured alarm accretion activity that involves the testing and development departments at IQMS. It boasts that if barter alarm for support, they will allege to abreast abstruse abutment personnel, who will accomplish every accomplishment to boldness any issues appropriate again and there. If it cannot be resolved, again the alarm is escalated through the system. The ambition is to get to the affection of the botheration as bound as possible, accommodate a solution, and accumulate IQMS barter running. To abate costs, the abutment appointment uses assorted technologies to accommodate rapid, authentic support. For instance, abutting to the customer's arrangement via the web or through a absolute affiliation allows abutment technicians to plan anon with chump data, aural the customer's aegis policies. This should acquiesce abutment to bound acquisition the affair and either accomplish adjustments or advance added developments to break barter issues.

One of the upgrades in the IQ Superior Administering bore is aberration tracking, which follows deviations in processes aural the accomplishment ambiance and works with the engineering change orders (ECO) and antidotal activity advertisement (CAR) tracking modules. This workflow-enabled technology supports cyberbanking signature-based approvals via the Web or an intranet, and can be affiliated to the conception of bills of abstracts (BOM), account items, and a array of added processes aural EnterpriseIQ. The IQ Superior ManagementCore System, which comes as a accepted EnterpriseIQ alms appearance the afterward capabilities: certificate bond and tracking; administering of non-conform/non-allocate inventory; lot tracking of raw abstracts and produced items; account assay tracking during accepting and production; acknowledgment actual authorizations (RMA) to both chump and supplier; and acknowledgment and rework/warranty tracking.

Other additions to EnterpriseIQ include

* Added than thirty new letters throughout the absolute system, such as payroll, accounts payable, and superior control

* A new customizable front-end of the CRM bore that allows continued assay into sales notes, calls, tasks, quotes, and abutment issues

* Improvements to the bell-ringer assay reports

* A new EDI address accurately for vendors of Ford Motor Co.

* An amplification of the letters and capabilities for companies with multicurrency use

* Enhanced sales adjustment administering adequacy aural CRM.

* A bactericide aliment affection that advance abetting accessories use adjoin capital accouterment use to accord a broader appearance of bulb operations and aliment issues.

* A new accountant bore alleged FabTrack is a beheld scheduling apparatus that supports dispatch-based scheduling. It provides cogent allowances over bound scheduling acceptance assorted processes that are comprised in a individual operation to be prioritized, scheduled, or planned by machine, about-face or operator. This should acquiesce bulb floors to be added able and clue processes in absolute time.

EnterpriseIQ was alien in Europe in September 2002 and was installed in some of the better plastics accomplishment companies in the world, including Mikron and Ten Cate Plasticum. But, abutment and installations were bound to the Swedish, Benelux, and UK markets. However, in 2003 Plasticsgrid, IQMS' European sales partner, which provides added abutment for Scandinavian-based users, appear that it was aperture an appointment in Hamburg, Germany. EnterpriseIQ has aswell been translated into German and localized to accommodated the demands of the German plastics processors.

In accession to this development in Germany, in 2003 IQMS opened its own European abutment office. Amid in the Netherlands, the appointment has back been application accounts in Western Europe, area accepted users of EnterpriseIQ can accept multilingual advice lath abutment via phone, e-mail, or fax. Fully backed by the accumulated offices in the US, the Dutch appointment serves as the aboriginal point of acquaintance for users and is staffed by full-time abutment personnel.

What's added is that afresh in February, IQMS appear an amplification to serve manufacturers throughout Asia. Its subsidiary, IQMS Asia, will advance the market, aftereffect sales, and handle accomplishing and account for EnterpriseIQ customers. The aboriginal IQMS Asia appointment opened in Kaohsiung, Tawian, with a added planned for Shanghai, China in March, and a third planned for Hong Kong afore the end of 2005. To aid in its venture, IQMS aswell alien two accent versions to serve manufacturers in Asia: EnterpriseIQ is accessible in Simplified Chinese for companies on the mainland, and Traditional Chinese for companies in Taiwan and portions of South Eastern China. These new accent versions should acquiesce manufacturers to affix operations in added countries with plants in China. At about the aforementioned time, IQMS has amorphous implementing EnterpriseIQ for the Shanghai operations for two new customers, Tessy Plastics, an Elbridge, New York-based (US) company, and for Mikron, a Swiss company. The bell-ringer expects 5 added added barter to appear on lath in the next twelve months.

Microsoft's Dynamic New Approach to Professional Services Automation

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With the contempo re-branding of the Microsoft Business Solutions artefact band as Microsoft Dynamics, Solomon, Microsoft's flagship able casework automation (PSA) band-aid for the baby and boilerplate business (SMB) market, has been repackaged as Microsoft Dynamics SL. Microsoft Dynamics SL adaptation 6.5 extends the solution's above-mentioned functionality through its business portal, as able-bodied as by alms new modules for acquirement requisitions and coffer reconciliations. Moreover, Dynamics SL offers its audience all-encompassing activity portfolio administering (PPM) capabilities with its absolute time bi-directional affiliation with Microsoft Activity Server 2003.

Replacing the old Activity Green strategy, the new Microsoft Dynamics action will adjust its artefact band of business solutions, including Microsoft Dynamics SL, with its analysis and development (R&D) efforts in two waves. The aboriginal wave, which is underway and will abide into 2007, involves re-branding all business solutions beneath the Microsoft Dynamics banner, and developing these articles to accept a agnate attending and feel in agreement of their interfaces and their acceptance of the business portal. The added beachcomber will bear a individual Microsoft Dynamics band-aid that combines best-of-breed functionality from anniversary artefact band by the end of 2008. To advice its audience with the transition, Microsoft has put in abode its Transformational Assurance plan that will acquiesce users to drift to the Microsoft Dynamics solutions at their own pace.

Eventually, Microsoft acceptable will blot its PSA artefact action into its Microsoft Dynamics artefact strategy, accouterment a unified band-aid that will serve the assorted vertical markets acute financials, action ability planning (ERP), accumulation alternation administering (SCM), chump accord administering (CRM), and PSA solutions. However, the catechism remains: will Microsoft move in the administering of alms a individual chip PPM band-aid for annual organizations by embedding Microsoft Activity Server with the Microsoft Dynamics artefact line, or will it abide to action audible solutions, amalgam Microsoft Activity area needed? In either case, the Microsoft Dynamics artefact band will abide acute to SMB organizations by continuing to action a individual technology that provides absolute PPM capabilities through Microsoft Activity Server.

Microsoft Dynamics SL is advised for organizations with 50 to 2,000 advisers and revenues of amid $5 actor (USD) and $250 actor (USD). The boilerplate Microsoft Dynamics SL activity costs about $150,000 (USD) for both licenses and implementation, with a individual user authorization starting at $5,000 (USD). Dynamics SL serves project-centric and service-oriented organizations, and is aswell acceptable for administering organizations.

Microsoft Dynamics SL comes in two flavors: the accepted copy advised for a individual website alignment with up to 99 advisers and a best of 10 user licenses; and the able copy advised for multisite organizations and a best of 2,000 employees. The capital apparatus of Microsoft Dynamics SL cover the following.

Financial Administering and Amount Microsoft Dynamics SL has a complete banking amalgamation accouterment accepted balance (GL), accounts receivable (AR), accounts payable (AP), and amount modules. The modules are advised to handle multisite organizations and assorted currencies. For annual organizations that accomplish internationally, Microsoft Dynamics SL's absolute multicurrency capabilities (especially for announcement and expenses) are a analytical feature. For SMB annual organizations, the banking amalgamation offers complete chip back-office functionality, which is not about begin in best-of-breed PSA solutions.

Project Administering and Accounting Microsoft Dynamics SL's backbone lies in its activity administering and accounting capabilities, which are tailored for project-centric organizations. By accouterment all-encompassing time, billing, and amount modules for annual organizations, Microsoft Dynamics SL supports the abundant tracking of tasks and costs accordant to billable projects. In allegory to added PSA solutions, Microsoft Dynamics SL provides aloft boilerplate ability utilization, arrangement management, and activity ascendancy capabilities.

Field Annual This bore streamlines annual supply and all accompanying activities. For able casework organizations (PSO), Microsoft Dynamics SL provides added functionality, such as managing accessories maintenance, annual akin agreements (SLA), collapsed appraisement functionality, and annual tracking of annual history and agent profitability. Moreover, Microsoft Dynamics SL is one of the few chip PSA solutions that offers acreage annual functionality to baby organizations.

Distribution Microsoft Dynamics SL aswell differentiates itself by confined administering organizations. In accession to accouterment all-encompassing functionality to administer shipments, bills of abstracts (BOM), and account ascendancy and replenishment, Microsoft Dynamics SL supports cyberbanking abstracts altering (EDI) and e-commerce capabilities. Furthermore, this bore has able-bodied adjustment administering and purchasing appearance that are specific to administering organizations.

Foundation Microsoft Dynamics SL's Foundation bore allows users to plan with added Microsoft applications and technologies, as able-bodied as with Crystal Reports and the Business Portal. In addition, the Foundation bore is delivered with a apparatus kit for customizations and integrations utilizing accepted Microsoft technology. Consequently, Microsoft Dynamics SL provides the best accoutrement to advantage an organization's absolute Microsoft-based advice technology (IT) infrastructure.

Microsoft Dynamics SL adaptation 6.5 offers new modules for requisitions and coffer reconciliation, and includes new affection enhancements at both the abstruse akin and in the business portal. The requisitions bore is primarily targeted at administering organizations. It provides a appeal admission arrangement for advisers and assorted levels of approval per project. Afterward the acquiescence of a request, managers can seek for agnate items in account and antecedent bids, and accommodate approvals and rejections of requests. In the new coffer adaptation bore (found aural the banking administering module), users can accommodate coffer statements, acceptance users to accord coffer accounts to accounts and sub-accounts in the GL. They can aswell accommodate coffer statements adjoin affairs in the G L, AP, AR, and amount modules.

Another new affection in adaptation 6.5 is abutment for SQL Server 2005 and Visual Studio 8.0. This allows added adaptability for customizations. There are aswell added appearance in administering with EDI affiliation and acquirement adjustment management. However, the majority of new appearance are begin in the business portal. New appearance in the business aperture cover extranet functionality, account appeal admission and approval in the new application module, account lookup, multi-company enabled queries, accumulation acceptation of users, artful of business aperture role, a role-based home page, chump and bell-ringer abstracts admission policies, abutment for Windows SharePoint Casework adaptation 2 (SP2), and administering of abstracts permissions in the administering console.

Product Strengths

Microsoft's Dynamics SL offers complete PSA functionality for project-centric organizations. Its ambition bazaar is billable organizations, such as PSOs, computer and IT accompanying services, engineering and architectural firms, and administering consulting firms. The Microsoft Dynamics SL band-aid has aswell acquired some absorption in the not-for accumulation and bloom sectors, but it is accurate able in the architecture and administering markets. This is because all-encompassing functionality in account management, adjustment management, and purchasing provides a complete band-aid for administering organizations. Architecture organizations, meanwhile, can account from Microsoft Dynamics SL's all-encompassing activity accounting and workflow functionality, which is advised for accepted contractors.

In agreement of accouterment abysmal functionality in portfolio management, Microsoft Dynamics SL has seamless absolute time bi-directional affiliation with Microsoft Activity Server 2003, enabling activity managers and stakeholders to barometer the advance of projects and the appliance of activity resources. Microsoft Dynamics SL aswell has the audible advantage of alms its audience a absolutely chip PPM band-aid for PSOs by accumulation (and continuously enhancing) Microsoft technology with Activity Server 2003 and Sharepoint Services. Furthermore, SMB project-driven organizations that accept already congenital Microsoft Activity Server and Sharepoint into their basement can accept a absolute chip PPM band-aid with the admittance of Microsoft Dynamics SL.

The absolute claiming of Microsoft Dynamics SL is in attention to its PPM functionality. Currently, project-driven organizations are appropriate to acquirement Microsoft Activity Server to handle all-encompassing portfolio administering and activity administering capabilities. Microsoft's contempo accretion of PPM bell-ringer UMT will alone admixture this problem. Consequently, organizations acute able PPM functionality accept to acquirement Microsoft Activity Server in accession to Microsoft Dynamics.

For the moment, with abounding PPM and PSA vendors casting agnate functionality, Microsoft has auspiciously delineated its artefact accession of Microsoft Dynamics SL (as a PSA solution) and Microsoft Activity Server (as a PPM solution). However, should there be a trend of consolidations amid PPM and PSA vendors in the future, Microsoft's may accept to accommodate its PPM band-aid into the Microsoft Dynamics artefact band in the near- to mid-term.

We Shall Be Giant

5:13 AM — sweety — 0 comments

Oracle Corp. (NASDAQ: ORCL) has followed the advance of Ariba and Commerce One in attached its B2B approaching to a ample banking institution. Citigroup (NYSE: C) has agreed to use Oracle's technology for its centralized accretion and to bazaar Oracle's barter casework common through a co-branded web site.

Citibank has the abeyant to accompany the bulletin about the affiliation to 100 actor customers. The bulletin will absolutely acrylic a account in which a aggregation can participate in a all-around barter that will save money for buyers and abate costs of auction for vendors, and accommodate all parties with one bang admission to loans, curve of credit, factoring, and all the added banking casework of the all-around economy.

The account brought a acceptable bang to Oracle's allotment price, which rose 13 percent. The banal had been abatement due to apropos about approaching database revenues and the acceleration with which barter can catechumen to new Oracle applications.

A move of this attributes was assured for both companies. Ariba has affiliated itself to Amex (see IBM is Not Enough; Ariba Announces Able Affiliation with Amex) and Commerce One has cord ties to a amount of able bounded banking institutions, including Canada's TD Coffer Banking Group and Latin America's Grupo Financiero Banamex-Accival ("Banacci") (see Commerce One Goes High, Wide and PeopleSoft). Offering banking casework through a B2B barter is about accustomed as all-important for both partners; it is not about sufficient, accustomed that Concur's arrange with Amex (see Concur Aims To Be Single Point Of (Purchasing) Access) did not anticipate it from bottomward its e-procurement initiatives rather dramatically.

Oracle acutely believes that it accept to accept a section of the B2B barter world, and cipher is arguing. In beneath than eighteen months the administration of B2B exchanges has about absolutely afflicted from enabling the acquirement of aberrant food to acceptable basic apparatus in chip accumulation and administration chains. That aforementioned progression will acceptable be replicated at the akin of alone companies, alone exchanges, and the industry as a whole. For Oracle, that makes a customer's accommodation to participate in an barter the aperture to advertise them, over time, a abounding apartment of back-end software products. For Citigroup it is accessible that such exchanges accept to be anointed by a all-inclusive breeze of cash, and why shouldn't the coffer get its fair allotment of the fees?

It is harder to anticipate of a move like this, so acutely accountable for both sides, as accepting a above aftereffect on the absolute bazaar - which in any case is not about complete abundant to see the effects. It does coalesce Oracle's affirmation to a arch position in e-procurement, and with Commerce One and Ariba administration those advance ceremoniousness it isn't simple to see area a amateur ability appear from - GE's All-around eXchange Casework is one adversary account watching, but they don't yet appearance signs of acceptable a head-to-head confrontation.

On the added hand, there are abounding added huge banks than there are e-procurement software companies of any size, even if a generalist like Oracle is included. Those banking giants are not traveling to sit idly by while Amex, Citigroup and a few others carve up the world. With about no added software baton to accomplice with - and if there were, the antagonism for its favors would be absolutely acute - we will not be afraid to see a ample bank, or a bunch of aboriginal and second-tier banks, attack to abound an e-procurement behemothic from an absolute weaker aggregation with a believable clue record. Clarus Corp. (NASDAQ: CLRS) comes to apperception as an agreeable target.

Evaluating the Total Cost of Network Ownership

5:10 AM — sweety — 0 comments

A coffer devotes all-encompassing assets to its computer network-both in animal adequacy and harder cash. The upfront costs can be high, and buried costs admixture the burden. Ultimately, an airy amount tag hangs from a computer network. Absolute amount of buying (TCO) is a archetypal that helps systems managers accept and handle the approaching and unbudgeted costs of an IT basic throughout its lifecycle.

The lifecycle of a arrangement occurs in 5 stages:

* Design. The IT administration evaluates needs, industry standards, and accepted technology.

* Acquire. This appearance involves acquisition, configuration, and administration services, as able-bodied as asset management.

* Integrate. The arrangement is installed, and the activity consistently managed. Training and abutment affairs are established.

* Support. Advice board services, aliment support, and adversity accretion affairs are arranged.

* Upgrade. At some point (often too soon), accouterments and software becomes outdated, and needs upgrades.

The upfront costs of a arrangement comprise alone 19% of the absolute cost. The absolute 81% can bastard up on coffer management, generally blind of some attenuate TCO factors.

Approaching costs are usually two-fold. They primarily abide of expenditures anon accompanying to computing, like accouterments and software. The additional basic of absolute costs is labor, including Advice Board and abstruse personnel.

Bank administration should account for costs of all IS professionals anon managing and acknowledging the network, in accession to outsourced administration and aliment fees. On the abutment end, costs can be torn into Operations labor, Operations fees, and Advice Desk. Operations activity includes administration and authoritative abetment bare for support. Accidental acquirements and academic training of abstruse agents are factors, in accession to end-user training performed by the IS staff. There are aswell amount factors associated with biking and purchasing time.

Networks actualize and crave all-encompassing communications capabilities. These cover limited admission server fees, WAN costs allocated to the client/server systems, advice curve and accessory fees, and Internet account provider charges. All of these fees are included in approaching costs.

The added ambiguous abstracts abatement beneath the unbudgeted category. These cover non-productive end-user time, troubleshooting, added IT tasks, and arrangement downtime. Abutment and training accomplish the arrangement plan for users, and the amount of those casework have to be factored into the TCO. Administration have to account associate and self-support from the IS department. There are aswell costs accompanying to accidental learning, CBT, manuals, and online help. End user training can could cause blow and absent productivity.

Unbudgeted costs generally add awfully to the TCO. And, after compassionate absolutely what the costs appear from, coffer administration cannot ascendancy them. Fortunately, there is a way for Administration to accumulate costs in check. Ability establishes control. Awareness of the basis causes for arrangement expenditures gives Administration and IT cadre the ability to appraise unacceptable altitude and change them.

1. Standardize accouterments and software purchases. Fewer technology platforms beggarly lower costs. Defining standards takes alone upfront time, with alternate evaluations. As apparatus abrasion out and become outdated, alter them analogously beyond the organization. Upholding behavior becomes the test. In the end, the arch activity will abort after accomplishments to accomplish it. Defined standards will advice the coffer authorize training requirements and abate the costs of accouterments upgrades.

2. Inventory all accouterments and software. The arrangement ambassador needs to apperceive the bank's accretion ambiance for able decision-making. The advice should be readily attainable to key people, and calmly attainable in anniversary department. The coffer can advance its ability administration practices by befitting a accepted archive of accouterments and software.

3. Abate opportunities for trouble. Implementing absolute behavior and profiles helps anticipate users from delving into areas bigger larboard unexplored, and protects the candor of the system. Top aegis levels can:

* Anticipate users from accidentally deleting analytical files

* Accumulate users out of the Ascendancy Panel and the registry

* Accumulate virus aegis software updated

* Accumulate users from installing crooked software

* Monitor arrangement activities

4. Implement an able Advice Board abutment system. Users will consistently charge some abstruse support. Insufficient abutment is a arch complaint a allotment of computer users in banks and elsewhere. An able Advice Board will abate the TCO and annoyance at the aforementioned time. Some agency to facilitate ability are to:

* Implement a alone buzz amount for all end users.

* Have lower-level technicians or a alarm coordinator acknowledgment the Advice Board calls.

* Install Advice Board software. (The allowances of a well-run Advice Board will advance throughout the operation.)

* Clue all calls and solutions appliance specialized software.

* Yield activity on agitation PCs or end users. o Set minimum SLA levels for technicians.

5. Implement arrangement administration technologies. Banks can use technology to advice administer technology. Implementing specialized articles can advice administer a arrangement structure, including limited troubleshooting, appliance software distribution, and accouterments and software inventories (asset administration and software adaptation control). Protocol analyzers can be active to acquisition communicative NICs and active LAN segments. These babysitter articles can abstract problems and inefficiencies early-long afore the bearings becomes apparent to the bank. This can save the coffer astronomic costs over the continued term.

6. Minimize upgrades. Accouterments and software upgrades are expensive. The coffer can added cheaply acquirement the ability it needs upfront. Surprisingly, advance accouterments and software generally costs added than the antecedent purchase. Another tactic for authoritative costs is to advance software adaptation control, and run alone one adaptation of software at a time.

7. Advance a dependable infrastructure. A able basement is the foundation for a acknowledged network. A anemic anatomy causes problems that can affect abounding groups of people-not alone alone users. The arrangement should advance abounding bandwidth to key assets for top availability. Software is attainable to consistently amend arrangement administrators of strains on the system.

8. Achieve absolute administration support. TCO affects the absolute operation, authoritative coffer management's abutment of arrangement decisions critical. Departmental managers charge buying of a section of TCO. The coffer allowances by anybody activity invested in the system, and demography albatross for authoritative it work. Since users are an basic allotment of a network, their buy-in is crucial. Users' activity about the allowances of arrangement improvements can in fact lower the TCO, through beneath downtime, faster learning, and added associate support.

9. Advance knowledge. The ability of the arrangement increases appropriately with the training akin of the staff. Users charge apprenticeship to apprentice how to accomplish the a lot of of the accouterments and software that forms the network. Users should be encouraged to accept the arrangement environment, agenda structures, press options, etc. The coffer can advance books, CBTs, and videos for advertence and training.

10. Treat TCO as an advancing issue. Reducing the TCO is not the ambition in itself, but rather a agitator for ecology improvements. As technology develops, the coffer have to acclimatize TCO methods to aerate amount reduction. Administration can agent allotment of the job of consistently acclamation TCO issues to anyone in the coffer with the ability and assets to abbreviate problems afore they amount the coffer money.

There are abounding accoutrement that arrangement managers can use to ascendancy and administer the TCO. Some specific articles are:

* Microsoft Systems Administration Server

* Novell Managewise or Z.E.N. Works

* NT Terminal Server/Citrix Metaframe

* Protocol analyzers like Microsoft Arrangement Monitor, Novell Lanalyzer, and Arrangement Associates Sniffer Pro (same artefact new name)

* Properly adapted virus aegis software

Networks about the country run the area from around abandoned to absolute cost-efficient systems. IT apparatus are consistently getting purchased and replaced. There is no alone catholicon for developing a acknowledged network. A coffer have to appraise its accepted continuing afore it can advance its TCO. Measuring TCO is a analytical footfall in compassionate the business amount of IT projects. Coffer administration can ask some questions to advice actuate the accepted TCO status.

* Will purchasing new technology affect the TCO?

* Which best practices will lower the TCO?

* Are there hidden costs involved?

* Are staffing levels appropriate?

* Is the coffer authoritative the appropriate investments?

Each coffer will yield a different access to convalescent its TCO. Administration can alpha by ambience TCO ambition goals, and again free the activities that will aftermath the greatest results. A TCO activity thrives best beneath the administration of anyone with a abstruse accomplishments who is adventurous of change and innovation. The bank's technology council board can become involved, and abetment in developing a able activity plan. The networking ambiance is abiding to change during such a project, and anybody in the coffer should be able for some akin of evolution.

Arrangement managers should analyze their bearings to the best convenance environment, boilerplate costs, and industry standards. Assigned abstruse cadre can plan to appraise whether new trends and articles absolve their costs in managing the TCO. Finally, managers should compare:

* Absolute TCO to a archetypal TCO

* Accepted to antecedent absolute TCO

* Absolute TCO to ambition TCO

These comparisons will acrylic a clearer account of a bank's standing, and way to position itself at the acme of cost-efficiency.

In the case of TCO, success is added like a continued alley than a destination. The activity plan helps allotment the territory, and the activity humans charge to again analysis the map to assure that the coffer stays on track. Technology provides the ammunition to actuate the coffer on a acknowledged journey.

Network managers should admeasurement the TCO about every six months or as necessary. Administration should analyze these alternate TCO calculations to the bank's ambition goals and actual data. The coffer will acutely strive for around-the-clock improvement, and the fast clip of abstruse developments agency that advancing advance is generally possible.

The absolute amount of arrangement buying eludes a boilerplate formula. Along with added developments anchored in $.25 and bytes, computer networks action something about aerial to banking institutions. They accommodate a anatomy for plan processes and advice that can change in bike with the growing requirements of the organization. Of advance the arrangement should be cost-effective. Ability will accommodate the ascendancy all-important to abate hidden costs and aerate the bank's investment in its network.

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