ETASKMAKER®
Company: InterPlan Systems Inc., P.O. Box 590131, Houston, Texas 77259 USA
Description: eTaskMaker allows professionals to generate resource-loaded project schedules based upon parametric data [quantities, dimensions and multiple choice questions for scope definition]. Project schedules may then be exported to leading project management applications and/or Microsoft Excel® for cost estimating.
Features:
More than 100 estimating modules for industrial plant construction and maintenance and ship repair
Multiple export integrations—Artemis, InterPlan, Microsoft, Primavera, Sciforma and Welcom
Customizable [edit existing estimating modules or build new ones from scratch]
Secure-estimating modules are locked with your serial number and will not work without your licensed version of the software.
WELCOMRISK
Company: Welcom, 15990 N. Barkers Landing Rd., Suite 350, Houston, Texas 77079 USA
Description: Using the comprehensive risk register and graphical reporting tools in WelcomRisk, organizations identify, categorize and track risks throughout the project lifecycle. Integrated risk mitigation steps provide a means of proactively reducing risk and improving the chance of project success.
Features:
Configurable risk planning framework
Comprehensive risk register
Interactive risk tree
Detailed risk matrix
Time phased waterfall diagrams
Process-oriented risk mitigation
Flexible reporting options.
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Engineering Firm Improves Client Relations With CRM Tool
Cultivating and maintaining client relationships is important for most firms, including Davis, Calif., USA-based West Yost & Associates (WYA), a consulting civil engineering firm that must be able to send out responses to requests for proposal quickly, communicate internally and track project progress.
The manual system the company was using to create proposals proved to be laborious and inefficient. “Before I was able to get rolling on a new proposal, I needed to spend time with the principals,” says Jenna Makus, marketing manager for WYA, noting that the process proved time-consuming. She found a better way with Award from Wind2 Software Inc., Ft. Collins, Colo., USA.
Company: West Yost & Associates, Davis, Calif., USA
Challenge: Keep all principals and managers informed on the status of projects, and decrease the amount of time needed to create requests for proposal
Project: Institute a software program that centralizes client and project information, saves marketing managers time and eliminates duplication of efforts
Solution: Award from Wind2 Software Inc., Ft. Collins, Colo., USA
ROI: Employees are able to dedicate more time to existing projects, and the company's backlog has increased from six to eight months to almost a year.
Ms. Makus entered the firm's major previous projects into the project module of Award and categorized them by project type and discipline. “With the database populated, I can provide a first draft of the proposal to the principals at our first meeting,” she says. “The time needed for research by both the principals and myself has been substantially reduced.”
Award also has enabled the company to set up a central Web location for employees to track and manage interactions with potential and actual clients. “In the past, there was no way for one person to know what another person was doing,” Ms. Makus says. “[Now], before meeting with a client, we can check on current client activity, enabling us to walk into the meeting well-informed.”
Ms. Makus says the time demand on principals and the marketing support staff has decreased substantially. “We are now able to avoid duplication of efforts while tracking a much higher volume of potential new business,” she says. Since we have started using Award, our backlog has grown from six to eight months to nearly a year.”
Reader Service Number 193
Around the World in a Container Carousel
When the U.S. Marines needed an efficient, organized method of transporting project materials halfway around the world, leaders turned to FKI Logistex White Systems, Kenilworth, N.J., USA, a company that specializes in carousel technology.
White Systems designed a unique container carousel system that enables quick and orderly dispensing of small maintenance and repair parts. The first of 19 was deployed at Camp Fox outside of Kuwait City, Kuwait, after being stocked in the U.S., transported to Kuwait by ship and then trucked to the field.
A self-contained automated system of linked bins travels around an oval track within a shipping container. The bins rotate to bring the necessary parts to the user in the shortest amount of time. It includes 388 cubic feet of storage, and because the system also features a port for computer hookup and the ability to use myriad generator voltages, the container carousel is exactly what the Marines were looking for. Users can refill the inventory easily.
Organization: U.S. Marines
Challenge: Design an efficient system to supply Marines in the Middle East with needed materials
Project: Create a customized carousel system to enable quick, accurate dispensing of small maintenance and repair parts
Solution: Carousel Technology from FKI Logistex White Systems, Kenilworth, N.J., USA
ROI: The carousel system has enabled users to maximize the amount of material shipped and has saved users time by bringing the supplies directly to the user faster.
“The primary goal of the container carousels is to provide high-density storage and dedicated locations for materials,” says John Molloy, vice president of White Systems. “We've designed this equipment as mini-warehouses, able to be shipped, carted and dropped as a standard ocean freight container. These carousels are an excellent way to mobilize inventory for rapid deployment of any material that fits, be it firefighting or in Iraq.”
Reader Service Number 020
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