Managing Automation - September 2007 - (Page 22)

[ COMPANIES TO WATCH] cost/profit analysis ACORN SYSTEMS INC.: Slicing and Dicing Profitability corn Systems Inc., relaunched in 2001 after its 1996 founding as a consulting company to help organizations analyze their profitability, is the developer of the Enterprise Performance Suite, a software product that helps companies understand costs and profitability by customer, product, geographic region, and other parameters. A i YEAR FOUNDED: 2001 (originally 1996, as a consulting firm) PRODUCT NAME AND CATEGORY: Enterprise Performance Suite/cost and profit analysis INDUSTRY SEGMENTS SERVED: Automotive, chemicals, CPG, distribution, electronics, financial services, food & beverage, life sciences, pharmaceuticals, retail KEY PROBLEM SOLVED: Provides an easy way to collect information from ERP and other legacy systems, and analyze it to understand which operations, customers, etc., are profitable and which are not DIFFERENTIATION: Allows manufacturers to model and analyze even complex businesses, and scales to support large enterprises TOP CUSTOMERS: Fairchild Semiconductor, Assan Aluminyum, Tempel Steel Co. FUNDING: $19 million to date from two rounds of venture capital raised from Austin Ventures and Insight Venture Partners Unlike other activity-based costing tools, Acorn’s Enterprise Performance Suite lets companies model even large, complex businesses. And because the software integrates tightly with ERP and other transaction-based systems, manufacturers can use it to drill into customer or product information to understand their profitability at a detailed level, Leland Putterman even as business conditions change. CEO “We can give people detailed analysis, such as resource utilization numbers, so they can understand where they have constraints and excess capacity,” says Acorn CEO Leland Putterman. Earlier this year, SAP AG entered into a partnership with Acorn to resell the Enterprise Performance Suite as one of its governance, risk, and compliance (GRC) offerings aimed at chief financial officers. Acorn has been able to sidestep some of the problems generally associated with analytical techniques, such as activity-based costing, says John Hagerty, vice president at AMR Research. “They’ve been more focused on the outcome rather than the process. And the outcome is helping companies understand where they are and are not profitable.” In the near future, Putterman says, Acorn will begin to tailor its tool to give profitability views into specific aspects of a manufacturer’s business. For example, Acorn will add a tool to help manufacturers understand and optimize logistics costs. — Jeff Moad wireless APPRION INC.: Managing All Wireless Networks from One Platform A pprion Inc., founded in 2004 to address the problem of managing wireless networks in process manufacturing environments, is the developer of the ION System, a combination of software and services to help manage multiple wireless environments from a single platform. Manufacturers often deploy different technologies, requiring a different management system for each wireless platform. The Apprion environment lets organizations manage multiple wireless technologies — including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, and WiMax — from one reusable platform, says Apprion co-founder and CEO Stephen Lambright. “We provide things like management and security across wireless environments so manufacturers can more easily get ROI based on each wireless device they add to their network,” he says. The ION System includes an on-site controller, the IONosphere, that provides data services, workflow, security, and monitoring of multiple technologies; network appliances, Stephen Lambright called IONizers, that tie multi-vendor wireless Co-founder and CEO sensor and device-based systems into the ION System; and applications to support security, asset tracking, provisioning, and diagnostics. Apprion has entered into a partnership with process industry control system provider Invensys PLC, to resell the ION System. Harry Forbes, a senior analyst at ARC Advisory Group, said of the partnership: “It helps them get into large process environments where a venture-backed small company might not have entry.” Apprion’s focus in the future, Lambright says, will be on expanding the range of applications it offers. — Jeff Moad i YEAR FOUNDED: 2004 PRODUCT NAME AND CATEGORY: ION System/wireless infrastructure management INDUSTRY SEGMENTS SERVED: Process manufacturing, including chemicals, oil/gas refining, power generation KEY PROBLEM SOLVED: Process manufacturers often end up with multiple wireless networks that must be managed separately. The ION System can manage multiple wireless technologies. DIFFERENTIATION: Manufacturers no longer need to redeploy management infrastructure each time they roll out a new wireless application. TOP CUSTOMERS: Lower Colorado River Authority, PPG Chemicals and Coatings FUNDING: $7.5 million in venture capital raised in 2005 led by ATV Ventures and Allegis Capital; now closing second round of funding ma September 22 2007

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Managing Automation - September 2007

Contents Take 1 Europe’s Automation Chiefs Upbeat on ’08 Business Prospects Vendor Coalition Pushes Human Element of SOA Wireless: Users Still Approaching with Caution One Year Later, IBM Shows Plan for MRO’s Maximo Study: More Work Needed to Lure Next-Gen Talent Executive Q&A Notes Cover Story: 2008 Companies to Watch Special Report: The 2007 Progressive Manufacturing High Achievers Progressive Manufacturer of the Year Business Model Mastery Innovation Mastery Customer Mastery Supply Network Mastery Data & Integration Mastery Education & Training Mastery Operational Excellence Mastery Leadership Mastery Transformation: Orchestrating the Multi-Tier Supply Network Integration: The Timeless Quest for Accurate Data Industries: Maintenance No Longer on Schedule Product Scan Advertiser Index Next

Managing Automation - September 2007

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