Reviews
"We found Visual Engineer very easy to implement and intuitive to use. Overall it has added value to our company."
Mark Groufsky, Owner and Engineer, Russley Engineering"The staff at Xempa Software Ltd are truly customer focused. They know us and our facility well and when support is needed it is always quick and reliable."
Independent Fisheries Limited
Christchurch - "The Press" - 31 August 1999Firm Breaks ground
Seeing is believing. This is the approach specialist software developer Xempla Software has taken with its new maintenance software application Visual Engineer. Key features of the software will be demonstrated at the South Island Engineering Expo.
This package is Xempla Software's flagship product, and while it may be early days for the new Christchurch-based company it has encouraged by positive reactions from market appraisals.
Visual Engineer is based on two simple concepts: user-friendliness and simplicity. Xempla recongnises that engineering and maintenance staff do not want to spend hours behind a computer. They want a system that will effectively manage their plant with minimal upheaval.
Regardless of the user's computer-literacy level Visual Engineer is easy to use. Full photo views can be used to navigate around the plant but they are not essential.
This provides the users with an intuitive means to move around their facility from within the application by clicking on a photograph of the required area or name within a picklist.
By simply "drilling down" through a series of layers they are able to locate the specific facility, item, or part required.
All information about the specific part, such as serial numbers, suppliers' stock parts, and historic and present work history, is then directly linked.
The most innovative aspect of Visual Engineer is that the parameters and layers are unlimited. The end user can customise parameters to their own use.
Among Visual Engineer's practical functions are work order management, parts inventory management, maintenance scheduling, purchasing, labour monitoring, systems messaging, supplier/contact management, graphical data reporting and an integral diary to view allocate work.
While Visual Engineer was developed within the food industry, the application is finding favour as a generic tool.
Given that information parameters are 100 per cent customisable, this software package handles facility or equipment-based environments equally well.
Users are able to configure an unlimited number of viewing layers to suit their situation.
Published on a virtual paper web site at www.industra.co.nz
30th of August 1999New and innovative maintenance database
Most maintenance on plant and machinery in many Christchurch businesses is still recorded in books, wall planners and record cards. With these systems, it is difficult to gauge exactly how much money was invested into a particular machine, how often it is being maintained and other relevant information, necessary for accurate decision to be made.
However, a Christchurch-based company, Xempla Software has developed a solution to many of these problems, with its flagship product, Visual Engineer. This is said to end the paper war for good.
Visual Engineer is based on two simple concepts: user friendliness and simplicity. Xempla recognised that engineering and maintenance staff do not want to spend hours behind a computer, and want a system that will effectively manage their plant proactively with minimal upheaval.
Easy to Use
Photo navigation allows full photo views to be used to navigate around the client's facility with a recongnisable interface. Although photo navigation is a powerful tool, the other major form of navigation is the simple Point and Click with which all computer users are familiar. The user can choose which form of navigation is employed.
Minimum Effort
A user-friendly design makes using the system easy and hassle-free. Within an individual's interactive diary, a glance will reveal which jobs need to be done, in order of priority. Placing work orders in very simplistic, and can be done by anyone that has access to the system.
Maximum Output
Flexible parameter entry means there are very few limits on what has to be input into the cells, thus making the package customisable to virtually any type of organisation. A small number of inputs generates a vast variety of data, on all outputs.
Improve Communication
Once an order is created, work order numbers will be automatically generated, and a message automatically sent to that person to make them aware of the request. No longer is the old "I did not know about it" excuse valid, and work orders mix-ups are eliminated.
Multi-level Design
Information can be stored at unlimited levels. The end user can create a numerous layers within the system. For example: factory sites, factory areas, rooms, machines, parts, sub-parts and so forth.
Other functions of the system include, Work Order Management, Parts Inventory Management, Purchasing, Labour Allocation to work orders, Diary, Contact and Supplier Management, and Management Reports.