Scada vendor appoints consulting services manager

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IBG - SA Instrumentation & Control Buyers' Guide

October 2003 News

Futuristix Advanced Control Systems, a member of the EOH group of companies, has appointed Carel de Jager as the manager of its Consulting Services department. De Jager will head up a professional team which will be involved with the consultation and upgrade of ArchestrA, SuiteVoyager, IndustrialSQL and DT Analyst from Wonderware as well as MDT AutoSave from MDT Software.

Carel de Jager, manager of Consulting Services for Futuristix

The breadth and depth of industrial automation and information management offerings from Futuristix has prompted the company to provide its end-users and customers a consulting and support service that will include site audits as well as problem and project implementation reviews.

"Today, we are in the fortunate position to be able to offer our clients a wide range of solutions that cover most aspects of scada and manufacturing execution systems," says de Jager. "This not only includes the applications themselves but also the information management and support infrastructure that make them effective in an integrated environment. This has led to an unprecedented level of sophistication in MES implementations and we would like to ensure that our customers are getting the most from their investments and that they are not missing opportunities to get the most from their applications. This often goes beyond the best and most practical training we can provide."

The Site Audit includes verifying how well clients are using the solutions they have purchased. This may lead to extended training or a review of the possibilities that exist as the result of the new automation. A review of the data from Wonderware's Down Time Analyst, for example, may reveal that more information is required from other sources in order to determine the cause of downtimes. If the end-user is not able to do this easily and as required, he or she will not be making optimal use of a powerful diagnostic tool designed to measure overall equipment effectiveness (OEE). "This technology, combined with a fresh view from outside the organisation, can help pinpoint and eliminate production stoppages due to such causes as equipment failures, operator inefficiency or general maintenance issues," says de Jager.

Another issue addressed by the extended support and consultation initiative is that of Problem Reviews where clients may feel that they are not getting the most from their applications. "After their initial needs have been addressed and they are in control of their processes, it is normal for end-users to feel that they would like to achieve more with what they have," says de Jager. "Quite often, this can be addressed by using features of the applications that were not necessary in the initial implementation or applying certain features in a different way."

The third service available as part of this initiative is that of Project Reviews where clients are kept informed as to progress during the implementation phase of a project. Timely diagnoses of potential problem areas help eliminate delays and contribute towards a more predictable end-result.

"Putting up with what you have or waiting for something to go wrong, simply is not good enough today," says de Jager. "By being proactive and helping our customers to be proactive, we can help them stay in control of their bottom lines in a far more economical way than by reacting to emergencies."

For more information contact Mike le Plastrier, Futuristix Advanced Control Systems, 011 723 9900, [email protected], www.futuristix.co.za

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