February 2010 Newsletter
Simplify Implementation with Solution Packs
Many companies enter into an IT service engagement without a clear idea of timelines and deliverables. A block of hours is purchased, but the project either stalls in the early stages or the hours get used up before implementation is complete. Don’t let your project fall into the abyss. Turn to RJS for a Professional Services Solution Pack tailored to meet the needs of your company’s project.
RJS Software will work with your project implementation team to define clear goals and delivery dates. Whether it’s scripting, a small exit program, or a larger undertaking like WebDocs, RJS Software’s Project Management Team will ensure your objectives are met. We’ll review the project’s progress with you regularly to prevent small hiccups from becoming giant scope creep.
RJS offers over ten different Solution Packs. Choose the one that meets your needs, or create your own custom pack based on your project objectives. Contact RJS at sales@rjssoftware.com or call 888-RJS-SOFT to learn more.
Andy Roeser, Marketing - aroeser@rjssoftware.com
Start Capturing Signatures Now
Over the past few years we've received a number of requests from customers who want to capture signatures electronically on key business documents such as invoices, bills of lading, proofs of delivery, HR documents, legal contracts and more. RJS has responded by releasing a new Signature Capture product for capturing signatures on any business document you can generate.
The RJS Signature Capture software allows you to easily and cost-effectively capture and apply electronic signatures to documents generated from all of your business systems. Document sources include IBM i spool files, Windows and Linux applications, database-driven report generation engines such as Crystal Reports and RJS iForms, as well as other 3rd party form and reporting applications that can generate PCL, PDF or TIFF output. Contact our sales team to discuss your needs and arrange a free demo, or click here to sign up for our February 18 webinar on Electronic Signature Capture.
Richard J. Schoen, President, CTO - richard@rjssoftware.com
TRC Breaks Through the Paper Barrier
WebDocs and Enterprise Workflow help reduce costs and streamline approvals.
BACKGROUND
They may not know it, but many passengers and drivers probably owe their lives to work done by Transportation Research Center Inc. (TRC). Based in East Liberty, Ohio, TRC provides comprehensive automotive research, development, and testing services and facilities to manufacturers, industry organizations and government agencies worldwide. The general public is probably most familiar with TRC’s Impact Laboratory Operations. They perform hundreds of crash tests each year.
CHALLENGE
One of TRC’s 12 buildings, a climate-controlled structure about the size of an average barn, was filling up. Not with test equipment, but with paper. After more than thirty years of testing, TRC had accumulated numerous proposals, test reports, land maps, leases, correspondence and other documents that could not be thrown out in the event they were needed in the future.
The space requirement is an obvious cost of storing paper, but paper has other drawbacks as well. It has to be filed, moved and managed manually. Factor in a barn-full of documents, and the costs escalate quickly. Paper-based document management is also extremely inefficient. Papers can be hard to find when misfiled, not to mention when they’re sitting on someone’s desk.
Some of TRC’s business processes are very complex. These are made more cumbersome by the use of paper. Many documents are generated when a customer comes to TRC with a project request. These documents are assembled, sent through an approval process, given to the customer for changes and then sent through the approval process again. In many cases the approvers were spread across a large corporate campus, forcing them to schedule meetings to handle approvals. This took up far too much valuable time.
TRC wanted a way to get their costs under control while automating approvals and eliminating errors. They achieved those goals with WebDocs and Enterprise Workflow.
SOLUTION
TRC runs WebDocs and Enterprise Workflow on an IBM i-based Tomcat server. They chose RJS over other alternatives for four main reasons: cost, integration, flexibility and ease-of-use and installation.
When evaluating RJS against three other vendors, TRC found RJS to be the most price-competitive. “When we looked at the other three, they were selling more than what we wanted and we had to take it all,” said John Ravotti, A/S 400 Systems Administrator at TRC. “RJS allowed us to select from a package based on our needs. We were able to pay for just what we wanted, rather than paying for everything when we only needed 45% of it.”
TRC first used WebDocs and Enterprise Workflow to tackle the project request workflow mentioned earlier. Now, all of the documents are stored as electronic images in WebDocs and routed automatically to the appropriate people by Enterprise Workflow.
Thus, the labor-intensive and error-prone paper-pushing that used to be an essential part of the process has been eliminated. In addition, TRC is using Enterprise Workflow to route Microsoft Word and Excel documents from shared network drives. After the documents are reviewed and approved, they are stored in WebDocs.
Once the approval process was under control, TRC began to work its way through the imaging of the paper in the barn. Once the documents are stored in WebDocs, they become immediately accessible online by anyone who needs them. Rather than hunting through files stored in another building, authorized personnel can now use key index criteria to retrieve documents without ever leaving their desks.
RESULTS
Within six months, TRC took a big bite out of their paper costs. They were saving over $1,300 every two months, but expected those savings to increase as they planned to implement WebDocs and Enterprise Workflow in more business areas. One of the biggest productivity gains came from a more streamlined approval process. It used to take up to ten days to approve project requests, but that process has now been reduced to about one day.
“We’ve already been reaping rewards from it,” declared Ravotti, “but it’s going to get even greater as we go along.”
When Disaster Strikes, Will You be Ready?
Keeping your business up and running, regardless of weather, power outages or other unforeseen events, is critical to your success. Is your business protected? Maybe it’s time to give your Uninterruptible Power Supplies (UPS) a check-up. It’s the beginning of a new year, and there is no better time to review the status of your power protection plan.
RJS has 20 years of experience helping clients conduct power protection reviews, and we would like to help your organization verify that your UPS will adequately protect your equipment investments. Please contact your sales representative or Sam Ulrich to begin the review process.
During February, March and April of 2010, we are running a “Buy One Get One” promotion! Contact us to begin the power protection review, and to learn more about the “BOGO” promotion.
Sam Ulrich, Hardware Sales - sulrich@rjssoftware.com
No Windows Integration Options? No Problem
Do your Windows-based line-of-business applications lack integration with other programs or databases? The RJS Windows Integrator can select data from your existing application screens for use in other applications, or it can populate your screens from other programs or data sources. Windows Integrator eliminates dual entry of information by querying other program databases to gather additional information, or it can update those databases with your data.
If you’re using a document management or ECM solution, you can initiate viewing of documents or data directly from your user applications. All of this is possible without developers touching one line of your application’s source code. The RJS Windows Integrator allows you to write scripts controlled by action buttons to do all of the above. It works with virtually any Windows application. Whether it’s VB, .NET or Web; if it runs on Windows, we can work with it.
For more information please contact your account representative or the RJS Sales Team at sales@rjssoftware.com or 888-RJS-SOFT.
Larry John, Tech Manager - larry@rjssoftware.com
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