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Question: What value do you see Software Toolbox bringing to the table for System Integrators?

Answer:  You are providing products that aid System Integrators to add value to the major platforms or products. ACE works with a lot of major control platforms in the industry. What Software Toolbox brings to the table is providing these point solutions for problems that aren't necessarily mainstream. A great example is OmniServer. I’ve been using OmniServer for close to 20 years - if I have a weight scale or a barcode scanner that provides either a serial or TCP passkey protocol that i need to get into SCADA system, OmniServer is my go to product. With OmniServer I can set up the protocol, create tags for that data that then can be exposed via OPC. To be able to grab that data as a tag directly into my SCADA system that means I don't have to go in and do scripting. I don't have to write programming code to interface with that serial port or TCP port. Grab the data, parse it - that's a significant amount of cost savings. Every time I don't have the right hardware code and I can use a tool to do it - that's at least a days’ worth of cost savings.

Question: (How) are your project requirements met by Software Toolbox?

Answer: Usability and flexibility are very important to ACE. As a System Integrator we are often working on capital projects that are specific to a customer, be that a Greenfield system or an existing system where we need to add functionality. What Software Toolbox is offering us is the ability to add that custom functionality that may be more complex if we had to do the same function in the traditional way. For example: the amount of time I need to code to speak to a bar code scanner… finding the interrupt, setting up the protocol etc,. if I'm trying to talk with a SCADA system or Historian, I need to get that data into something that the SCADA system can consume. With OmniServer, I can set up a tag or several tags and be able to instantly consume that data as a tag. That saves us hours of time. TOP Server provides access to aging DCS systems that the mainstream companies may not be providing drivers for anymore. TOP Server and OPC server that have that wide breadth protocols and PLC Suites is significantly beneficial.

Question: What's your experience with the Software Toolbox Support Team?

Answer: Software Toolbox’s support is amazing. It's done at an expert level. You are always talking to someone who is well knowledgeable in the product suite that they're supporting. You are not talking to someone that's reading from a script or someone that's entry level. You are always talking with someone who is responsive and easy to get in touch with. I don't have to go through a giant phone tree, I don't have to send an e-mail first and wait for a response when I’m out there in the field when something is not working and need that support. To have that very responsive, very fast expert level support at your fingertips - that's immeasurable in the amount of dollars that you're saving. I've been doing support in my previous job for about 15 years, I know the level of stress that builds and for you guys to do it consistently on an expert level - that is invaluable.

Have questions? Contact an ACE expert.